Orignally Posted by Fr. Bob MacDonald at Fr. Bob's Corner.
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Selfishness and Greed: Why? Why? Why?
With all the problems we have in this world, one would hope that governments and corporations would all be struggling to advance justice. When people are exploited and used for the sake of financial gain the very peace of this world is strained and undermined. And, I don't think planet earth will be able to tolerate much more without dire consequences for all of us. (Why can't the pain of the oppressed be recognized and alleviated?)This year Development and Peace is attempting to raise the Canadian populations awareness of some of the practices of Canadian mining corporations. When I heard that the the people of the Province of Mindanao in the Philippines (location of our Sister Parish) were being exploited by mining corporations, I wondered if any of them were Canadian. Anyway, it's just sad that we don't seem to be learning, and that this world can't be more fair and commpassionate: (Update: I was informed a day after this was posted that there is considerable conern about a Calgary based mining corporation in the general area of our sister parish.)"A Philippine bishop has condemned the damage done by mining to the environment and indigenous people, as reported recently by an international fact-finding commission...."The bishop (in this part of the Philippines) reported feeling the people's "anger against the game" that "power-hungry national and local government officials" have been "playing" in "alliance with greedy corporations." Read full story:UCAN: Philippine Catholic bishop condemns reported mining havoc - Catholic Online
The following was orignially posted at Fr. Bob's Corner - on Feb. 22, 2007.
Canadian Bishop's Decry Mining Practices of Canadian Companies
In a recent post I raised the issue of the 'mining practices' of Canadian Companies in other Countries, especially the third world, and was informed (shortly after posting) that in the Province of Mindanao in the Philippines (area of our sister parish) that this was becoming a major problem. The CCCB has just issued a letter to our Government on this issue. It states:His Eminence affirmsWe must move towards a vision of Corporate Social Responsibility, which cannot be reduced to corporate voluntarism alone but must be complemented by a social responsibility regulated by the state and national organizations.It is, as you know, a foundational principle of international law that human rights are in no sense voluntary; the protection of human rights is in no sense optional. The mandatory nature of human rights must continue to be a cornerstone of Canada’s presence in the world, and it must govern the actions of Canadian corporations worldwide, particularly those engaged in resource extraction.At another place in the text, His Eminence affirms:We cannot continue with ambivalent policies where what we build with one hand, we destroy immediately with the other. It is time to review market and trade rules and to complement them with values of solidarity, justice, subsidiarity, and shared responsibility in our actions and in the future of humanity. Read full letter at link below:CECC / CCCB - Practices by Canadian mining companies in other countries raise concerns
Thursday, February 01, 2007
Selfishness and Greed: Why? Why? Why?
With all the problems we have in this world, one would hope that governments and corporations would all be struggling to advance justice. When people are exploited and used for the sake of financial gain the very peace of this world is strained and undermined. And, I don't think planet earth will be able to tolerate much more without dire consequences for all of us. (Why can't the pain of the oppressed be recognized and alleviated?)This year Development and Peace is attempting to raise the Canadian populations awareness of some of the practices of Canadian mining corporations. When I heard that the the people of the Province of Mindanao in the Philippines (location of our Sister Parish) were being exploited by mining corporations, I wondered if any of them were Canadian. Anyway, it's just sad that we don't seem to be learning, and that this world can't be more fair and commpassionate: (Update: I was informed a day after this was posted that there is considerable conern about a Calgary based mining corporation in the general area of our sister parish.)"A Philippine bishop has condemned the damage done by mining to the environment and indigenous people, as reported recently by an international fact-finding commission...."The bishop (in this part of the Philippines) reported feeling the people's "anger against the game" that "power-hungry national and local government officials" have been "playing" in "alliance with greedy corporations." Read full story:UCAN: Philippine Catholic bishop condemns reported mining havoc - Catholic Online
The following was orignially posted at Fr. Bob's Corner - on Feb. 22, 2007.
Canadian Bishop's Decry Mining Practices of Canadian Companies
In a recent post I raised the issue of the 'mining practices' of Canadian Companies in other Countries, especially the third world, and was informed (shortly after posting) that in the Province of Mindanao in the Philippines (area of our sister parish) that this was becoming a major problem. The CCCB has just issued a letter to our Government on this issue. It states:His Eminence affirmsWe must move towards a vision of Corporate Social Responsibility, which cannot be reduced to corporate voluntarism alone but must be complemented by a social responsibility regulated by the state and national organizations.It is, as you know, a foundational principle of international law that human rights are in no sense voluntary; the protection of human rights is in no sense optional. The mandatory nature of human rights must continue to be a cornerstone of Canada’s presence in the world, and it must govern the actions of Canadian corporations worldwide, particularly those engaged in resource extraction.At another place in the text, His Eminence affirms:We cannot continue with ambivalent policies where what we build with one hand, we destroy immediately with the other. It is time to review market and trade rules and to complement them with values of solidarity, justice, subsidiarity, and shared responsibility in our actions and in the future of humanity. Read full letter at link below:CECC / CCCB - Practices by Canadian mining companies in other countries raise concerns
This report describes in detail what is happening and names a Canadian Mining Corporation that is causing much fear and concern: (TVI is a Canadian company) If you would like to help please visit the Halifax Initiative website an initiative endorsed by Development and Peace.
In 2006, Clare Short, Member of Parliament of the House of Commons and former UK Secretary of State for Overseas Development, led a team of human rights and environmental experts on a fact finding visit to the Philippines in order to examine the impact of mining on the environment and people�s livelihoods. In the foreword of the fact finding mission to the Philippines report, she wrote: �We heard how indigenous people had been shifted off their lands to make way for mining and how their consultation rights had been undermined and ignored. We saw polluted rivers, destroyed mangrove forests, damaged coral and ruined agriculture. We concluded that the Philippines is in danger of losing much of its rich biodiversity and damaging the lives of unique indigenous cultures.� Click here to read the original text of the Report
Posted by Fr. Bob at 2/22/2007 0 comments Links to this post
Posted by Fr. Bob at 2/22/2007 0 comments Links to this post
