CONSCIENCE CANADA (CC) and NOS IMPÔTS POUR LA PAIX (NIPP)

2002-2004 

Introduction

Following a difficult period between 2001-2002, both CC and NIPP, its Quebec counterpart, were close to discontinuing their work.  Given the context of international terrorism and war in Afghanistan, a separate decision was taken by both groups to pursue their activities. At that time, the question was raised as to whether these two non-governmental organizations dealing with the question of fiscal conscientious objection, CC in English throughout Canada and NIPP in French mainly in Quebec, should function as a single group in the two official languages of Canada. A certain number of volunteers are active in both organizations which, nonetheless, produce separate newsletters and function mainly through separate email addresses and websites.  While deciding to maintain  their autonomy, both groups work in close collaboration, especially on establishing Peace Tax legislation by passing into law a Conscientious Objection Act, which recognizes the right of conscientious objectors to not pay for the military but to apply that portion of their taxes that was to be used for military purposes towards peaceful, non military purposes within the powers of Parliament. 

The following report covers both organizations.

War Tax Resistance and Active War Tax Resisters

  • Included among the reports from all members of CPTI taken to the UN Human Right Commission in Geneva in April 2003, were cases of War Tax Resistance according to the files of Conscience Canada.
  • In May 2003, about 30 members of CC were active conscientious objectors to military taxation (COMTs). Although this number may appear to have dropped from pre-2002 reports, an explanation can be found in the fact that at the time of the closure of CC, the decision was made in Victoria to refund all Peace Trust money to the existing Peace trustees.  After the reorganization of CC, all COMTs were asked to show their continuing interest in fiscal conscientious objection by renewing their commitment to and membership in the new CC structure.  A smaller number than in the past has done so.
  • As of the end of August 2003, the amount of money in the CC Peace Trust Account was  $21 462.97 Canadian.  This account is separate from the general operating account which is funded mainly by individual membership and various individual or group donations.
  • As of December 2003, the amount of money in the NIPP  Fond pour la paix (Peace Trust Fund) was about $10 500.00 Canadian.  NIPP lends a certain amount of this fund to Les Éditions Écosociété at an interest rate of 3.5%. This publishing house publishes books dealing with such social issues as peace and non-violence. Included among its publications is the book Pour un pays sans armée,  a collection of articles directed by Serge Mongeau, one of the founders of NIPP.  NIPP also shares each year the interest generated by the Fonds pour la paix with various NGOs in the peace movement.  In 2002, CPTI was one of three groups receiving a check and a letter of encouragement from NIPP.   In 2002 and 2003, NIPP also received twice from the same individual person a $1 000.00 Cdn donation for its general operation fund.
  • Late in 2003, CC initiated a peer support network for conscientious objectors to military taxation (COMT) and for those considering acting on their conscientious objection to paying taxes for war and the military.  Peace groups and peace-conscious lawyers as well as individual COMTs are invited to provide various types of support such as legal assistance, sharing of experiences as a COMT, functioning as a regional contact for CC.

Activities undertaken

  • A Peace Tax Petition was presented by CC to the House of Commons in March 2002.  The petition called upon Parliament to establish Peace Tax legislation by passing into law a Conscientious Objection Act, which recognizes the right of conscientious objectors to not pay for the military but to apply that portion of their taxes that was to be used for military purposes towards peaceful, non military purposes within the powers of Parliament.  A letter was also sent to the Minister of Finance in reaction to his negative response to this petition.
  • CC members across Canada and members of NIPP participated in Iraq anti-war demonstrations. CC and NIPP leaflets were distributed and a few persons sent in the membership coupon provided in the leaflet.
  • The CC leaflet was revised prior to Iraq anti-war demonstrations in 2003 and again prior to the Annual General Meeting (AGM) in 2004.  NIPP leaflet was also revised in early 2004.
  • New CC By-laws, to meet the new needs and structure of CC  as a corporation under the Canada Corporations Act, were completed and approved in 2003.
  • A COAT (Coalition to Oppose the Arms Trade) petition, regarding investments in arms manufacture through the Canada Pension Plan, launched in late 2003, was signed  by individual members of CC and NIPP, as well as collectively by CC.
  • Never Again:  Peace Education and Remembrance Day is the title of a peace education kit being assembled by Jan Slakov, secretary of Conscience Canada.  She also has information about the white poppy campaign.  For more information contact Jan at js@saltspring.com
  • In January 2004, CC launched an unmoderated email list for informal and wide-ranging discussion of issues related towards creating a world that can resolve conflict and face problems in a respectful and non-violent manner.
  • There are plans to organize, sometime in 2004/2005, a new lobby on Parliament Hill in Ottawa, for the Conscientious Objection Act, a bill introduced in the House of Commons on many occasions.  (Two such lobby drives had already been organized in 1995 and in 1998.)

Public meetings, speakers, seminars, websites

  • An information table at the Toronto Social Forum in December 2002 was very well attended and appreciated.
  • Web advertising in the ‘Press for Conversion!’ magazine (published 4 times a year), plus an article in this magazine and in Relations (a Jesuit social affairs publication in French) were among CC's media initiatives undertaken in the past two years.  Some other publications were also planned for the Spring 2004 tax period.
  • In March 2003,  a display and information table on CC was provided at the Metro Credit Union (MUC) in Toronto. Many leaflets and newsletters were picked up and 35 people stopped to ask for more information and to express interest.
  • A discussion meeting, attended by ten persons, was held at the Vancouver Friends House in November 2003.  The meeting suggested new directions for CC, such as that of opening more options to those opposed to fiscal conscription. (It seems that many people think that unless they are actually withholding taxes, they can't really be active with CC.)
  • On December 10th, 2003, CC and NIPP were presented to the 50 or so participants at a conference organized by NIPP in conjunction with their .  The conference speaker, ROBERT TURCOTTE, a Quebecer who was present in Baghdad throughout the recent war in Iraq as a member of an International Peace Team, is the author of Les mensonges de la guerre en Iraq. www.mensongesdelaguerre.net
  • Since April 2003, CC is online at www.consciencecanada.ca. The website, updated frequently, includes among other topics: general information, suggestions for COMTs, writings by COMTs, regional contacts for people seeking support from other COMTs, articles about Canada's military spending,  links to Canadian legislation,  printer–friendly versions of CC newsletters,  and links to other peace organisations' websites.  NIPP's website www.cam.org/~nipp/ contains much of the above in French.
  • In the context of the 2004 CC's, more than a dozen public meetings (or kitchen table small gatherings) of COMTs and sympathisers were organized for the first time, all across Canada, during the week of April 19th 2004, on the theme of moving Canada towards a defence and security policy more in line with our commitment to non-violence.  Announcements of these meetings were made in the CC and NIPP newsletters and on our websites as well as in magazines published by Project Ploughshare, COAT, and Canadian Policy Alternatives.  Peace Magazine published the announcement plus an article regarding these dialogue meetings exploring alternatives to a war-based defence for Canada. 

Membership

  • According to the CC record in May of 2003, there were some 100 members (many with Life membership) and about 30 Conscientious Objectors to Military Taxation.  Cf. the explanatory note above concerning War Tax Resistance and Active War Tax Resisters.
  • In 2002, NIPP verified the membership of some 50 persons whose interest in the organization was evident.

Newsletters

  • CC publishes two newsletters per year of about 8 pages each. The early Spring edition always deals, among other subjects, with military portion of tax withholding and provides a model letter to accompany the tax return.  The Fall publication provides, among other articles,  an update on Canadian and International COMT court cases and activities defending the right of conscience and news about CC's AGM. 
  • NIPP publishes one newsletter per year in the month of March, with suggestions of actions possible in connection with war tax resistance.

Conclusion

Both CC and NIPP see themselves as prophetic movements questioning society on the ideal of peace and non-violence and working on what appears to be a slow but which in fact is a  steadfast pace, growing as new commitments and energies become available.  Both groups embrace the challenge of accepting responsibility for proposing concrete steps toward creating peace and ending our complicity in war.

One of the questions raised by both groups is why the masses who participated in the anti-war demonstrations (up to 250,000 participants on numerous occasions in Montreal during the Spring of 2003) have shown, up to now, little interest in supporting or becoming members of our organizations.