This petition is created in conjunction with an open statement on ending sanctions NOW, also available on this website.
You can find your MP by clicking on https://www.ourcommons.ca/members/en
Please send the following message to your MP:
Dear ______________________________________________,
Much of the world is coming together to take issue with the fact that, despite our common humanity, the US government has responded to the Covid-19 pandemic by increasing its sanctions against the governments of Iran and Venezuela. The Trump administration has fallen short of already-low expectations. It appears before the world as inhumane, but also shortsighted – because the fight against the coronavirus is a global fight. We can only win by pulling together.
Major world figures, such as UN Secretary-General Guterres, have called for the suspension of all economic sanctions during the pandemic. In his March 23, 2020, letter to the leaders of the G20 countries, Guterres declared, “I am encouraging the waiving of sanctions imposed on countries to ensure access to food, essential health supplies, and COVID-19 medical support. This is the time for solidarity not exclusion… Let us remember that we are only as strong as the weakest health system in our interconnected world.” (1)
This call was reiterated by legendary US movie producer Oliver Stone, among many others. Notably, thirty-two Congressional Democrats, including Bernie Sanders, wrote an open letter (2) to US Secretaries of State and of the Treasury, Pompeo and Mnucgin, calling upon them to show some humanity and good sense in calling off US sanctions specifically on Iran, as it wrestles with the pandemic. They also left the door open to suspending sanctions on other countries.
It could be argued that, while these Democrats call on the Trump Administration to do the right thing, it would have been better had they not criticized Iran’s handling of its response to the coronavirus. This is because the USA itself did not take appropriate measures to break the chain of infection on its own territory. This US failure has compounded the epidemic.
As Canadians, we should respond to the call of UN Secretary-General Guterres and the good example of the 32 Democratic Party congresspeople by urging the Trudeau government to suspend all Canadian economic sanctions now.
Will you please do so?
RSVP,
_______________________________ at _______________________________________
(your name) (your e-mail address)
- https://foreignpolicy.com/2020/03/24/un-coronavirus-cuba-iran-venezuela-north-korea-zimbabwe-sanctions-pandemic/)
- You can read the letter at this link: https://winwithoutwar.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/03/Iran-Sanctions-Relief-Letter.pdf
You can download a Word Document of this petition here: SanctionsPetition