September 20, 2018
The Right Honourable Justin Trudeau, PC, MP
Prime Minister of Canada
Office of the Prime Minister
80 Wellington Street
Ottawa, ON
K1A 0A2
pm@pm.gc.ca; justin.trudeau@parl.gc.ca
Dear Prime Minister:
We, the undersigned, write to you as a community of Canadians deeply concerned about Canada’s so far limited response to the Rohingya crisis, and particularly about the fact that Canada has yet to designate as genocide the egregious conduct of Myanmar carried out (and continuing to be carried out) against that country’s defenseless Rohingya ethnic minority.
Since August 2017, Myanmar has committed atrocities against the Rohingya in plain sight of the international community. Numerous reliable reports indicate the mass murder of tens of thousands of Rohingya civilians (including children and babies), the widespread and systematic gang rape of thousands of Rohingya women and girls, the orphaning of tens of thousands of Rohingya children, the complete destruction of more than 360 Rohingya villages and the creation of more than 720,000 Rohingya refugees. The exact numbers of victims are unknown as Myanmar refuses full and unfettered access of expert, impartial investigators into Rakhine state where the atrocities occurred. In the face of these horrific crimes, the world’s response has been largely to watch without intervening, to issue weak and ineffective objections to or criticisms of what Myanmar has perpetrated, to respond meaningfully only to the resulting humanitarian crisis and not to the source of the crisis, and to take limited steps towards the prospective accountability of a handful of Myanmar officials responsible for genocide.
Research and studies by international human rights scholars and prestigious bodies like Yale Law School and Queen Mary University of London have concluded that what the Rohingya have experienced is a genocide, born of a genocide agenda, systematically implemented by the Myanmar authorities since at least the early 1980s when the Rohingya were in effect stripped of their citizenship and their basic rights. The fact that it took the mass murder of tens of thousands of people since last year, the destruction of hundreds of communities, and the creation of the world’s largest refugee camp to bring this issue to the world’s attention is scandalous. Furthermore, despite the depravity, the horror, and sheer magnitude of the crimes and atrocities committed, the international community has yet to take any actions to defend or protect the Rohingya remaining in Myanmar in response to the policy of genocide by the military and civilian leaders of that nation.
With the release on July 19, 2018 of a comprehensive report by the NGO Fortify-Rights about how the Rohingya were specifically targeted for extermination, it is an inescapable conclusion that the atrocities were pre-planned and, therefore, intentional. The 160-page report reveals how the Myanmar government made systematic preparations to commit mass atrocities against Rohingya civilians up to a year before August 2017. Such meticulous planning to commit atrocities aimed at one specific ethnic group, with the pre-meditated intent to destroy that group at least in part, is the very idea and definition of genocide.
Furthermore, on August 27, 2018 the United Nations Fact Finding Mission on Myanmar released the results of their investigation and recommended that Myanmar’s top military officials be charged with the crime of genocide. In addition they noted the complicity of Aung San Suu Kyi who failed to use her status as de facto civilian leader of Myanmar to prevent the atrocities from taking place.
According to noted genocide scholar Dr. Gregory Stanton, the president of Genocide Watch, there are 10 stages of genocide – classification, symbolization, discrimination, dehumanization, organization, polarization, preparation, persecution, extermination and denial. The Myanmar government has engaged in all of these stages and continues to carry out stage eight and nine – persecution and extermination – while executing the last stage (denial) of the crimes they have committed.
The world’s response to Rohingya persecution appears no different than what happened in Rwanda, Darfur and the Balkans, where the world was aware of the terrible things to come or occurring but did nothing to prevent or stop them. It is also similar to the response of western states to the persecution of Jews in Nazi Germany, where they were aware of what was happening but did not intervene to save the lives of the innocent.
Prime Minister, on several occasions since last September either you or Liberal Members of Parliament have spoken out publicly about what happens if we do not remain committed to defending human rights. You expressed those sentiments when you spoke at the dedication of the National Holocaust Memorial on September 27, 2017 when you said “this monument is a reminder of the devastating cost of allowing hatred and tyranny to overcome openness, inclusion and freedom.” Members of your government expressed similar sentiments about opposing hate, bigotry and xenophobia when they spoke on Victims of Genocide Day, Holocaust Remembrance Day, and for Holocaust Memorial Day. While the words are a welcome historic reminder of the human consequences of closing our eyes to human rights atrocities, they are empty and meaningless if not acted upon to prevent a genocide taking place before our eyes.
Canada’s failure (along with that of the international community) to recognize and address the Rohingya Genocide a year after atrocities came to light is not only inexcusable it also undermines the international legal system and in fact encourages the Myanmar government to repeat this violence against other minorities – a process that is already under way against the Kachin, Karen and Shan ethnic minorities. The absence of a clear, effective and quick response to one genocide then encourages other genocides. In this regard, it is deeply troubling to read recent reports of steps taken by politicians in Assam, India to strip millions Indian Muslims of their citizenship, corral them into internment camps, violate their fundamental human rights, and raise the prospect of their forced deportation from the only home they have known.
As a long-standing party to the UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which was signed by former Prime Minister Lester B. Pearson when he was Canada’s foreign affairs minister, Canada has both a moral and legal obligation to act in the case of the Rohingya. So far, Canada has failed even to mention the Genocide Convention much less to take action. Moreover, as welcome as humanitarian aid is, it is no substitute for decisive measures that would prevent or arrest ongoing genocide, punish those who perpetrate it, and hold the State of Myanmar responsible for its breaches of this key treaty of the post-World War 2 international order.
As Canadians, we want our government to be a global leader in efforts to resolve this crisis and give the Rohingya hope for a better future. Therefore, we urgently call upon the government to live up to Canada’s international legal obligations under the UN Genocide Convention by labeling as genocide what is still happening to the Rohingya people in Myanmar. In addition, we call on Canada to ensure that justice is served by seeking the prosecution of all of Myanmar’s military and civilian leaders who are responsible for or complicit in perpetrating genocide, and ensure that the government of Myanmar is held accountable and pays reparations for destroying the lives and livelihoods of the Rohingya victims of their genocidal policies.
If Canada wants in fact to uphold the rules-based international order, and if Canada is genuinely committed to the words “never again”, then such fundamental norms and powerful words need to be supported by clear and decisive actions to protect, defend and seek justice for the Rohingya – a people that have been targeted for extermination by a racist and xenophobic regime that sees them as less than human.
******************
Le 20 septembre 2018
Le très honorable Justin Trudeau, C.P., député
Premier ministre du Canada
Bureau du premier ministre
80, rue Wellington
Ottawa ON
K1A 0A2
pm@pm.gc.ca; justin.trudeau@parl.gc.ca
Monsieur le premier ministre,
Nous, le soussigné, vous écrivons en tant que communauté de Canadiens grandement préoccupée par la réaction jusqu’à présent limitée du Canada à la crise des Rohingyas. Nous sommes particulièrement inquiets du fait que le Canada n’a toujours pas défini de génocide le comportement abject qu’a adopté le Myanmar (et qu’il continue d’adopter) à l’égard de sa minorité ethnique Rohingya, un peuple sans défense.
Depuis le mois d’août 2017, le Myanmar commet des atrocités contre les Rohingyas au vu et au su de la communauté internationale. De nombreux rapports de source fiable signalent le massacre de dizaines de milliers de civils Rohingyas (y compris des enfants et des bébés); des viols collectifs répandus et systématiques de milliers de femmes et de filles Rohingyas; des dizaines de milliers d’enfants Rohingyas rendus orphelins; la destruction de plus de 360 villages Rohingyas; et la création de plus de 720 000 réfugiés Rohingyas. On ignore le nombre exact de victimes, car le Myanmar refuse l’accès libre et sans entraves à des enquêteurs experts et neutres dans l’État de Rakhine, où les atrocités sont perpétrées. Confronté à ces crimes abominables, le reste du monde se borne à observer la situation sans intervenir; à formuler des objections ou des critiques timides et inefficaces contre les actions du Myanmar; à réagir de façon significative seulement à la crise humanitaire engendrée, et non pas à sa cause; et à prendre des mesures limitées quant à la responsabilité potentielle de trop peu de représentants birmans derrière le génocide.
Des chercheurs de partout dans le monde, experts en droits de la personne, et des organisations internationales prestigieuses comme Yale Law School et Queen Mary University of London ont mené des recherches et des études concluant que les Rohingyas subissent un génocide et que la tragédie découle d’intentions génocidaires systématiquement mises en œuvre par les autorités birmanes depuis au moins le début des années 1980. À cette époque, le régime a dans les faits dépouillé les Rohingyas de leur citoyenneté et de leurs droits fondamentaux. Il est scandaleux qu’il ait fallu attendre le massacre de dizaines de milliers de personnes depuis l’an dernier, la destruction de centaines de communautés et la création du plus grand camp de réfugiés au monde pour attirer l’attention de la planète sur la situation. De plus, malgré la dépravation, l’horreur et la seule ampleur des atrocités et des crimes commis, la communauté internationale n’a toujours pas adopté de mesures s’opposant à la politique génocidaire des dirigeants militaires et civils birmans. De telles mesures défendraient et protégeraient les Rohingyas qui sont toujours au Myanmar.
Depuis la publication le 19 juillet 2018 d’un rapport global rédigé par l’ONG Fortify-Rights et expliquant comment les Rohingyas ont été la cible précise d’un projet d’extermination, il est incontestable que les monstruosités étaient planifiées et, du même coup, intentionnelles. Le rapport de 160 pages révèle comment le gouvernement birman s’est préparé de façon systématique, jusqu’à un an avant août 2017, pour commettre des atrocités de masse à l’endroit des civils Rohingyas. Une planification aussi méticuleuse pour commettre des abominations envers un groupe ethnique précis et dont l’objectif prémédité est d’anéantir ce groupe au moins en partie correspond à l’idée et à la définition mêmes d’un génocide.
De plus, le 27 août 2018 la mission d'enquête des Nations Unies sur le Myanmar a publié les résultats de son enquête et a recommandé que les chefs militaires birmans soient accusés de crime de génocide. Par ailleurs, la mission a noté la complicité d'Aung San Suu Kyi qui n'a pas su utiliser son statut de dirigeante civile de facto du Myanmar pour empêcher les atrocités.
Selon le Dr. Gregory Stanton, éminent chercheur sur les génocides et président de Genocide Watch, un génocide se décompose en dix stades: la classification, la symbolisation, la discrimination, la déshumanisation, l’organisation, la polarisation, la préparation, la persécution, l’extermination et le déni. Le gouvernement du Myanmar a suivi toutes ces étapes et continue d’exercer les huitième et neuvième, tout en observant le dernier stade (le déni des crimes qu’il a commis).
Les pays semblent réagir à la persécution des Rohingyas tout comme ils l’ont fait pour le Rwanda, le Darfour et les Balkans : même s’ils savaient quelles horreurs avaient cours ou allaient se produire, ils n’ont rien fait pour y mettre fin ou les empêcher. Leur réaction rappelle aussi celle des États occidentaux face à la persécution des Juifs en Allemagne nazie : ils étaient au fait des injustices, mais ils ne sont pas intervenus pour sauver la vie d’innocentes victimes.
Monsieur le premier ministre, depuis septembre dernier, vous et des députés libéraux avez décrit, dans divers discours publics, ce qui arrive lorsque nous faillons à notre engagement à défendre les droits de la personne. Vous avez exprimé ce sentiment lors de l’inauguration du Monument national de l’Holocauste, le 27 septembre 2017, en disant: ‘’ Ce monument nous rappelle le terrible prix que nous payons lorsque nous permettons à la haine et à la tyrannie de vaincre l’ouverture, l’inclusion et la liberté.’’ Des membres de votre gouvernement se sont eux aussi élevés contre la haine, l’intolérance et la xénophobie lors de la Journée des victimes du crime de génocide, de la Journée internationale en mémoire des victimes de l’Holocauste et du Jour de l’Holocauste. Bien que ces mots soient un rappel historique nécessaire des conséquences humaines qui s’ensuivent quand on détourne le regard devant des atrocités bafouant les droits de la personne, ils sont dénués de sens s’ils ne sont pas accompagnés de gestes pour empêcher un génocide de se produire devant nos yeux.
L’incapacité du Canada (ainsi que celle de la communauté internationale) de reconnaître et d’aborder le génocide des Rohingyas un an après la révélation des atrocités est non seulement inexcusable, mais elle mine également le système juridique international. Ce silence encourage même le gouvernement du Myanmar à répéter les violences contre d’autres minorités, un processus déjà entamé contre les minorités ethniques Kachin, Karen et Shan. L’absence d’une intervention claire, efficace et rapide face à un génocide est propice à en perpétrer d’autres. À cet égard, il est profondément troublant de lire de récentes informations selon lesquelles des politiciens de l’Assam, en Inde, prennent des mesures pour déchoir des millions de musulmans indiens de leur citoyenneté, les reléguer dans des camps d’internement, violer leurs droits de la personne fondamentaux et faire planer la possibilité d’une déportation forcée de l’endroit où ils ont toujours vécu.
En tant que partie de longue date à la Convention de l’ONU pour la prévention et la répression du crime de génocide, signée par l’ancien premier ministre Lester B. Pearson quand il était le ministre des affaires étrangères du Canada, le Canada a l’obligation morale et juridique d’agir dans le dossier des Rohingyas. Jusqu’à présent, le Canada n’a même pas fait mention de la convention et est encore moins passé à l’action. De plus, bien que l’aide humanitaire soit appréciée, elle ne peut remplacer des mesures claires qui empêcheraient un génocide ou y mettraient fin, qui puniraient ses auteurs, et qui tiendraient pour responsable l’État du Myanmar pour ses violations en vertu de ce traité-clé préconisant l’ordre international depuis l’après-Seconde guerre mondiale.
En tant que Canadiens, nous voulons que notre gouvernement fasse preuve de leadership à l’international afin de contribuer à la résolution de la crise et de donner aux Rohingyas l’espoir d’un avenir meilleur. Ainsi, c’est avec insistance que nous exhortons le gouvernement canadien à respecter ses obligations légales internationales en vertu de la Convention de l’ONU sur le génocide en définissant de génocide ce que subit toujours le peuple Rohingya du Myanmar. Par ailleurs, nous demandons au Canada de s’assurer que justice soit faite en jugeant tous les dirigeants militaires et civils birmans qui sont responsables ou complices du génocide. Nous réclamons aussi que le Canada s’assure que le gouvernement birman réponde des conséquences de son programme génocidaire qui a détruit les vies et les moyens de subsistance des victimes Rohingyas et que le Myanmar accorde réparation pour ces torts.
Si le Canada veut réellement maintenir l’ordre international fondé sur des normes et s’il croit sincèrement au sens de ‘’plus jamais’’, ces normes fondamentales et ces mots puissants doivent s’asseoir sur des actions claires et décisives pour protéger et défendre les Rohingyas ainsi que pour rendre justice à ce peuple – un peuple dans la mire d’un régime raciste et xénophobe qui voit en lui des sous-hommes et qui cherche à l’exterminer.
Sincerely / Cordialement,
Fareed Khan
Rohingya Human Rights Network
Anwar Arkani
Rohingya Association of Canada
Hugh Doherty
Canadians In Support of Refugees in Dire Need
Noor Nizam
Support Group for the Rohingya People (Hamilton)
Prof. John Packer, Director / Directeur
Human Rights Research & Education Centre
Centre de Recherche et d'Enseignement sur les Droits de la Personne
Faculté de droit / Faculty of Law
Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Prof. François Crépeau, Director
McGill Centre for Human Rights & Legal Pluralism
Oppenheimer Professor of International Law
McGill University
Dr. Myriam Denov, Ph.D.
Canada Research Chair in Youth, Gender & Armed Conflict
Centre for Research on Children and Families
McGill University
Prof. Fannie Lafontaine
Founder and Co-Director, Clinique de droit international
pénal et humanitaire
Director, Canadian Partnership for International Justice
Canada Research Chair on International Criminal Justice
& Human Rights
Faculté de droit / Faculty of Law
Université Laval
Prof. Audrey Macklin, Director
Chair in Human Rights
Centre for Criminology and Sociolegal Studies
Faculty of Law
University of Toronto
Kyle Matthews, Executive Director
Montreal Institute for Genocide & Human Rights Studies
Concordia University
Prof. Errol P. Mendes, LL.B., LL.M., O.Ont, LSM
Editor-in-Chief, National Journal of Constitutional Law
President, International Commission of Jurists (Canada)
Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Samer Muscati, Director
International Human Rights Program
Faculty of Law
University of Toronto
Brandon Silver, Director of Policy & Projects
Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights
Centre Raoul Wallenberg pour les Droits de la Personne
Dr. Christina Szurlej, Endowed Chair & Director
Atlantic Human Rights Centre
St. Thomas University
Prof. François Tanguay-Renaud, LL.B., B.C.L., D.Phil
Co-Director, Jack & Mae Nathanson Centre on Transnational Human Rights, Crime and Security
Osgoode Hall Law School
York University
Prof. Emir Ramic, Chairman
Institute for Research of Genocide Canada
Senator Marilou McPhedran, C.M., B.A., LL.B., LL.M., LL.D.
Independent Senator for Manitoba
Senate of Canada
Senator Kim Pate, C.M.
Independent Senator for Ontario
Senate of Canada
Elizabeth May, O.C.
Member of Parliament, Saanich-Gulf Islands
Leader of the Green Party of Canada
The Hon. David Kilgour, P.C., J.D.
Former Secretary of State (Asia-Pacific)
Former Canadian Member of Parliament
Dr. Christopher J. Adams
Rector, St. Paul's College
University of Manitoba
Prof. Melanie Adrian
Department of Law and Legal Studies
Carleton University
Prof. Sharry Aiken
Faculty of Law
Queen’s University
Professor Kristi Allain
Department of Sociology
St. Thomas University
Dr. Vermonja R. Alston, J.D., Ph.D.
Faculty of Liberal Arts and Professional Studies
York University
Prof. Ghadeer Anan, M.D., F.R.C.P.C.
Division of Medical Oncology
Department of Medicine
Dalhousie University
Prof. Idil Atak, Editor in Chief
International Journal of Migration and Border Studies
Graduate Program Director, Department of Criminology
Ryerson University
Prof. Aime B. Avolonto,
Department of French Studies
Glendon College, York University
Prof. Reem Bahdi
Faculty of Law
University of Windsor
Prof. Natasha Bakht
Faculté de droit / Faculty of Law
Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Nicole Barrett
Director, International Justice and Human Rights Clinic
Executive Director, Allard Prize Initiatives
Peter A. Allard School of Law
University of British Columbia
Prof. Faisal Bhabha
Osgoode Hall Law School
York University
Prof. Susan Breau
Faculty of Law
University of Victoria
Prof. Angela Cameron
Shirley Greenberg Professor of Women in the Legal Profession
Faculté de droit / Faculty of Law
Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Prof. Frank Chalk, Research Director
Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies
Department of History
Concordia University
Prof. Larry Chartrand, Academic Director
Wiyasiwewin Mikiwahp Native Law Centre
University of Saskatchewan
Prof. Roland D. Chrisjohn
Department of Native Studies
St. Thomas University
Prof. Minoo Derayeh
Department of Equity Studies
Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies
York University
Prof. Richard Devlin, F.R.S.C.
Associate Dean Research (Acting)
Schulich School of Law
Dalhousie University
Prof. Mohammad Fadel
Faculty of Law
University of Toronto
Prof. Kirsten J. Fisher
Department of Political Studies
University of Saskatchewan
Prof. Craig Forcese
Faculté de droit / Faculty of Law
Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Prof. Evan Fox-Decent
Faculty of Law / Faculté de droit
McGill University / Université McGill
Prof. Tracy Glynn
Department of Economics
St. Thomas University
Prof. Mark J. Goodman
Human Rights and Equity Studies Program
Department of Sociology
York University
Prof. Jan Grabowski
Department of History
University of Ottawa
Prof. Ricardo Grinspun
Department of Economics
York University
Prof. Tania Das Gupta
Department of Equity Studies
Faculty of Liberal Arts & Professional Studies
York University
Prof. Robin Hansen
College of Law
University of Saskatchewan
Prof. Rhoda E. Howard-Hassmann, Ph.D, F.R.S.C.
Canada Research Chair in International Human Rights (2003-16)
Professor Emeritus, Department of Political Science
Wilfrid Laurier University
Prof. Michael Johns
Chair, Department of Political Science
Laurentian University
Prof. Jasminka Kalajdzic
Faculty of Law
University of Windsor
Dr. Aliya Khan, M.D., F.R.C.P.C., F.A.C.P., F.A.C.E.
Director, Fellowship in Metabolic Bone Disease
Endocrinology and Metabolism and Geriatrics Division
Professor of Clinical Medicine
McMaster University
Dr. Baseer U. Khan, M.D., F.R.C.S.C., P.CEO.
Chief, Division of Ophthalmology
Southlake Regional Hospital
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University of Toronto
Prof. Amar Khoday, D.C.L.
Faculty of Law
University of Manitoba
Prof. Bonita Lawrence
Chair, Department of Equity Studies
Coordinator, Indigenous Studies Program
York University
Prof. Michael Lynk
Faculty of Law
University of Western Ontario
Dr. A. Wayne MacKay C.M. Q.C
Professor Emeritus
Shulich School of Law
Dalhousie University
Prof. Laura Madokoro
Department of History and Classical Studies
McGill University
Prof. Kathleen Mahoney, F.R.S.C., Q.C.
Trudeau Fellow, Fulbright Fellow, Sir Allen Sewell Fellow
Faculty of Law
University of Calgary
Prof. Paul Mkandawire, Co-Director
Institute of Interdisciplinary Studies (Human Rights)
Carleton University
Prof. Ratiba Hadj-Moussa
Senior Fellow
IFK Internationales Forschungszentrum Kulturwissenschaften
Department of Sociology
York University
Prof. Delphine Nakache
School for International Development and Global Studies
University of Ottawa
Prof. Dean Peachey
Human Rights Program
Global College
University of Winnipeg
Prof. Ross Pink
Political Science Department
Kwantlen Polytechnic University
Prof. Anna Lise Purkey, D.C.L., LL.M., B.C.L. / LL.B.
Department of Sociology and Legal Studies
St. Jerome's University
University of Waterloo
Prof. Saeed Rahnema (ret.)
Founding Director
School of Public Policy & Administration
York University
Prof. Nandini Ramanujam
Executive Director and Director of Programs
McGill Centre for Human Rights and Legal Pluralism
Faculty of Law
McGill University
Prof. A.J. Ripley
Human Rights Program, Faculty of Humanities
St. Thomas University
Prof Craig Scott
Osgoode Hall Law School
York University
Prof. Richard Sigurdson
Dean, Faculty of Arts
University of Calgary
Prof. Penelope Simons
Faculté de droit / Faculty of Law
Université d'Ottawa / University of Ottawa
Prof. Anneke Smit
Faculty of Law
University of Windsor
Prof. Shirley R. Steinberg
Research Professor of Critical Youth Studies
School of Graduate Studies
University of Calgary
Dr. Lyal S. Sunga
Visiting Professor, American University of Rome, Italy
Affiliated Professor, Raoul Wallenberg Institute of Human Rights
and Humanitarian Law, Lund, Sweden
Visiting Professor, Strathmore University Law School, Nairobi, Kenya
Dr. Andrew S. Thompson
Senior Fellow, Centre for International Governance Innovation
Adjunct Assistant Professor of Political Science
Balsillie School of International Affairs
University of Waterloo
Prof. Daniel Turp
Faculté de droit / Faculty of Law
Université de Montréal / University of Montreal
Former Canadian Member of Parliament
Former Member of the Quebec National Assembly
Prof. Ashwini Vasanthakumar
Queen’s National Scholar in Legal & Political Philosophy
Faculty of Law
Queen’s University
Prof. Christopher Waters
Co-Editor, Canadian Bar Review
Faculty of Law
University of Windsor
Prof. David A. Welch
CIGI Chair of Global Security
Balsillie School of International Affairs
Department of Political Science
University of Waterloo
Prof. Sara Wharton
Faculty of Law
University of Windsor
Dr. Gregory J. Whitfield, Ph.D.
Centre for the Study of Democracy and Diversity
Queen's University
Prof. Andrew Woolford, Former President
International Association of Genocide Scholars
Department of Sociology and Criminology
University of Manitoba
Prof. Cynthia Wright
School of Gender, Sexuality and Women's Studies
York University
Prof. Sujith Xavier
Director of Transnational Law and Justice Network
Faculty of Law
University of Windsor
Dr. Kitana Ananda, Ph.D.
Educator, Researcher, Activist
Maher Arar, Ph.D.
Entrepreneur, Time Magazine 100 Most Influential People in the World (2007)
Rev. Frances Deverell
Canadian Unitarians for Social Justice
Colonel (retired) Joep Diening, OMM, CD, P.Eng, B. Eng.
Canadian Air Force
Avi D’Souza
Director of Communications
Union of Medical Care & Relief Organizations (Canada)
Omar Ha-Redeye, LL.B, LL.M, J.D.
Fleet Street Law (Toronto, ON)
Alia Hogben
Executive Director
Canadian Council of Muslim Women (National)
Saima Jamal
Co-founder
Calgary Immigrant Support Society
Nasim Kherani
Canadian Council of Muslim Women (Edmonton)
Shaikh Ahmad Kutty
Resident Scholar & Senior Lecturer
Islamic Institute of Toronto
Dimitri Lascaris, LL.B.
Lawyer, Journalist, Activist
Monia Mazigh, Ph.D.
Author, Academic and Human Rights Advocate
Pascal Paradis
Executive Director
Lawyers Without Borders Canada
Dafina Savic
Founder
Romanipe (Roma Human Rights Association)
Ghislain Shema
President
Association Humura de la Communauté Rwandaise
Nimet Karachi
Canadian Council of Muslim Women (Niagara Region)
Mueed Peerbhoy, B.A., LL.B.
Lawyer, Human Rights Activist
Zain Shah
Canadian Council of Muslim Women (Toronto)
Naeem Siddiqi
Canadian Muslim Civil Liberties Association
Nazira Naz Tareen
President and Founder
Ottawa Muslim Women's Organization
Sarita Samaroo-Tsaktsiris B.A., LL.B.
SST Law Professional Corporation
Rabbi Raysh Weiss, Ph.D.
Congregation Shaar Shalom, Halifax
Rabbi Stephen Wise
Shaarei-Beth El Congregation, Oakville
Thomas Woodley
President
Canadians for Justice and Peace in the Middle East
L'Assemblée des Burundais du Canada
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Doctors for Humanity
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