World Peace Council: Chavez will be remembered always

Statement of condolences about the passing away of the President of the Bolivarian
Republic of Venezuela Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías

The World Peace Council expresses its profound grief and sorrow about the physical disappearance of the leader of the Bolivarian Revolution and President of Venezuela Hugo Rafael Chávez Frías.

The entire membership of the WPC and its leadership wish to convey the condolences of the peace loving people and their organisations to the people and government of Venezuela, to our member Organisation, the “Comité de Solidaridad Internacional- COSI” and the family of the late President.

March 6, 2013

Dave McKee, President of the Canadian Peace Congress and a member of the Executive Committee of the World Peace Council, is currently on tour in Ontario. He is meeting with people across the province, to discuss the impact that NATO membership has on Canada’s foreign and domestic policies. Dave presents the case that Canada needs to withdraw from NATO, in order to develop an independent foreign policy that is based on peace, international cooperation and solidarity.

This tour is part of a larger Canadian Peace Congress Campaign Against NATO, and is a continuation of a very successful tour of Western Canada last year.

February 4, 2013

The World Peace Council (WPC) denounces the brutal military intervention of France in Mali, which is being carried out with the full support of the European Union and NATO. It constitutes the continuation of the implementation of the imperialist plans for the geo-strategical control of broader areas of Africa, as we have seen it in 2011 with the bloody intervention and bombing of Libya.Their goal are the energy resources which are object of fierce rivalry between imperialist forces and centers, which however go hand in hand in the slaughter of the peoples under various pretexts each time.

January 16, 2013

The World Federation of Trade Unions strongly denounces the military intervention of the French “socialist” government of Francois Hollande in Mali with the support of other imperialist forces, using as pretext the intensification of the conflicts between the Malian army and the militant organizations that are appearing to be fighting for the independence of Northern Mali in Azawad.

The military intervention was presented as a response to the request of the Malian President, Dioncounda Traore; the President who was appointed in his position after the military coup of last March.

January 15, 2013

An Open Letter to Canada’s Members of Parliament

from

Dave McKee, President, Canadian Peace Congress

23 December 2012

Dear Honourable Members,

I write you as the President of the Canadian Peace Congress, an organization that has spent more than six decades working for a Canadian foreign policy based on peace, international cooperation and solidarity.

Such a policy orientation is critical in the current international conditions, as the dangerous situation in Syria continues to deteriorate and threatens to develop into a regional conflict. A number of factors have contributed to this complex crisis, but certainly one of the key elements has been aggressive interference by NATO states and allied governments in the Middle East.

December 23, 2012

The Canadian Peace Alliance, a broad network of peace groups that includes the Canadian Peace Congress, is stepping up its efforts to prevent Canada and NATO from attacking Syria. The CPA has release the following statement, and is asking people to gather signatures on a petition to the House of Commons.

“There is growing evidence that NATO and its allies will attempt to intervene in Syria to topple the government of Bashar Al-Assad. During the recent “Friends of Syria” meeting in Morocco, the US and more than 100 countries officially recognized the Syrian National Coalition as the country’s legitimate opposition, a move that may foreshadow a military attack.

“While Canada has not officially endorsed an intervention, there are reports that Canadian military forces are ready to deploy, including the Joint Incident Response Unit and the Disaster Assistance Response Team. With Canadian warships still patrolling the Mediterranean, Canada could very likely join a naval campaign.

December 19, 2012

The Canadian Government Must Support Peace and Self-Determination, Not War and Occupation!

The Executive Council of the Canadian Peace Congress (CPCon) condemns the recent and escalating aggression by Israel against the Palestinian territory of Gaza. The Congress declares its solidarity with the people of Palestine, and reiterates its support for an independent Palestinian state within the 1967 borders with East Jerusalem as its capital.

We condemn the hypocritical and war-mongering position of the Harper Conservative government, who immediately stated its support for Israel’s aggression. Despite efforts to cloak Israel’s attacks with the language of “self-defense” and “anti-terrorism”, the reality is that the current aggression is part of a long history of provocation, aggression, truce violations, political assassinations, collective punishment and other criminal actions by Israel against the Palestinian people. We call upon the Canadian government to reverse its support for the aggressive actions of Israel, and to press the Netanyhu government for an immediate ceasefire and to open genuine peace negotiations.

November 18, 2012

The Canadian government is called upon to act for peace, not promote war

The Canadian Peace Congress condemns the ongoing foreign intervention in Syria and the escalating drive to war against Iran, and calls for the immediate withdrawal of all Canadian, NATO and foreign mercenary forces from the region. We further call upon the Conservative government of Stephen Harper to restore and normalize its diplomatic relations with Syria and Iran, and to re-orient Canadian foreign policy toward peace, international cooperation and solidarity.

September 30, 2012

Dear sisters, brothers, comrades and friends,

It is my pleasure to bring you solidarity greetings from the Canadian Peace Congress. We want to thank and congratulate our host, the Nepal Peace and Solidarity Council, for preparing this Assembly and allowing all of the peace and anti-imperialist forces of the world to gather for this important meeting. We also salute the people of Nepal, whose continued progressive struggle has brought about the change from a monarchy to the Federal Democratic Republic, along with many other important social and political developments in recent years.

As well, we want to thank the General Secretary and President of the WPC, for their committed and excellent leadership over the past 4 years since our last assembly in Caracas, and the Greek Peace Committee for continuing to provide the Executive Secretariat and headquarters.

This Assembly of the World Peace Council convenes at a critical moment for peace and progressive forces worldwide. Since our last Assembly in 2008, the global capitalist crisis has continued and deepened, and competition for resources, markets, influence and profits has grown much more fierce and desperate. In an effort to overcome the crisis and avoid economic collapse, capitalist countries are attacking the social, economic and political gains won by the working class over many decades of struggle.

July 22, 2012

No to Austerity and Repression!

The Canadian Peace Congress condemns the repressive anti-protest law of the Charest government, Bill 78, and extends its full solidarity with the Quebec student strike.

By subjecting the right to protest to police permission and control, Bill 78 attacks the main vehicle for mobilization to stop the mounting imperialist wars and military spending of the Canadian government under Stephen Harper. The same police repression which uses rubber bullets, sound bombs, and mass arrests and detention against peaceful students was also used against anti-G20 protests in Toronto in 2010, and could be used next against the peace movement and other progressive forces. The student strike in Quebec has been winning broad support, including from the labour movement, to defeat this repression and prevent it from advancing to even further stages.

Bill 78 and the accompanying police violence are part of a deliberate and accelerating growth of militarism in Canada, a policy emanating from the Harper Conservatives in Ottawa and echoed by many provincial and municipal governments. These developments represent the interests of corporate Canada, who promote an increasingly aggressive foreign policy for Canada. The main vehicle for this international role is NATO, through which Canada participated in the wars on Afghanistan and Libya, and is driving toward new wars on Syria and Iran.

June 17, 2012

Fighter Jet Program Also Used For Nuclear Weapons Development

Opposition to the Harper government’s proposal to purchase 65 F-35 fighter jets has been consistent and growing. Most of it is focused on the related issues of costs and corruption that are associated with the procurement. This is critically important – military spending should always be conducted in an open and transparent manner, and it must be justified in the context of broader public spending. In an era of high unemployment, deep cuts to social programs and harsh austerity programs that target working people, Harper’s intention of spending billions of dollars on fighter jets is thoroughly offensive, and it needs to be confronted and opposed by the largest possible mobilization of people.

The F-35 program is driven by the United States military and its NATO allies. In 1997, Canada signed onto the Joint Strike Fighter program, which was developed as a vehicle for the United States to capture international funding for a replacement jet fighter. Canada’s initial investment in 1997 was $10 million. In 2001 the JSF contract was awarded to Lockheed Martin, who developed what is now known as the F-35. By 2010, the international procurement process was underway and Stephen Harper announced that Canada would purchase 65 fighter jets, through an untendered purchase.

May 7, 2012

Main Political Report

Dear Sisters, Brothers and Friends,

This meeting of the Canadian Peace Congress convenes at a critical moment for peace and progressive forces worldwide. As the global, systemic economic crisis continues and deepens, competition for resources, markets, influence and profits has grown much more fierce and desperate. Capitalist governments have moved quickly to attack social and labour rights and impose severe austerity measures that will impoverish and marginalize masses of working people, at the same time that they are prosecuting wars and increasing military budgets. In response, popular resistance to these reactionary policies is building and spreading – from the progressive uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East, to the anti-austerity movements in Greece and throughout Europe, to the “Occupy” protests in North America.

Alongside this resistance, imperialism has become much more aggressive, as witnessed by NATO’s violent regime change in Libya. While expansion and violence are constant features of imperialism, the current sharpening economic crisis has compelled capitalists to increasingly pursue military-based solutions. In part, this is related to the massive profits that can be quickly derived from a military economy. Beyond that, this increased aggressiveness also has the aim of co-opting and coercing popular movements, establishing new intelligence bases in strategic regions of the world, facilitating blockades and direct military involvement in foreign countries, and seeking out new pretexts for interference and war.

November 28, 2011

Canadian Contribution to World Peace Council Meeting, October 2011

Contribution of Canadian Peace Congress to World Peace Council European Region and Secretariat Meeting in Brussels, October 17-18, 2011

First, I want to thank the Greek Peace Committee and Comrade Angourakis of the KKE for hosting and organizing this meeting, and for making it possible for Canada to participate. We have had another excellent report from each of the President and the General Secretary, and the discussion yesterday and today has been rich and rewarding. We always find these international meetings to be enormously helpful to our work in Canada against imperialism and for peace, and this encounter is particular important to us as we approach some key tasks in the coming months.

October 18, 2011

Oppose and Renounce Foreign Basing Rights for the Canadian Military

The Canadian Peace Congress condemns and calls for an immediate halt to the Canadian government’s negotiations for military basing rights as part of the Operational Support Hubs Network, and abrogating and renouncing rights already negotiated with Germany and Jamaica. As Defence Minister Peter MacKay has already admitted, Canada’s “military tempo” is at the highest levels since the Korean War. Instead of opening the way for more bombings and destruction with basing rights spread throughout the world, Canada should reverse its military aggression, which is only in the interests of an imperialist minority and against the interests of the peace-loving majority. The basing agreements allow the Canadian military to enter other countries at any time, violating the sovereignty of the host country, in order to rain death and destruction on a third country.

June 30, 2011

Canada and NATO Out of Libya! Hands Off Syria!

Peace Congress Calls for Increased Mobilizations Against War

As the conflict in Libya grinds on, the real character of the “humanitarian” military intervention there is becoming more and more clear. Using the political cover of United Nations Security Council Resolution 1973, NATO military forces led by the United States have wasted no time in transforming Libya’s dangerous political unrest into an imperialist interventionist war aimed at regime change, dividing the country and plundering oil resources.

NATO and its member states – including Canada – have actively sided with reactionary forces within Libya and are now leading the effort to overthrow the government, including blatant attempts to assassinate Moammar Qaddafi and other government members through airstrikes. In the eyes of NATO, the largest military organization in the world, “Responsibility to Protect” means “Opportunity to Interfere,” regardless of death and destruction.

May 24, 2011

Defeat the Harper Conservatives – Block the War Agenda!

As the federal election campaign moves into its final week, it is critical that Canadians defeat the Harper Conservatives, block their war agenda and prevent another Harper government.

The past five years of minority Conservative government have been a disaster. Stephen Harper represents the most reactionary, anti-worker, pro-war aspects of Canadian capitalism. Under his minority government, Canada has:

expanded its and lengthened its involvement in the immoral and illegal war in Afghanistan, ignoring 10 years of opinion polls that show the public’s consistent opposition to the war;
committed war crimes by knowingly turning Afghan detainees over to torture, and then proroguing Parliament to cover up the issue;
involved Canada in another illegal and dangerous military intervention in Libya;
escalated military spending to the highest levels since the Second World War, with $23 billion in 2011 meaning that one tenth of government revenue is spent on the military budget;
contracted to spend $30 billion on F-35 fighter jets;
deepened Canada’s military and foreign policy integration with that of the United States, including the Civil Assistance Plan which allows the deployment of US troops in Canada.

April 25, 2011

Canadian Peace Congress Statement on Events in Libya

No to US-NATO Military Intervention in Libya! No to Canadian Military Involvement in Libya!

As the crisis in Libya deepens, the Canadian Peace Congress denounces the rapid moves by imperialist forces – including the U.S., E.U., NATO, Canada and Israel – to intervene and exploit the conflict to their advantage. We call on the minority Harper Conservative government to withdraw the offensive Canadian JTF-2 Special Forces who have been deployed to the region, recall the heavily armed HMCS Charlottetown and refrain from deploying logistical air refuelling and support power, and halt the implementation of offensive CF-18’s to the region. Furthermore, the Canadian government must oppose the United Nations Security Council’s imposition of sanctions which will only result in the death and injury of Libyan people, and reject any form of foreign military intervention including the use of no-fly zones which will involve massive bombardment to neutralize existing Libyan air defences.

March 4, 2011

Main Resolution

Introduction

The Special Extraordinary Renewal Convention of the Canadian Peace Congress in Winnipeg Manitoba October 25^th 2008 convenes at a moment when Canadian membership in NATO embroils Canada’s armed forces and commits public wealth to US instigated imperialist wars of aggression and occupation.

We declare our confidence in the deeply held beliefs of the Canadian people who uphold and support a foreign policy of peace and disarmament and express our support and solidarity for all of the progressive forces of peace and anti-imperialist solidarity that oppose aggressive US imperialism and its NATO-EU allies that foment wars and brutal occupations, revive the arms race and destabilize international relations and the global economy.

US imperialism and its NATO and EU allies seek to perpetuate in the 21^st century the cycle of wars of aggression, militarization and economic crisis that characterized the 20^th century resulting in two world wars, the use of nuclear weapons against civilian populations, the seizure of global resources and markets, the dismemberment of nations and the exploitation and impoverishment, including mass starvation of entire people’s.

October 28, 2008

Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s Canada First Defence Strategy (CFDS) is in fact the foreign policy doctrine of the minority Conservative Government. CFDS is the manifesto of the most aggressive, chauvinistic and reactionary circles of Canadian finance capital seeking with a bigger military budget to strengthen its influence at the imperialist round tables in Washington and Brussels.

Prime Minister Harper flaunts military power as the sine qua non of Canadian diplomacy in international affairs. CFDS promotes the growth, modernization and combat readiness of the Canadian military and its interoperability with US military forces for one main reason, to commit Canada to current and future US-NATO wars, interventions and occupations as the first principle of Canadian government foreign policy. CFDS boasts of the experience gained by Canadian forces in Afghanistan as a “military that can operate far from home on a sustained basis”. According to Prime Minister Harper the ability to wage war is the path that will return Canada to the international stage as a “credible and influential country.”

June 24, 2008

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