Canada-Wide Peace and Justice Network

Canada has blood on its hands.

Now in its sixth year, the Saudi-led, Canada-armed war on Yemen has killed almost a quarter of a million people. Over 4 million people have been displaced because of the war, and 80% of the population, including 12.2 million children, are in desperate need of humanitarian assistance.

It’s despicable for Canada to be profiting from selling arms to Saudi Arabia and thus arming the worst humanitarian crisis on the planet in Yemen.

On September 28, 2020, the UN Human Rights Council named Canada as one of the parties fueling the ongoing war in Yemen by continuing arms sales to Saudi Arabia. Canada exported nearly $2.9-billion worth of military equipment to Saudi Arabia in 2019.

After months of escalating organizing across the country — from arms blockades and banner drops, to car caravans and dozens of protests, to media exposés and damning reports — we know the Trudeau government is feeling the pressure.

Send a letter now calling on the Canadian government to stop sending weapons to Saudi Arabia and stop arming the horrific war in Yemen. Canada must immediately end all arms exports to Saudi Arabia, expand humanitarian aid for the people of Yemen, and work with trade unions to develop a plan for the conversion of facilities from military production to peaceful, green production with good, stable jobs.

March 25/26 2021

March 25/26 marks 6 years of a brutal U.S.-backed, Canada-armed, Saudi-led war on Yemen. Alongside an indiscriminate and ongoing bombing campaign, Saudi Arabia and the UAE, backed by the United States, have imposed an air, land and sea blockade on Yemen. The blockade has caused critical fuel and food shortages, resulting in 400,000 children at risk of dying right now in Yemen, as reported by CNN. Even before the Covid-19 pandemic, the United Nations had declared  Yemen the worst humanitarian crisis in the world. Now Yemen is facing famine along with the Covid-19 pandemic, with an overwhelmed medical system devastated by war and blockade.

Alongside the U.S. and U.K., Canada also has blood on its hands as it also continues to profit from selling arms to Saudi Arabia and other countries in the military coalition. On September 28, 2020, the UN Human Rights Council named Canada as one of the parties fueling the ongoing war in Yemen by continuing arms sales to Saudi Arabia. Canada exported nearly $2.9-billion worth of military equipment to Saudi Arabia in 2019.

The war on Yemen must stop! Antiwar and peace activists and organizations are marking 6 years of the war on Yemen with days of action on March 25 and 26. As fellow activists across Canada, we encourage you to hold actions in your towns and cities on these days. Actions can include street actions, car caravans, webinars, letter writing, and social media campaigns, considering your local situation.

 Action Ideas & Resources

• Share your action or posts against war on Yemen on social media using the hashtag #YemenCantWait and #CanadaStopArmingSaudi. There is also sample social media messaging at https://tinyurl.com/y7d45aar and shareable graphics at https://tinyurl.com/5rpjvvnz

• Deliver a letter: 68 organizations across Canada have signed a letter to demand that Canada Stop Arming Saudi and to highlight 28 companies in Canada complicit in this arms deal. The letter has been delivered in person to Justin Trudeau’s office, as well as a number of other MPs and companies listed in it. We encourage others to also deliver the letter to government officials and named companies in your area. If you take this action remember to take a photo of the delivery and post on social media using the hashtags #CanadaStopArmingSaudi and #YemenCantWait. Photos of letter deliveries are being collected and posted here.
  
• Residents of Canada are invited to sign these two parliamentary petitions:
  • Petition 3122, sponsored by MP Matthew Green
  • Petition 3075, sponsored by MP Jenica Atwin

• Use a protest poster for your protests or to post on social media. Post the image or take a selfie with it!
  • To Justin Trudeau at https://docdro.id/Bt8cqdD 
  • To Joseph Biden at https://www.docdroid.net/AVSipmK 
  • To Boris Johnson at https://www.docdroid.net/2neSzm0 
  • General posters: https://www.docdroid.net/olIxldV or https://www.docdroid.net/elEtw5z/

Whatever action you decide to take, remember to reflect your action on social media with the hashtag #CanadaStopArmingSaudi and #YemenCantWait so activists and organizations across Canada can amplify each others actions!