Ex-BC United Staffer Launches Defamation Lawsuit over Gaza Posts

A BC United executive who resigned amid criticism of her alleged defence of Hamas in a social media post is suing her former party, the Conservative Party of BC and a journalist.

The notice of claim, filed July 25 in the B.C. Supreme Court, alleges that officials from the two political parties and the journalist defamed the plaintiff and that BC United failed to protect her privacy after she alleged a colleague had sexually harassed her.

The allegations are unproven and have not been tested in court.

BC United and Bob Mackin, the journalist named in the suit, did not respond to requests for comment from The Tyee. Conservative Party of BC executive director Angelo Isidorou said the party plans to respond to the lawsuit but will not comment until consulting with lawyers.

The notice of claim says that “by reason of the Defamatory Posts, the Defamatory Meanings, and the Sexual Harassment complaint, the Plaintiff’s reputation, mental health, and professional reputation have been seriously injured.”

“The Plaintiff has suffered damages, including loss of self-respect, dignity, good character, employment, and reputation.”

The notice of claim lists the plaintiff as “Jane Doe.” The B.C. Supreme Court allows the use of initials or a pseudonym in a civil claim with court approval “in exceptional circumstances where the public interest in open courts is displaced by another public interest of superordinate importance.” Permission has not yet been granted in this case.

While the document does not name former BC United secretary Gul Gulsen, it is clearly about a social media post she made and the reaction to it.

In October 2023, Gulsen shared an Al Jazeera video on X about the bombing of the al-Ahli Arab Hospital in Gaza. “For those accepting claims that Hamas was behind the hospital bombing: you have sold your critical thinking skills to the genocidal cause... just what western media and governments wanted. #PalestineGenocide #Gaza #GazaHospitalAttack #CeasfireNOW.”

That drew a response from Conservative Party of BC Leader John Rustad’s account on X, which the court filing quotes as saying, “Deeply disturbing and upsetting to see BC United Board Director... defending Hamas, peddle disinformation and call Israel a genocidal state. We call on @voteBCUnited and @KevinFalcon to stand with Israel during this horrible time and take accountability.”

The Canadian government has listed Hamas as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code since 2002.

There has been disagreement about whether the explosion was most likely the result of an Israeli airstrike, as Hamas contended and the Israeli military denied, or an errant rocket launched from within Gaza, an explanation supported by Israel, the United States, the United Kingdom, France and Canada. There has also been debate about the number of people killed, with counts and estimates ranging from 100 to 500.

BC United Leader Kevin Falcon responded on X following Gulsen’s and Rustad’s posts.

“This morning it was brought to my attention that a member of the BCU Board had been posting harmful comments to social media defending Hamas terrorists and labelling Israel a genocidal state,” he wrote, as quoted in the notice of claim.

“When I became aware of these deeply offensive posts, I called our Party President and directed him to call for their immediate resignation from our board. I strongly condemn those remarks and reaffirm our unequivocal support for the Jewish community here in B.C. as well as Israel's right to exist and defend itself.”

The notice of claim says BC United’s post got more than 136,000 views and 860 likes, while the Conservatives’ got 7,100 views and 143 likes.

Gulsen resigned from BC United but posted a statement of clarification on X that is quoted in the notice of claim. It stressed that the views expressed were her own and not representative of the party.

“My defence of innocent Palestinian civilians does not by any means intend antisemitism, denial of Israel’s right to exist, or defence of Hamas’ terrorism,” she said. “Making any suggestion of this is defamatory, and may result in legal action. The posts were not intended to offend anyone, but to bring awareness to atrocities being carried out in Palestine, which have been internationally acknowledged as war crimes.”

Gulsen added that she intended “to share news and information that had not otherwise been shared in Western media. My hope in regards to the Israel-Palestine conflict is that a ceasefire is achieved as soon as possible, as innocent lives have been and continue to be lost on both the Israeli and Palestinian sides.”

Journalist Bob Mackin reported on the events for his website theBreaker.news in a story dated Oct. 26, 2023, that the notice of claim says got posted by 17 “online newspapers and networks.”

The plaintiff contacted each publication asking to have the article removed, since it was “negatively harming her personal and professional reputation.” All except for theBreaker.news, where the article remains publicly available, agreed to remove it.

The notice of claim says the plaintiff asked both political parties to remove their posts and neither has done so.

The posts are false and defamatory, it said. An average viewer or listener would understand them to mean, it added, that the plaintiff supports a designated terrorist organization, holds contempt or hatred towards the Jewish community and is unworthy of holding a position on the BC United board.

A further section of the notice of claim says the party failed to keep the plaintiff’s identity confidential as it acted on an allegation of sexual harassment the plaintiff made against a colleague in November 2022. The complaint resulted in the colleague being fired even though that wasn’t the plaintiff’s desired outcome, the notice said.

“The Sexual Harassment details were spread without due regard for the Plaintiff’s reputation, integrity, and BCU’s own internal policies,” it said.

The plaintiff is seeking the removal of the alleged defamatory material and money for damages.