Indigenous Rights
Philippine Human Rights Defenders Bring Concerns to Canada: Canadian Tour
March 27, 2012
March 27th – April 16th From March 27th – April 16th, three Philippine human rights defenders will be touring across Canada to raise awareness about the grave realities of human rights violations occurring within a climate of impunity in the…
Post filed in: Asia-Pacific, Indigenous Rights
Indigenous Human Rights Defender Killed in Mexico
March 23, 2012
KAIROS is saddened and deeply troubled by the recent murder of Bernardo Vásquez Sánchez, an Indigenous Zapotec community leader and human rights defender from Oaxaca, Mexico. This most recent example of the escalation of violence and increase in threats and…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights
Take Action on World Water Day 2012!
March 22, 2012
Today, March 22, is World Water Day. Yet Canada has still failed to implement a National Water Policy which would ensure the safety of Canadian water. Canada is also one of only two countries at the United Nations General Assembly…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights, UNDRIP Blog Updates
International Day for the Elimination of Racism: UN Committee calls for an end to discrimination against Indigenous peoples in Canada
March 21, 2012
In 1966, to commemorate the killing by police of peaceful anti-apartheid demonstrators in South Africa, and to promote an end to racism in all its forms, the United Nations designated March 21 as the International Day for the Elimination of…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights, UNDRIP Blog Updates
UN Committee calls for “comprehensive strategy” to uphold the human rights of Indigenous peoples in Canada
March 15, 2012
The United Nation’s highest body for combating racism is urging Canada to take comprehensive action to end discrimination against Indigenous peoples. In a report released this week, the UN Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination expressed concern over Canada’s…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights, UNDRIP Blog Updates
JOINT MEDIA ADVISORY: UN Committee urged to examine discrimination against Canadian Indigenous peoples
February 17, 2012
“On February 22 and 23, Canada’s record on combating discrimination will be examined by a high level body of the United Nations. The Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) is the independent expert body that monitors compliance with…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights, Media Releases, UNDRIP Blog Updates
Ontario Chiefs Letter to CRC in support of Youth Ambassadors to UNCRC
February 6, 2012
“Dear Committee Member: I am writing to demonstrate my support to both the delegation of Indigenous youth ambassadors from Canada travelling to Geneva this week, and to their request that a Special Rapporteur be appointed to address ongoing human rights…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights, UNDRIP Blog Updates
Fundamental Justice Issues at Stake in Gateway Pipeline Debate
January 25, 2012
Enbridge’s Northern Gateway project, comprising two 1,170 kilometre pipelines from northern Alberta across Indigenous lands to Kitimat, BC, would carry 525,000 barrels a day of diluted bitumen from the tar sands to the west coast for export, and return 193,000…
Post filed in: Ecological Justice, Indigenous Rights
Fate of Tar Sands Pipelines Crucial for Climate Justice
January 12, 2012
KAIROS’ August 2011 paper outlines the key issues in the controversy over both the Gateway and Keystone pipelines. Both violate the principle of Free, Prior and Informed Consent as enshrined in the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples,…
Post filed in: Ecological Justice, Indigenous Rights
Remembering Bishop Samuel Ruiz: Justice and Indigenous Rights in Mexico and Canada
January 10, 2012
On January 24, 2011 Bishop Samuel Ruiz of Chiapas, Mexico died at the age of 86. He had been bishop for 51 years, including 40 in Chiapas. With his death, the church lost a great leader; his ministry was a…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights
Banner Presentation & Feast Mark Qualicum Celebrations
December 13, 2011
L to R: Quilter Beulah Paugh, Qualicum Band Councillor Donna Kennedy, Qualicum Band Councillor Darlene Wells, Chief Patricia Cassidy, designer Norma Emerson, and Parksville/Qualicum KAIROS Chair Hans Kratz. In the midst of a few hundred school children, parents, and supporters,…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights
Attawapiskat Joint Statement: Urgent action needed to improve living conditions in Aboriginal communities
December 8, 2011
Canada must meet its human rights obligations. Indigenous peoples and individuals have the right to enjoy the same standard of living and access to government services that are enjoyed by other people in Canada. They have the right to live…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights, UNDRIP Blog Updates
Attawapiskat: a hard look at the federal government’s response so far
December 2, 2011
1 December 2011 KAIROS Urgent Action Background information As of November 30, federal leaders and the Red Cross have now visited the northern Ontario Cree community of Attawapiskat, which is a step forward. The Red Cross is flying in emergency…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights, UNDRIP Blog Updates
Attawapiskat First Nation: Background
November 25, 2011
Dr. Elizabeth Blackmore, one of 15 family doctors for the James Bay coast, said at a recent press conference on Attawapiskat, “I often have to remind myself that I am still working in the province of Ontario… From a medical…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights
Ecuador’s Oil Struggle: Reflections on an Amazonian Journey
November 25, 2011
In July 2011, KAIROS staff Rachel Warden and Sara Stratton, together with Fort Chipewyan activist George Poitras, travelled to Ecuador to learn more about the impacts of oil exploration on the Indigenous peoples and ecosystems of Ecuador’s Amazon region. The…
Post filed in: Ecological Justice, Indigenous Rights, Latin America, UNDRIP Blog Updates
An Article on Living Courage by delegate Vernie Yocogan-Diano
November 18, 2011
Living Women’s Courage Against Extractive Industries and for Rights By Vernie Yocogan-Diano Cordillera Women’s Education Action Research Center cwearc09@gmail.com 11 November 2011 On the launching of the Canadian Tourism and Hospitality Center on 6 November 2011, Canadian Ambassador Christopher Thornlay…
Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Indigenous Rights
Truth, Reconciliation & Equity Video
November 7, 2011
KAIROS’ opening video for the Truth, Reconciliation & Equity Campaign, focusing on the Roll with the Declaration action on June 20 in Ottawa.
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights, UNDRIP Blog Updates
Global South Expresses Concern about REDD
November 4, 2011
REDD (Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation) is a plan for curtailing greenhouse gas emissions by preserving the world’s forests. KAIROS has examined REDD in the 2010 briefing paper Decisive Action Vital at Cancún Climate Talks. This initiative will…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights, UNDRIP Blog Updates
Letter to PM Harper re. UNDRIP from Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada
October 31, 2011
The Reverend Susan C. Johnson, National Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada, has at the request of the ELCIC National Convention written a letter to Prime Minister Harper encouraging the Canadian government “to fully and effectively implement the…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights
Honouring the Children: Executive Summary
October 24, 2011
For the full version of “Honoring the Children” click here >> Executive Summary of “Honouring the Children” submitted by First Nations Child and Family Caring Society of Canada and KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives October 2011 “For far too…
Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Indigenous Rights
Honouring the Children: Report
October 24, 2011
The Interim Report of the Canadian Government’s Standing Committee on the Status of Women states: “[C]hildren often come into the care of child and family services not for abuse, but rather because their families are unable to provide the necessities…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights
A welcome to Penelakut Island part 2
October 24, 2011
Later that afternoon, we asked Jill and her sister Valerie if we could visit a village site that had been on the front lines of colonization. We took a tour of the island, winding up on a muddy road that…
Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Indigenous Rights
A welcome to Penelakut Island part 1
October 24, 2011
(A perspective on settler and Indigenous relationships in the Gulf Islands, including Penelakut, is offered by award-winning author Terry Glavin in the article This Haunted Place. Terry has for many years written about the Indigenous history and ongoing resistance that…
Post filed in: Gender Justice/Women of Courage, Indigenous Rights
Fate of Tar Sands Pipelines Crucial for Climate Justice
August 12, 2011
Please read KAIROS’ Report “Fate of Tar Sands Pipelines Crucial for Climate Justice” President Barack Obama is facing a crucial decision that will define the U.S. position on climate justice. He can heed the advice from the Environmental Protection Agency…
Post filed in: Ecological Justice, Indigenous Rights
THANK YOU to the Ottawa organizing committee-the faces and hands behind an amazing day
July 12, 2011
We all know just how many people it takes to pull off a public event. Ottawa is the scene of enough public events that extra planning and attention to security questions is needed, especially since the day moved between three…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights
Ellen Gabriel’s speech at the Roll with the Declaration event on Parliament Hill, June 20, 2011
July 4, 2011
Ellen Gabriel, Mohawk, Turtle Clan, Longhouse from Kanehsatà:ke (Ellen speaks on the Hill with Families of Sisters in Spirit in accompaniment.) I am very honoured to be here today upon the invitation of Kairos and their wonderful initiative “Roll with…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights, UNDRIP Blog Updates
Cindy Blackstock’s speech at KAIROS’ Roll with the Declaration event at the Human Rights Monument, Ottawa, June 20 2011
July 4, 2011
Cindy Blackstock. The First Nations Child and Family Caring Society Canada builds two bridges for children over the turbulent waters of life’s hazards. One is for non-Aboriginal children- which could be much stronger for a wealthy nation- but thankfully most…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights
Rolling East!
June 19, 2011
Unlike the Western train, the stops on the Ocean are rarely more than an hour apart. About 45 minutes after departing Halifax I was hopping out of the open door to meet our awesome supporters in Truro, NS. Unfortunately in…
Post filed in: Indigenous Rights