Advocacy Suggestions
How can you assure peace, justice and human rights in the tsunami region?
- Urge the Canadian and U.S. governments to champion debt cancellation to those countries impacted by the tsunami. Indonesia has asked that any debt moratorium or debt restructuring not involve a new IMF program. See http://www.mcc.org/canada/ottawa/asiaresponse.html
- Encourage U.S. and Canadian governments to provide greater access to their markets for imports from the tsunami affected countries and not penalize these countries’ exports.
- Urge the U.S. and Canadian governments to fully fund the pledges they have made. There is a history of countries making pledges in the aftermath of a disaster, but failing to follow up, e.g. only 10% of last year's government pledges for the Bam, Iran earthquake were honored.
- Call for increased U.S. aid, especially long-term aid for rebuilding and development.
- Urge the governments of Canada and U.S. to fulfil their commitments to the UN Millennium Development Goals. See http://www.unmillenniumproject.org
- Insist that planned military aid be re-channeled into economic development.
- Urge that aid not be "tied aid" (needing to be spent on products from the country providing the aid). Canadian Foodgrains Bank is asking the Canadian government to remove the cap on 90% of food aid being used to purchase food in Canada. See http://www.foodgrainsbank.ca/downloads/cida_regulations_2.pdf
- Encourage people to support the principle that governments in the tsunami area (and many other governments that represent the world's poor) need to regain national economic control.
- Remind people that tsunami aid should be additional aid and not aid diverted from other poor countries.
MCC Canada Peace Ministries Office
MCC Ottawa Office
MCC U.N. Office
MCC Washington Office
MCC International Program Department Peace Office
