Page 12 - PC Issue 14 Summer 2020
P. 12

Connection
JUSTICE
A Call to Commitment and Accountability
12
PRESBYTERIAN
SUMMER 2020
presbyterian.ca
  By Carragh Erhardt, Justice Ministries
In June of 2015, the Truth and Rec- onciliation Commission issued its 94 Calls to Action after receiving testimonies from Indian Residential School survivors for six years. The Calls to Action provide a well-round- ed pathway for Canada to redress the legacy of the Indian Residential School System and work to ensure the dignity and well-being of Indige- nous Peoples well into the future. The Calls are aimed at addressing gaps in the provision of basic services in the
realms of health, education and child welfare, and at reforming inequities in the justice system. As well, they call for important steps, including apologies, the making of a new Cov- enant of Reconciliation and work to appropriately commemorate the chil- dren who went to residential schools.
This spring marks the five-year an- niversary of this important milestone. However, a December 2019 report by Eva Jewell and Ian Mosby for the Yellowhead Institute found that only nine of the Calls to Action had been completed so far, despite signifi-
cant commitments from the federal government toward reconciliation. Some of the Calls to Action that are considered complete are 13 (federal acknowledgement of Indigenous lan- guage rights), 49 (rejection of the Doctrine of Discovery by churches and faith groups) and 72 (federal support for the National Centre for Truth and Reconciliation). While these are promising steps, there is much more to be done.
Notably, the Calls to Action that would amend the institutionalized in- equities between how the government provides care for Indigenous and non- Indigenous children need significant work. For example, while Jordan’s Principle—a child-first principle used to ensure First Nations children have equitable access to health care—was passed in the House of Commons in 2007 and Call to Action 3 urges all levels of government to fully imple- ment it, this has not been achieved yet. Call to Action 8 calls on the gov- ernment to eliminate the discrepancy between federal education funding for First Nations children. There should not be questions about whether there is enough money to fulfill these calls; access to health care and education are human rights.
One critique of the government’s approach to the Calls to Action is that
it has positioned some of them, such as the implementation of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, in competition with “the public interest.” The Calls to Action are rooted in a desire to see the rights of Indigenous Peoples taken as seriously as the rights of non-Indigenous people. The lack of meaningful progress calls into ques- tion why Indigenous rights are not seen as an inherent part of the public interest.
As we learn how to live well and seek justice in a time of pandemic, we need to be creative and vigilant in how we approach reconciliation. We are all facing different pressures and strains because of COVID-19, but it is also imperative that we recognize the ways that First Nations, Inuit and Mé- tis communities are disproportion- ately vulnerable to the pandemic be- cause of generations of underfunded services and dispossession of land. While responding to emergent needs, we should also keep in mind ways that we can contribute to all sectors and levels of Canadian society doing the necessary work of responding to the Calls to Action. Implementing the Calls to Action is not only important for reconciling the past; doing so would also ensure Indigenous com- munities have access to what they
need to be better prepared for future emergencies.
No single person can address all 94 Calls to Action alone, but if we each choose one Call to work toward and check on regularly, we might stand a chance at making meaning- ful change. Even as we are physically at a distance from one another, we can seek ways to form communities of accountability. Will other members of your congregation read and pray with you? Are there local Indigenous organizations or movements you can follow on social media for updates and that you might work alongside?
I invite you to spend time on this fifth anniversary by reading the Calls to Action. Whether it is your first time reading them or your 10th, it is an act of solidarity to choose to remember that there is still work to be done and to find ways that you can get in- volved. You do not need to read all 94 Calls in one sitting; take your time. Pray while you read. Pray for those who are tirelessly seeking justice and reconciliation. Ask how you can be an instrument of God’s peace in righting the wrongs that Indigenous Peoples still live with every day.
To read the TRC’s Calls to Action, visit trc.ca/assets/pdf/Calls_to_Ac- tion_English2.pdf
  Humanitarian Concerns in Palestine
 By the Rev. Helen Smith
A KAIROS Canada Church Leaders Delegation to Israel/Palestine last November to witness the effects of the occupation there, particularly on women and children, followed up with a trip to Parliament Hill in early March to urge the Canadian government to address the worsening humanitarian crisis in Palestine and support con- ditions for a just peace. The crisis was made even more pressing by the widespread emerging threat of COVID-19 and its effect on the West Bank and particularly Gaza, with its limited infrastructure. The delegation was able to get up-to-date informa- tion from their partners in Bethlehem via videoconferencing before they met individually with MPs, Senators and staff. They also spoke at a Parlia- mentary Breakfast sponsored by the All-Party Women’s Caucus.
travelled to Ottawa focused on what they had seen and heard during their time in Israel/Palestine, where they spent time with women’s groups, visited community development and infrastructure projects and met with civil society organizations, Canadian government representatives, human rights groups, and religious and com- munity leaders both in Israel and Pal- estine. They met courageous Palestin- ian and Israeli human rights defenders and witnessed the extreme suffering of Palestinian people and the impact of continued occupation on both Pal- estinians and Israelis.
The delegation presented three specific and attainable recommenda- tions to the Canadian government:
1. Support local women’s peace- building efforts by increasing long-term funding to grassroots women-led organizations in Pal- estine and Israel.
2. Appoint a special envoy to
monitor and report on the Israeli military arrest, interrogation and detention of Palestinian children.
3. Increase its financial assistance to United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Ref- ugees in the Near East (UNRWA) to $50 million annually, includ- ing a dedicated fund to provide schools, hospitals and services for children in Gaza.
The key question put to the poli- ticians was “How can you help us move these recommendations for- ward?” Using the feedback received, KAIROS Canada continues to work on urging the Canadian government to support these recommendations in the spirit of a long-term, sustain- able and just peace that is acceptable to both Palestinians and Israelis and has the full participation of women.
The members of the delegation were the Rev. Rosalyn Kantlaht’an Elm, Anglican Church of Canada;
Jennifer Henry, Susan Johnson, Lori Ransom, Helen Smith and Andreas Thiel, along with KAIROS staff Rachel Warden and Cheryl McNamara represented the group in Ottawa.
The members of the delegation who
Father Paul Hansen, Roman Catho- lic priest of the Redemptorist Con- gregation; Jennifer Henry, Executive Director of KAIROS Canada; the Rev. Susan Johnson, the National Bishop of the Evangelical Lutheran Church in Canada; Lana Robinson, the Re-
ligious Society of Friends (Quakers); Lori Ransom, United Church of Can- ada; the Rev. Helen Smith, The Pres- byterian Church in Canada; and the Rev. Andreas Thiel, Primate’s World Relief and Development Fund, Angli- can Church of Canada.
































































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