People's Summit in Argentina, Canadian prisons and human rights

| November 21, 2005

Show Notes:

(00:17 - 15:59) The fourth Summit of the Americas took place in Argentina this month. Heads of state from all nations in the Americas, except Cuba, met for talks on trade liberalization. Meanwhile activists from all over the Americas, including Cuba, held a People's Summit to discuss alternatives to global capitalism. Steve Stewart is secretary of an international coalition to defend public education from neo-liberal policies. He talks about what has happened in the Americas since the last summit in Quebec City and how Argentinians have reacted to the economic collapse of their country.

(16:00 - 36:49) Canada's Correctional Investigator recently released his annual report on what's wrong in the federal prison system. Top of the list is discriminatory treatment of women, people with mental illnesses and First Nations inmates. Canada has also been condemned by the UN Human Rights Commission for inadequacies in its prison system. Kim Pate has worked for prison justice for over 20 years. She discusses what the prison ombudsperson found this year and why the UN is concerned about Canadian prisons.