Statement on the Police Murders of George Floyd and Regis Korchinski-Paquet
The Canadian Peace Congress stands in solidarity with the demonstrators for justice in cities across the U.S., and
Solidarity and Hope at a Time of Crisis
As the COVID-19 pandemic spreads rapidly around the globe, claiming many thousands of lives in its path, Canadians
Peace and Gender Equality: Common threads in the fabric of Resistance – An IWD 2020 solidarity message
Peace and Gender Equality:Common threads in the fabric of Resistance An IWD 2020 solidarity message from the Canadian
Hong Kong protests & the US/NATO campaign to destabilize the People’s Republic of China
Statement from the Canadian Peace Congress: (PDF) The recent violent protests in Hong Kong have focussed on the
On the enduring significance of Hiroshima
A statement from the Canadian Peace Congress (PDF) On August 6 and 9, 1945, the U.S. military bombed
YES to PEACE! NO to NATO! Why Canada Should Get Out of NATO
Concerns are growing across this country about the disturbing tilt in Canadian foreign policy toward increasing militarization and
Tell Justin Trudeau: End all Canadian Military Involvement in the Middle East!
Canada has ended its active role in the destructive and illegal bombing of Syria. This shows that public opposition to the airstrikes, along with the Syrian people’s resistance to both terrorism and “regime change” have affected Canadian government policy.
But Canada is continuing to assist the bombing campaign through reconnaissance and refuelling. The Trudeau government’s plan to expand Operation IMPACT, by tripling the number of advisers and assistants to the Iraqi Kurdish forces, is really a way to increase Canada’s “boots on the ground.” It also plays into the strategy of fragmenting Iraq into several smaller states.
The escalation will embroil Canada in another prolonged, dangerous and destructive war. Canadians must demand that Trudeau end all Canadian military involvement in the Middle East!
Stop the war against Syria!
Canada must withdraw from Syria, oppose Turkey’s aggression
The Canadian Peace Congress is alarmed that NATO countries are escalating their aggression against Syria, and calls for the immediate and full withdrawal of all Canadian military from the region. Furthermore, Canada must condemn and oppose Turkey’s military action against Syrian government forces who are fighting terrorist organizations in Syria. The current surge in intervention by NATO countries will only deepen the suffering of the Syrian people, prolong the war that has already claimed 260,000 lives, and increase the risk of an expanded regional conflict.
It is shameful that, despite a grandiose pledge to withdraw Canadian fighter jets, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau actually increased the number of airstrikes against Syria. The US-led airstrikes were deliberately coupled with renewed material and organizational support to anti-government groups in Syria. Justin Trudeau’s statement that Canada will increase its troop presence for “training purposes” is completely in line with this agenda, and needs to be stopped.
No new imperialist intervention in Iraq
The Canadian Peace Congress opposes any renewal, under any pretext, of imperialism’s war in Iraq. The Congress further calls, again, for Canada to reverse the process of military integration with the United States military, and for Canada to withdraw from NATO. These are concrete steps by which Canada can avoid being dragged into causing another humanitarian catastrophe, and instead assume a foreign policy of peace.
Former British Prime Minister Tony Blair has led the calls for a new imperialist intervention in Iraq, using the argument that Western interests – and even the territory of Britain itself – are threatened by developments within Iraq. This argument is perverse. It is the Britain, the United States and Canada, directly and through NATO, who repeatedly invade and occupy one country after another – imperialism is the main threat to peace in the world. Blair and others are parroting the same thoroughly discredited arguments they used to justify the 2003 invasion of Iraq. No weapons of mass destruction were found after that murderous invasion, and this alone should serve as a reminder that imperialism’s true interests are not peace, democracy and security. Imperialism’s real interest is the division and re-division of the world, with war and aggression as tools to control the world’s resources in violation of the sovereignty and basic rights of the peoples of the world.
Peace Congress Condemns Plans for “Regime Change” and Plunder in Venezuela
The Canadian Peace Congress condemns the ongoing foreign interference in the internal affairs of Venezuela, as part of their plan to destabilize the country and provoke “regime change.” The Congress calls upon all peace and progressive forces in Canada to express their solidarity with the Venezuelan people, who have the right to determine the path of their social and economic development, free from foreign provocation.
The violent attacks against the Venezuelan people and their democratically elected government began on February 10, involving masked demonstrators armed with Molotov cocktails, rocks and even sniper rifles. The leader of the right-wing Popular Will Party, Leopoldo Lopez, incited these events. Lopez is a member of one of the wealthiest families in Venezuela, and participated directly in the failed coup attempt in 2002. Since the election of Nicholas Maduro to succeed Hugo Chavez as president, Lopez and other wealthy oligarchs have worked with foreign powers to destabilize the country through economic sabotage and, now, through a widespread campaign of violence.
Canadian Peace Congress Condemns Israel’s Attack On Gaza
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.
End the Aggression Against Syria! Stop the Drive to War Against Iran!
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.
Contribution of Canada to World Peace Assembly ~ Kathmandu, 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.
Peace Congress condemns Quebec’s anti-protest law, supports the rights of Quebec students
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.
Final Document from Canadian Peace Congress Convention, November 2011
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.
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.
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.
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.
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.
Documents of Extraordinary Renewal Convention, October 25, 2008
Main Resolution
Introduction
The Special Extraordinary Renewal Convention of the Canadian Peace Congress in Winnipeg Manitoba October 25th 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 21st century the cycle of wars of aggression, militarization and economic crisis that characterized the 20th 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.
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