Official Correspondence

Letter to Minister Flaherty re cancelling Haiti's bi-lateral and multi-lateral debt

This letter from 28 groups urges all G8 Governments, as officials head to Japan for the G8 Finance Minister's meeting, to support immediate multilateral and bilateral debt cancellation for Haiti or a moratorium on all debt service payments until such a time as the debt is cancelled.

Response from EDC on Tenke project - June 5, 2008

EDC thanks us for raising concerns around the project, and indicates that should they choose to support it, it would only be if they were fully compliant with their policies.

Letter to Eric Siegel, President and CEO, Export Development Canada, regarding the Tenke Fungurume concession in the DRC

The Mining Contract Review Commission, an inter-ministerial body established by the Government of the Democratic Republic of the Congo to review numerous contracts that were awarded to mining companies between 1996 and 2005, recently released its assessment. The Commission concludes that the mining contract governing the Tenke Fungurume project is illegal and calls for its annulment. EDC is currently considering backing the project. This letter calls on EDC to immediately dismiss the application for support.

Letter to Minister Flaherty re peer review under the OECD Common Approaches - March 28, 2008

This letter urges Minister Flaherty to support the adoption, by the OECD Export Credit Group, of a peer review system regarding implementation of the 2007 OECD Revised Council Recommendation on Common Approaches on the Environment and Officially Supported Export Credits. The letter includes a proposal for a peer review system developed by ECA-Watch.

Letter to UN Secretary-General on external debt - February 29, 2008

At the end of this year, governments of the world will meet in Doha, Qatar to evaluate progress in implementing the Monterrey Consensus. One of the critical elements of this consensus is the issue of external debt and its role in financing for development. This letter highlights the critical policy issues around external debt today.

Response from Minister Flaherty on changes to the Annual Report - December 20, 2007

This letter from the Minister - the first response that the Halifax Initiative has received from the Department of Finance in almost two years - provides an overview of the changes that the Department has made to the Annual Report to Parliament on the Bretton Woods [World Bank and IMF] and Related Agreements Act.

Second Letter from EDC to HI re. "Dirty Business, Dirty Practices" - November 5, 2007

This letter provides further details on how EDC assesses the level of public consultation in projects, and its broad process for addressing human rights. It responds to a series of questions highlighted in our response to EDC's initial letter on "Dirty Business, Dirty Practices". See correspondence below for details.

Press release - Monday, November 5, 2007

Letter to the OECD - ECA-Watch withdraws from consultations. This letter, press release and statement all express frustration with the consultation process at the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development, and its Export Credit Group (ECG), to engage in substantive exchanges of views on issues raised by ECA-Watch (a watchdog group) over the years. Citing the growing and urgent credibility crisis with the Common Approaches, ECA-Watch announced that until country members are committed to a dialogue process that works, its members, including the Halifax Initiative, have elected to no longer engage in these annual meetings of the ECG with civil society.

Response to EDC - September 17, 2007

This letter responds to concerns identified by Export Development Canada regarding the Canadian Network on Corporate Accountability report, "Dirty Business, Dirty Practices: How the Federal Government Supports Canadian Mining, Oil and Gas Companies Abroad". The EDC letter was addressed to the Halifax Initiative.

Letter from EDC to HI re. "Dirty Business, Dirty Practices" - July 16, 2007

This letter argues that "Dirty Business, Dirty Practices" contains two factual innacuracies with respect to EDC's policies and practices in the area of consultations with affected communities and human rights.

Acquittal of Congolese Soldiers and Canadian Mining Employee in War Crimes Trial Criticized - July 20, 2007

This statement from Congolese and international NGOs brings attention to the trial and acquittal of nine Congolese soldiers for war crimes, and three employees of Anvil Mining for complicity in war crimes in relation to the deaths of at least 73 civilians in Kilwa, DRC in October 2004. It was the first time in the DRC that foreign employees of a multinational company – including one Canadian – have been charged with complicity in war crimes. Citing obstructions, irregularities, and political interference, NGO observers claim the trial failed to conform to international legal standards. Included is a link to the full report.

Letter to EDC President re CSR and the DRC - June 8, 2007

Letter re an EDC workshop on socially responsible mining practices in the Democratic Republic of Congo, and potential support for the Tenke Fungurume project in the DRC

Response from EDC - September 10, 2007

This letter responds to concerns about EDC's potential support the Tenek Fungurume mine in the Democratic Republic of the Congo.

Letter to Minister Flaherty re the Paul Wolfowitz scandal - May 11, 2007

This letter urges the Canadian government to call on Paul Wolfowitz to resign in light of the recent Bank Committee report that found him guilty of a conflict of interest, and to call for an open, transparent and merit-based process for the selection of the next World Bank President. Not doing so will only further threaten the Bank’s credibility.

Letter to OECD Director, Export Credit Group, re Common Approaches - April 20, 2007

This letter from ECA-Watch expresses extreme regret that the ECG has not taken on board more than a small fraction of the comments made by civil society with respect to the revision of the Common Approaches - a policy that guides how ECAs take account of the environment - leading to a final draft that is substantially weakened.

Letter to Canadian ED to the World Bank, Samy Watson - April 20, 2007

This letter expresses deep concern that the World Bank’s new Health, Nutrition, and Population (HNP) Strategy, due to be discussed by the World Bank Board of Directors on April 24th, has a number of weaknesses including effectively omitting all commitments to Bank funding for family planning. It encourages Canadian ED to the World Bank, Samy Watson, to address these major shortcomings and push for stronger family planning, and sexual and reproductive health and rights.

Letter to Minister Flaherty - January 31, 2007

This letter thanks Finance Canada for taking the initiative to revise the Annual Report to Parliament on the Bretton Woods Institutions (BWIs), and provides an overview of four broad areas of concern that we would like to see addressed in the new report. The letter includes detailed comments and suggestions on both format and content for the new report, as well as a short list of potential issues to be included.

Letter to Minister Flaherty - January 12, 2007

This letter asks Minister Flaherty to clarify the Canadian government’s position with respect to the issue of conditionality, and the recent review of World Bank conditionality conducted by the Bank and Norwegian government.

Letter from the IFC in response to "One Step Forward, One Step Back" - September 29, 2006

This letter from the International Finance Corporation's Director of the Environment and Social Development, Rachel Kyte, responds to a number of issues raised in our report on the IFC's new Performance Standards, "One Step Forward, One Step Back", and attempts to set the record straight "as a matter of public record". The detailed response to a number of issues is included in annex 1, with a statement on IFC's approach to human rights in Annex 2, both included here as a pdf.

Letter to John Ruggie re HRIA - September 24, 2006

This letter to John Ruggie, UN Special Representative to the Secretary General on Business and Human Rights, outlines the principles that individuals involved in Rights & Democracy's Human Rights Impact Assessment for communities feel are essential to any HRIA developed by governments or companies.

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