Equality Seeking Groups Who Made Submissions re: the

Systemic Review by the Canadian Human Rights Commission of

Human Rights Violations of Women Prisoners by the Government of Canada

Amnesty International is a worldwide movement of "ordinary" people who work together to achieve extraordinary results. Amnesty members come from many different cultures and backgrounds, united in their determination to build a world where all people live in dignity, security and freedom. Amnesty members - alongside many human rights defenders around the world - shine the light of public attention on hidden abuses and expose the truth. They create public pressure to make the abuses stop and let the authorities know that they are being watched, that they expect them to uphold international human rights standards.

Canadian Association of Elizabeth Fry Societies (CAEFS) is a federation of 24 local, community based service providers who work with and on behalf of victimized and criminalized women and girls. On International Women's Day, March 8, 2001, CAEFS launched the human rights claim on behalf of all federally sentenced women.

DAWN Canada: DisAbled Women's Network Canada is a national organization controlled by and comprised of women with disabilities, from a wide array of backgrounds and disabilities. We are a feminist organization who is working to achieve control over our own lives and end the stereotype that labels us dependent burdens on society. DAWN Canada's mission is to advocate for the self determination, full inclusion, and equal participation of self identified women with disabilities in all aspects of society.

DAWN Ontario is a progressive cross-disability feminist organization dedicated to social and economic justice, the elimination of discrimination, and the support of human rights.

Joint Effort is an independent Vancouver based community organization of women who volunteer with prisoners of the Burnaby Correctional Centre for Women. The group started as a subcommittee of the BC Federation of Women, volunteering at the Lakeside Regional Correctional Centre for Women in 1981. We receive no government or institutional funding; our mandate is to help women help themselves through workshops of mutual interest to women inside and outside of prison. We bring women from the community into the prison to share their skills and experiences. On the outside we organize public education events to draw attention to the issues facing women in prison.

LEAF -Women's Legal Education and Action Fund is a national, non-profit organization committed to using the provisions of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms to promote equality for women. LEAF has a two-fold mandate: to ensure that the rights of women and girls in Canada, as guaranteed in the Charter are upheld in our courts, human rights commissions and government agencies and to provide public education on the issues of gender equality. LEAF undertakes legal action by intervening at the Canadian appellate courts on significant cases that will establish important principles of equality for women.

National Association of Women and the Law (NAWL) is a national, non-profit organization dedicated to advancing women's equality through law reform advocacy, research and education. NAWL was founded in 1974 and currently has 19 local chapters, in addition to its national office. Members include lawyers, law professors, students and others who share NAWL's goal of improving the status of women in Canada.

National Council of Women of Canada (NCWC), the oldest women's group in Canada, is a federation of 17 local councils of women in major communities across Canada, five provincial councils of women, one study group and 27 diverse national organizations.

Native Women's Association of Canada (NWAC) has been the premier national Aboriginal women's organization since its inception in 1973. The mission of the NWAC is to achieve political, social and economic equality for all Aboriginal women in Canada whether they be First Nation (status and non-status), Métis or Inuit.

Strength in Sisterhood (SIS) is a network of former federal women prisoners working in conjunction with other equality-seeking groups promoting the rights of federally sentenced women. Incorporated in 1995 for the purpose of advocating for supports and services for federally sentenced women.

Womyn 4 Justice - A group of women ex-prisoners working collectively to both support women and children in and out of prison as well as working with other equality seeking women's groups to change the social conditions that are the root cause of crime.