Newspaper Article

Myron Love, “Winnipeg Jewish community protesting Yom Kippur Palestinian film festival” (Canadian Jewish News, forthcoming article)

WINNIPEG---A Canada-Palestinian film festival held here last weekend has raised the ire of the Jewish community. Not only are the films base propaganda, says Jewish community spokespeople, but running them on Yom Kippur just added insult to injury.

"If they had arranged this in somebody's basement or other private venue, it wouldn't be a problem," says David Matas, "but holding this in a publicly-funded location gives it a legitimacy it doesn't deserve.   And scheduling this on Yom Kippur ensures won't be able to go to protest or ask questions."

The Canada-Palestine Film Festival - "Images and Resistance in Israel-Palestine" -   was held Friday through Sunday at a venue downtown called Cinematheque which is managed by the Winnipeg Film Group and largely funded by the City and province.   Victor Jerrett-Enns, the Film Group's executive director, notes that Cinematheque is a community resource available to all community groups and that his organization doesn't take a political position on films shown in the theatre.

"The film festival organizers say they didn't know it was Yom Kippur," Matas says.   "Now that they know, I don't see them doing anything about it."

Paul Burrows, a spokesperson for the Canada Palestine Support Network which is putting on the film festival, counters that scheduling the films on Yom Kippur was an unintentional oversight. "We have Jewish members on our board who didn't realize it was on Yom Kippur," he says. "If we had been alerted to the fact earlier, we could have changed it, but by the time we found out everything was booked and it was too late to change it.   We timed this to coincide with the anniversary of the new Intifada which began in late September, 2000. We are upset that a number of our long time Jewish supporters aren't able to attend because of family commitments"

Matas is also concerned that the films could fan the flames of hatred here and provoke incidents similar to the fire bombing of the school in Montreal over the summer and the Edmonton synagogue earlier.   "Although I haven't seen the films, I have talked to people who have," he says.   "They are pure propaganda. The title alone - with words such as 'occupation' and 'resistance' indicates the tenor of the films which further justify terror and suicide bombings."

Jonny Cline, the newly-arrived Winnipeg Zionist Initiative shaliach, shares Matas' concerns about the film festival. "I am expecting some ripples in the community as a result of the films - although I hope I'm wrong.   I think the Canada-Palestine Network is trying to cause trouble such as has happened in the United States and eastern Canada. Winnipeg is a peaceful community. I want it to stay that way. But it seems that Winnipeg is being targeted."

Matas compares the festival organizers to "a bunch of con artists who have come to this backwater (Winnipeg) to try to fool the locals. They are perpetrating a fraud," he says.

Burrows responds that several of the films were made by Israeli Jewish filmmakers and that the films promote dialogue between Israelis and Palestinians and point the way to possible reconciliation.

He adds that Cinematheque has hosted Jewish and Israeli film festivals in the past. "In Canada, everyone is allowed to present their perspectives," he says. "You won't see me protesting an Israeli film festival at Cinematheque.”