CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS – Omar Latif Memorial Award for Justice and Peace

Deadline for nominations: 30 October, 2022.
APPLICATION FORM IS HERE

1. Purpose

2022 marks the inauguration of the Omar Latif Memorial Award for Justice and Peace. It is in memory of Omar Latif, the driving force behind the Committee of Progressive Pakistani-Canadians (CPPC).

2. Eligibility

  • Individuals or organisations who are doing progressive work with an eye towards creating systemic change.
  • The nominee(s) should be able to fit within the broader organisational values of the CPPC and should not contravene any of them.
  • Nominees are required to write an essay of 500 word maximum explaining how:
  • Their work fits into CPPC’s vision and values
  • Their work is geared towards or supports creating systemic change

Any individual or Canadian organisation based in Canada is eligible to be nominated to receive the Omar Latif Memorial Award for Justice and Peace. The Award may be granted to more than one individual (for instance, the members of an organisation) where it is clearly demonstrated that the nominees have individually and collectively met the selection criteria.

The award may be given retroactively at the discretion of the jury and the Board.

A nomination can be made posthumously.

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Withdraw the deportation order for Zain Haq

Withdraw the deportation orders of Zain Haq

To: The Honourable Sean Fraser Minister of Immigration Refugees and Citizenship

Dear Mr. Fraser,

Zain Haq, who is an international student from Pakistan in the third-year History Major course at Simon
Fraser University, Burnaby, British Columbia, and is a co-founder of Save Old Growth (SOG), is fearful the
Canada Border Service Agency (CBSA) will deport him. CBSA officers visited his apartment twice when
he was not home and left a letter for him with his roommate ordering Haq to attend the CBSA offices
next morning or risk arrest. He received the letter in the morning and did not have time to respond or
seek legal assistance. He intends to present himself to the border agency once he has obtained legal
counsel. The probable reason behind the deportation order is his work and activism with SOG.

Save Old Growth (SOG) is a movement of young climate justice advocates who mobilize masses and try
to raise voices loud enough to reach the legislative authorities and policy makers in the government at
the state level. They organize peaceful civil resistance campaigns as one of the advocacy tools. They are
currently organizing a civil resistance campaign to end old-growth logging in BC with only one demand,
i.e, “Pass legislation to immediately end all Old Growth logging in the province of British Columbia ''.

SOG’s website clearly states their purpose and provides information on their information sessions on
non-violence trainings.

Civil resistance campaigns are common in east and west alike, and are a centuries old tactic for building
pressure on the governments. People who organize these and participate in these campaigns are those
who want to change the world for the better.

Haq and his group members are not committing a crime by organizing peaceful non-violent protests to
save the forests that are at the risk of extinction at the hands of the BC government.

Canada is a democratic country and no democracy restricts the right of peaceful assembly and right of
political opinion. The Canadian government must exercise high levels of democratic ethics. Students
from all over the world come to Canada for education but they also contribute to the culture and
diversity of this country, and Haq is no exception.

Peaceful civil resistance is no crime.
The Committee of Progressive Pakistani Canadians (CPPC) strongly demands the Government of Canada
withdraw the deportation orders of Zain Haq, and stop CBSA officials from raiding his apartment. He
must be able to complete his education at the SFU and be allowed to participate in the peaceful
mobilization activities with his students group at the university and at Save Old Growth.

Committee of Progressive Pakistani Canadians
Dated June 21, 2022

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CC: Honourable John Horgan, Premier British Columbia Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Honourable Marc Miller, Minister of Crown-Inidgenous Relations Honourable David Eby, Attorney General of British Columbia Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Canada

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For more information on Zain Haq, click here

Omar Latif Memorial Award

https://www.gofundme.com/f/annual-omar-latif-memorial-award?qid=d9f5d43e83b45ee9e6b8aede59c62f48

When our dear comrade Omar Latif passed away on 10 August, 2021, we were devastated. The Executive of the Committee of Progressive Pakistani Canadians agreed to an annual recognition of activism to an individual or organization who best demonstrates the principles and ideals Omar and the CPPC stand for.

We would like to award this prize annually so Omar’s name and legacy can continue on every year. As part of the process, we would like our audiences to nominate individuals or organisations who best illustrate the principles Omar lived each and every day of his life. Please visit the GoFundMe campaign page to find out more.

Omar Latif crosses over (1952-2021)

10 August, 2021 – The Committee of Progressive Pakistani Canadians is staggered at the loss of our dear comrade Omar Latif.

To say we are shattered does not express the depth of our loss.As many know, and we have shared, Omar had some health challenges of late, but we were optimistic about his recovery. After surgery, despite complications, he was in stable condition.

A short while ago, doctors removed his breathing tube and were prepared to intervene with a medical procedure, but there were complications.

After speaking with Omar, he asked to stop all interventions and after a while peacefully passed away.

We know he touched many people in many parts of the world and know that you share in the tragedy of his loss.

The CPPC will plan an event to remember Omar – his work, his vision, his activism and his great big heart. We will let you know, but for now we would like to take some time to grieve.

We will post here, on our Facebook page and on our Twitter account when we have details of a funeral or a gathering in his memory. Until then, kindly be patient.

Will Pakistan see political change in 2021 – with Alia Amirali

https://www.facebook.com/plugins/video.php?height=314&href=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.facebook.com%2Fpakistanicanadians%2Fvideos%2F423633848755858%2F&show_text=true&width=560

This talk was live-streamed on Facebook

Saturday, Jan 23 -1 pm Ontario & Quebec time
10 am British Columbia, 11 am Mountain, 2 pm Atlantic
(England 6 pm; Pakistan 11 pm; India 11.30 pm)

Link   fb.me/pakistanicanadians

ALIA AMIRALI, an intellectual-activist is a notable figure in the left Awami (Peoples) Workers Party (AWP).

She was actively involved in the Lawyers’ Movement against General Musharraf’s ’emergency’ rule and has been a strong advocate for the restoration of student unions banned by another military dictator, General Zia-ul-Haq. She played an active role in the rebuilding of the progressive National Students Federation (NSF) of which she served as former General Secretary (Punjab).

Ms. Amirali is also a feminist scholar currently doing a PhD in Gender Studies.

An Evening with Dimitri Lascaris and the CPPC

The Green Party of Canada is having an election to choose a leader to replace Elizabeth May.

Dimitri Lascaris is one of the candidates for the leadership post. His many bold and radical proposals will be of interest to many, including Pakistani-Canadians, South Asians and other immigrant communities.

Please join us to hear Dimitri on the Environment, Indigenous People’s Rights, Economy Social Justice, Canada’s Military Budget, NATO, Police Reforms, Proportional Representation, Rights of Palestinians, Workers Rights and more.

There will be a question period session too.

MISSING: Enforced Disappearances and Extra-Judicial Killings in Pakistan

Join us via Zoom on our facebook page:
fb.me/pakistanicanadians

Sunday, 20 September, 2020
1:00 pm (EST) • 11:00 am (MST)• 10:00 am (PST)


Harris Khalique
a long-time activist, is the Secretary-General of the premiere human rights organization in the country, the Human Rights Commission of Pakistan.

Salman Haider
a poet and writer of note, was abducted and brutalized by Pakistan’s security agencies in 2017. He now lives in Canada.

Celebrating freedom from Colonialism (A webinar)

23 August, 2020
4:00 pm eastern time
(1:00 pm pacific time)

WATCH AT: https://www.facebook.com/pakistanicanadians/

Pakistani-Canadians and Indian-Canadians celebrate their respective Independence Days with nationalism, flag waving and, generally criticising each other. The Committee of Progressive Pakistani Canadians will mark the occasion on secular, non-nationalist lines. The Webinar will focus on Britain’s colonization of the subcontinent and its peoples’ joint struggle for freedom.

Taimur Rahman is a Pakistani academic, musician and socialist political activist from Pakistan. He teaches political science at the Lahore University of Management Sciences. Radhika Desai is Professor of Political Studies Department and President of the Society for Socialist Studies at the University of Manitoba.

Pakistani-Canadians and Indian-Canadians celebrate their respective Independence Days with nationalism, flag waving and, generally criticising each other. The Committee of Progressive Pakistani Canadians will mark the occasion on secular, non-nationalist lines. The Webinar will focus on Britain’s colonization of the subcontinent and its peoples’ joint struggle for freedom.

Taimur Rahman is a Pakistani academic, musician and socialist political activist from Pakistan. He teaches political science at the Lahore University of Management Sciences. Radhika Desai is Professor of Political Studies Department and President of the Society for Socialist Studies at the University of Manitoba.