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December 17th, 2011

Help us end genocide in 2012.

Over the past three months, STAND Canada has taken the opportunity to step back and evaluate our organization’s mandate, activities and effectiveness.  We continue to be committed to making it easy for our membership to translate compassion into action by becoming advocates against genocide, but we believe it’s time to consider new ways of accomplishing this goal to maximize our impact.

In the past few months, we have asked our membership for feedback.  After hearing from our alumni, our chapters and members, we have decided to make some changes to ensure that STAND effectively facilitates anti-genocide advocacy and continues to empower youth and the Canadian public at-large.

Posted in Uncategorized by STAND Canada
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December 14th, 2011

ACTION ALERT: Violence rises in the DRC

Violence has resulted from the Democratic Republic of the Congo’s (DRC) November 28 presidential elections, with international monitors doubting the poll’s credibility and opposition parties organizing protests.

Although official results state that President Joseph Kabila was re-elected, reports surfaced indicating that the electoral commission was more prone  to discard ballots in areas where opposition vote was high.

The Carter Center, whose observers monitored the vote, noted that some constituencies reported “impossibly high” rates of 99 to 100 per cent voter turnout with all, or nearly all, votes going to President Kabila. The results also lack transparency, given that the electoral commission hasn’t yet announced the poll-by-poll results.

As a result, violence has broken-out between opposition supporters and Congolese security forces, leaving at least four people dead and many shops looted. Opposition parties are planning for country-wide protest which they claim will remain peaceful.

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Posted in Action Alert by STAND Canada
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December 9th, 2011

STAND UBC News

STAND UBC has been busy since September,  from our Western Canada Advocacy Conference to a collaborative seminar on Child Soldiers in the DRC.

This semester, we have been focused on education and discussion about what is going on in the DRC, both for ourselves and our campus community.  We held two seminars, the first on sexual violence and the second on child soldiers.  We partnered with our friends, the Africa Canada Accountability Coalition and Invisible Children, who had so much to share with us. We engaged in meaningful discussion in order to better understand the complexity of the issues.

As the holidays have been drawing closer, we printed out holiday cards and sold them in order to raise money for the Darfur Stoves Project, which supplies fuel-efficient stoves to Darfurian refugees so that they do not have to spend hours collecting firewood.

In the new year we will start off with our panel discussion: “Trade vs. Aid in South Sudan”.  Trade vs. Aid is a hot topic at UBC that is sure to draw attention. We will have a political science professor, a refugee, and a politician giving us their own opinions on the subject!  We are also planning to meet with an MP, which will be inspiring for us all.

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Courtney Loftus is Media Coordinator at the STAND UBC chapter. Stay up-to-date on events happening around UBC campus by contacting her to receive the bi-weekly STAND UBC newsletter straight to your inbox – email ubc@standcanada.org.

Interested in sharing the news from your chapter to the STAND Canada blog? Contact Alexa Huffman (ahuffman@standcanada.org) for more information.

Posted in Chapter News by STAND Canada
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December 8th, 2011

STAND Member Profile: Navdeep Johal

In this new series,  Communications Director Joyita Sengupta interviews members of STAND from across the country who are working daily to make a difference. Read other member profiles here.

Position: Stand for the Dead Campaign Director

Program/Occupation: 4th Year Undergraduate Student, University of Toronto

How and why did you get involved with STAND?

I met Monica, currently the Principal Director, in my class. She told me about the organization and the work STAND does. I was amazed that the Darfur genocide was something I had never heard of. More importantly, I found it disheartening that governments are still not doing enough to prevent genocides and mass atrocities.

What sort of work do you do for the organization?

I work with the Stand for the Dead Campaign which connects Canadians to the story of a victim of genocide and inspires them to speak on behalf of those who are still vulnerable to such violence.

 Why is genocide prevention important to you?

I believe that everyone has the right to live free from the threat of genocide. I also believe we have a responsibility to demand that right by upheld for everyone, regardless of where in the world they may be.

What are some of the challenges of your work with STAND?

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Posted in Member Profile by STAND Canada
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December 5th, 2011

Bi-Weekly News Update

A summary of the news from the Sudans and the DRC the past two weeks. Click on the title for the full article.

SUDAN & SOUTH SUDAN

Kenya-Sudan Ties Amended Following Retraction of Nairobi Court Order to Arrest al Bashir

In an effort to preserve Kenya-Sudan trade and prevent the expulsion of all Kenyans from Sudan, Nairobi has lifted a court order made earlier this week to apprehend Sudanese President Omar al Bashir on behalf of the International Crime Court if he were to enter Kenya.

 Sudan and South Sudan’s Request to Join EAC Rejected and Deferred, Respectively

The East Africa Community has declined Sudan’s bid to join the organization currently including Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania, Rwanda, and Burundi, citing lack its lack of democracy, respect for women, and shared borders. The EAC is requiring more time to evaluate South Sudan’s compliance with “good governance, democracy, the rule of law, observance of human rights and social justice.”

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Posted in The Reporter by STAND Canada
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