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Network Newsletter  Rights and Democracy Network Number 16 November 27, 2007 Newsletter Sections |
Network members attend 2007 John Humphrey Freedom Award events across Canada
Picture by Marc Gilbert
Network members in Montreal, Edmonton, Vancouver and Toronto are attending events in cities across Canada featuring Rights & Democracy’s 2007 John Humphrey Freedom Award recipient Akbar Ganji, the celebrated Iranian journalist and dissident who spent six years in prison for exposing rights abuses committed by Iran’s Fundamentalist regime. The Carleton University Delegation is hosting a discussion with Mr. Ganji on campus on December 3 at 1 pm in Room 102 of St. Patrick’s Building, in collaboration with Journalists for Human Rights and Carleton Journalism Society. For more info about this event at Carleton, visit: http://www.rightsdemocracy.net/cms/spip.php?article115.
For more information about Mr. Ganji and the details of the events across Canada, visit:
http://www.dd-rd.ca/site/humphrey_award/index.php.
Apply to attend the World Youth Forum in Quebec City in August 2008
Application deadline: December 31, 2008
Picture by Ian Berry
The 4th World Youth Congress (WYC) will bring 600 of the world's most dynamic young activists in the field of sustainable development from 120 different countries to Quebec City next August. These delegates will help shape international policy by documenting and showing governments what young people are doing to help achieve the UN’s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). More than half the delegates will be in the Activist category – young people who have either done an amazing project, or want to do one but need funding.
Most delegates will be 18-25 years old – but some delegates 15-18 and 25-3
0 will be accepted. 100 places are reserved for the Host Nation – this time, Canada, and the deadline for applications for Canadian youth has been extended until Dec. 31st. Members of the Network who are organizing projects with their Delegation can apply as "young development activists", which allows them the possibility of receiving WYC project funding and a bursary to the conference. For more information about the Congress, and to apply, visit: www.wyc2008.qc.ca.
Malaspina Delegation hosts a Human Rights Documentary Series
The Malaspina Network Delegation in Nanaimo, BC, will host the first evening of their Human Rights Documentary Series on Friday, November 30th, at 7 pm in Building 180, room 134. This first event of the series will document atrocities perpetrated against indigenous peoples in Paraguay and Guatemala. The first two films, “Eviction” (10 min.) and “Sipakpa is Not for Sale/Sipakapa No Se Vende” (55 min.) explore how mining companies have exploited indigenous land and communities in Guatemala and resistance in Mayan communities. The third film, directed by Alejandra Maldonado, a former Malaspina international student from Paraguay who won the Malaspina Rights & Democracy Film Award, is called “When they Came” (10 min.) and explores the need for more land and resources in the Ayoreo community of Jesudi, Paraguay. Alejandra founded a non-profit fair trade craft organization called Equip. The Delegation is also planning a Sweatshop Fashion Show that will take place at Malaspina’s One World Conscious Holiday Festival on December 8, which is hosted by Equip.
For more info, contact: rightsanddemocracy_nanaimo@hotmail.com.
University of Winnipeg Delegation organizes Landmines Action Week events
As part of the
From 1 to 3 pm, the workshop will inform participants about the humanitarian toll of landmines and discuss ways that concerned global citizens can respond. The workshop will also include a guided tour of the Living with Landmines Photo Exhibit by photographer Tony Hauser.
In the evening, an expert panel will discuss “The Ottawa Treaty: Can it happen again?” from 7:00-8:30 pm. This panel will investigate the success of the Ottawa Treaty and how civil society, diplomacy and international cooperation can affect change in the world.
As a follow-up to the event, Cameron Derkson, a member of the Delegation’s executive, will represent the
Letter from West Africa
by Matthieu Bélanger
Dear readers,
My second internship in West Africa has been an enriching experience, both professionally and personally. Work experience abroad is very educational and is a great way to learn more about oneself and others.
For me, it all began with the requirement to complete an internship for my Masters in International Studies. I wanted to work overseas, but I had no international experience. Ultimately, my application for an internship in Mali was accepted. As part of a vast ten-year program to reform the justice system, I relaunched and managed the operation of a material resources management system within several jurisdictions. Working in cooperation with the Justice Department, I experienced the bureaucratic labyrinth firsthand, in an environment of very formal hierarchical relationships. It was an enriching experience because I had great freedom to act.
To read more, visit: http://www.rightsdemocracy.net/en/reseau/16-matthieu.htm.
Rights & Democracy Applauds Canada’s Sanctions Against Burma and Calls for Tangible Support to Burma's Legitimate Authorities
November 15, 2007 - Rights & Democracy applauds today’s announcement by Maxime Bernier, Canada’s Minister of Foreign Affairs, of a series of sanctions against the military regime in Burma.
Mr. Bernier said Canada will ban all exports and imports as well as new investments. It will freeze assets in Canada of Burmese nationals connected with Burma’s military regime, and prohibit the provision of Canadian financial services. Burmese ships and aircrafts will not be allowed to enter Canada, and Canadian-registered ships and aircrafts will not be allowed to dock or land in Burma.
“Today, the Canadian Government took a major step towards the implementation of Parliament’s May 2005 Burma Motion,” said interim president Janice Stein. "By imposing sanctions, the government is not only putting pressure on the military regime, it is also sending a strong message of solidarity to thousands of Buddhist monks and citizens from Burma who have courageously taken to the streets asking for democratic rule." Among them are two of our John Humphrey Freedom Award winners, Min Ko Naing and Su Su Nway, who took part in the very first demonstrations in August 2007, and are both currently under detention.
To read more: http://www.dd-rd.ca/site/media/index.php?id=2181&subsection=news.
UN-backed drive against gender-based violence spotlights 5 ‘underreported’ stories
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| Source : UNFPA |
The 16 days run from 25 November, the International Day for the Elimination of Violence against Women, until 10 December, International Human Rights Day.
Approximately 14,000 women are murdered by their intimate partners annually in Russia, according to UNFPA, or one woman every 35 minutes – a yearly death toll comparable to the entire published number of Soviet troops killed during the decade-long conflict between the Soviet Union and Afghanistan.
To read more: http://www.un.org/apps/news/story.asp?NewsID=24810&Cr=UNFPA&Cr1=.
December 1st: World AIDS Day 2007
World AIDS Day is December 1st and the World AIDS Campaign is encouraging everyone to show leadership – as an individual, in families, communities or in your place of work. Below you will find a few areas of how you can get involved and take the lead this World AIDS Day.
To celebrate the 2007 and 2008 World AIDS Day theme of leadership, the World AIDS Campaign has launched the Stop AIDS Leadership Pledge. In collaboration with national, regional, international and constituent partners, the pledge asks people from all over the world to take the lead to stop AIDS. These pledges collected online, by mail and at events, will be used to create exhibitions, banners and other visibility actions during major events in 2008. With a goal of at least 100,000 signees, these pledges will serve as a persuasive tool for leveraging greater political leadership on universal access to AIDS prevention, treatment, care and support and act as a visual example for key national and international decision-makers to follow.
Click here to read more about the pledge, to download pledge forms, or get the Stop AIDS Leadership Pledge button for your website.
The Network’s on-line forum announces job and internship opportunities in Canada and around the world. To access the forum, you must be a member of the Rights & Democracy Network. Become a member by signing up here: http://www.rightsdemocracy.net/en/membres/devenez_membre.htm
If you are already a member, visit the Forum’s jobs and internships section by clicking here: http://www.droitsdemocratie.net/network-forum/index.php?login_lang=en
Network News is a newsletter published by the Rights & Democracy Network.
The Network Team:
Coordinator: Sophie Rondeau
Liaison Officer: Elana Wright
Liaison Officer - International: Mireille Ouellet
Administrative Assistant: Diane Migneault
Webmaster: Sylvain Aubé
Rights & Democracy Network
1001, boul. de Maisonneuve E., Suite 1100
Montréal, Québec H2L 4P9 CANADA
Phone: (514) 283-6073
Toll-free: 1-877-736-3833
Fax: (514) 283-3792
network@dd-rd.ca
www.rightsdemocracy.net
Available issues :
Issue 31 (June 1st, 2010)
Issue 30 (March 16, 2010)
Issue 29 (November 9,2009)
Issue 28 (September 25, 2009)
Issue 27 (July 28, 2009)
Issue 26 (March 27, 2009)
Issue 25 (January 29, 2009)
Issue 24 (December 9, 2008)
Issue 23 (October 29, 2008)
Issue 22 (August 27, 2008)
Issue 21 (July 23, 2008)
Issue 20 (April 24, 2008)
Issue 19 (March 27, 2008)
Issue 18 (January 24, 2008)
Issue 17 (December 20, 2007)
Issue 16 (November 27, 2007)
Issue 15 (November 6, 2007)
Issue 14 (October 18, 2007)
Issue 13 (September 25, 2007)
Issue 12 (September 11, 2007)
Issue 11 (Summer 2007)
Issue 10 (April 13, 2007)
Issue 9 (November 2006)
Issue 8 (August 2006)
Issue 7 (May 4, 2006)
Issue 6 (April 12, 2006)
Issue 5 (March 21, 2006)
Issue 4 (March 1, 2006)
Issue 3 (February 16, 2006)
Issue 2 (January 31, 2006)
Issue 1 (January 17, 2006)
