Jewish National Fund announces new charity amid CRA dispute to continue 'vital work'

OTTAWA  — The embattled Jewish National Fund of Canada (JNF Canada) announced Tuesday that supporters will be taking up its cause while it continues to fight to have its own charitable status restored.

JNF Canada President Nathan Disenhouse told National Post that the newly founded ‘Friends of JNF Canada’ will lead the charge for now.

“Our supporters are tired of seeing our work limited without a charitable status, so they’ve stepped in to take up our mission” said Disenhouse.

He said that the new charity will “fundraise for Israel in a similar way that JNF Canada did, but with the ability to issue tax receipts.”

“Working with other Canadian charities, they will fundraise for similar projects for Israelis in need, focusing on the vulnerable, enhancing environmental sustainability, and supporting the mental and physical health of Israelis,” said Disenhouse.

Irving Weisdorf, who helped spearhead Friends of JNF Canada, said now is a critical time for supporters of Israel to have their voices heard.

“It’s really important to us that the vital work JNF does for thousands upon thousands of Israel’s most vulnerable isn’t derailed by the torrent of anti-Israel sentiment we’ve seen in the last two years,” said Weisdorf.

Disenhouse said that Friends of JNF Canada will formally launch on Monday, Sept. 8.

The CRA controversially stripped JNF Canada of its charitable status last summer, seven years after a complaint led by Independent Jewish Voices accused it of violating the Income Tax Act by, among other things, financing “discriminatory and harmful practices” in Israel and the occupied West Bank.

The delisting was celebrated by PIPSC-IPFPC, a labour union representing some 17,000 CRA employees, in a since deleted social media post .

JNF Canada CEO Lance Davis said at the time that he was blindsided by the decree , which he said came as the organization was working in good faith with the CRA to bring itself in compliance with the law.

He also said that the CRA’s action denied his organization of due process rights guaranteed under Canada’s Constitution.

A record of correspondence later obtained by National Post indicates that the CRA refused to meet with JNF Canada officials for several years while reviewing its charitable status.

JNF Canada lost a judicial appeal of the CRA’s decision in June but has vowed to fight on, taking the matter to the Supreme Court of Canada if necessary.

Founded in 1967, JNF Canada currently sponsors more than 100 projects supporting Israelis, including seniors, at-risk youth and those with special needs.

It is perhaps best known for overseeing the construction of Canada Park , a controversial green space built overtop of three evacuated Palestinian villages in the occupied West Bank.

JNF Canada’s Jerusalem-based parent charity is one of Israel’s biggest landholders, owning some 13 per cent of its lands.

National Post rmohamed@postmedia.com

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