Canada’s Systematic Failure to Fulfill its International Obligations to Human and Environmental Rights Defenders Abroad

This submission begins in Part 1 by describing the human and environmental rights significance of Canadian economic diplomacy, as well as the direct relevance of this topic to the UPR process. Next in Part 2 it describes Canada’s current policy approach to providing state support to Canadian resource companies, as well as human and environmental rights defenders (HRDs) abroad. In Part 3, the submission cites a wide range of UN bodies and treaties to summarize Canada’s international obligations to support and protect HRDs who are impacted by the operations of Canadian companies abroad. It also cites international commentary that expresses concern specifically about Canada’s track record in this area.