Help us reach 4,000 e-petition signatures by September 1st in support of corporate accountability
There is less than a month left to sign the e-petition to the House of Commons calling for corporate accountability of Canadian companies operating abroad.
More than two and half years after announcing the creation of the Office of the Canadian Ombudsperson for Responsible Business Enterprise, the Government of Canada has yet to grant the Ombudsperson real powers to investigate and address human rights and environmental abuses linked to Canadian businesses and their subsidiaries.
In the meantime, Indigenous and Afro-descendant communities, particularly women, continue to experience the effects of an unregulated Canadian extractive sector, including human rights abuses, environmental destruction, land grabbing, violations of the right to free, prior and informed consent, and increases in gender-based violence. They also lead in the protection of Mother Earth, sometimes risking their lives to do so. KAIROS partners have been calling for corporate accountability of Canadian companies for decades now.
According to Global Witness’ annual report on land defense, two hundred and twelve defenders were killed in 2019. Colombia and the Philippines accounted for half of the killings and two thirds took place in Latin America. The extractive sector was the industry with the highest number of killings linked to it. And the report reiterates what KAIROS partners tell us all the time: “Women that stand up for their rights to land and a healthy environment face specific threats, on top of those also faced by men. Ensuring that women land and environment activists are supported and protected is vital if we are to successfully respond to the climate crisis.”
KAIROS and other members of the Canadian Network on Corporate Accountability (CNCA) have set a goal of reaching 4,000 signatures by the time the e-petition closes on September 1. We will be providing weekly updates on the progress towards this goal on KAIROS’ social media accounts.
Sign the e-petition (remember to validate the confirmation email otherwise the signature does not count) and urge others to do the same.
For background on corporate accountability and the extractive sector, please visit KAIROS’ digital hub on the gendered impacts of resource extraction, MERE Hub.
