November 8 2024

This week, NUPGE President Bert Blundon, along with fellow union leaders, had the opportunity to meet with Francesca Albanese, United Nations Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian Territory which has been occupied since 1967.

Albanese is an international lawyer who specializes in human rights and the Middle East. Since May 2022, she has served as the UN Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights in the Palestinian territory occupied since 1967. Albanese was in Canada this month to meet with civil society, government, and the general public about the catastrophic human rights situation in the occupied Palestinian territories. This included the meeting with Canadian unions.

Albanese spoke powerfully about Israel’s destruction in Gaza and the human rights crisis facing Palestinians, as outlined in her latest report, Genocide as Colonial Erasure. She described the complicity of the international community, including Canada, and our obligations under international law to act. As part of the discussion on our collective responsibility to act, she issued a call to action, noting the key role that workers and unions in Canada and around the world can play. (photo credit: Canadian Association of Professional Employees)