By Beryl Wajsman, Editor
The Suburban

Israeli Consul-General Paul Hirschson sat down with The Suburban for a farewell interview before Hirschson completes his mandate this week in Quebec and the Atlantic provinces.

Beryl Wajsman: Ambassador Hirschson, you have been for four years Israel’s Consul General to Montreal responsible for Quebec and the Atlantic provinces. You have been here through incredible times, COVID and the barbarians in the streets. You have accomplished great things including the opening of the Quebec Representative Office (bureau) in Israel, and most of all you have given the community of Montreal the essence of the name of the Israeli National anthem, Hatikvah, hope. What are you going away with after four years? Both your impressions and your greatest sense of accomplishment.

Paul Hirschson: The biggest accomplishment, without question, is the opening of the Quebec Representative Office in Israel, and a whole lot of other things. I’m taking back with me the wonderful community of Quebec, the Montreal Jewish community, a little bit, not enough, of the Atlantic provinces. There have also been some concerns, some disappointments, about our relationship with Canada, what’s been going on in the streets of Montreal, but in the big picture, we’ve got way more friends here than opponents. Trade is growing, investments are growing, tourism is obviously not doing that great at the moment, but it will come back. We’re not worried about that. We would like to see Air Canada renew its flights soon.

BW: What I have found, both among my colleagues in the French press and in French electronic media — for some reason there’s a greater understanding of Israel’s position and the threat of Islamism, and of uncontrolled immigration, among the more nationalist elements of Quebec than amongst the traditional groups where we would expect to see some understanding, including anglophones. Have you found that?

PH: There’s no question that the English-language media and universities have been more antagonistic toward Israel than the French-language media and academics. In the political element, we’ve got a lot of friends across the country, but Quebec has been the most solid and outspoken. The French-language media and academics have more independent and independently-expressed opinions. Much of it more sympathetic to Israel. No question. I will say that in the business community — English and French — you don’t notice the difference. It’s not 100%, but in general, everybody I meet in the business community in Canada is pro-Israel.

BW: And in the general population?

PH: I will tell you this: Francophone Quebecers are not impressed at all, to put it mildly, in seeing prayer services outside their parents’ churches. Francophone Quebec today may well be secular, and proud of it, but also as secular Catholics are proud of their historic institutions. If you’ll allow me a little bit of criticism, both on the campuses and at the municipal level and beyond, there’s a certain amount of weakness in leadership, and it’s driven purely by cowardice.

BW: They’re pandering for votes.

PH: They’re pandering for votes, yes but there are a lot of people out there in the universities, the municipal and the national leadership that have been criticized for being weak on Israel, and it’s not that they’re anti-Israel or antisemitic, but it’s more that they are cowards. They’re simply scared to take a stand and you’ve seen the opposite with the government of Quebec. But the government of Quebec doesn’t necessarily have authority over Montreal.

But I don’t only want to talk about the negative. It’s been a remarkable stay, Montreal is a remarkable city, I see many similarities to Israel, Tel Aviv in particular. We see it in the arts and culture, music, theatre, and in technology. Montreal and Quebec, in particular Quebec, there’s artificial intelligence, gaming, animation, aerospace, the third largest aerospace industry in the world. It’s the meeting of the Anglo and the Franco, it is the meeting of the immigrants and the natives, it’s a remarkably creative place and very much like Tel Aviv.

BW: What message do you have for Montreal Jews, who sometimes seem to amplify every episode to perhaps unnecessary heights?

PH: There’s been a wave of unprecedented antisemitism in the streets of Montreal, on the campuses, we’ve seen shootings, we see Molotov cocktails, let’s not pretend there’s been nothing. But the Jewish community of Montreal has remarkable stories and histories. They have nothing to hide, they have nothing to be embarrassed about. I will say that I do think Israel should be a place that people should think about living in. But this is a remarkable city and the Jewish community is building bridges around the world.

BW: You have said in some of your speeches that if you could, you would take the city of Montreal and transplant it to Israel, and you weren’t sure if you would be in Tel Aviv or Montreal. Do you still feel that way?

PH: Absolutely! I’ll get in a little bit of trouble…. I would consider leaving Tel Aviv if I could relocate Montreal to Israel.

BW: It would have to be on the coast, near a beach…

PH: That’s one of the weaknesses, the only weakness.

BW: We have beaches, but they’re not Tel Aviv.

PH: Maybe we can merge the two into one municipality. This is a remarkable, an absolutely wonderful city. The Jewish community has been fantastic, but not only the Jewish community. I spent a lot of time outside the Jewish community, in particular with the francophone component of Montreal and of Quebec, I’ve had wonderful meals in Little Italy, I’ve explored the city and beyond. It’s a remarkable experience. I’m happy to go home, but I’m sad to be leaving Montreal.

BW: Well, we’re sad to lose you, I’m sad to lose you. You’re a great friend and I wish you only good things. Hopefully our paths will cross again. L’hitraot! n