Bambi is working late now while listening to several radio stations from La Belle Province. This is how she learned about what happened in Québec city yesterday: a politician of Palestinian-Lebanese origins, called Ms. Ruba Ghazal, waved the Palestinian kefieh during her swearing-in ceremony at the National Assembly in Québec city. This moment happened during a so-called spontaneous gesture of affection toward a peer.
How odd it is, for Bambi, to hear about this story from out of her beloved Québec. The online pictures seem to show a moment of clear lack of judgment by a talented Québec Solidaire politician.
Of note, Ms. Ghazal was publicly criticized for her gesture by a large percentage of the internet readers and radio listeners (many Québeckers were shocked to the point of signing a petition asking her to resign over her gesture). To defend herself, Ms. Ghazal described her spontaneous action as being “intuitive”. For her, “intuition comes before politics” (https://tinyurl.com/mzb85yru). Bambi also read that this politician said that she is “100% Palestinian and 100% Québecker”.
Regarding the above maths, had Bambi still been a Québec resident, she would have personally preferred to vote for a politician who seems to put Québec’s and Québeckers’ interests first, that is before any international cause or any birth country. Bambi is saying this despite her compassion for all those suffering abroad, including the Palestinians or people of her own birth country. She is saying this also despite her appreciation of Ms. Ghazal’s hard work and successful/inspiring career of public service.
Stated differently, it is the least to expect Québec politicians to respect the National Assembly’s democratic traditions. Plus, Québec must come first, that is before BOTH Palestine and Israel. Before Lebanon and before any other foreign symbol or flag.
Clearly, Bambi is not an expert in politics. However, she agrees with a Québec-based radio commentator called Mr. Jerôme Laundry. He raised a clever question: How would we have reacted had one of the Québec politicians waved the Israeli flag at the National Assembly? would that be acceptable? For Bambi, the answer is clear: no to any foreign symbol, including the Cedars of Lebanon.
Of note, Québec Solidaire has chosen to endorse the Palestinian cause in a very activist way. It is its right, as a political party. If this endorsement is sincere, bravo for the political convictions and platform. Why not? However, at the National Asssembly and especially during a swearing-in ceremony, there is no place for neither a Palestinian kefieh nor an Israeli flag. Québec’s interests, along with its pressing problems, should be the focus of attention. Period.
To conclude this post, congratulations and best wishes to the new government of Québec. Good luck also to the opposition. Most importantly, long live Québec’s institutions and democracy!
