Montreal's pro-Palestine activists say ceasefire is not enough

On Monday, December 18th, the Palestine Solidarity Network Canada organized a day of action where pro-Palestinian supporters gathered to rally in four federal ridings in Quebec including Longueuil-Charles-Lemoyne, Hochelaga, Lasalle, and Laurier-Sainte-Marie. At the Laurier-Sainte-Marie rally, community members gathered outside MP Steven Guilbeault’s office. Around 50 people gathered at the Laurier-Sainte Marie rally on Monday evening for over an hour in the rain. 

Organizers made speeches encouraging the continuous level of action in support of Palestine in Montreal and around Canada as it pushed the federal government to call for a ceasefire recently. This recent cross-country network aims to mobilize voters to urge their MPs and Prime Minister Trudeau to follow Canada’s UN General Assembly vote on Palestine with concrete action.

And although Canada calling for a ceasefire in Gaza is an important milestone, organizers are saying the action is not enough and there needs to be consistent pressure on elected officials to put an end to the violence in Palestine. The goal is to put pressure on the government until they take real action to end any military, economic and political support to Israel. . 

“Our people in Palestine are facing a brutal and deadly assault, and the silence  of Members of Parliament is not only shameful, but also makes them complicit in  this ongoing 'genocide'. We know the masses in Canada support the Palestinian cause as we have seen tens of thousands of people show up for rallies, protests,  teach-ins and beyond. Now our MPs will know that their lack of action will cost  them the next election," said Palestinian Youth Movement (PYM) spokesperson Rawan Nabil in the press release.