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Newsletter - July 2016

June 29, 2016
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Source: MIGS

Call for Applications

MIGS and the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Prevention of Genocide and other Crimes against Humanity are looking for an intern in Ottawa starting in September.

For more information about the position and how to apply, please visit the Volunteer/Internship section on our website

Upcoming events

July 20, 2016

MIGS will bring the exhibition of “Caesar’s Photos: Inside Syria’s Secret Prisons” to Montreal and host a special event to highlight atrocities in Syria following a recent exhibition of the photos at the Parliament of Canada in May. The event will be held in the MIGS Conference Room from 12:00-3:00 pm.

For more information and to register, please visit the event website. Registration is required to attend.

Past events

June 13-15, 2016

Kyle Matthews, Marie Lamensch, and Nicolai Pogadl participated in this year’s Global Media Forum in Bonn, Germany. They spoke alongside Vivek Venkatesh, professor at Concordia University, on a panel titled “The digital security-rights nexus - The delicate balance between privacy and human security.” An audio recording of the session is available on Soundcloud

June 9-12, 2016

Kyle Matthews, MIGS Fellow Diego Osorio, and Nicolai Pogadl attended the 4th Global Diplomacy Lab in Berlin, Germany. The lab’s theme, “Do the Ends Justify the Means? The Significance of International Law and Moral Standards in Diplomacy,” covered important topics such as the responsibility to protect and mass atrocity prevention.

More information about the 4th Lab, including a video summary, photos of the participants, and the 4th Lab Publication, “New Tools of Citizens’ Diplomacy to Find Solutions in Syria,” can be found on the Global Diplomacy Lab website.

June 8, 2016

Frank Chalk and other featured speakers explored the timely issue of radicalization of youth, and the crucial role education plays in preventing extremism and genocide in “Awakening Humanity: preventing radicalization through education.” The event was hosted by The Foundation for the Compulsory Study of Genocide in Schools, and sponsored by Olymbec. Partners included MIGS, Mike Flinker, the Armenian National Committee of Quebec, McGill University, PAGE Rwanda, and The Suburban Newspaper.

The event was covered by The Suburban Newspaper in an article titled “Coalition wants compulsory genocide education to fight radicalization.”

June 3, 2016

Marie Lamensch chaired a panel titled “Border Walls, agency and civil society” at Frontières, murs et violence: fortification des frontières, coûts et alternatives, an international conference organized by the Chaire Raoul-Dandurand at University of Québec at Montreal. 

June 1-3, 2016

MIGS held its annual Professional Training Program on the Prevention of Mass Atrocity Crimes in Montreal, Canada. The program brought together more than 40 mid- to senior-level professionals interested in human rights, conflict, peace and the prevention and interdiction of mass atrocity crimes.

MIGS once again partnered for the Training Program with the World Policy Journal.

May 31, 2016

MIGS and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum held a press conference on Parliament Hill in Ottawa featuring Romeo Dallaire to speak about atrocities currently being committed in Syria.

The press conference was covered by The Canadian Press and featured in La Presse, Huffington Post, Metro News, CTV News, Winnipeg Free Press, The Brampton Guardian, The Hamilton Spectator, Report CA, The Epoch Times, Yahoo! News, and National Newswatch. Video coverage of Dallaire’s statement was provided by the Toronto Star.

May 30, 2016

A special event highlighting the plight of Syrian civilians was held at the Parliament of Canada, Ottawa. The event was organized by MIGS, the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Prevention of Genocide and Other Crimes against Humanity  and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The exhibition presented “Caesar’s Photos: Inside Syria’s Secret Prisons,” shows photos of detainees from Syrian Regime’s prisons. To learn more about the significance of the photographs, visit this Human Rights Watch site. The photos were also shown at Ottawa University’s Human Rights Research and Education Centre throughout the day, and an evening reception took place there as well. 

May 27, 2016

MIGS’ Non-Resident Journalism Fellow Michael Petrou, Frank Chalk and other panellists examined “Afghanistan, Iraq, Libya and Syria: Lessons Learned for Mass Atrocity Prevention” in a discussion hosted by MIGS.

In the media

June 24, 2016

MIGS non-resident fellow Michael Petrou published an op-ed on iPolitics.ca titled “Squabbling over the slaughter: The Commons debate on ISIS has been shallow and pointless — on all sides.”

June 22, 2016

MIGS non-resident journalism fellow Michael Petrou published a feature article on OpenCanada.org titled “Out of Iraq’s ashes, Kurdistan grows,” discussing Canada’s accidental nation-building in Kurdistan.

June 21, 2016

Kyle Matthews was a guest on CKNW’s The Jon McComb Show, where he discussed a series of law suits against Twitter and social media giants for letting ISIS use their platforms.

June 20, 2016

Kyle Matthews was quoted by Radio Canada International in an article titled “Opposition urges Liberals to recognize other genocides committed by ISIS.” Listen to his full audio interview here.

June 17, 2016

Kyle Matthews was interviewed by the Kingston Whig-Standard in an article titled, “Internet plays major role in hate.”

June 16, 2016

Kyle Matthews was quoted in the Toronto Star article, “Dion accepts UN report that calls Daesh attacks on Yazidis genocide.”

June 12, 2016

Kyle Matthews was interviewed by the Global Action Against Mass Atrocity Crimes (GAAMAC) network about MIGS’ work in Canada and the role of parliamentarians in mass atrocity prevention.

June 9, 2016

Kyle Matthews was quoted in an iPolitics article on the clash between Foreign Affairs Minister Stephane Dion and the Conservative Party over the use of “genocide” as a label for ISIS atrocities.

June 7, 2016

Kyle Matthews and Frank Chalk joined 39 other human rights experts, former and current parliamentarians, and other eminent Canadians in signing an Open Letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau urging public inquiry on Afghan detainee transfers. The letter was released by the Rideau Institute on June 8, 2016.

June 6, 2016

MIGS and 43 other NGOs signed a letter to the US Congress urging congressional action on atrocities prevention following President Obama’s March 18, 2016 issue of Executive Order 13729, “A Comprehensive Approach to Atrocity Prevention and Response.”

June 3, 2016

Rex Brynen, who spoke at MIGS’ Professional Training Program about “Exploring matrix games for mass atrocity prevention and response,” reviewed the events and outcomes that unfolded when participants in the Training Program played a version of the ISIS Crisis matrix game.

May 31, 2016

MIGS non-resident journalism fellow Michael Petrou published an op-ed on OpenCanada.org titled, “For Canada, standing up to Russia means standing up for a united EU.”

May 26, 2016

MIGS signed a joint international NGO statement titled, “Air drops call is welcome, sieges must end now,” calling on Russia and the United States to ensure the best conditions possible for air drops in Syria. 




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