Dear friends,
Canada Philippines Solidarity for Human Rights, an ICHRP member organization based in Vancouver, British Columbia, has initiated a parliamentary e-petition for the Canadian government to review and suspend the Status of Visiting Forces Agreement (SOVFA), call for the immediate release of prisoners of conscience in the Philippines and reaffirm Canada’s commitment to peace and human rights through civil and diplomatic means, not military pacts.
With the signing of the SOVFA, Canada continues to ramp up defence cooperation with the Philippines. The agreement will enable further training, as well as technical and logistical collaboration with the Philippine military even as they continue to commit human rights and IHL violations, including the January 1 aerial bombings of civilian-populated areas that killed three Mangyan-Iraya children in Abra de Ilog, Occidental Mindoro.
Additionally, with the signing of the SOVFA, Canada plans to actively participate in the 2026 Balikatan exercises conducted annually by the United States and the Philippines. These exercises have historically posed negative impacts to local communities — the Philippine government restricts the mobility and imposes “no-sail zones”, which disrupts the livelihood and daily economic activities of Filipino farmers and fisherfolk. Environmental groups have also raised concerns that these exercises devastate the surrounding environment, leading to habitat loss, endangering local wildlife, and contributing to soil and water pollution by chemical contamination from military equipment. By contributing to the growing scale of Balikatan, Canada risks worsening the socio-economic and environmental impacts of these exercises on local communities.
We are also concerned that Canada continues to pursue similar defence agreements with no known human rights guarantees or stipulations on improving the human rights situation in the Philippines, even as nearly 700 prisoners of conscience remain behind bars.
If you are a Canadian citizen or resident, please take a few moments to sign the petition and let our government know that we will not be complicit in further rights abuses of the Filipino people!
Sign here: tinyurl.com/StopSoVFAPetition
