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LWBC

Dec 09
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Sosa Orantes case: Canada could end 40 years of impunity

By News, Press Releases

December 7th 2022, Quebec City – Lawyers Without Borders Canada (LWBC), in collaboration with the Canadian Partnership for International Justice (CPIJ), calls again on the Canadian government to reconsider its decision not to pursue criminal charges against Jorge Vinicio Sosa Orantes, who is suspected of having participated in the Las Dos Erres massacre in Guatemala 40 years ago today.

On December 7th 1982, the village of Las Dos Erres was ravaged by a special unit of the Guatemalan forces in  which Sosa Orantes served as second lieutenant. Almost the entire population was murdered. Only a handful of children survived, including Ramiro Osorio Cristales, now a Canadian citizen. LWBC, with the support of the CPIJ, is accompanying him in his quest for justice.

The Canadian government initiated proceedings in 2017 to revoke Mr. Sosa Orantes’ Canadian citizenship before the Federal Court. In a May 2022 statement, LWBC and the CPIJ demonstrated the existence of significant risks that he would never face trial if he were to be deported. Despite the support of 20 organizations, the statementignored by the authorities.

The Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act gives the Canadian government the power to initiate criminal proceedings against Mr. Sosa Orantes, ending 40 years of impunity in this case.

LWBC, along with the CPIJ, has repeatedly reminded the Canadian government of its power over the past two years. These calls have gone unanswered.

In May 2022, LWBC went to Ottawa with survivor Ramiro Osorio Cristales to request a meeting with the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, the Honourable David Lametti, to press for criminal charges. The door was closed to them.

On this day of commemoration of the Las Dos Erres tragedy, which happened exactly 40 years ago, in solidarity with Ramiro Osorio Cristales, who every day runs the risk of meeting one of those who committed this horrendous crime, and with all the survivors of the massacre as well as their loved ones, LWBC and the CPIJ once again call on the Canadian government to show courage and bring Mr. Sosa Orantes to justice.

Canada has recently expressed a strong commitment to international criminal justice by being one of the first countries to support investigations into crimes against humanity and war crimes committed in Ukraine. This commitment, which is to be welcomed, should also be translated into an unequivocal refusal to allow Canadian territory to harbour individuals suspected of the most serious crimes.

Oct 17
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Conference “Lawyers Without Borders Belgium-Lawyers Without Borders Canada: Decades of Fighting for Human Rights”

By

Lawyers Without Borders Canada and Lawyers Without Borders Belgium celebrate their anniversaries together! Come and listen to the executive directors of both organizations share their respective experiences in human rights advocacy, from their beginnings to the current challenges of international cooperation. The impact of shrinking democratic spaces on the missions of human rights organizations and the place of the next generation in their projects will also be discussed.

Speakers: 

  • Chantal Van Cutsem, Lawyers Without Borders Belgium executive director
  • Pascal Paradis, Lawyers Without Borders Canada executive director
  • Mathilde Doucet, PhD sutdent, Faculty of Law, Université Laval and intern at LWBC
  • Virginie Lefèbvre, research professional in charge of the Clinique de droit international pénal et humanitaire
  • Florian Manuch, PhD sutdent, Faculty of Law, Université Laval

Organized in collaboration with: 

Time: 11:30 a.m. to 1 p.m.
Location: Room 2419, Charles-De Koninck Building

For information
cdiph.admin@fd.ulaval.ca

Registration Required – Registration Form

Oct 29
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LWBC forum

LWBC Annual Forum

By Funding Opportunities, Student opportunity, Upcoming Events

LWBC forum

CPIJ is proud to partner with Lawyers Without Borders Canada (LWBC) for the 2021 edition of its annual forum titled “Residential Schools: Truth, Justice and Healing – International Exchanges”. The event brings together many important actors in international human rights law and is intended for practitioners and law students.

The two-day Forum is composed of four half-day sessions. Each session addresses a key societal issue: truth-seeking, justice, reparations and guarantees of non-repetition.

Firstly, CPIJ is offering five (5) scholarships to students who wish to attend the Forum. The value is $20. Priority will be given to First Nations students.

Secondly, CPIJ is looking for seven (7) students interested in attending the Forum to take notes during the sessions and write a blog post. The blog post will be published on the Quid Justitiae blog (or a blog of your choice) during a multi-day seminar. Students will receive a $200 scholarship upon publication.

The post must include a detailed summary of the panel covered, the main objective being to bring the content of the Forum into the public domain. However, the student might include a critical commentary and additional content, including multimedia. The post must be between 1,500 and 2,500 words in length and written in English or French.

Students will have ten (10) days to submit their entry. The essay will then be edited. The registration fees of the selected students will be covered by the CJIP.

Apply for any of these scholarships before November 2.

APPLY NOW
Dec 06
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Lawyers Without Borders Canada Organizes an Event on the Fight against Impunity in Mali

By Communiqués de presse, News, Press Releases

CPIJ Co-Researcher Janine Lespérance and Abdoulaye Doucouré. (Photo by Catherine Savard)

5 December 2018 – On this first day of the 17th Assembly of State Parties (ASP) to the International Criminal Court (ICC), which takes place from 5 to 12 December 2018, in The Hague (Netherlands), CPIJ partner organization Lawyers Without Borders Canada (LWBC) organized a side-event on the fight against impunity in Mali, titled “Réconciliation et lutte contre l’impunité au Mali : un faux dilemme” (“Reconciliation and Fight against Impunity in Mali: A false dilemma”).

At the occasion of this event sponsored by Canada, who was represented by the Head of Canada’s Delegation at the ASP, Mr. Alan Kessel, CPIJ Co-Researcher Janine Lespérance moderated a panel composed of Mr. Abdoulaye Doucouré, LWBC Transitional Justice Coordinator in Mali, and Ms. Bouaré Bintou Founé Samaké, President of the Malian division of the organization Women in Law and Development in Africa.

The event discussed the possibility for victims of international crimes perpetrated in Mali since the start of the armed conflict in 2012 to have access justice, thus deepening the reflection initiated at the occasion of a side-event organized during the 17th ASP in 2017.

Alan Kessel presented introductive remarks. (Photo by Catherine Savard)

After introductive remarks were presented by Mr. Kessel, discussions critically explored the draft law on “national understanding”, which was recently transmitted to the Malian National Assembly to be discussed on 13 December 2018. LWBC declared itself highly concerned by the possible adoption of this bill, which would open the door for an amnesty to be granted to authors of serious crimes perpetrated during the armed conflict which raged in this country.

The permanent insecurity that prevails in many northern communities and that has recently spread in the center of Mali was identified as a major hindrance for victims to have access to justice. It was further highlighted that sexual and gender-based violence are rampant and rarely ever denounced.

(Photo by Érick Sullivan)

Since 2015, LWBC has been active in Mali in the context of the project “Justice, prévention et réconciliation” (“Justice, Prevention and Reconciliation” or JUPREC). This project is made possible thanks to Global Affairs Canada’s financial support, and is implemented by LWBC in consortium with the Centre d’étude et de coopération internationale and the École nationale d’administration publique.