No Images? Click here Rights under endless occupationFrom April 25 to 27, MCC Ottawa Office Director Jenn Wiebe joined staff from the United Church of Canada in meetings with MPs, senators and officials – highlighting ongoing human rights concerns in Palestine and Israel. They brought with them experts Michael Lynk, UN Special Rapporteur on the Palestinian Territories, and Brad Parker, International Advocacy Officer and Attorney with Defense for Children International—Palestine (DCIP) to share their analysis of the situation. Their message was clear: the human rights and humanitarian situation for Palestinians, especially in Gaza, is urgent, and prospects for a just and sustainable peace seem impossible if the status quo remains. Now is the time for Canada to step up and be a leader on the international arena. Lynk and Parker were joined by Green Party Leader, Elizabeth May and Peggy Mason of the Rideau Institute for a public event on April 26. It was a full house, with engaged participation, as Lynk discussed international law and Gaza, and Brad Parker talked about the realities facing Palestinian children detained under the Israeli military court system. "[Israeli] occupation is about control...it is not about justice," says Brad Parker. You too can support these efforts. Find out more about the event here; and tell the Canadian government that the holding of Palestinian children under military detention is No Way to Treat a Child. War in SyriaThe war in Syria has entered its eighth year, with few clear prospects for sustainable peace. MCC has sent several staff delegations to Syria and the region in the past 6 months, to support local partners, and bring home renewed calls for action. In April 2018, MCC Humanitarian Response Director, Bruce Guenther, who was is Syria in November 2018, joined Policy Analyst Bekah Sears and Advocacy Research Intern Nicholas Pope meeting several MPs presenting calls to action on Syria, and Canada’s responsibilities including:
See also MCC Canada ED Rick Cober Bauman’s op-ed in the Winnipeg Free Press, an MCC Open Letter on Syria, and MCC’s Washington D.C. Office Director Rachelle Lyndaker-Schlabach’s call to “peace, not arms” in Syria.
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