Canadian lawmaker banned from provincial legislature for wearing keffiyeh

‘Today is a shameful day in Ontario’s history,’ says Muslim organization

Barry Ellsworth |26.04.2024 - AA


TRENTON, Canada

A Canadian lawmaker in the province of Ontario was banned Thursday from the legislative assembly for wearing a keffiyeh, a traditional symbol of solidarity with Palestine among activists.

Sarah Jama, a NDP member of the provincial parliament (MPP), was told to leave the chamber by Speaker of the House Ted Arnott.

She refused to go and was named (sanctioned) by Arnott, who runs the legislature. He banned the white-and-black scarf a week ago because in his view, it made an “overt” political statement.

“As a result of being named, the member (Jama), for the remainder of the day, is ineligible to vote on matters before the assembly, attend and participate in any committee proceedings, use the media studio and table notices of motion, written questions and petitions,” Arnott said, CTV News reported.

Jama stayed for the proceedings and Arnott was asked why he allowed her to remain.

He replied that the only way to remove Jama was by physical force, and “I wasn’t prepared to do that,” he told reporters.

The National Council of Canadian Muslims (NCCM), the largest Muslim organization in Canada, condemned the speaker’s action against Jama.

“This is a shameful day in Ontario’s history,” the NCCM said on X. “This is anti-Palestinian racism. The keffiyeh is a symbol of Palestinian cultural identity. The ban must be lifted by Speaker Ted Arnott.”

New Democratic Party Leader Marit Stiles was also critical of the action against Jama, calling it “outrageous” and adding that she was “appalled.”

In fact, the leaders of all four political parties, including Ontario Premier Doug Ford, asked that the ban on the scarf be removed.

Twice MPPs voted on the removal of the ban in the course of a few days, and both times, the motion did not gain unanimous support, so the ban remained in place. Some of the dissenters were from Ford’s own Conservative Party.​​​​​​​

Jama vowed to wear the keffiyeh again in the legislative assembly when MPPs return from a 10-day break, CTV News reported.