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At the following website you can find news about an Amnesty International report on missing and murdered Indigenous women in Canada: http://www.amnesty.org.nz/get-involved/take-action-online/canada-wake-up-call-201109
The tragic level of violence faced by Indigenous women in Canada has been well-documented.
According to the Sisters in Spirit initiative of the Native Women’s Association of Canada, over 520 cases of Indigenous women and girls have gone missing or been murdered, most within the last three decades.
Long-standing patterns of marginalisation, impoverishment and discrimination are critical factors putting Indigenous women in Canada at risk of violence and exploitation. These same factors have also denied many Indigenous women full protection of the police and justice system.
There's no excuse for Canada's failure to implement a comprehensive, national plan of action to stop violence against Indigenous women.
In the lead up to 25 November - the International Day for the Elimination of Violence Against Women - and throughout the 16 Days of Activism against Gender Violence (which runs until 10 December), join Amnesty International members in every region of the world in asking Canada to set a positive example by establishing a national plan of action to stop violence against Indigenous women.
TAKE ACTION: Send the email below to Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, calling for immediate action.
Read more: No more stolen sisters: The need for a comprehensive response to discrimination and violence against Indigenous women in Canada (Amnesty International report 2009, PDF, 768 KB)
To find out more about signing the following letter, draft below, and getting to the Prime Minister of Canada, click here and scroll down:
The scale of violence faced by Indigenous women in Canada requires a comprehensive and coordinated response.
I welcome the recent commitment by Canadian officials to develop a national plan of action to ensure Indigenous women's safety, economic security and well-being.
I urge your government to work with Indigenous women to develop a comprehensive strategy to:
- Ensure Indigenous women's access to justice, including effective and unbiased police response to all cases of missing and murdered women,
- Improve public awareness and accountability through the consistent collection and publication of comprehensive national statistics on rates of violent crime against Indigenous women,
- Eliminate discrimination in funding of government services for Indigenous women and families,
- Address the root causes of violence against Indigenous women, including by closing the economic gap between Indigenous and non-Indigenous people.