[Editor's note: Below are statements by Joyce Bateman, Conservative Member of Parliament in Winnipeg South -Centre and by Jim Carr, Liberal Candidate in that riding.]

STATEMENT ON SITUATION IN ISRAEL BY MP JOYCE BATEMAN

I want to make sure my position is clear for all your readers.

I applaud Prime Minister Harper’s leadership and response to the recent terrorist acts on Israel. I am proud to stand with a principled and value based leader who continues to set a strong example in the international community by condemning these actions and standing in solidarity with Israel.

I was pleased to stand with the concerned citizens at the local Community Rally in Support of Israel which I attended. They clearly supported Prime Minister Harper’s position of support for Israel.

While Prime Minister Stephen Harper was clearly showing Canada’s unwavering support of Israel and their right to defend freedom, democracy and the rule of law, the Liberals urged “all sides demonstrate restraint,” thereby giving moral equivalency between a democratic state and terrorist organization.

Hamas rejected the Government of Egypt’s ceasefire proposal – a proposal that was accepted by Israel and welcomed by the Palestinian Authority. Innocent civilians living in Gaza deserve far better than the reckless actions of this terrorist organization.

The indiscriminate rocket attacks from Gaza on Israel are terrorist acts, for which there is no justification. It is evident that Hamas is deliberately using human shields to further terror in the region.

Failure by the international community to condemn these reprehensible actions encourages these terrorists to continue their appalling conduct. Canada calls on its allies and partners to recognize that these terrorist acts are unacceptable and that solidarity with Israel is the best way of stopping the conflict.

In the past year I have had the honour of going to Israel twice. It is a remarkable and resilient country. As Prime Minister Harper often says Israel is the sole democratic nation in the Middle East. We all need to be clear with our support for them and for democracy.

Prime Minister Harper, Member of Parliament Joyce Bateman and the entire Conservative Party of Canada are unequivocally behind Israel. Unlike many of our opponents, we do not sit on the fence or remain neutral against anti-Semitic terrorists and extremists. We support the right of Israel to defend itself, by itself, against these terror attacks, and urge Hamas to immediately cease their indiscriminate attacks on innocent civilians.

Canada reiterates its call for the Palestinian government to disarm Hamas and other Palestinian terrorist groups operating in Gaza, including the Iranian proxy, Palestinian Islamic Jihad.

Canada mourns the loss of life in Gaza and Israel, and hopes that Palestinians and Israelis will one day soon realize true peace and security.

Please join me with your support for this position.

- Joyce Bateman, M.P.

Winnipeg South Centre

STATEMENT ON SITUATION IN ISRAEL BY LIBERAL CANDIDATE JIM CARR

Yet again, the world witnesses the heart wrenching images of suffering and grief in Israel and Gaza. The seemingly endless conflict continues to take its bloody toll.

The terrorists of Hamas must be marginalized and disarmed. They do not represent the interests of the Palestinian people and their refusal to recognize Israel’s right to exist, never mind as a Jewish state but as any state at all, fuels hopelessness that a lasting peace will ever be possible in the region.

In the moment of this humanitarian crisis, the compelling next step is to stop the fighting. And it will stop, as it has every time the ugly flares of violence subside. The question is what comes next? How do we tackle the heart of the conflict so a durable peace can be negotiated? For that to happen, good faith talks between Israel and the Palestinian leadership must resume, rooted in the belief that Israel as a Jewish state is here to stay and that the Palestinians deserve a state of their own living side by side with Israel.

I am a founding member of the Arab-Jewish dialogue of Winnipeg, a group of Jews and Arabs working together to understand our differing perspectives, in common cause to advance peace in the Middle East. The dialogue enabled us to sign our own peace treaty. The fundamental compromise was that Israel return most of the West Bank to the new state of Palestine and the Palestinians give up the right of return, thereby ensuring that Israel remains a Jewish state. There were several other elements to the deal but that was at the centre of it. We know that a group of comfortable Manitobans sitting in a living room is a long way from the realities on Middle Eastern soil, but the accomplishment should not be diminished given the huge divide that was bridged.

Canada has an important part to play in the next phase. As a lifelong supporter of Israel, I share Stephen Harper’s belief in Israel’s right to protect itself, and to thrive as a democracy surrounded by hostile neighbours, some of whom seek to destroy it. This is a view shared by Justin Trudeau and the Liberal Party of Canada. But I think we should expect more from Canada, a country with such a rich history of building alliances internationally and with the diplomatic credentials to be a significant force and voice for peace in that region.

I urge the Government of Canada to begin speaking out in favour of a two-state solution, to begin working aggressively within the international community to create the necessary conditions to bring the parties back to the negotiating table.

It is hard to find a silver lining in the clouds of smoke over Gaza and Israel. If there is one, it might be that, finally, we will move away from violence and conclude that a Jewish Israel will not be denied and that a Palestinian state must emerge beside it, both living in peace and security.

- Jim Carr is the Liberal candidate in the federal riding of Winnipeg South Centre