There will be no sanctions for Councillor Susan Kim for her communication about the Israel-Gaza war, after Victoria City Council voted 7-1 to follow the investigator's recommendations.
A report delivered to council states that Kim failed to be clear that she was only communicating her own views when signing a pro-ceasefire letter that suggested NDP leader Jagmeet Singh was falsely repeating that Palestinians were guilty of sexual violence. However, the investigator found that this violation was inadvertent and not warranting sanctions. Kim also liked a pro-Palestinian tweet that included the statement, "glory to every martyr who dies fighting."
Lawyer Marisa Cruickshank authored the report and has been investigating the issue since Victoria Mayor Alto initiated the code of conduct complaint in December. The report states she accepted that Kim believed she was communicating on behalf of herself rather than her office at the time, which is what made the code of conduct bylaw violation "inadvertent."
Kim has since apologized, writing that she aims to represent the city with more awareness and consideration.
Council voted 6-2 against Stephen Hammond's amendment to the mayor's motion to accept Cruickshank's recommendations. Hammond's amendment would have required an additional apology from Kim.
Before council voted on this, Kim recused herself. Legal counsel Noah Ross spoke on her behalf in relation to the proposed amendment. He suggested that council respect the investigator's findings and also acknowledge ways in which the bylaw's carve-out for personal communication may have been unclear.
The bylaw's plain text reads: "This Bylaw does not apply to a member's conduct in their personal life, except to the extent that such conduct reasonably undermines, or has the potential to reasonably undermine, public confidence in City governance."
After the motion passed, Alto said it is important councillors are mindful of what they say as office-holders.
"As we sit in each of these seats we speak not only for ourselves, but for the totality of our community," she said, adding that councillors should consider the purpose of each of their words.