Saskatchewan’s capital city has called off its plans to raise the Palestinian flag at its city hall.
The City of Regina made the announcement via social media just before 5 p.m. on Nov. 14, the day before the event was set to take place.
“At the direction of Mayor Sandra Masters, the flag raising and ceremony for Palestine that had been planned for tomorrow, Friday November 15, will not proceed,” the post reads.
Masters, the outgoing mayor, was defeated in the recent municipal election on Nov. 13. Chad Bachynski will take on the role when the new council is sworn in Nov. 18.
The Epoch Times contacted the city to comment on the reason for cancellation and was provided with a statement similar to the one shared on social media the day before.
The flag raising ceremony was scheduled to take place on the anniversary of the Palestinian Declaration of Independence. Regina would have been the first Canadian city to host such a ceremony if the event had gone ahead.
Backlash from the community contributed to the city rethinking its plans, with numerous city residents reportedly contacting the councillors representing them to complain, according to the Regina Leader-Post.
The Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) and the leadership of Regina’s Jewish community contacted Masters to express concern about the flag-raising ceremony, CIJA said.
“We applaud her strong leadership and the moral clarity she has demonstrated in canceling tomorrow’s event,” the CIJA said in a Nov. 14 social media post.
Hampstead, Que., Mayor Jeremy Levi also applauded Masters for her decision.
“Mayor Sandra Masters has chosen the right side of history with strength and conviction,” he wrote on social media platform X. “Her leadership sets an example that we should all aspire to emulate. I commend her for standing up in a time when so many would choose silence or neutrality.”
Palestine Solidarity in Regina had described the now-cancelled event as an opportunity to show “solidarity with our brothers and sisters who are suffering in Gaza and Palestine.”
“It is a small but meaningful act to support those enduring hardship, and we encourage everyone to join us in standing together for justice and peace,” the group said in a social media post earlier this week.
The group took to social media Nov. 14 to express its “deep disappointment” with the decision and vowed to gather as a community to commemorate the day in spite of the ceremony’s cancellation.
“The choice to cancel our event appears to reflect undue influence from biased, hateful rhetoric, which has spread harmful misinformation and undermined our legitimate expression,” the group said in a Facebook post.
A petition was started Nov. 14 to have the flag raising ceremony reinstated. It had 1,234 signatures by the morning of Nov. 15.
Regina, along with several other Canadian cities such as Toronto, raised the Israeli flag in conjunction with Israel Independence Day on May 14.
The city’s flag protocol procedures have been under council’s microscope this year but did not make it onto a meeting agenda prior to the election. City officials have said the new council is expected to address the issue after being sworn in.
