On July 28, 2010, the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly agreed to a resolution declaring the human right to “safe and clean drinking water and sanitation.” Appallingly, the Canadian government abstained from the vote even though there are many communities across Canada, including First Nations, which do not have access to clean, safe water. Take action and help us apply the political pressure needed to make the right to water and sanitation a reality in Canada!
The Council of Canadians, Concert’Eau, CUPE, Earthroots, Eau Secours!, Empty Glass of Water, The Indigenous Environmental Network, Mother Earth Water Walk, Oxfam Canada, The Polaris Institute, Public Water Initiative, and University of Toronto will be sending a letter to Members of Parliament demanding that they call on the federal government to fulfill its international obligations with respect to the human right to water and sanitation.
Send your signed Parliamentarian Pledges to inquiries@canadians.org. We will post a list of Members of Parliament who have committed to push for the government to meet Canada's obligations under international law for the human right to water and sanitation.
By working together we can all help make the human right to water and sanitation a reality in Canada!
On March 12, 2012 representatives of the global water justice movement presented the following call to action on the human right to water and sanitation to governments at a meeting held outside the 6th World Water Forum in Marseille, France. To add your organization to the list of signatories, please contact: mdick@canadians.org.
In July 2010, The Council of Canadians and the Blue Planet Project joined people around the world celebrating the end of a decade-long battle to have water and sanitation recognized as a human right at the United Nations General Assembly with the adoption of resolution 64/292. But we knew it was only the beginning of the struggle to ensure water justice for all.
The Blue Planet Project is now launching a series of reports as additional chapters to Our Right to Water. These reports examine the status of the human right to water and sanitation from the frontlines of struggles across the globe. They provide insight and analysis into how our allies around the world are promoting the human right to water and sanitation in their countries against a backdrop of land grabs, mining injustice, economic austerity, and environmental racism.
More than one year after historic UN resolutions recognized water and sanitation as a human right, it is imperative that communities and civil society define this right and demand its implementation. The Blue Planet Project is working in solidarity with the groups featured in these reports to support local campaigns for water justice.
Argentina (Spanish)
This report, written by Argentine Humans Rights Advocacy group FOCO, examines the human right to water within the context of climate change and mining. It illustrates how large-scale mining projects like Barrick Gold’s Pascua Lama gold mine, operating in an area where there are 40 glaciers, pose a serious threat to water security in the region.
Colombia (Spanish)
This report, by Irene Vélez Torres and Hildebrando Vélez Galeano, examines environmental racism and the history of water-grabbing and land dispossession in the Afro-Colombian regions of the country. It is the result of participatory research conducted between 2009 and 2011.
Colombia (Spanish)
This report, written by Javier Márquez Valderrama, examines the popular mobilization that took place in Colombia to promote a water referendum to recognize the fundamental human right to water. Although national politics impeded this democratic process, the popular mobilization has brought important progress in some areas.
Ecuador (Spanish)
Ecuador has abundant water supplies and a newly adopted constitution that recognizes the human right to water and the rights of nature, yet as this report shows, there are still many obstacles preventing more than 30 per cent of Ecuadorians from enjoying this right.
Europe (English)
This report by the Blue Planet Project, Food and Water Watch, the European Federation of Public Service Unions and Public Services International Research Unit, examines the impacts of austerity measures and water privatization on the human right to water. It was produced collectively by social justice, environmental and labour groups from Portugal, Spain, Italy, Greece and Bulgaria.
India (English)
India’s immense population growth and commitment to development, with the resulting expansion of the energy sector and mega hydro electrical projects, are at odds with growing water scarcity in the country and the realization of the human right to water for all. This report, written by the National Alliance of People’s Movements, calls for a progressive people-centred development strategy and water sector reforms designed to meet the development objectives of international financial institutions.
Indonesia (English)
World Bank-imposed market-based water policies have led to deep inequalities in access to water and sanitation in Indonesia. This report by KruHa (The People’s Coalition for the Right to Water) demonstrates how the country’s new water legislation contradicts a long history of respecting water as a commons in Indonesian tradition.
Palestine (English)
In this report, the Palestinian collective Life Source explores violations of the human right to water by Israel and the Palestinian authority in West Bank and Gaza, and demonstrate the importance of global solidarity in achieving the human right to water for Palestinians.
The United States (English)
This report, written by Food and Water Watch, identifies the historic and systemic violations of the human right water among Native Americans, economically disadvantaged communities, and communities of colour in the United States. It calls for a national action plan that eliminates inequality and protects water resources.
On March 12, 2012 representatives of the global water justice movement presented the following call to action on the human right to water and sanitation to governments at a meeting held outside the 6th World Water Forum in Marseille, France. To add your organization to the list of signatories, please contact: mdick@canadians.org. Read more about the World Water Forum here.
Our Right to Water: A People’s Guide to Implementing the United Nations’ Recognition of the Right to Water and Sanitation, By Maude Barlow, The Council of Canadians, June 2011. Available in: English, English with Canadian Appendix, français, español, português.
VIDEO: In Historic Vote, UN DeclaresWater a Fundamental Human Right:
Interview with Maude Barlow, Democracy Now! host Amy Goodman, July 29, 2010
You will also see in this video a powerful clip of Bolivian Ambassador Pablo Solon talking about the right to water resolution just four weeks ago at our 'Shout out for Global Justice' public forum in Toronto on the eve of the G20 summit there.
For more information about The Council of Canadians’ right to water campaign, please call 1-800-387-7177, or visit our websites at www.blueplanetproject.net and www.canadians.org.
On July 28, 2010, the United Nations General Assembly overwhelmingly agreed to a resolution declaring the human right to “safe and clean drinking water and sanitation.” Appallingly, the Canadian government abstained from the vote even though there are many communities across Canada, including First Nations, which do not have access to clean, safe water. Take action and help us apply the political pressure needed to make the right to water and sanitation a reality in Canada!
Our Right to Water
