No Images? Click here MCC urges action on issue of military detention of Palestinian children. October 2017 Issue No. 62Quotation of the month
No Way to Treat a ChildAs part of MCC’s new campaign on Palestine and Israel called A Cry for Home, we are joining with other groups to highlight and urge action on the issue of the military detention of Palestinian children. Military detention violates homes as safe and secure places for children and their families. Every year, the Israeli military prosecutes hundreds of Palestinian children from the occupied West Bank in military courts. At any one time, more than 300 children – some as young as 12 years of age – are held in military detention. They are mostly charged with throwing stones. Reports reveal that the majority of detained Palestinian children undergo some form of physical violence following arrest and are denied access to parents or a lawyer prior to and during interrogation. They suffer significant emotional and psychological trauma. Much of the treatment they receive is a violation of international law. MCC joins with the No Way to Treat a Child campaign to urge the federal government to prioritize the human rights of Palestinian children and their families. Learn more from our blog. Please add your voice by signing the petition. What to watch for on Parliament HillOn September 18 Parliament resumed sitting with various bills passing through the legislative system and the House of Commons and Senate committees undertaking studies on departmental spending, legislation and issues related to their mandates. Currently the House of Commons Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration is being briefed by department officials on the issue of asylum seekers irregularly entering Canada from the United States. MCC Ottawa Office staff are following three pieces of legislation. Bill S-235, An Act to amend the Prohibiting Investments in Cluster Munitions is a Senate bill which, if passed, would ban investments in corporations that produce cluster munitions. While Canada prohibited the use and manufacture of cluster munitions in 2015, it did not prohibit investment in cluster munitions. This bill which is currently awaiting study by the Senate Foreign Affairs Committee would close that loophole. Bill C-47, An Act to amend the Export and Import Permits Act and the Criminal Code passed 2nd reading debate on Oct. 3 and will now be studied by the House of Commons Committee on Foreign Affairs and international Development. If the bill passes into law, Canada would finally accede to the international Arms Trade Treaty, a multi-lateral treaty that regulates the international trade in conventional (non-nuclear weapons). Bill C-262, United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP) Act will likely be coming up for 2nd reading later this month. If passed this Act would ensure that the laws of Canada are in harmony with the UNDRIP. Mennonite Church Canada has been working closely with the Bill's sponsor, MP Romeo Saganash, to promote awareness of this bill and the UNDRIP. Stay tuned for more updates and analysis.
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