Press Release

In early June 2007 a satirical edition of “The Vancouver Sun” newspaper, a mass circulation daily in the province of British Columbia (Canada), was produced and copies distributed.

The appearance of the satirical edition coincided with the 40th year of the Israeli state’s continuous occupation of territories it conquered in a 1967 war. The satire focused on the biased media coverage of Israel/Palestine in “The Vancouver Sun”, a small part of the holdings of Canwest-Global, a major integrated media conglomerate operating in Canada and internationally. They have propagated support for Israeli state policies and practices toward the Palestinian people.

The slim four-page satire was the same dimension as the commercial newspaper and bore the trade-mark name on the front page. In other respects – bulk, news articles, authors and ‘advertising’ – it was an obvious parody.

Indeed it specifically identified itself as a “parody” in a box on page two [“Who produced this Vancouver Sun parody and why?”].

Articles have such headlines as “CELEBRATING 40 YEARS OF CIVILISING THE WEST BANK” by “P. Rupa Ghanda” and “Study Shows Truth Biased Against Israel” by “Cyn Sorsheep”. The weather report reads “Operation Summer Rains with occasional missile showers and chance of tank shelling in the afternoon” and the cutline on a photo of a huge Israeli bulldozer with a Palestinian man in front of the blade reads “Israeli military bulldozer brings the many gifts of civilization to a primitive resident of Nablus in the West Bank”. Below the trademark name, in place of where the commercial paper prints the date of publication and the slogan “seriously westcoast since 1912” appear these words: “seriously zionist since 2001” and “occupationday, June 2007”. Attached is a slightly “redacted” copy of the original front page where all the foregoing appear, “redacted” so not even your pet will mistake it for the commercial publication.**

The media conglomerate

Canwest-Global owns both of the commercial, large circulation daily newspapers in British Columbia. They also own local TV and radio stations. They have similar integrated and concentrated media ownership across Canada and in other countries.

For more on the history and practices of Canwest-Global and its major owners see The Asper Nation, a book length study by professor of journalism Marc Edge, published in 2007 by New Star Books.

The legal suit

Six months after the appearance of the satirical issue, “Canwest Mediaworks Publications Inc.” (an arm of Canwest Global) launched a legal suit, claiming damages and seeking injunctions. In the “writ of summons” issued in the Supreme Court of British Columbia, December 7, 2007 the following are identified as defendants:

Horizon Publications Ltd. (a printing firm), Garth Leddy (identified as President and General Manager of Horizon Publications), Mordecai Briemberg (identified as “webmaster/administrator of a website Canpalnet-Vancouver.org (“Canpalnet”), which styles itself as a Palestine support network”. Following these names are: “John Doe #1 (address unknown)”, “John Doe #2 (address unknown)”, “John Doe #3 (address unknown)”, “Jane Doe #1 (address unknown)”, “Jane Doe #2 (address unknown)”, “Jane Doe #3 (address unknown)”.

Mordecai Briemberg is the only named person who is alleged to have participated in the production of the satirical publication along with the three John Does and the three Jane Does – all unknown to Canwest Mediaworks. In fact Mordecai Briemberg had no part whatsoever in the conception, creation, production, and financing of this satire, and the John and Jane Does are unknown to him as well.

Nor did the organization Canada Palestine Support Network participate in any way in the conception, creation, production and financing of the satirical issue.

Mordecai Briemberg freely acknowledges that after the satirical issue had been printed, on his own initiative and acting alone, admiring the satire he picked up some copies from a pile left on a table at a public meeting at the Vancouver Public Library, and later distributed them.

Why is he the only named person and why is he linked frequently in the “writ of summons” with Canada Palestine Support Network? Both Mordecai Briemberg and Canada Palestine Support Network have been and are publicly prominent and well-respected as advocates of Palestinian rights under international law, human rights law, international court decisions, and major United Nations resolutions. Canada Palestine Support Network is well-known for its dedication to changing Canadian government policy so that it accords with international law, human rights law, international court decisions, and major United Nations resolutions on this issue. Canada Palestine Support Network has always held itself publicly accountable for its statements, and Mordecai Briemberg has never published an article except under his own name.

Canwest Mediaworks is seeking money for “general damages”, “aggravated damages”, “special damages”, and “punitive damages”. They also ask the court to issue injunctions against the defendants to “restrain[]….each of them, either by themselves, their servants, agents or otherwise from” among other things “publishing injurious falsehoods by way of newspaper or other publications, on the internet or otherwise”

The stakes

1. At stake is the democratic right to use satire and other forms of humour to critique those in positions of power and wealth.

The Canwest Mediaworks suit, under cover of a commercial claim to protect its “trade mark”, seeks in this case to deny a Canadian’s right to freedom of political expression, enshrined in the Canadian Charter of Rights.

1. At stake is the right to be free from arbitrary harassment and vendettas.

The Canwest Mediaworks suit has arbitrarily sued Mordecai Briemberg and , through Briemberg’s participation in it, attacked Canada Palestine Support Network because the plaintiff disagrees with the defendant’s publicly expressed ideas, all entirely within the law, on issues related to the controversial issues of Israel/Palestine.

1. At stake is the right to continue with the public expression of controversial opinions, entirely within the law, on controversial issues related to Israel/Palestine.

The Canwest Mediaworks suit seeks wide-ranging injunctions – gag-orders – against on-going public expression of opinions, again under cover of a commercial case relating to trade marks.

Necessary response

1. It is necessary to tell Canwest Mediaworks to drop its legal suit and end its harassment.

2. It is necessary to advocate for open, uncensored discussion and exchange of ideas on the present situation and past history of Israel/Palestine – discussion and exchange where no one seeks to harass, silence or punish those with whom they disagree.

3. It is necessary, regardless of one’s own views and preferences, to encourage every person to undertake their own reflections and to come to their own conclusions on the important issues related to Israel/Palestine.

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** THE VANCOUVER SUN (trade mark) altered to NOT VANCOUVER SUN on
zerox copy of “front page”.

This article was posted on Tuesday, March 4th, 2008 and is filed under Canadian Issues and Politics, Media. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.