| Friends of the Lubicon PO Box 444 Stn D, Etobicoke ON M9A 4X4 Tel: (416) 763-7500 Email: fol (at) tao (dot) ca www.lubicon.ca |
May 4, 2006
The evening of May 3, members of the Canadian Mission and the Canadian Delegation hosted a reception for Canadian NGOs at the Canadian Mission in Geneva. The primary purpose of the reception was to brief NGOs on treaty body reform and the new Human Rights Council. Lubicon Lake Indian Nation Councilor Alphonse Ominayak and Lubicon advisor Fred Lennarson attended.
Ms. Deidre Kent made the presentation on the Human Rights Council. Among other things she said "Canada is working to ensure that countries with human rights records that aren’t what they should be aren’t running (for seats on the Council)."
Lubicon advisor Fred Lennarson asked "how does Canada determine whether a country has a sufficiently good human rights record to serve on the Council?"
After taking a couple of other questions, Ms. Kent said "on the question of who we’re going to vote for…"
Mr. Lennarson said "That wasn’t the question."
He said "The question was, how does Canada determine whether a country has a sufficiently good human rights record to serve on the Council?"
Ms. Kent said "It’s the same thing." Then she said "We made a pledge not to vote for countries that are guilty of human rights violations. We consult with the Mission in the Country. We consult with the geographic divisions in Ottawa to look at human rights records, we consult with the Mission in New York and Geneva on the role played. We look at human rights records."
Then she said "Does that answer your question"
Mr. Lennarson said "I am particularly concerned about countries that are found to be in violation of international human rights agreements such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights".
Ms. Kent said "Every country has work to do." She said "The question is one of gravity of concern." She then moved on to the next question.
At the conclusion of the presentation, Lennarson approached Ms. Kent and said ‘I’m talking about violations under articles 1 and 27 of the Covenant."
He said "Article 1 pertains to denial of basic subsistence." He said "That’s pretty serious." He asked "How much gravity do you need?"
Ms. Kent said "There is no country that is not guilty of human rights violations." She said "Ask Norway." She said "They have problems with their indigenous people too."
Lubicon representatives do not know whether Norway has been formally found to be in violation of a key international human rights covenant, but saying that "others are guilty too" obviously does not absolve Canada of responsibility for complying with UN findings and concluding observations pertaining to serious human rights violations. The question thus remains what can be done when states misrepresent and ignore human rights findings and concluding observations.
fol-request at masses.tao.ca