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Friend Of Israel
Irwin Coder, new Canadian justice minister,
draws accolades from Jews.
BRAM EISENTHAL
Jewish Telegraphic Agency
Montreal
rwin Coder, Canada's newly
appointed justice minister and
attorney general, is not shy when
it comes to speaking his mind.
Directed in support of Israel, that
outspokenness has won the famed
human rights lawyer accolades from
Canada's Jews, but it has not endeared
Coder to Canada's pro Arab camp.
While Coder has been
applauded widely for his
work representing such
renowned figures as Nelson
Mandela, Andrei Sakharov,
Natan Sharansky and Jacobo
Timmerman, his outspoken
views on Israel and civil lib-
erties have generated some
criticism.
Since his election to the
Canadian Parliament in
1999, some have accused
Colter
Coder of a pro-Israel bias. His
Montreal district has a large Jewish
population and a rapidly burgeoning
Arab one.
Coder frequently speaks out against
what he sees as his government's lack-
luster criticism of anti-Israel terrorists.
He makes regular appearances at pro-
Israel rallies and breaks ranks with his
own Liberal Party when necessary.
When Canada voted on Oct. 7,
2000, in favor of a Malaysian-spon-
sored U.N. Security Council resolution
calling on Israel to use restraint in deal-
ing with Palestinian protesters, Cotler
criticized his own foreign minister,
Lloyd Axworthy, and his own party.
"This kind of resolution, which sin-
gled out Israel for discriminatory and
differential treatment and appeared to
exonerate the Palestinians for their vio-
lence," Cotler said, "would tend to
encourage those who violently oppose
the peace process as well as those who
still seek the destruction of Israel."
Coder's condemnation prompted five
Liberal lawmakers to issue a joint state-
ment against Cotler's public criticism
— and a sixth criticized him. before
3,000 pro-Palestinian demonstrators in
front of the Israeli Consulate in down-
town Toronto.
Israel is not the only issue Coder
I
cares about. Democracy, specifically
civil liberties, is dear to Cotler's heart.
When former Prime Minister Jean
Chretien pushed an anti-terrorism bill
through Parliament after the Sept. 11
attacks, Coder, then chairman of the
government's civil liberties committee,
ensured that six of his 10 amendments
to the bill protecting civil liberties were
adopted.
Civil libertarians said Coder did not
go far enough, but Cotler responded he
would "rather have an imperfect law
than no law at all."
Coder is well respected by
members of Canada's Jewish
community.
Cotler's appointment by
new Canadian Prime
Minister Paul Martin is an
"inspired choice," said Jack
Silverstone, longtime
national executive director
and legal counsel of the
Canadian Jewish Congress,
in Ottawa.
"At this juncture in our
country's legal history, I can't think of
anyone better qualified."
Silverstone has had many opportuni-
ties to work and socialize with the man
often referred to as the "Canadian Alan
Dershowitz."
"Speaking from personal knowledge,
as he was one of my law professors at
McGill University, he was highly
respected by his students and col- .
leagues," Silverstone said. He tangibly
influenced and inspired many of those
around him, including me."
Some pro-Palestinian activists are not
thrilled with Cotler. In 2002, several
Jewish and Palestinian protesters occu-
pied Cotler's Montreal office to protest
Israel's treatment of the Palestinians
and to demand that Canada take a
tougher stand against Israel. They also
said they wanted to see Cotler champi-
on human rights when it came to the
Palestinians.
The four men and three women, all
in their 20s, were arrested and charged
with trespassing after barricading them-
selves in Cotler's office.
Coder blasted the takeover of his
office, calling it an "illegal occupation"
and accusing the protesters of intimi-
dating his staff
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