Archive for 2011
Remembering Tatic Samuel – Suzanne Rumsey
February 7, 2011
“During the day, thousands and thousands of the faithful who had come from throughout the diocese filled the cathedral in honour of the bishop who died on Monday, January 24… In a letter of farewell read at [the mid-day] celebration…
Post filed in: Uncategorized
Love Letter to an Old Man – Rev. Emilie Smith
February 7, 2011
January 27, 2011 Dear Friends, Standing close in beside me the woman cries, her tears pouring down into her purple dress. Once in a while she carries her apron to her face, and wipes it crease by crease. For a…
Post filed in: Uncategorized
Remembering Bishop Samuel Ruiz
February 7, 2011
Send us your reflections, stories, letters or photos On January 24 Bishop Samuel of Mexico died at the age of 86. He has been described as the diminutive giant of the church in Mexico. He had been Bishop for 51…
Post filed in: Uncategorized
The Life and Witness of Samuel Ruiz – Jim Hodgson
February 7, 2011
San Salvador, January 31, 2011 I write as the novena—the nine days of prayer following the death of Bishop Samuel Ruiz—is drawing to a close. The flow of moving tributes to this remarkable leader has become a flood, and this…
Post filed in: Uncategorized
KAIROS commentary on demonstrations in the Middle East and North Africa
February 4, 2011
From Tunisia to Sudan, political change is sweeping across the Middle East and North Africa
Post filed in: Africa
Continents Apart: Same Pain – Shared Hope
February 3, 2011
When I first set foot in Manila, Philippines in 2008 to participate in the 1st International Assembly of Migrant and Refugees (IAMR), I noticed the similarity between the Philippines and Latin America with their common history of colonialism and extreme…
Post filed in: Migrant Justice, Spirited Reflections
KAIROS solidarity letter to Israeli human rights group B’Tselem
January 26, 2011
On January 5 2011, Members of the Israeli Knesset voted for a parliamentary inquiry to investigate the funding of Israeli human rights groups allegedly helping to build war crimes cases abroad against Israeli military personnel. The scope and details of…
Post filed in: Middle East
Déclaration des Nations Unies sur les droits des peuples autochtones – Foire aux questions
January 26, 2011
L’Assemblée générale des Nations Unies a adopté la Déclaration des Nations Unies sur les droits des peuples autochtones en septembre 2007 par un vote de 144 à 4. Le Canada, l’Australie, la Nouvelle-Zélande et les États-Unis ont voté contre la…
Post filed in: En français
The Canadian government must publicly commit to supporting the Sisters In Spirit Initiative
January 24, 2011
For the last five years, we have stood alongside the Native Women’s Association of Canada to promote vigils across Canada to honour the lives of missing and murdered Aboriginal women and girls. In these five years, the Sisters in Spirit…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights
Le gouvernement canadien doit s’engager publiquement à appuyer l’Initiative Sœurs par l’esprit
January 24, 2011
Au cours des cinq dernières années, nous nous sommes tenus aux côtés de l’Association des femmes autochtones du Canada pour promouvoir l’organisation de vigiles partout au Canada en vue d’honorer la vie des femmes et des fillettes autochtones disparues ou…
Post filed in: En français
Endena Cogasi, A Woman of Courage
January 19, 2011
Presented by Vernie Yocogan-Diano, on behalf of Innabuyog, an alliance of Indigenous women’s organizations in the Cordillera, Philippines, on 9 December 2010 during the Gawad Tanggol Karapatan or Awards for Cordillera human rights defenders by the Cordillera Human Rights Alliance…
Post filed in: Asia-Pacific, Gender Justice/Women of Courage
Budgets are Moral Documents
January 19, 2011
We are in the middle of budget season here in Canada, not only at the federal level but also right down the line to municipalities. Difficult decisions need to be made, especially during this period of economic downturn. I was…
Post filed in: Spirited Reflections
What’s next for Sudan?
January 16, 2011
Voting wound up Saturday afternoon in Southern Sudan’s referendum on self-determination. A local singer in Juba referred to this entire process as simply “doing the paper work” of secession. It’s true, the result may be foregone. But now that voting…
Post filed in: Africa
UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples: Frequently Asked Questions
January 16, 2011
(Revised December 2010)
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights, UNDRIP Blog Updates
KAIROS Times: January 2011
January 15, 2011
Read the January 2011 issue.
Post filed in: KAIROS Times E-Newsletter
An inspiring story from Sudan
January 14, 2011
I read the article below in the Juba Post this morning. It’s one story of many, but it’s similar to what we witnessed at a couple of polling centres over the last week and I think it’s worth excerpting here:…
Post filed in: Africa
Inside an observation mission
January 13, 2011
There are only 2 days of voting left (assuming that the Referendum Commission doesn’t extend voting). Several observation teams are discussing preliminary statements, including the Carter Center and the EU. We are, as well. What to put in a statement…
Post filed in: Africa
Images from the Referendum in Southern Sudan
January 12, 2011
Posted are some images from the referendum on self-determination in Southern Sudan taking place January 9-15, 2011. Day One Yei Day Two Congo Road Day Three Maridi Road Day Four Juba Road ——————————————- John Lewis, KAIROS International Human Rights Coordinator,…
Post filed in: Africa
Climate Change Challenges Us to Choose between Life and Death
January 12, 2011
After a welcome break to celebrate God’s incarnation among us, I am revisiting the blog I wrote on the final day of the UN climate conference, Cancún Accord Mirrors Copenhagen Accord While Keeping Kyoto Protocol Alive. Rereading the Cancún documents…
Post filed in: Ecological Justice, Spirited Reflections
Self-determination: some questions remain
January 8, 2011
It’s hard not to get caught up in the enthusiasm the people of Juba feel for the coming days. Tomorrow, Jubans and their neighbours throughout Southern Sudan begin voting in a referendum on splitting up Sudan. In a few months,…
Post filed in: Africa
The virtue of patience: freedom and lost luggage
January 7, 2011
Good people have many virtues, including patience. By that account, the people of Southern Sudan must be good people. They have exercised remarkable patience over the last few decades, waging a struggle for independence which included 20 years of war…
Post filed in: Africa
Drumming for the future
January 6, 2011
The Lethbridge Herald covers KAIROS ‘Beat the Drum’ Day of Action http://www.lethbridgeherald.com/local-news/drumming-for-the-future-12610.html
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights
SpOILer?
January 6, 2011
There is a lot of talk of oil in Juba. The referendum on splitting up the country which begins on Sunday will begin to clarify positions on who benefits from the considerable oil revenues of Sudan. It won’t be the…
Post filed in: Africa, Ecological Justice
Will there be blood?
January 5, 2011
It’s the question on everyone’s mind: will war break out after the referendum? The short answer is: I don’t know. And it’s possible, nobody does. The president of Sudan, Omar Al Bashir, was in town on Tuesday saying all the…
Post filed in: Africa
Juba, finally
January 5, 2011
After a journey that lasted too long (sailing up the Nile would have been quicker) I am in Juba, Southern Sudan. What is immediately apparent is that, if this town is going to become a new national capital (and it…
Post filed in: Africa