Dear friends,
Some of you have seen the article which appeared on-line on the CBC website on July 3 in the ‘Politics’ section. The reporter published the article without my permission, against my explicit request not to do so. It also makes statements which are inaccurate and incomplete.
- CRA did not ‘forbid’ CUC to work for justice. What they did require was a more focused statement about carrying out the work; the new charitable purpose approved overwhelmingly at the CUC’s AGM in May 2016 provides this specificity;
- The money that has been spent so far has been used to good effect obtaining legal advice and support from one of the top charity law firms in the country. The CUC is not ‘fighting’ the audit, but is working with CRA, through our lawyers, to come to final agreement on the outcome of the audit;
- The CUC has spoken out against policies, not against a specific government or political party; we have been careful to be non-partisan in our activities and statements;
- The lawyers have drafted agreements between CUC and our international partners which conform to CRA requirements, and which will allow us to carry on the work of growing UUism internationally in a focused and directed manner;
- Margaret Rao, who was also quoted in the article, speaks for Canadian Unitarians for Social justice, but not for the CUC;
- I am concerned about the audit because of the time and cost involved, but have also learned a lot through this process. One of the benefits has been the information cultivated and shared with our UU congregations about best practices for charities, and the support offered to congregations that have been undergoing their own audits.
I would ask that you not share, re-post or comment on the CBC article further; it is misleading and is not in the best interests of the CUC.
Thank you.
Vyda Ng