YOUR LEGACY

FOR FREEDOM AND JUSTICE

As a supporter of Amnesty International, you are part of a movement that celebrates, defends and supports those that are willing to speak out for justice. Whether your involvement has been as a letter-writer, an annual or monthly donor, or a participant in one of our many campaigns, your support has helped people who faced torture, harassment or death for their opinions and beliefs.

A Message from AleX NeVe

But WHat of tHe future?

How can those of us who are passionate about the role of Amnesty International help to create a world in which human rights are respected for generations to come? If enough supporters included a gift to Amnesty International in their will, we could create a legacy of freedom and justice that would transform the lives of future generations. Our power comes from acting together, united for justice. Together, we can give Amnesty an even stronger voice and the resources it needs, not just to respond to human rights abuses, but also to prevent them. The greater the number of people joining together and leaving a legacy for human rights in their will, the more powerful our human rights work will be. No matter what the size of your estate is, your legacy gift will have a significant impact on the lives of those who will stand up for human rights in the future. After you have provided for your loved ones, I hope you will join with me in including Amnesty International in your will so that future generations will know freedom and justice.

Alex Neve, Secretary General, Amnesty International Canadian Section Including Amnesty International in my will means my voice will endure as part of the global chorus defending human rights.

Aung San Suu Kyi

Amnesty International has helped us to keep our small wick of self-respect alive, you have helped us to keep the light and we hope that you will be with us in the years to come, that you will be able to join us in our dreams And please believe that when I say that you are a part of my heart, I really mean it with my whole heart. Amnesty International adopted pro-democracy leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, as a prisoner of conscience when she was placed under house arrest in Myanmar in 1989. She was finally freed from house arrest on November 12, 2010.

Every legacy gift helps guarantee Amnesty International will always have the resources to speak out for those who are silenced and defenseless.
Emaddedin BagHi, Iran
I would like to send my warmest regards to all our friends on the team in Amnesty. He said after his release from prison on June 21, 2011.
Emaddedin was arrested in December 2009 during a time of large-scale protests in Iran following the disputed presidential election in June 2009. Amnesty members in Canada and around the world campaigned for his freedom.

FatHer Alejandro Solalinde, MeXico

Amnesty International members are living proof that this world can be a better place. I would like to thank the membersfor taking time out of their lives to protect us.
Father Solalinde, a subject of many letter appeals by Amnesty members, is no longer harassed for protecting the rights of migrant workers in Mexico. Father Alejandro Solalinde runs a migrants shelter in the town of Ciudad Ixtepec, Oaxaca state.

Photo credit: Martha Izquierdo

WHy We Are Remembering Amnesty International in Our Wills

By including Amnesty in our wills, we get to continue our commitment to Amnesty Internationals important work on human rights and help to secure its legacy. Bill Gilsdorf (Amnesty International member since the eighties)

Amnesty is in my will because this work must continue, and I want to help in any way I can. David Kelleher (Amnesty International member since 1987)

I recognize how effective Amnestys work is, and want it to continue. I can think of no better way of ensuring justice and dignity for future generations.
Margaret John (Amnesty International member since 1975)

THe birtH of Amnesty International

In 1961, British lawyer Peter Benenson launched a worldwide campaign, Appeal for Amnesty 1961 with the publication of a prominent article, The Forgotten Prisoners, in The Observer newspaper in London, UK. The imprisonment of two Portuguese students, who had raised their wine glasses in a toast to freedom, moved Benenson to write his article. His appeal provoked a remarkable response, and his article was reprinted in many more newspapers across the world as his call to action resonated with the values and aspirations of people all over the world. This was the genesis of Amnesty International.

Only when the last prisoner of conscience has been freed the last torture chamber has been closed the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights is a reality for the worlds people, will our work be done.
Photo credit: Raoul Shade

Amnesty International is a global movement of over 3 million people in more than 150 countries working together to protect and promote human rights.
ViSion
a world in which every person enjoys all the human rights enshrined in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights and other international human rights instruments.

MiSSion
to conduct research and generate action to prevent and end grave abuses of human rights and to demand justice for those whose rights have been violated.

A young woman holds a candle at a Libya solidarity action, organized by Amnesty International in Bern, Switzerland, 24 February 2011.
Photo credit: Reto Andreoli

Thanks to Amnesty letters, today we can smile, we can be alive.

Dina Meza, investigative journalist from Honduras.

We believe that we are at our most powerful when we stand together for human rights. Each person, no matter who or where they are, can make change happen by acting in concert with others who share their vision of a world where everyone lives in dignity. Amnesty International is an authoritative voice on human rights. For over 50 years, we have provided the world with reliable and accurate information about human rights violations and international human rights laws and standards. Amnesty International is independent of any government, political ideology, economic interest or religion. We do not accept funding for our human rights research and campaigning work from any government. Our work is supported by donations from individuals. Amnesty International is impartial. We hold all actors to the same obligations as defined in international human rights law and standards. Our only goal is to ensure human rights are respected for everyone, everywhere.

I have confidence that Amnesty International will be a financially responsible and effective human rights organization long into the future--and because this way my commitment to human rights can be more than life-long. Nancy Kingsbury (Amnesty International member for more than 20 years.)

International Action

36%

15%

Canadian Section: Urgent actions, refugee protection, campaigns, crisis response

Your gifts at Work

13%
Organization

16%

Grassroots Activism

20%
Communications and Raising Public Awareness

After you HaVe remembered your loVed ones, PLEASE CONSIDER INCLUDING Amnesty International in your Will.
The most powerful and simple way to leave a legacy for human rights is to remember Amnesty International in your will. Whether you are having your first will drafted or are revising your current will, including a bequest to Amnesty International is easier than you think. To ensure that you have a valid will, we strongly recommend that you use the services of an estate lawyer.

You may choose to leave a specific amount, a share or the entire residue of your estate.
When remembering Amnesty in your will, please be sure to quote our organizations correct legal name:

AmneStY InternationaL - Canadian Section (EngLiSh SpeaKing) Our head office in Canada is located at: 312 Laurier Ave East, Ottawa, Ontario, K1N 1H9. Our Charitable Registration number is 11878 5914 RR0001.

Im leaving a gift in my will to Amnesty International so the children of the world will know freedom and dignity. Simon Trevelyan (Amnesty International member since 1990)

For your convenience, we have provided some sample wording often used by donors to indicate their charitable intentions.

For a residual bequest (a percentage, or all, of the remainder of your estate after other specific legacies have been fulfilled):

For a specific bequest (a specified dollar amount):

I give to Amnesty International - Canadian Section (English Speaking) currently of 312 Laurier Ave. East, Ottawa, Ontario, K1N 1H9, all (or ______%) of the residue of my estate, to be used at the discretion of the organization.

I give to Amnesty International - Canadian Section (English Speaking) currently of 312 Laurier Ave East, Ottawa, Ontario, K1N 1H9, the sum of $______ to be used at the discretion of the organization.

 There is something very satisfying about being in a position to make a final statement that has real meaning for me.
Michael Wilkshire (Active member of Amnesty International since 1981.)

OtHer Ways to LeaVe a Legacy Gift

Gifts of Life Insurance
Gifts of life insurance can be made in three ways: an existing policy with cash value (i.e. a permanent policy) can be signed over to Amnesty International; a new policy (whole life) can be taken out by individuals or couples on their lives, or the life of a loved one, and gifted to Amnesty International; you can simply make Amnesty International beneficiary of a life policy (including a policy from your workplace). If you surrender a policy to Amnesty International, youll receive a tax receipt for the cash surrender value. If you make Amnesty International owner of a policy, youll receive a tax receipt for the premiums you pay.

Gift of Securities
During your lifetime, you may want to consider donating publicly listed securities (shares, bonds or units of a mutual fund trust). Recent tax changes mean that you are exempt from any capital gains taxes when you transfer securities to a registered charity, like Amnesty International. In order to obtain this exemption you must transfer the securities whole to Amnesty, rather than sell them and donate the cash proceeds. Youll receive a tax receipt for the fair market value of the securities on the day they are transferred into our account. Its important that you contact us before the transfer to request our Gift of Stock donation form.

Gift of RRSPs and RRIFs

You can make Amnesty International beneficiary of any RRSPs or RRIFs that you have. Just go to the institution holding these investments and ask them for a change of beneficiary form, and insert Amnesty International as your new beneficiary. There is a gift option that is just right for you. Please contact Heather Warren (see back cover) if you would like to find out more.

AMNESTY WORKS BECAUSE OF SUPPORTERS LIKE YOU

Naser El-Ras

It was because of Amnesty members that I was released. Because of your work.
Young Canadian, Naser El-Ras, was detained in Bahrain in 2011, and sentenced to five years in prison for participating in peaceful protests. Naser was finally released in February 2012, after which he married his fiance, Zainab (pictured to the right). He returned to Canada on May 1 with a yearning for justice and a desire to campaign to hold accountable those who had abused his human rights and the rights of countless others in Bahrain.

Yolanda OQueli
Amnesty International has its eyes on the people carrying out peaceful resistance here. Those who have tried to use force against us know that they cant commit injustices.
Yolanda Oqueli is an activist and leader of the Northern Front of the Metropolitan Area, which has been protesting against the negative effects of a mining project. On 13 June 2012 she was shot as she drove home from a protest outside the mine. She survived but is still recovering. Amnesty International members have campaigned for her protection, and since her shooting, she has been granted protective measures with an armed guard.

Jenni Williams
Amnesty International is our big sister When Im in prison, if I knew that someone, my big sister, is shouting for me, telling people about me, then I feel less distressed, less frightened and less alone.
Jenni is a founding member of WOZA (Women of Zimbabwe Arise) a movement of 80,000 courageous human rights activists who are peacefully protesting against the worsening economic conditions and human rights crisis in Zimbabwe.

Our commitment to you

Wed loVe to Hear from you
For more than a decade, Heather Warren, our Gift Planner, has been assisting people like you who plan to leave a bequest in their will to Amnesty International. Heather would be happy to help, if you are thinking about including a legacy gift to Amnesty. Heather Warren (Amnesty International member since 1982) Tel. 613-744-7667, ext 239 email [email protected]

Our eigHt promises to tHose WHo leaVe a legacy gift to Amnesty International
will use the gift carefully and cost effectively so that it 1 We has the greatest impact.

2 We respect your privacy. recognize that a legacy gift is your decision and you 3 We need to make it in your own time.
is your decision to let us know that youve left a gift in 4 It your will, or another kind of legacy gift. Wed love to hear from you and thank you but you dont need to tell us. you decide to notify us of your gift, you can choose 5 If how we communicate with you in the future about our human rights work. will give you the opportunity to be connected to the 6 We work we do.

Amnesty International 312 Laurier Ave East Ottawa, Ontario K1N 1H9 Canada 1-800 AMNESTY (1-800-266-3789)

any time in the future, you have the absolute right 7 At to change your mind about a gift in your Will to Amnesty International. will handle whatever gift you leave us with sensitivity 8 We and respect.

www.amnesty.ca
Charitable Registration number is 11878 5914 RR0001