Past Presidents of Rights & Democracy support the Movement
MONTREAL, March 24 /CNW Telbec/ - A new mass citizen movement is mobilizing in support of Rights & Democracy, Canada's flagship public agency for the promotion of international human rights. The arm's-length organization is at the centre of a growing international controversy over partisan appointments by Canada's government to its Board of Directors and management.
The web-based Rights and Democracy Movement www.rightsanddemocracymovement.org is already more than a thousand strong, with notable supporters including four past Presidents of Rights & Democracy: Ed Broadbent (1990-1996), Warren Allmand (1997-2002), Jean-Louis Roy (2002-2007) and Jean-Paul Hubert (2007-2008).
"The implications of the crisis at Rights & Democracy go far beyond the interests of a single institution. Other defenders of human rights here in Canada and abroad are also being muzzled," reads the Movement's website. "What is actually at stake is nothing less than the essence of Canada's democracy - threatened by reduced political space for diversity and debate."
The Movement invites concerned Canadians and members of the international community to support efforts to protect the independence and non-partisan mandate of Rights & Democracy and other organizations committed to the defence of human rights. The Movement also calls on Canada's Parliament, which created Rights & Democracy in 1988, to exercise its power and ensure the agency and Canada's other arm's-length institutions are able to carry out their mandates free of partisan interference.
The Rights and Democracy Movement is a citizen movement started by Canadians concerned about Rights & Democracy and the state of democracy in Canada. The Rights and Democracy Movement is supported by the Public Service Alliance of Canada. More informations on www.rightsanddemocracymovement.org.
For further information: For further information: Éric Normandeau, (514) 245-0195
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