Prayers for Peacemakers, 4 October 2017
Pray for strength for the indigenous peoples of Turtle Island (Canada) and their allies in the struggle for true reconciliation and implementation of the UNDRIP.
Canada celebrated its 150th anniversary as a modern country this summer, a country in the forefront of human rights according to the outside world. Yet, in Canada one of the biggest genocides in the history has taken place and it’s survivors live the outcome of it every day, suffering alone and in silence. Today the indigenous nations of Turtle Island live in poverty inside the borders of one of the richest countries in the world. The consecutive governments of what’s called Canada have let down the indigenous nations and did not uphold their part of the treaties they signed 150 years ago. As a result, the indigenous nations’ land has shrunk to 0.2%. The indigenous communities have the highest rates of unemployment and incarceration in the country, staggering numbers of missing and murdered women and girls and a very poor access to health care and child welfare support.
However, this year marks also the 10th anniversary of the United Nations
Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP), a declaration
which if adopted and implemented would become the doorway towards
restoration of the indigenous nations sovereignty over their land and
alleviation of systemic human rights abuses and oppression the first
nations of this land suffer from silently. Peacemakers in Canada are
striving to pressure the “liberal” Canadian parliament and
government to fully adopt and implement UNDRIP and start a real
reconciliation that would include more than an “apology.”
CPTers, delegates and allies meet with a long-time CPT partner Judi Da Silva and her husband Bepgogoti in Grassy Narrows.
Today more than ever the indigenous nations and the peacemakers on Turtle Island need your prayers so that they have the strength to continue the fight, and to end this oppression that has been going on for centuries.
Pray that indigenous peoples of Turtle Island and around the world are treated with equality and respect and that they will no longer be silenced or persecuted. Pray that no more women and girls are murdered and kidnapped, or their children taken away. Please pray for their allies to have the strength to continue supporting them in their struggle and never lose faith or hope in the righteousness of the path of non-violence.
