Development and Peace – Caritas Canada welcomes today’s announcement by the Canadian government to create a human rights ombudsperson...
A Voice for Justice - All the news
January 17, 2018
August 25, 2015
As part of the International People’s Conference on Mining, I had the chance to participate in a solidarity visit to the city of Mankayan in the Province of Benguet in the Philippines.
August 5, 2015
From July 30th to August 1st, the International People’s Conference on Mining (www.peoplesminingconf.net) took place in Quezon City, the Philippines. Development and Peace’s Filipino partner Center for Environmental Concern was part of the organizing committee of the conference.
October 3, 2014
During the past year, a broad coalition of Canadian civil society organizations have called for the creation of an independent ombudsman for the extractive sector who is able to make justice more accessible for communities from the Global South affected by Canadian mining operations. As part of this ever-growing movement, Development and Peace has repeatedly insisted on the need for this mechanism, through the Voice for Justice campaign, as well as in previous campaigns.
May 16, 2014
On May 14th, Canadians gathered in large numbers on Parliament Hill to call for the creation of an impartial and independent ombudsman for responsible mining. With over 85,000 signatures collected in favour of this call, Development and Peace is hoping the government will take urgent action on this issue.
May 13, 2014
On May 14th, Development and Peace will be presenting over 80,000 signed cards to Members of Parliament from across the country calling on the Canadian government to create an ombudsman for the Canadian extractive sector.
May 5, 2014
Come join a mass rally on May 14th calling for Canadian mining companies to be accountable for their actions overseas!
The rally will take place on Wednesday, May 14th at noon on Parliament Hill in Ottawa.
Come be part of hundreds from across Canada who will be gathering on Parliament Hill to call for an ombudsman for the extractive sector so that communities negatively impacted by Canadian mining companies in the Global South can have a Voice for justice.
February 10, 2014
Development and Peace members in Quebec City held a week of action for the Voice for Justice campaign in their region by organizing several activities featuring Ramsey Hart from Mining Watch Canada.
February 3, 2014
Who knew that a cookie could teach so much! This year, as part of our campaign A Voice for Justice calling for an ombudsman for responsible mining, we gave students the opportunity to understand the realities faced by communities in the Global South when a mining company doesn’t respect their rights. How? By mining cookies!
January 24, 2014
Members of Development and Peace have been and remain very active all across the country promoting the A Voice for Justice campaign. Meetings have taken place with a total of 36 Members of Parliament from all political parties, and most of them have received petitions signed by citizens from their respective ridings.
December 17, 2013
The island of Marinduque in the Philippines is a small paradise. The island rises in a mountainous peak that is covered in lush tropical forests and its calm villages imbue the island with a peaceful tranquility. On closer inspection, however, the island has strange colours that flow through its rivers, some which are half dried up. That’s because there is a toxic legacy on the island, one left behind by a Canadian mining company. Even if the mine was abandoned in 1996, the community is still living the impacts of the mine. And still trying to find justice.
November 18, 2013
The governments of Honduras and Peru award concessions to mining companies. Villages are displaced, fields and streams are contaminated and the communities have no say. Even so, they are demanding one thing: that their right to free, prior and informed consent be respected.
November 13, 2013
On November 1, in Washington D.C., seven Latin American delegates attended a hearing before the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) of the Organization of American States (OAS). The delegation consisted of representatives from Brazil, Chile, Colombia, Honduras and Peru.
November 12, 2013
This week, Members of Parliament across the country will be receiving visits from their constituents who want to share an important message with them from communities in the Global South: Canadian mining companies that don’t respect their rights should be held accountable.
This is why Development and Peace and several other organizations across the country are calling on the Canadian government to put in place an ombudsman here in Canada for the extractive sector.
November 6, 2013
Over thirty people have crammed into a small wooden hut surrounded by mountains and rice paddies in the village of Bayog. Inside, a lively debate is raging.
“When the company put the monuments to demarcate the land of the mine, some of our land was included inside, but we don’t want our lands to be inside,” states someone in the hut.
November 1, 2013
On September 30, 2013 the Canadian Catholic Organization for Development and Peace (CCODP) launched its national Fall Action Campaign, A Voice for Justice. I had the pleasure of participating in the launch with representatives of our Canadian Bishops, three guest Bishops from the Global South, local members and staff from the Montreal area, and many more who joined us for the live webcast.
October 31, 2013
Near Huancayo in Peru, several communities will be affected by a major phosphates mining project that is spread out over 27,700 hectares.
October 30, 2013
This Friday, November 1st, Development and Peace will participate in a public hearing on the “Human Rights of People Affected by Mining in the Americas and Mining Companies’ Host and Home States’ Responsibility” during the 149th Session of the Inter-American Commission on Human Rights (IACHR) in Washington D.C.
October 24, 2013
23 Canadian organizations issued a call to action to Members of Parliament and all Canadians this week, to ensure that victims of abuse by Canadian extractive companies abroad can access justice in Canada.
October 23, 2013
Join other Canadians across the country who will be asking for support for the Voice for Justice campaign from their Member of Parliament during the week of November 11 to 15.
October 16, 2013
Timuay Boy Anoy, a tribal leader of the indigenous Subanens of the Philippines, knows all too well the conflicts that come with a mine. When the Filipino Government handed over Subanen ancestral lands as a concession to a Canadian mining company, the community quickly dissolved into factions of those in favour of the mine and those opposed. Rumours, resistance, manipulation and a lack of transparency began to pull apart the social fabric of the tribe.
October 11, 2013
The Rakotoarimanana family lives in Ambohibary, a village located in the district of Moramanga. The village is surrounded by forests that are rich in biodiversity, and a passion for nature is transmitted from generation to generation. The father is the Fonkontany (village) chief and takes care of everyday business in the community. Mr. Rakotoarimanana and his wife chose to settle here over 40 years ago in order to raise their seven children. Their eldest son does not hesitate to denounce the many abuses of the mine that is located less than 10 km from their home.
October 9, 2013
Access to land and defense of the environment are major issues in Madagascar. Malagasies are excellent farmers and among the finest rice growers in the world. On the island of Madagascar, there are approximately 14,000 peasants cultivating rice on irrigated lands located about 250 km from the capital city of Antanarivo. The Rakotoarimanana family lives in Ambohibary, a village in the district of Moramanga, and the opening of a mine not far from their home has resulted in a lot of frustration. “Until just a few years ago, we had enough food every day.
October 8, 2013
Our fall action campaign is officially off and running! This past Monday, September 30th, we launched the campaign in Montreal. In an atmosphere of warmth and solidarity, one hundred or so people gathered to speak out and create A Voice for Justice. Numerous members, donors, partners, allies, supporters, and employees of the organization expressed the urgent need to align themselves with populations from the Global South who have been hard hit by the mining activities of Canadian companies.
September 23, 2013
Development and Peace is launching a new campaign under the banner A Voice for Justice that is calling on the Government of Canada to establish an independent ombudsman for the Canadian extractive sector that can investigate complaints brought by communities overseas where companies operate.