McLeod Group blog, March 10, 2021
Ketty Nivyabandi was appointed Amnesty International Canada’s new Secretary General in September 2020. She agreed to share with the McLeod Group a few thoughts on her new role and her vision of Canada’s foreign policy.
The McLeod Group: Could you please introduce yourself?
Ketty Nivyabandi: I am from Burundi, in Central Eastern Africa. I was living there until 2015 when I came to Canada. I studied international relations and also minored in journalism and started working in journalism in Burundi and slowly moved into communications. As time went by, I just became more and more an activist and played a really important role in a crisis that my country went through in 2015, a deep constitutional crisis with major protests. I took pride in leading the women’s protest there peacefully. As a result, very unexpectedly, I was in great danger, there were a lot of threats on my life, and I had to leave my country. All of a sudden, I became a refugee, something that had only been a conceptual thing for me, something I had cared about and heard about, but never thought would happen to me.
My experience of being both an activist and a refugee have profoundly shaped me. When I came to Canada, I found myself doing a lot of activism and advocacy. I have a bit of an untraditional background for these circles. A lot of people come from an academic background. I come from a lived background. That’s interesting for Amnesty.
The McLeod Group: What is your view of Canada’s human rights record internationally?
Ketty Nivyabandi: The credibility and the legitimacy that Canada has on human rights issues globally is very much tied to how it upholds human rights domestically. We often do not connect the two, but it’s very important. Canada enjoys a good reputation, especially in global bodies. What I think is really important is that we are at a time where there is lack of global leadership and a lack of moral leadership in terms of human rights. More and more, we need that human rights leadership. And Canada could play that role. It just necessitates that we take human rights seriously domestically right now.
The McLeod Group: What should Canada do to be that leader on the international stage?
Ketty Nivyabandi: First, fix the local. You cannot preach what you are not practicing. You will be strongly challenged. Consistency in foreign policy is a very important factor. Nothing is more damaging than when we see Canada taking a very strong stance on a country’s human rights violations and then you see the same violations occurring in another country, sometimes even at the highest level, but that are not tackled the same way, perhaps because there are conflicting interests in the way, trade interests for instance. That makes it difficult for Canada to speak strongly about these cases. And these inconsistencies really damage Canada’s credibility internationally.
Taking for example Canada’s feminist foreign policy, which is being drafted right now. We are hoping to see a white paper very soon. Canada is continuing to export arms to Saudi Arabia, which is responsible for the war that is ongoing in Yemen and that is highly felt by Yemeni women. Saudi Arabia continues to violate the rights of women who want to exist, to have the right to drive, to be free. We end up being less credible when we say one thing and do not practice it.
The McLeod Group: What would you like to see in Canada’s feminist foreign policy paper?
Ketty Nivyabandi: I would like to see the perspectives of women and gender diverse people around the world included in the paper. It needs to be a very inclusive vision, one that includes the perspective of people who are the most affected by Canadian foreign policy. A feminist policy looks at the relationship and impact of all the sectors – the impact of trade, the impact of aid, the impact of diplomacy – and the impact they have on a specific country.
A feminist foreign policy is not about empowering women in a particular country. It is about enabling the women in those countries who are already empowered to have the freedom to use their leadership in a way that feels the most appropriate for them. It is certainly not about us setting the agenda for them. It is ensuring that all these voices that are not heard globally are actually heard, creating the space to do that.
It would mean obviously pulling out right away of arms export deals, with Saudi Arabia or any other country. It would mean adhering to the Arms Trade Treaty, supporting local structures and activists, enabling local women to be actors in their own solutions. It requires an entirely different perspective and approach that is not rooted in Canada’s interests, but takes human rights as Canada’s interests. That would be absolutely transformative. I know the process has been consultative and I hope the policy will reflect the variety of perspectives that were shared.
This interview has been edited slightly to enhance readability. Part 2 will be published tomorrow.