UNews - secretary general

Son Soubert to receive honorary degree

trevor.kenney — Wed, 07 Oct 2009 22:28:12 +0000

Son Soubert

Educator, politician and humanitarian Son Soubert runs homes for underprivileged students and works to establish responsible politics in his home country of Cambodia.

Born in Phnom-Penh and educated in archaeology and classics in France, Son Soubert has a long history of involvement in the political life of his country. He became secretary general of the Khmer People's National Liberation Front and later helped his father found the Khmer Buddhist Liberal Democratic Party. In 1993, he was elected a member of parliament and went on to be elected second vice-president of the National Assembly.

In 1998, he was elected president of the Son Sann Party, and was later appointed as a member of the Constitutional Council. Most recently he helped form the Human Rights Party.

Son Soubert's commitment to people extends from the political arena to the humanitarian.

In 1994, he founded the Peaceful Children Home I. The home shelters about 120 orphan and street children. The Peaceful Children Home II opened in 1995, and now shelters about 52 children. To date, 32 of the children from his orphanages have gone on to obtain a university education.

The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge is proud to add to Son Soubert's long list of honours by conferring upon him the degree of Doctor of Laws, honoris causa.

Amnesty International's Neve highlights Global Justice Week

trevor.kenney — Wed, 30 Sep 2009 16:15:25 +0000

Battling for human rights has been a lifelong commitment for Amnesty International's Alex Neve. The insight he's gained from being on the front lines of that battle will form the basis of the lecture he'll deliver to a ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge audience during Global Justice Week, Sept. 30 to Oct. 2.

Neve will cap the week with his lecture, Economic Insecurity, National Insecurity: Don't Lose Sight of Human Rights. The ��Ѹ��Դ��߿�Ƭ of Lethbridge Students' Union (ULSU), in collaboration with the Graduate Students' Association (GSA) and Lethbridge Public Interest Research Group (LPIRG), is hosting the three-day event. Neve's talk is Friday, Oct. 2, 7 p.m. in PE250.

"The purpose is to raise awareness of the fact that we live in an unjust world," says Alex Massé, ULSU VP Academic and organizer of the event. "It's so students living here, in the richest part of the world, don't take their position for granted."

Within the last year, economic uncertainty has been on the minds of many, from governments to average citizens. Neve, the Secretary General of Amnesty International Canada since 2000 and member of the organization since 1985, says that can't take away our focus from human rights.

"The message I want to convey is that we live in insecure times," Neve says. "We live in times of economic insecurity, especially in the last year."

Because of this, human rights often get pushed to the back burner in times of economic distress. Amnesty International is trying to put human rights back into the forefront.

Neve, who holds a Bachelor of Commerce Degree, a Bachelor of Laws Degree and a Master of Law Degree in International Human Rights Law, believes that security of any sort should be grounded in human rights.

Amnesty International has long advocated for fair trials to ensure justice, the proper handling of prisoners in Afghanistan, as well as improvements to Immigration Security Certificates (a legal mechanism used by the Government of Canada to detain and deport non-citizens). According to Neve, there are currently five Security Certificate cases in Canada in which Amnesty International is involved in various ways.

On the economic front, Amnesty International launched the "Demand Dignity" campaign, which looks at human rights violations that lead to and deepen poverty. This is a worldwide campaign that was launched in May. Neve explains that we don't often look at human rights in terms of poverty.

Amnesty International also highlights the plight of Indigenous people in Canada, particularly with regard to women's issues and the role of the economy in deepening poverty.

While Neve's presentation highlights Global Justice Week, a variety of other events will be taking place, including a talk by Joshua Key, author of The Deserter's Tale: The Story of an Ordinary Soldier Who Walked Away From the War in Iraq.

Events begin Wednesday afternoon as U of L professors take the podium at Galileo's Gallery, beginning at 3 p.m. Dr. Kent Peacock of the Philosophy Department presents, Justice in a Hungry World; Dr. Patrick Wilson of the Anthropology Department presents, Fair Trade and Global Economic Injustice: Opportunities and Obstacles; and Bruce MacKay of Liberal Education presents, Genocide: Never Again or Always.

Amnesty International's Neve highlights Global Justice Week

trevor.kenney — Mon, 14 Sep 2009 19:55:35 +0000

UNews - secretary general

Son Soubert to receive honorary degree

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Amnesty International's Neve highlights Global Justice Week

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Amnesty International's Neve highlights Global Justice Week

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