June 20 marks World Refugee Day

	Image: “Rise up together!” in Lampedusa was created by the Roman street artist Laika in collaboration with Amnesty International Italy.

	June 20 marks World Refugee Day, a day to honour the strength and courage of people who have been forced to flee their homes. It is also a wonderful opportunity to unite to demand that Canada upholds the rights of refugees. We’ve been doing just that! Safe Third Country Agreement – hope and disappointment Last Friday, Amnesty and our partners expressed disappointment after the Supreme Court of Canada failed to decisively rule that the Safe Third Country Agreement violates refugees’ rights. While we are happy that the Federal Court will finally rule on the Agreement’s impacts on people fleeing gender-based persecution, we know that refugees will continue to face rights violations in the meantime. That is why we are acting now. Over the weekend, Amnesty supporters marched across the country – including from Montreal to Roxham Road – alongside partners and in solidarity with refugees. TAKE ACTION >>

Immigration Detention – good news Last week, Ontario, Quebec and New Brunswick announced an end to immigration detention in their provincial jails. Our Secretary General, Ketty Nivyabandi remarked that the provinces were sending “a strong message to the federal government: jailing migrants and refugees for seeking a better life in Canada is inhumane and has no place in our country.” Join us in calling on Ottawa to respond by banning immigration detention in jails Canada-wide. TAKE ACTION >> We are also working to ensure that the federal government commits to a roadmap for the abolishment of all forms of immigration detention and have called on the government to rely on rights-respecting, community-based alternatives to detention rather than transferring people across provinces to keep them detained. Stay tuned for more! In hope and solidarity, Julia Sande, Human Rights Law and Policy Campaigner Amnesty International Canada