Canadian Convulsions > Canada appoints "Mujahid" as Human Rights Commissioner - Believe it or Not!

 

Canada: New Human Rights Commission head

once went by middle name ‘Mujahid,’ 

is accused of antisemitism

JUN 26, 2024 7:00 AM BY CHRISTINE DOUGLASS-WILLIAMS

Arif Virani, Canada’s Attorney General and Minister of Justice, hired Birju Dattani as Chief Commissioner of the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC). Then it came to light that Dattani, who went by the name “Mujahid” in his earlier academic years, was engaged in questionable activity.

The concerns that were raised included:

• In 2015, Dattani “spoke on a panel in the U.K. alongside a member of Hizb ut-Tahrir, an Islamic fundamentalist group that seeks to establish a new caliphate and opposes the existence of an Israeli state.” The member of Hizb ut-Tahrir was Adnan Khan, whose “writings were found amongst Osama Bin Laden’s papers by American special forces following their raid on his Pakistani compound in 2011.”
• 
  
• “In 2014, Dattani spoke on a panel at a Turkish university with Osama Qashoo, a member of the Mavi Marmara flotilla who was arrested four years earlier for trying to breach Israel’s naval cordon of the Gaza Strip.”
• 
  
• Dattani repeatedly lectured during “Israel Apartheid Week” at British universities about the boycott, divestment and sanctions (BDS) movement.
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• Dattani shared an article on Twitter entitled “Palestinians are Warsaw Ghetto Prisoners of Today.”
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• And Dattani’s earlier activities are reportedly “difficult to trace because he went by his middle name, Mujahid, during his academic years.” Mujahid is an Arabic word which means a jihad warrior for Islam.

Now that Dattani’s past has been exposed, the Trudeau government is opening an investigation of him: 

New head of Human Rights Commission accused

of alleged antisemitism

by Ari David Blaff, National Post, June 25, 2024:

The federal government announced it is opening up an investigation of Birju Dattani, the newly appointed head of the Canadian Human Rights Commission (CHRC), after allegations of anti-Israel activism.

“We have become aware of potentially troubling statements attributed to Mr. Dattani as well as events he participated in while he was a graduate student in London, England a decade ago,” Chantalle Aubertin, a spokesperson for federal Attorney General and Justice Minister Arif Virani, told National Post in a statement.

“It is critical for the Chief Commissioner of the Canadian Human Rights Commission to maintain the confidence of all Canadians and to be seen as an impartial and fair judge of matters before them.”…

Of course, Dattani has an unconvincing answer for every discovery about him that doesn’t reflect well on his own investigative abilities or personal and professional judgement. For instance: “He said he did share an article entitled ‘Palestinians are Warsaw Ghetto Prisoners of Today’ without comment, but added that he didn’t agree with the article’s claim.” Dattani also stated of his 2015 panel speech that “he was unaware of the other panelists’ affiliations and had never met them before.”

In a statement by Arif Virani at the time he appointed Dattani:

“The appointment of Mr. Dattani as Chief Commissioner comes at a pivotal time for the Canadian Human Rights Commission. He brings a wealth of both professional and personal lived experience to this role. Our government remains committed to the protection of all human rights in Canada, including the fight against racism, and to strengthening our country’s role within the international human rights system.” —The Hon. Arif Virani, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada

According to the Center For Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA), “the government should have done a better job of vetting Dattani before making the appointment.”

The Trudeau government doesn’t have a glowing reputation about whom it hires to oversee its own stated values of human rights and diversity. In January, one of its diversity hires, Laith Marouf, who called Jews “loud mouthed bags of feces,” went on to launch his pro-Hamas Free Palestine TV. It emerged that Canada’s Diversity Minister Ahmed Hussen knew about Marouf calling Jews this a month before the controversy erupted.

The president of CIJA, Shimon Fogel, stated that CIJA was “deeply concerned” about Dattani’s appointment given that he “has directly associated with individuals and groups affiliated with listed terror entities and has a history of making highly troubling antisemitic statements.”

But Fogel also said:

If and when Mr. Dattani repudiates his past, CIJA would be willing to engage with him…Dattani must denounce his past positions and affiliations and make clear that his current perspective aligns with Canadian values and policy, including acceptance of the IHRA definition of antisemitism — a position adopted by the Government of Canada and most provinces, but which Mr. Dattani has opposed.

Yet the case of Dattani goes beyond CIJA’s possible willingness to take him at his word. Dattani’s “association with individuals and groups affiliated with listed terror entities,” as stated by Fogel, is a serious matter for all Canadians.

The question now is how deep the Trudeau government’s investigation will go.

That is, of course, an oxymoron! The words 'Trudeau' and 'deep' never belong together in the same sentence under any pretext. 

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