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The Canadian Jewish News, Thursday, January 10, 1991-Page 3
Lloyd Axworthy
Yasser Arafat
iSvend Robinson
Accused of playing into PLO hands
: ,By
PAUL LUNGEN
r' .'' ■ ■ ■ ■ * ■
OTTAWA -
Jewish organizations have condemned a meeting by two Canadian MPs with PLO Chamman Yasser Arafat in which they requestT ed his assistance in securing the release of Canadian hostages held by Iraq. ■ ^.
Terming the PLO leader's role a "cynical maneuvre," Canadian Jewish, Congress s^id the intervehtion \yas a "transparent contrivance for dubious politick ends."
Congress said in a iiews release that "there is no evidence that Arafat's intervention was helpfiil in releasing the Canadian hostages '' ———--^-r---
Three Canadian MPs ^ Bob Corbett, Lloyd Axworthy and Svend Robin-
son — journeyed to Baghdad in November in a bid to convince Iraqi authorities to release .45 Canadians - held as hostages. They returned with five. Iraq later released the others along with hostages from other Western countries.
During their week-long stay in Baghdad, Corbett, past president of the Canada-Arab Association,, and Robinson met with Arafat to request his help in obtaining the release of the hostages; Axworthy did hot attend the meeting, saying "I felt there was nothing I could contribute.
"I have had no association with the (PLO) so it was something I didn't feel I ^m&dTio'iio:'^Z .
B'nai Brith Canada said the appeal to Arafat by Robinson in advance of the MPs' departure for the
Middle East .was "foolish and misguided."
"The PLO has never given up terror, nor given up its goal of destroying Israel," BBC president Mar-ilyn Weinberg said.. "Saddam Hussein is a powerful ally towairds this goal."
"Arafat, who has embraced Saddam and allied himself with Iraq, is no humanitarian, nor friend of freedom and peace," said Ian Kagedan, BB's director of government relations.
However, Hassan Abdel Rahman, the PLO's representative in Canada and the Unit^ States, said Arafat, for "humanitarian reasons," directed the PLO's ambassador in Baghdad to mejet with Irat-qi officials to seek the releaie "of Canadians,
Rahman told The CJN he had sent a letter to Arafat
Twjuesting he assist the Canadian delegation, "and he did his utmost."
He said the subsequent meeting with the PLO chief was reported in Middle Eastern newspapers and that Canada's External Affairs department was informed of it.
He said Arafat had helped secure the release of other hostages, including some from France and Brazil, and that Arafat, along with Jordan's King Hussein and Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh, was instrumental in convincing Saddam to release all foreign hostages. .
Simon Kahn, associate director of the political bureau of the Canada-Israel Committee, questioned Arafat's effectiveness in aiding in the release of the five Canadians.
Other countries dis-
patched envoys to Iraq and secured the release of larger numbers of hostages
without the PLO leader's intervention, he said.
Kahn suggested the recent reports of Arafat's purported role — which was revealed about one month after the hostages were released — was part of a PLO public relations campaign to sanitize its image.
"It's a desperate attempt to look cleian," he said. "They're trying to paint themselves as good Samaritans" in the wake of the PLO's decision to side with Saddam in the Gulf crisis.
"I don't think anyone can say any one factor was crucial,'' Axworthy said. "The fact of going there and making the case was what really counted."
TORONTO -
fe'nai Brith Youth Organization (BBYO) in Canada will be "phased out in the least hurtful way possible" if it cannot raise enough money to keep programs funded and staff paid, says BBYO's international director. ' Sidney Clearfield told The CJN in a telephone interview from Washington that he was "upset and dismayed" by B'nai Brith Canada's recent decision to cut funding to BBYO Canada by the end of this month because of recessionary austerity measures [CJN, Jan. 31.
Last year, BBC ftmded BBYO with $400,000 for a myriad of youth programs and five staff in Montreal, Toronto, Winnipeg and Calgary.
Now, BBYO Canada, with 1,600 members aged 12 to 18, will have to raise its own funds to keep going, and BBC has mounted an emergency appeal for money.
BBC began funding BBYO in 1980. Prior to that, BBYO's ftinds came from.BBYO International,-which still controls the Canadian group's programming. •'
Clearfield said BBC gave BBYO "a very short period of time" to come up with money. "We're attempting to locate other sources of funds, and that includes affiliating with local federations."
But if BBYO can't raise the necessary funds by Jan. 31, it will be phased out in Canada, Clibarfield said.
Ed Yalowitz, the Chicago-based chairman of the B'nai B'rith Youth Commission — the lay board responsible for BBYO —said BBC's decision satisfied legal requirements, "but coming with no warning caused a lot of dismay and chagrin.
"They (BBC) are not being reasonable in cutting the fiinds. They should have continued them." -
Yalowitz said help for BBYO Canada fi-pm B'nai B'rith International is " not feasible.''
Notices of termination were mailed out last month to the five BBYO staff in Canada.
BBYO's Lake.Ontario Region (which includes Buffalo and Rochester, N.Y. as well as all Ontario, except Windsor) has been told to raise $100,000 by Jan. 31.
The Laurentian Region (essentially Montreal) must come up with $50,000.
Maria Usheroff, BBYO director in Montreal, said it's very hard to raise money in January. '
"I don't know if it's possible. Parents and board members are away, and the city is just waking up from the holidays." .
But BBC president Marilyn Wainberg is.more optimistic.
; * 'Montreal is already committed to raising the money. I'm 99.9 per cent positive that (Lake Ontario and Laurien-tian Regions) will be fine. - v——■-—-
"And I'm sure the West (Red River Region and Northwest Region) will'be fine too." ■ '
Wainberg said the BBYO regions don't have to raise all the money they have been told to raise by Jan. 31, just enough to keep programs going and staff paid for the foreseeable future. R.C.
pnccs e
to nse
By
RON CSILLAG
TORONTO-
If you' ve purchased a prayer book or any religious artifact since Jan. 1, you may have noticed something new on your bill: the Goods and Services Tax.
From now on, the 7 per cent GST will be levied on all books, including Bibles, siddurim and machsurim, ^"•r-'-'r™ ■ ■• ■
It will also be charged on all artifacts, even those used in religious ceremonies, such as kiddush cups, menorahs aiid seder plates.
Prior to the GST, books were tax exempt — both federally and provincially — but religious and ceremonial items were not,
However, before Jan. 1, the 13'.5 per cent federal sales tax was calculated pn wholesale prices, whereas the FST's replacement, the GST, is added onto retail prices. ; ' ■■. .\, ,
That means some religious items may increase in price, while the price of books Will definitely rise, merchants agree,
Also up as a result of the GST are the price of periodicals, magazines and newspapers. Most of these \vill have their price increases built into their cover prices.
(The CJN's newsstand price has gone from 60 cents to 65 cents, including GST).
"It's not rigm," says Riva Green, co-owner of Mataha Judaica in Thornhill. "I'm sure it's not just the Jewish community. A Christian buying a religious
article or a Bible will have to pay the GST. Why tax something used in a religious ceremony?"
Sellers of Judaica are confused because it's not clear what will happen to duty charged on imported goods.
At Matana, 90 per cent of the stock is imported, either from the United States or Israel. Green says items such as tallesim, tzitzit, tefillen and ceremonial goods are subject to the GST but are duty free.
However, if Ottawa imposes duties on those and other imported items, their prices will rise. Green says.
"Anyway you look at it, the consumer loses," says Green, adding she fears a loss of business to the United States.
- Israel Kaplan, owner of Israel's, the Judaica Centre, says he's "not comfortable" with the GST mainly because it is charged on books.
"Sixty to 70 per cent of my business is book sales," says Kaplan. "The whole thing is very confusing. There's a lot of uncertainty.'' 1^ Both Kaplan and Green agree that the price of parchments for mezuzot will rise because the parchments are considered books.
_ 'Jt'snotfairj" says Green. "What if you have 10 rooms in your house and you need 10 parchments? That's a significant increase for the observant consumer."
In 1989, Canadian Jewish Congress asked the federal government to make religious texts and articles GST exempt.
"We believe it is inappropriate for the government to be. seen as imposing a tax on the pursuit of religious observance," CJC said at the time.
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