Reading Time: 5 minutesDisponible en français. The United Nations’ (UN’s) “special procedures” constitute an international system for monitoring human rights. Special procedures draw on the expertise of independent human rights experts who act independently and are mandated to report and advise on human rights,… Read More ›
Reading Time: < 1 minuteDisponible en français. The military is often perceived as a stereotypically “hyper-masculine” organization where both women and 2SLGBTQI+ soldiers in Canada have in the past had to hide some aspects of themselves to fit in. This HillStudy examines several ways in which women… Read More ›
Reading Time: 5 minutesDisponible en français. *The acronym “2SLGBTQI+” is used domestically in Canada to refer to Two-Spirit, lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and intersex people, and those from sexually and gender-diverse communities. The acronym “LGBTQI+” is used in international contexts and will… Read More ›
Reading Time: 6 minutesDisponible en français. Women’s right to full and equal participation in the public and political life of their country is recognized by the 1979 United Nations Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. The proportion or number… Read More ›
Reading Time: 5 minutesDisponible en français. In Canada, the Canadian Human Rights Act prohibits discrimination based on certain grounds, including sex, sexual orientation (since 1996), gender expression and gender identity (since 2017). These terms are often used in the parliamentary context, including in… Read More ›
Reading Time: < 1 minuteDisponible en français. Measuring Democracy examines three widely used democracy indexes: those produced by Freedom House, the Economist Intelligence Unit, and Varieties of Democracy (V‑Dem). This HillStudy explains how these indexes work, how each index evaluates the state of democracy in Canada, how they differ from each other and some possible limitations of… Read More ›
Reading Time: 2 minutesDisponible en français. Section 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms sets out the right to equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination. The Supreme Court of Canada (the Court) has consistently interpreted this right as protecting substantive equality. This means that laws – as well as government activities and policies – must not simply treat people the same. Instead, the effect… Read More ›
Reading Time: 2 minutesDisponible en français. Domestic police, prosecutors and courts must operate within the confines of their territorial jurisdiction, but criminal behaviour knows no borders. Consequently, states have developed legal tools to deal with cases where one or more elements of a crime – such… Read More ›
Reading Time: 2 minutesDisponible en français. A healthy environment is essential to human life, health and well-being. Climate change is increasingly impacting the environment in ways that harm people. Climate change affects the air we breathe, the availability of food and water, and… Read More ›
Reading Time: 6 minutesDisponible en français. On 10 November 2023, a delegation from Canada will appear before a working group of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC). The delegation will report on how Canada is meeting its international human rights obligations. This process,… Read More ›