KAIROS: Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives, a church based non-governmental organization that represents seven of Canada’s largest denominations, works on a range of social justice issues, including human rights in Africa, Asia, Latin America and the Middle East.
The Harper government’s decision to cut funding to KAIROS will have a devastating impact on KAIROS’ overseas partners and the thousands of marginalized people in local communities they support.
The CIDA-funded overseas program received matching financial support from KAIROS’ member churches, church-related organizations and other donors. Since 1973, KAIROS, and the church coalitions, had received funding from CIDA to support partners working in regions experiencing some of the world’s most egregious human rights violations.
CUPE national president, Paul Moist, on behalf of CUPE has written an urgent letter to Prime Minister Stephen Harper asking that this decision be reversed. CUPE members can help by sending your own letter to the Prime Minister with copies to Minister of Cooperation Bev Oda and the President of CIDA Margaret Biggs.
