From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 1 10:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 01 Apr 2004 18:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] PEI carpenters form new company Message-ID: <20040401181702.5978.qmail@resist.ca> CHARLOTTETOWN -- Unionized carpenters on Prince Edward Island have formed their own company to bid on home construction projects, saying they can no longer afford to work for some private contractors. http://pei.cbc.ca/ URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/3/30/215343/943 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 1 10:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 01 Apr 2004 18:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Obsession with Debt Precludes Action on Poverty Message-ID: <20040401181703.5980.qmail@resist.ca> Dennis Howlett - Executive Director, National Anti-Poverty Organization First it was an obsession with the deficit. Now it's the debt. Prime Minister Martin doesn't seem to be satisfied with eliminating the deficit and having one of the lowest percentages of government debt in relation to the size of its economy of any industrialized country. He still seems hell bent on paying down the debt as his first priority. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/3/30/204630/257 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 1 10:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 01 Apr 2004 18:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Discriminatory Changes to BC Funeral Act Message-ID: <20040401181702.5979.qmail@resist.ca> March 22, 2004 In debate of the Cremation, Interment and Funeral Services Act (Rich Coleman bill) that is going on right now, the MLAs just voted on a section that removes the wording "was living and cohabiting with the deceased in a marriage-like relationship, including a marriage-like relationship between persons of the same gender" from the part of the bill that specifies who can legally deal with remains. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/3/30/211514/002 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 1 11:17:05 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 01 Apr 2004 19:17:05 -0000 Subject: [news] DOJ asked FBI translator to change pre 9-11 intercepts Message-ID: <20040401191705.13152.qmail@resist.ca> Washington, DC -- FBI translator Sibel Edmonds was offered a substantial raise and a full time job to encourage her not to go public that she had been asked by the Department of Justice (DOJ) to retranslate and adjust the translations of [terrorist] subject intercepts that had been received before September 11, 2001 by the FBI and CIA. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/1/104835/5959 From ron at resist.ca Thu Apr 1 14:45:28 2004 From: ron at resist.ca (ron) Date: Thu, 01 Apr 2004 14:45:28 -0800 Subject: [news] Don't join missile shield, ex-officers advise Canada Message-ID: <406C9B88.7020203@resist.ca> Vancouver Sun March 27, 2004 Don't join missile shield, ex-officers advise Canada The system's unproven and too expensive, the former U.S. senior commanders say Sheldon Alberts Washington -- A group of retired U.S. generals and admirals is warning Canada to reject the Bush administration's proposed ballistic missile defence shield, complaining that the program is both too expensive and unproven to make it worthwhile. The group, which includes a former chairman of the U.S. joint chiefs of staff, also wrote George W. Bush on Friday requesting that he postpone plans to deploy the system later this year. "Tell the Canadians to hold off -- don't waste their money," retired lieutenant-general Robert Gard, a spokesman for 49 former senior American officers who oppose the missile shield, said in an interview. "If I were the Canadian prime minister, I would say: 'Look we are interested if we find out whether or not it works. And so far, we don't know.'" Canada opened formal negotiations in January with the U.S. Defence Department aimed at reaching an agreement to participate in the national missile defence (NMD) program. The U.S. military plans to begin deploying land-based missile interceptors in Alaska and California by this September, and has waived operational testing requirements in order to meet the deadline. Gard, a former president of the U.S. National Defence University, said U.S. technology has repeatedly failed in tests. Earlier this week, the Pentagon's senior space planner reported that development of a key component of the missile shield -- aimed at detecting enemy missile attacks -- was over budget and behind schedule. The Space-Based Infrared System was "in a fluid situation right now," Air Force Under Secretary Peter Teets said in testimony before Congress. Gard said the missile shield's biggest drawback is that it cannot distinguish between decoys and armed warheads, he said. "The biggest flaw is its inability to track and discriminate," Gard said. The U.S. president wants Congress to approve a $16-billion US budget for missile defence this year, and the White House intends to spend in excess of $50 billion US on the system over the next five years. But in their letter to the president, the retired U.S. generals said the U.S. faces a greater threat from poor security at nuclear weapons storage facilities and from terrorists who may try to smuggle bombs into the country and detonate them on American soil. They urge Bush to "postpone operational deployment of the expensive and untested" missile shield. The savings should be used to "secure the multitude of facilities containing nuclear weapons and materials, and to protect our ports and borders against terrorists who may attempt to smuggle weapons of mass destruction into the United States," the letter says. The letter was signed by retired admiral William Crowe, who served as chairman of the joint chiefs of staff under presidents Ronald Reagan and George H.W. Bush. Retired generals Joseph Hoar, the former head of U.S. Central Command, and Alfred Hansen, former commander of the air force's logistics command, were among the group of officers who also signed the letter. The U.S. Defence Department this month reported the missile system would not be ready for operational testing "in the foreseeable future" and only two of 10 of the shield's key technologies have been declared workable. The retired generals maintain that it is "highly unlikely" that a rogue nation would target the U.S. for nuclear attack because American technology allows the military to pinpoint the source of a ballistic missile launch. Any country firing on the U.S. would be "risking annihilation from a devastating U.S. retaliatory strike," the letter says. "If the goal is to spend money to prevent weapons of mass destruction from being delivered on this country, the far more likely contingency is terrorists smuggling it into the country," said Gard. Canada's possible participation in the U.S. system has produced fireworks within the Liberal government. Last month, 30 Liberals broke party ranks to support a Bloc Quebecois motion to end negotiations with the U.S. But Ottawa believes it can gain influence in North American defence planning if the shield is deployed through Norad, the binational aerospace defence command run jointly by Canada and the U.S. CanWest News Service http://www.canada.com/vancouver/vancouversun/news/story.html?id=a5751fcb-8e2 d-4f7a-9292-985c7ddb87ce From ron at resist.ca Thu Apr 1 14:56:41 2004 From: ron at resist.ca (ron) Date: Thu, 01 Apr 2004 14:56:41 -0800 Subject: [news] Russia: nostalgic for the Soviet era Message-ID: <406C9E29.5070802@resist.ca> http://mondediplo.com/2004/03/11russia ?All that friendship and solidarity collapsed with the break-up of the USSR? Russia: nostalgic for the Soviet era As President Vladimir Putin went to the polls he faced strong demands to redistribute national wealth and rebuild at least part of the old social welfare system. The demands are linked with a re-evaluation of the legacy of the old Soviet Union. A misremembered past appeals because the present doesn?t work and the future looks bleak. by Jean-Marie Chauvier We have all seen, if only on screen, the famous monument of the worker and the peasant woman from the collective farm holding hammer and sickle aloft and striding towards a better future (1). It was sculpted by Vera Mukhina for the entrance to Moscow?s exhibition park and has just been taken down, although not to be scrapped but for renovation. Traditional red flags will fly again on 9 May for the official celebrations of the USSR?s victory over Nazi Germany, and also at the communist marches on 1 May and 7 November (2). The anthem of the USSR is being played (3). Teenagers are wearing T-shirts carrying the slogan "My country, the USSR". Rock groups recycle Soviet hits. FM radio in Moscow broadcasts more songs in Russian. Chic cafes and advertising use Soviet symbols. Postmodernist nostalgia is big in Russia. This mood swing began in the mid-1990s. Soviet films are now being shown on television by popular demand, according to broadcasters. A leader writer has expressed concern that the Soviet Union still exists, that nostalgia for it seems to be the dominant mode (4). Polls by reputable institutes confirm this: 57% of Russians want the USSR back (2001); 45% consider the Soviet system better than the current system; 43% actually want a new Bolshevik revolution (2003). Opinions seem politically incorrect: the democratic revolution of August 1991 (5) has been discredited and there is widespread rejection - almost 80% - of large-scale "criminal" privatisations. Democrats rail against this attitude. They blame amnesia (people have forgotten the gulag and the shortages); hatred of the rich because they are rich; the mediocrity of the losers and the old (but then, evolution will sort out that problem). Recent political events have worsened their concerns. Several prominent oligarchs among their friends and patrons have been prosecuted (6). The Kremlin has again taken control of the main media. The People?s Commissariat for Internal Affairs (NKVD) and the KGB have been rehabilitated (7); the influence of the siloviki(8) and the Federal Security Service (FSB) is growing; and there is now a desire to restore Russian influence across former Soviet territory. There is also official criticism of the United States and the fact that it has moved into former Soviet territory, as well as of its war in Iraq, notwithstanding President Vladimir Putin?s strategic alliance with Washington after 11 September 2001. But there has been no lack of effort to eradicate enthusiasm for communism. Since 1991 Russians have been bombarded with articles, books and television programmes denouncing Bolshevik crimes: the Red Terror under Lenin and Trotsky; the Great Terror under Stalin; the famine of 1932-33; the gulag; the deportation of individuals punished for, or suspected of, collaborating with Nazi Germany; and the repression of the Brezhnev era. The battle for memory combined with the promotion of democratic commercial values has been keenly fought by the media, journalists and historians, backed by a vast Western, chiefly US, network of institutions, universities and foundations. Ford, Soros, Hoover, Heritage, Carnegie, USIS and Usaid have all helped, plus Russia?s philanthropic oligarchs (9). The open debates of the Gorbachev era have given way to an indictment of the empire of evil in all its manifestations. Many Western polemicists would be taken aback at the virulence of this Russian anti-communism, the aim of which is to invoke the spectre of the return of the reds and civil war every time the new regime is threatened. Condemning Bolshevism means rehabilitating those opposed to it, mostly White Russian and dissident movements. Even some instances of collaboration with the Nazis are viewed differently. Izvestia columnist Maxim Sokolov has written: "Those were complicated times - [the Third Reich] was the sole bastion protecting Europe from the barbarity of the Bolsheviks. Had he still been alive the SS commander [Himmler] would probably have been honoured for fighting totalitarianism" (10). This grotesque revisionism, which fails to take account of the real context, the period, the regimes and the different societies and cultures in Soviet history, is challenged by many historians, although not the ones setting the tone. Victor Suvorov?s bestsellers have a wider audience. The latest, published in 2002 (11), begins: "All Soviet leaders, without exception, were crooks and good-for-nothings." Alexander Tsipko, one of the pioneers of official anti-communism, considers that kind of smear campaign counter-productive. In 1995 he lamented that its demoralising effects combined with the impact of "confiscatory reforms have paved the way for a rehabilitation of Soviet history" (12). He was right. As well as targeting the system, the attacks are directed towards community values, egalitarian and collectivist, including traditional Russian and Soviet values. They target those at the bottom of the heap, the workers. Their living conditions are precarious and they also find themselves stigmatised as accomplices of the former regime, in receipt of handouts, lazy and useless to post-industrial progress. Russia still has no single concept of what the USSR was really like. The very different experiences, cultural legacies and memories that have been torn apart make that impossible. Individual life histories do convey echoes of periods of extremes when frontiers were fluid and unpredictable, caught between pure faith, real joy and the sudden descent into terror. An important witness to the life in the gulag, Varlam Shalamov, describes the excitement of his youth, the influence of Lenin and the revolutionary ideals ("what horizons, what vast prospects opened up to everyone, to the most ordinary of men"), during the ambiguous period of Soviet history in the 1920s. The same era was famously described by Ludmilla, daughter of peasants brutalised during the kulak persecution, who managed to move into a different world and set out, in the city, towards social improvement (13). Her story, a testimony to the fate of the common people, illustrates why that socialism enjoyed popular support. Millions of country people took that path. Eyewitness accounts have been collected from peasants who lived through the civil war and stayed in the villages after the great divide of collectivisation; they were interviewed in the early 1990s when the right to free speech had been asserted and before it was revised by the dominant anti-communist ideology. A problem of reconstructing memory in this new context is the tendency to enlist victims and martyrs in the service of an anti-totalitarian ideology that was actually developed after the event. They included many communists and members of the Trotskyist leftwing opposition. These people who came back from the camps had not stopped believing in and serving the socialism that they are said now to reject. Who is speaking, and by what right, on behalf of the dead? Most people alive today did not live through those extreme times. What they remember are the 40 years of Soviet rule after the war and the death of Stalin. An artist recalls the atmosphere of the 1960s: "I may be idealising it, but in those days there was a surge of optimism in the country. I?m not talking about politics, but of the moral climate and the people around me. The Beatles promoted the idea that love was all, culminating in the hippy movement. Those were radiant days when I learnt to be optimistic about the future." This is an unexpected collision or collusion of references: one reflects the official line (optimistic about the future), the other refers to a renegade culture (the Beatles). In a country then in a period of full expansion, where no one was concerned about the future, many were confident about that future while taking an apolitical approach and enjoying the attractions of an alternative culture. Anti-establishment protesters from the Brezhnev regime miss the days when they could set the world to rights around the kitchen table: "the future had yet to come," they say - and, as we know, it was disappointing. Many must have withdrawn into the background after 1991, depressed and saddened by seeing what really triggered the change they longed for. "The new leadership discredits the shestidyesyatniki, the 1960s people," says Vassily Yuravliov, "because they see them as a living reproach. The oligarchs and businessmen hoisted themselves to power on their shoulders" (14). Young people who were not militants, anti-establishment or party officials, just eager to live life to the full, left the comforts of city life for the major construction sites of the 1950s and 1960s, attracted by the romance or the financial incentives. The construction of Academic City in Novosibirsk, the power stations on the Siberian rivers, the industrial complexes at Togliatti and on the Kama river and the second trans-Siberian railway, the BAM, have left them remembering their youth as a period when they lived life intensely, despite the current, widespread feeling that it was all a huge mess. Others returned battered from a terrible adventure: the war in Afghanistan, as reported in the streets and on the metro by 40-somethings scarred by it. The younger generation, back from Chechnya, is beginning to tell its own stories. But most people were untouched by such momentous events. They led their lives, enjoyed a way of life, social relations and a culture they are sad to leave behind. The Ukrainian writer Andrei Kurkov, born in 1961, describes it (and others share his view): "That society was founded on friendship. You could knock at your neighbour?s door and if you needed money, they would lend it to you. All that solidarity collapsed with the break-up of the Soviet Union. People born just before that, now in their 20s, adapt very quickly. For my generation, solitude is the scourge of life today. I?ve lost many friends. Many have committed suicide; others have emigrated" (15). Is this a memory of good relations, or a social culture still discernible in the opposition to liberalisation? Cultural sociologist Ludmila Bulavka documents the accounts of workers in the recent protest movements. The militants are harsh critics of their own illusions during the period 1989-91, when they supported the democrats. For them, the end of the USSR is a painful loss and they do not accept that bosses should be able to lay down the law without consulting workers. They still want to believe that the people are the state. They remain attached to a culture that was based on consensus and social paternalism (16). Westerners lack much of the knowledge they need to understand the loss that Russians feel: the total world of a culture, the depth of a social life that cannot be changed to fit an ideology. In which drawer should be filed not only avant-garde art but the mass popular culture that influenced gener ations? Alexandrov?s musical comedies and Utesov?s jazz; the humour of Ilf and Petrov; the adventures of soldier Vassily Tiorkine; the characters of film-maker Vassily Shukshin; the amateur art of the factory clubs and the vast "song of authors" movement, the most significant mass protest of the period 1960-80. How do you explain the decision by nonconformist bards of all ages to vote the ballad Grenada by Mikhail Svetlov, the 1920s Komsomol poet, "the song of the 20th century"? Will it ever be possible to pass on the messages from this lost Atlantis? A survey with the help of Germany?s Friedrich Ebert Foundation and overseen by Mikhail Gorchkov (17) reveals the extent to which the rehabilitation of the USSR is based on mature reflection far removed from stereotypes. It shows that the authorities and media have failed in their attempt to present 70 years of Soviet rule as a nightmare, and concludes that the pressures used to create that image are no longer effective. But views differ according to the periods considered and the age of those polled. The crimes of Stalinism can never be justified is the view of 75.6% of those aged between 16-24; 73.5% of those aged 25-35; 74% of those aged 36-45; 66.8% of those aged 46-55; and 53.1% of those aged 56-65. Positive responses vary, from 27.4% to 50.3%, from the youngest to the oldest group, to the proposition that Marxist ideas were just. A total of 62.9% of those aged between 56-65, but only 24.4% of those aged 16-24, approved the idea that Western democracy, individualism and liberalism are not values that suit Russians. Among reasons to be proud, 80% in all age groups cite the 1945 victory over the Nazis. Those over 35 then cite postwar reconstruction, while the youngest group, aged between16-35, cite the great Russian poets, writers and composers. Some 60% of all age groups cite the achievements of the space programme. The statement that the USSR was the first state in Russian history to secure social justice for ordinary people was endorsed by most people over 35, 42.3% of those aged between 25-35 and just 31.3% of those aged 16-24. Most people polled said that the characteristics of the Stalinist period were discipline and order, fear, ideals, love of the homeland and rapid economic development; in the Brezhnev period they were social welfare, joie de vivre, successes in science, technology and education, and mutual confidence among people; while Russia today is characterised by crime, an uncertain future, conflicts between nations, the possibility of getting richer and social injustice. Among liberals, 25% assess the Brezhnev era as positive (against 45.9% of communists) and 21% assess the Yeltsin years as negative (against 59% of communists). For the future most favour state management of major sectors of the economy, education and health care. They are in favour of joint management with the private sector only in the food industry, housing and the media. A majority, 54%, wants a society based on social equality and defines the main feature of democracy as the equality of citizens before the law. The perception of the past is changing, filtered by the experience of market reforms that are now widely recognised to have been calamitous. The initial instigator of those reforms, sociologist Tatiana Zaslavskaya (18), believes that workers are less likely to own property and are more deprived of rights than during the Soviet era. Manufacturing has not just slumped it has structurally and technologically declined. She says that sectors that met social needs during the Soviet era and raised the standard of living modestly are now in decline. The democratic gains of the period of perestro?ka and glasnost are at risk. Polarisation of society is acute: 20-30% of the population are living in conditions of serious deprivation in rundown accommodation and dying prematurely. Liberal economist Grigory Yavlinsky, leader of the reformist Iabloko party, talks of Russia?s demodernisation; and ecologist Oleg Yanitsky of a society vulnerable to all risks. Viktor Danilov, historian of peasant life and collectivisation, says: "We were living behind the Iron Curtain. Unaware of what was really happening outside, we thought we were experiencing the deprivation of a levelling process. Now that the curtain has come down, we have had to face real destitution. We now know that in the Soviet era, we were not living in deprivation but in a system of graduated, if not high, sufficiency. Heath care and education were available to all, even though the ?people?s servants? enjoyed special privileges. The queues meant everyone could get what they needed and that is not accessible to most people today." According to him, for many "the doors to the outside world have probably been opened, but armoured doors have been erected to keep people apart. There has never been so great a degree of atomisation." Russia is full of interesting reflection on the past, the future and the possibilities of development. But the West is oblivious to that universe of Russian thought and communicates only Western liberal views. Patriotism in its new guise feeds on resentments derived from confusion, poverty and the new image of the enemy (the Arab and Muslim terrorist) that have evolved in step with the West, with which Russians identify. The climate is no longer anti- imperialist; there is petty xenophobia towards nations that are still worse off in the threatening South. There is paradox: many people miss the spirit of friendship in the old multinational Soviet communities of workers and immigrants; and deplore the new frontiers, the political and financial obstacles to the freedom to travel and the dispersal of families and groups of friends. They accept massacres of Chechens, while savouring the 1930s cult film The Circus in which Jewish actor Solomon Mikhoels (whom Stalin had killed during the campaign against Zionists and Jews in the late 1940s) sings a Yiddish lullaby to a black child rescued from American racism. Nostalgia for the USSR and its popular re-evaluation should not be confused with different political traditions. In reality, there is no possibility of a return to the Soviet system. The dismantling of the social welfare system, privatisation, the role of money and pressure from the globalised outside world have reached the point of no turning back. Though traditional bureaucratic and police authority has been reactivated to meet internal needs for authority and for control of oil revenue, this is against an international backdrop where the US model, revered by the new Russians, sets the standards of militarisation and security culture. Putin has included among the rehabilitated: Peter the Great, the authoritarian liberal reformer Piotr Stolypin under Nicholas II, and the Orthodox Church, which is alive and doing very well. The Kremlin?s emblem is the crowned, double-headed imperial eagle. Meanwhile the idol of the bourgeoisie is the dollar. As for Vera Mukhina?s proud and immobile metal couple, holding aloft the tools of communism, liberals should not be worried by their renovation. They will be returned to reach again for a future that has already passed them by. They will even stand on a larger plinth, worthy of the new era: overlooking a shopping mall. * Jean-Marie Chauvier is a journalist in Brussels See : Soviet history: who?s researching what. (1) Their image featured in the credits of films from the Mosfilm studios. (2) The public anniversary of the October 1917 revolution. (3) The anthem, with music by Boris Alexandrov, that took the place of the Internationale in 1945 and was then abandoned by the USSR in 1991, was reinstated by the Duma on 8 December 2000, with new lyrics by Sergei Mikhalkov, who had provided the words for the Soviet anthem. (4) Andrei Koslesnikov, Izvestia, Moscow, 5 June and 14 August 2001. (5) 48% of Russians consider the failed conservative coup attempt and Boris Yeltsin?s successful coup to be one episode in the power struggle; 31% think of them as tragic events; and just 10% thought them a victory for democracy. The 10th anniversary of the event was not celebrated. (6) Vladmir Gussinsky (media mogul) fled to Spain; Boris Berezovsky (with interests in cars, oil, media and in Kremlin finances) is now a "political" refugee in Britain and Mikhail Khodorkovsky (involved in the Yukos oil company) is currently being held in prison. (7) The People?s Commissariat for Internal Affairs (NKVD) was the political police force under Stalin. In 1954 it was replaced by the State Security Committee (KGB) and then, after the break-up of the Soviet Union, by the Federal Security Service (FSB). (8) This is the usual term designating members of the armed forces, the police and the intelligence services. (9) The liberal party Union des forces de droite and the Soros Foundation have promoted an edition of the Livre noir du communisme by French writer St?phane Courtois. (10) Izvestia, 26 March 2002. He was referring to the "rehabilitation" in the Ukraine of the SS Galitchina Division. (11) Ten ?Pobedy, Moscow 2002. (12) Nezarissimaya Gazeta, Moscow, 9 November 1995. (13) Her story was recorded by sociologists Daniel Bertaux and V?ronique Garros in Lioudmilla, une Russe dans le si?cle, La Dispute, Paris 1998. (14) Literaturnaya Gazeta, Moscow, 6-12 March 2002. (15) When interviewed about his book Le Pingouin, Liana Levi, Paris 2000, in Le matricule des anges, www.lelibraire.com (16) Ludmila Bulavka, Non Konformizm (a socio-cultural portrait of workers? protest in contemporary Russia), Ourss, Moscow, 2004. (17) Osennii krizis 1998 goda: possiiskoie obchtchestvo do i posle, PNISiNP, Rosspen, Moscow, 1998. (18) In 1983 Tatiana Zaslavskaya wrote the first official and confidential report acknowledging that there was a crisis in the system and pointing out the need for reforms. It was translated into French by Denis Paillard, in L?Alternative, Paris, n? 26, March-April 1984. Translated by Julie Stoker From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 2 08:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 02 Apr 2004 16:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] PEI Opposition on the attack Message-ID: <20040402161704.20878.qmail@resist.ca> CHARLOTTETOWN -- The first question period of the new sitting of the legislature saw the government attacked for the poor state of the province's finances. With financial mismanagement as the theme, the Opposition questioned the government on wild fluctuations in deficit predictions, its handling of Polar Foods, and its poor treatment of municipalities. http://pei.cbc.ca/regional/servlet/View?filename=pe_qp20040330 URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/3/30/22151/7447 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 2 08:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 02 Apr 2004 16:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] U.S. officials fashion legal basis to keep force in Iraq Message-ID: <20040402161703.20875.qmail@resist.ca> Baghdad, Iraq ? With fewer than 100 days to go before Iraq resumes its sovereignty, American officials say they believe they have found a legal basis for American troops to continue their military control over the security situation in Iraq. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/2/7538/83575 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 2 08:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 02 Apr 2004 16:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Rangers trek to confirm Canada's Arctic claim Message-ID: <20040402161703.20876.qmail@resist.ca> IQALUIT - The Canadian Forces is preparing to leave on a trek to reinforce Canada's sovereignty over the North, the first in a year that will see major activity in the Arctic. http://north.cbc.ca/regional/servlet/View?filename=nun-sovereignyranger30032004 URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/3/30/224858/024 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 2 08:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 02 Apr 2004 16:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Ontario offers relief to low-income households Message-ID: <20040402161704.20877.qmail@resist.ca> TORONTO - The Ontario government will unveil programs Monday to provide $12 million to low-income households. The province will create a $10-million fund to offer short-term loans to tenants who have fallen behind on their rent. tp://ottawa.cbc.ca/regional/servlet/View?filename=ot_lowincome20040329 URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/3/30/22646/8174 From ron at resist.ca Sat Apr 3 09:12:25 2004 From: ron at resist.ca (ron) Date: Sat, 03 Apr 2004 09:12:25 -0800 Subject: [news] Pensions strike paralyses Italy Message-ID: <406EF079.7060708@resist.ca> http://www.guardian.co.uk/italy/story/0,12576,1178869,00.html Associated Press Friday March 26, 2004 Pensions strike paralyses Italy Commuters waited in vain for buses, factory workers stayed off assembly lines and teachers stayed out of classrooms during a general strike in Italy today. The strike was over the Italian government's pension reform plan that would force people to work longer before they can retire. The nation's three main labour confederations had called a four-hour strike in most of Italy, but unions in the area around Rome and in Sicily lengthened it to eight hours. Bus, tram and subway services in major cities virtually stopped. In Rome, before the strike began, many buses were half-empty as thousands of students, public employees and other workers stayed at home. Banks warned customers earlier in the week that they might not be able to guarantee service. The Italian treasury put off an auction of short-term treasury bills to Monday next week "to avoid any malfunction of the auction system which could negatively affect prices, ultimately damaging investors". A similar one-day general strike in October over the reforms almost paralysed the nation. The Italian news agency ANSA quoted Fiat offices in Turin as saying some 18.5% of its work force stayed away at its various plants, while union officials were claiming at least 60% adherence. The state railways said that 59% of medium and long-distance trains ran on schedule during the four-hour morning strike. Air travellers, however, were spared - for now - when airline unions put off the strike to April 5. The conservative government of the prime minister, Silvio Berlusconi, has already watered down the pension reform bill to try to appease the unions while still aiming to save more than ?6bn a year. The pension system - with many workers in past decades retiring in their early 50s - is a huge drain on state coffers, making Italy one of the most indebted countries in Europe. Union leaders say the government only wants to save on pensions so it can reduce taxes to boost its chances at the polls. "To raise the pension age is an absolutely unacceptable thing," said Armando Cossutta, a Communist party leader who joined a protest march and rally in Rome. "The cost of living has gone up and jobs are at risk. We need a different economic policy." The government has said it is willing to talk to the unions about the reforms if they can come up with a promising plan. Public exasperation seemed directed at both politicians and unionists. "I paid for my monthly ticket, and now, here I am, waiting for a bus that probably won't come," said Pasqualino Jagone, a 70-year-old retired cafe worker as he sat on a window ledge in Piazza Venezia, the heart of Rome. "But the pension conditions are equally disgusting. I worked for 35 years, and I have a monthly pension of about 400 euros (?260) which loses value every day. And now the government wants people to work even more years for the right to these insulting pensions?" From ron at resist.ca Sat Apr 3 09:32:00 2004 From: ron at resist.ca (ron) Date: Sat, 03 Apr 2004 09:32:00 -0800 Subject: [news] Africa: Oil, al-Qaeda and the US military Message-ID: <406EF510.9020605@resist.ca> http://www.atimes.com/atimes/Front_Page/FC30Aa02.html Asia Times 30 March 2004 Africa: Oil, al-Qaeda and the US military By Ritt Goldstein Africa's Maghreb and Sahel regions recently exploded into world view with allegations that the Madrid bombers were tied to those areas' "al Qaeda" groups. And while United States concerns about terrorism in the region have been increasingly voiced, critics of the administration of President George W Bush say that the ongoing US pursuit of energy resources lies behind them. As early as the fall of 2002, Britain's Economist magazine charged that oil "is the only American interest in Africa". In a fall 2003 interview with Asia Times Online, noted US security analyst Michael Klare, author of Resource Wars, had warned of America's potential African involvement. When queried as to where the next oil flash point might be after Iraq, Klare replied: "I've been looking at Africa. It's heating up over there." Illustrating the basis for such statements, in 2001 Vice President Dick Cheney's report on a US National Energy Policy declared Africa to be one of America's "fastest-growing sources of oil and gas". By February 1, 2002, the assistant secretary of state for African affairs, Walter Kansteiner, declared: "This [African oil] has become of national strategic interest to us." And a December 2001 report by the US National Intelligence Council, Global Trends 2015, forecast that by 2015 a full quarter of US oil imports would come from Africa. During this past February, a handful of top US generals visited Africa in separate and far from usual trips. They included the US's European commander, Marine General James L Jones, as well as the European deputy commander, Air Force, General Charles Wald. And excluding the region known as the Horn of Africa, the US European Command oversees the US's African actions. The trips occurred against a widely reported backdrop of increasing pressures from US industry and conservative policy groups to secure energy sources outside the Middle East. Over the past several months, the US has been in the process of dispatching Special Forces troops to the countries of Africa's Sahel - Mauritania, Chad, Mali and Niger. The effort is part of a program dubbed the Pan Sahel Initiative, designed to provide anti-terrorism training to the region's military. Others have termed it a program to train regional armies. Involved US Special Forces groups are operating out of Germany, where an investigation of the Madrid bombers is also ongoing. And military cooperation with Morocco, Algeria and Tunisia has reportedly been increased as well. But it is the fairly recent and substantial oil discoveries that are said to be fueling this effort, and as the Washington Times declared in a headline on February 26: "US eyes terrorism networks, oil in Africa." In Colombia, similar US undertakings to train local forces have been previously pursued to secure that country's oil infrastructure, particularly its pipelines. There, the leftist group known by the Spanish acronym FARC has long waged a guerilla campaign, pipeline sabotage being a favored tactic. Similarly, ongoing pipeline sabotage in Iraq is reported as substantial. And in a surprising revelation of US Defense Department candor, a December 2003 report referred to the "open-ended imperial policing" that Iraqi involvement now means. Casting a new light on the Madrid bombing on March 11, the primary group allegedly behind the attack, Salafia Jihadia, was said to have singled out Spain in the May 16, 2003, Morocco bombings. A private Spanish club, Casa de Espana, was the most severely damaged among the five targets in Morocco. The other targets included: the Israeli Alliance club and a Jewish cemetery, the Belgian consulate (Belgium's business community has been very active in Morocco), and a hotel for business people. The Moroccan economy is in the throes of "structural reforms", and increasing privatization is straining relations within the country. The May bombing followed a summer 2002 standoff between Spain and Morocco over a disputed island, Spanish commandos eventually reclaiming it from Moroccan control. A long-simmering dispute also exists between Spain and Morocco over two remaining Spanish sovereignty enclaves in the country, Ceuta and Melilla. Considerably more Spanish troops are said to garrison these enclaves than were dispatched by Madrid to Iraq. And some speculate that beyond Islamist objectives, the motivation behind Madrid's blasts may have included some very traditional, anti-imperialist sentiment. In a surprisingly timely commentary on the agenda of Salafia Jihadia, just two days prior to the Madrid attacks, the director of the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA), George Tenet, testified before the Senate Committee on Armed Services. He specifically cited Salafia, saying that it was among "small local groups with limited domestic agendas". He added that these groups "have autonomous leadership, they pick their own targets, they plan their own attacks". Yet according to Agence France-Presse, the Madrid attacks are now said to have been planned at a "rear base" of al-Qaeda, located where Morocco borders Mali, Mauritania and Algeria. An Algerian group, the Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat (GSPC), was also allegedly involved. And as with every other major bombing over the past several months, Jordanian-Palestinian militant Abu Musab al-Zarqawi is alleged to have been the "mastermind", though some experts in the intelligence community have expressed doubts. In the case of the old anti-communist movement and mind set, all communists were once lumped together, their many groups and factions considered essentially as one led by the Soviet Union. A similar mind set is demonstrated by many in the West regarding today's Islamic militants. Some analysts say this as indeed the case, noting that while those who today are called "al-Qaeda" share a certain commonality, the differences between groups is often great. Notably, there existed such differences between communist groups and nations that they occasionally led to armed confrontation, warfare and splits, as in the case of China vs Vietnam and Sino-Soviet tensions and split. But in mid-March the GSPC reportedly did fight a running battle with forces from Niger and then Chad, with the US reported to have flown food, blankets and medical supplies from Germany to aid Chad's forces. And with the basing of US military efforts in Germany, one explanation for Germany's ongoing terror investigations becomes apparent. Subsequent to the Niger and Chad GSPC battles, US concerns about the GSPC attempting to topple the governments of Mauritania and Algeria were reported. But, in the recent debate over so-called "intelligence failures", a pattern of wildly "exaggerating" known threats has also been reported. And it is now also widely accepted that such exaggerations provided the basis for the US's military involvement in Iraq. The GSPC has been long fighting to topple the Algerian government and install an Islamic state. But this resistance arose after the Algerian government canceled the 1992 election in order to "keep an Islamic party from coming to power", according to the Toronto Star. And while the pro-US Mauritania government of Maaouyah Ould Sid Ahmed Taya fought off a June 2003 coup attempt, it was believed to have been launched by the country's own military, not the GSPC. Taya himself came to power in a 1984 coup and elections in that country are broadly described as "suspect". Mauritania is also widely acknowledged as a country where slavery still exists, and the Washington Times reported in July 2003 that "Mr Taya, like other pro-American leaders in the Arab world, has cracked down on political and religious opposition". Paradoxically, if US National Security Adviser Condoleezza Rice's so-called "democratic wave" were to actually engulf the region, it appears that hardest hit would be the bulk of US allies. But Mauritania and Algeria both have oil. In a perspective of the oil industry shared by many in the non-governmental organization community, in a January interview with Asia Times Online, Jim Paul, executive director of the New York-based Global Policy Forum, observed: "The oil industry is all about super-profits. Since everyone is pursuing this, and the marketplace doesn't effectively regulate it, there's been war, bribery and corruption virtually wherever the oil industry goes." In 2002, Rice's old firm, Chevron Texaco (she was a director), had said that while it invested US$5 billion in Africa over the previous five years, it would invest $20 billion over the next five. Given such US energy investment, it's no surprise that a 2002 edition of Alexander's Gas & Oil Connections, a highly respected industry newsletter, said in a headline: "US moves to protect interest in African oil." And while several authorities were quoted as emphasizing that Africa's oil supplies were free from any major threats, the piece added that the Bush administration was determined to "ensure that they remain so". But a steady evolution - and deterioration - of the African security environment has been reported to the media by US officials. Whereas in 2002 the continent offered apparently stable oil field conditions, that assessment was changed almost simultaneously with the level of domestic US pressures to acquire African oil; a substantive al-Qaeda threat materializing proportionate to the need for oil. And some believe that Secretary of State Colin Powell best illustrated a methodology that explained such circumstances last summer. At a July 10 press conference in South Africa, Powell was asked how he would respond to critics who charged that the US's new focus on Africa was really about African oil. Powell replied that "we are not here for any other purpose than to demonstrate our friendship, to demonstrate our commitment, and to see if we can help people in need". Recent questions have been raised in the US Congress regarding the administration's apparent pursuit of cynical ploys and misleading verbiage in its pronouncements. As regards help for those in need, the tiny West African island-state of Sao Tome has been rumored since 2002 as the site for a potential US naval base. Sao Tome's strategic position in the Gulf of Guinea, where recent deep-water oil finds have been made, led to a meeting between Bush and Sao Tome's then-president Fradique de Menezes in 2002. The US allies in the area have virtually no blue-water navy, and Sao Tome holds jointly with Nigeria an area with a reported potential of 11 billion barrels of oil. Many of the other newly discovered African reserves are located offshore as well. While a July 2003 military coup - which shortly followed Powell's African trip - ousted president de Menezes, within the past two weeks (this March) said "US experts" began training the island's security apparatus, voicing concerns about al-Qaeda operating in the West African region. As a US Defense Department document this winter by Dr Jeffrey Record said: "The contemporary language on terrorism has become, as Conor Gearty puts it, 'the rhetorical servant of the established order'." It emphasized that almost nothing matters "a jot against the contemporary power of the terrorist label". Ritt Goldstein is an American investigative political journalist based in Stockholm. His work has appeared in broad sheets such as Australia's Sydney Morning Herald, Spain's El Mundo and Denmark's Politiken, as well as with the Inter Press Service (IPS), a global news agency. From ron at resist.ca Sat Apr 3 09:35:04 2004 From: ron at resist.ca (ron) Date: Sat, 03 Apr 2004 09:35:04 -0800 Subject: [news] British MP calls for economic sanctions against Israel Message-ID: <406EF5C8.40300@resist.ca> Agence France Presse March 29, 2004 Kaufman wants economic sanctions against Israel London - Labour MP Gerald Kaufman called for economic sanctions against Israel, including cutting off arms supplies, to force it back to the negotiating table with the Palestinians. "It is not enough for the world community, including our own government, to condemn the Israeli government's brutal policies of repression," he said late Sunday while addressing members of his Manchester constituency. "Only widespread economic sanctions on Israel, together with cutting off arms supplies, can make any impact on this government without a conscience". Kaufman, himself Jewish, said President George W. Bush's father, the former president Bush, had "understood the importance of forcing the Israelis to the conference table by imposing economic sanctions on a previous Likud Prime Minister, Yitzhak Shamir." Kaufman, once a front-bench Labour foreign affairs spokesman when the party was in opposition, criticised a decision by George W. Bush to receive Sharon in Washington. "Bush has shown whose side he is on in this grossly unequal struggle by refusing to invite the Palestinian prime minister, even though the ostensible purpose of the invitation to Sharon is the Middle East peace process," Kaufman said. Sharon has received an invitation to meet Bush on April 14. http://news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/afp/20040329/wl_uk_afp/britain_isra el_sanctions_040329090832 From ron at resist.ca Sat Apr 3 09:59:22 2004 From: ron at resist.ca (ron) Date: Sat, 03 Apr 2004 09:59:22 -0800 Subject: [news] UN relief agency suspending food aid in Gaza Message-ID: <406EFB7A.3070400@resist.ca> http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/411471.html Haaretz 1/04/2004 UN relief agency says suspending food aid in Gaza By DPA The United Nations Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) announced Thursday it stopped distributing emergency food aid to some 600,000 refugees in the Gaza Strip. UNRWA said in a statement that the suspension followed restrictions introduced by Israel on the sole commercial crossing into Gaza through which it is able to bring in humanitarian assistance. The agency said it had now completely run out of stocks of rice, flour, cooking oil and other essential products. "Under normal circumstances, UNRWA delivers some 250 tons of food aid per day in Gaza alone as part of a wider program of emergency assistance to refugees, initiated shortly after the outbreak of strife in the West Bank and Gaza Strip in September 2000," the statement said. Almost two out of three households in Gaza live below the poverty line and more than half its workforce is unemployed. UNRWA said it urged Israel to loosen its restrictions in Gaza in a joint statement with other UN agencies on March, but thus far without success. From gflett1 at shaw.ca Sat Apr 3 10:54:27 2004 From: gflett1 at shaw.ca (Gordon Flett) Date: Sat, 03 Apr 2004 10:54:27 -0800 Subject: [news] SQUEEGEE COUNCIL TRIAL UPDATE Message-ID: <00ac01c419ad$177078a0$d3ae5418@vc.shawcable.net> http://vancouver.indymedia.org/news/2004/04/123949.php SQUEEGEE COUNCIL TRIAL UPDATE by IWW ? Friday April 02, 2004 at 06:40 PM SQUEEGEE COUNCIL TRIAL UPDATE Kristel Dumas (Which was called 'X' in the last report about the squeegee council trial(1)) just arriver from a plane trip... She got arrested by the Victoria police for a warrent for not having saw her bail supervisor(which she need to see each day, because of this fake charges and because of her problem in organising her trial stuff because of language barriers. She got sent back to Vancouver by plane, where they constantly called her 'dumbass', instead of Dumas...She also got her backpack with her personnal effect stolen cos they said there's no place for that in the plane. It is more than reasonable to believe that next time they may refuse to release her before the end of her trial as she've got problems respecting those brutals conditions since the start... In order to show with what kind of lies the VPD and the court break our freedom of association, here are the accusations , the conditions of release and a copy of the contradictionnary statement of the cops on both her case and the other accused one: Stephane Blais. 'Count 1 Kristel DUMAS, on or about the 21st day of October, 2003, at or near Vancouver, in the Province of British Columbia, did assault Police Constable #2055 Luebkemann, a peace officer engaged in the execution of her duty, contrary to Section 270(l)(a) of the Criminal Code. Count 2 Stephane Rene BLAIS, on or about the 21st day of October, 2003, at or near Vancouver, in the Province of British Columbia, did assault Police Constable #1918 Blais(it is a mistake in the particulars, Blais is the accused, not the cops) a peace officer engaged in the execution of his duty, contrary to Section 270(2) of the Criminal Code.' For those charges, both got released with condition of no contact with two squeegee council related comrades, and to see a bail supervisor as directed then. Kristel missed her court date and then got no contact conditions with the other accused also, and conditions of seeing a bail supervisor once a day (and sadly, it is not a joke...) Those conditions stays until the end of the trial, which mean more than one year. Here are copied the assault part of the police statements. BLAIS's CASE Supposedly 'ASSAULTED' PC #1918 : I did not register what he said because he started to grab at me. He grabbed at my hands and the squeegees. He also moved his shoulders and hips as though he was going to throw a punch, I saw his shoulder rise. I focused my attention on him and was able to throw out a quick jab to his face but it connected only very lightly before he was being taken to the ground by PC 2080, Smith. WITHNESS PC #2080 : At this point a lone male pushed through the crowd vastly approaching PC#l918 face on while screaming obscenities and demanding the return of a sqeegie brush. PC#2080 observed the same male clench his fist (right hand) cock his arm in a punching position and thrust his fist directly towards PC#1918?s face. PC#19l8 quickly deflected the suspects lundging fist and was simultaniously attacked by second suspect male. PC#2080 physically grabbed and controlled the ?initial? suspect male to the ground and placed him in handcuffs WITHNESS PC #2055 :At that point, BLAIS lunged at PC 1918 WITHNESS PC #2051 :As PC 1918 began to seize the squeegees, the male came towards PC 1918 in an aggressive manner and swung his arms towards the arms of PC 1918 as he was taking the squeegees. As a result of his aggressive behavior, PC 2080 moved in and tackled this male to the ground. So the assault cops say he just saw Blais taking a motion, the other say that he saw him punching him in the face, and the other say he took a swing toward his hands... The fact is that he was just trying to take back the IWW card the PC#1918 was ripping off. DUMAS's CASE Supposedly "ASSAULTED" PC #2055 : PC 2055 grabbed MAILHOT?s arms to apprehended her, DUMAS grabbed the back of PC 2055?s jacket. PC 2055 turned around to face DUMAS and pushed DUMAS off (see evidence of PC 1200 KODAK) WITHNESS PC #1200 : I observed Dumas attempt to pull 2055?s arm from the first female. She grabbed at 2055?s sleeve. I observed both 2158 and 2055 turn towards Dumas at this point. 2158 pushed Dumas away from 2055 while 2055 shook her arm off. They both then immediately turned their attention back to the female they were restraining. I then observed Dumas step back towards the members and take a swing with her right hand at the back of 2055?s head. The swing appeared to be a looping punch. I felt 2055 had been struck in the ear area by this swing. I immediately moved forward and with assistance of 2051 took Dumas to the ground and handcuffed her. WITHNESS PC #2051 : PC 2051 then observed accused DUMAS come up behind PC 2055 and started tugging on her arm. DUMAS then swung her arms in a ?flailing? manner and struck PC 2055 in the head. PC 2051 and Sgt 1200 KODAK immediately moved forward, pulled her away and took her into custody. So the assaulted one is the only one who don't know she got punched... PC #1200 say that 'I observed Dumas attempt to pull 2055?s arm from the first female'. It is to note that this first female was a pregnant woman who was 'being controled like a football player', as a comrade noted. Or, to use PC #1918 words, in 'a VERY NON agressive manner' WHO BREAK THE LAW? At a meeting at the Carnegie center, the police chief never've been able to answer under which law the cops were stealing squeegees to polite squeegee workers... PC #1918 also state how he deal with squeegees of people who are not even squeegeeing, even when we have the receipt for those squeegees(6 squeegees that IWW bought to squeegee council when they joined) : 'As I was finished with the group I had also decided to seize several of the squeegees for prevention of continued annoyance calls (a separate issue).yelling at the same time. One of them, a woman I had up until tnis point never seen before, thrust what looked like a receipt into my hand and claimed that she had paid for the squeegees and that she owned them.' 1: For those who don't know, it is 2 squeegee council member who got condition of not being with two IWW/squeegee council related people(while there was more withness, it is only those two they can't see), a member and a supporter. We got falsely accused(as you can see the statement from the cops) of assault and got brutal conditions, in order to destroy the squeegee council. *Everything in Italic is taken words to words from the particulars Podte Zaffer Industrial Workers of the World -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was scrubbed... URL: From news at resist.ca Sat Apr 3 10:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sat, 03 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Proposed U.S. Legislation Erodes Abortion Rights Message-ID: <20040403181703.17076.qmail@resist.ca> On March 25th, the U.S. Senate passed the "Unborn Victims of Violence Act". Under the proposed legislation, if you harm a fetus while committing a federal crime, you will be charged with offenses against both the mother and the fetus. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/3/31/181357/585 From news at resist.ca Sat Apr 3 10:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sat, 03 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Africville problem needs HRM at table Message-ID: <20040403181703.17078.qmail@resist.ca> Halifax -- The Nova Scotia government appears ready to take the lead in negotiating an agreement with former residents of Africville. The announcement comes after a United Nations [report was] released at the start of the month. According to the report, the province should re-examine the destruction of the community 34 years ago, and the need for compensation. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/3/30/232552/176 From news at resist.ca Sat Apr 3 10:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sat, 03 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Former FBI translator: bureau had detailed information before Sept. 11, 2001 Message-ID: <20040403181703.17075.qmail@resist.ca> A former FBI translator told the 9/11 commission that the bureau had detailed information well before Sept. 11, 2001, that terrorists were likely to attack the U.S. with airplanes. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/3/91959/78295 From news at resist.ca Sat Apr 3 10:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sat, 03 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Public-transit supporters slam budget cuts Message-ID: <20040403181703.17077.qmail@resist.ca> OTTAWA - Supporters of public transit say Ottawa city council has cut OC Transpo's budget without any logical plan. Councillors cut $8 million from the bus service's budget, most of it in the final hours of last week's budget debate. Critics say the elderly and the disabled will be hardest hit. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/3/30/225740/729 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 4 11:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sun, 04 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Vancouver City Councillor Anne Roberts on the RAV Message-ID: <20040404181703.14431.qmail@resist.ca> How could someone who supports transit reject a plan to spend nearly $4 billion on transportation improvements? Ann Roberts explains. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/3/9536/05545 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 4 11:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sun, 04 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] 52 South African activists arrested Message-ID: <20040404181703.14432.qmail@resist.ca> On the morning of March 21, South African police opened fire with stun grenades on members of the Gauteng Anti-Privatisation Forum who were protesting against water privatisation and the installation of pre-paid water meters in Johannesburg. Fifty-two APF members were arrested, including six children, for violating the Gatherings Act. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/3/94342/61168 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 4 11:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sun, 04 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Drilling plans irk Native whalers Message-ID: <20040404181703.14433.qmail@resist.ca> JUNEAU -- Alaska Native whalers are angry about Gov. Frank Murkowski's plan to hold oil and gas leases in state waters of the Beaufort Sea now reserved for aboriginal bowhead whale hunts. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/3/95742/92106 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 4 11:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sun, 04 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Palestinian prime minister urges end to suicide attacks Message-ID: <20040404181703.14430.qmail@resist.ca> Ramallah, West Bank -- Palestinian Authority Prime Minister Ahmed Qorei denounced suicide bombings as "morally wrong" and an "obstacle to peace" Wednesday in an address to the Palestinian parliament. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/3/9483/73447 From Sara at canadians.org Mon Apr 5 10:33:57 2004 From: Sara at canadians.org (Sara Ehrhardt) Date: Mon, 5 Apr 2004 13:33:57 -0400 Subject: [news] Toronto the Poor expanding in Size Message-ID: <75911829273BDF468A801945D1EEC3DB45B7ED@COCNT.COCDOMAIN.LOCAL> >From Toronto Star http://www.thestar.com/NASApp/cs/ContentServer?pagename=thestar/Layout/Article_Type1&c=Article&cid=1081116611182&call_pageid=968332188492&col=968793972154 Toronto the Poor expanding in size Report to name neighbourhoods considered high-poverty Government action `crucial,' United Way summary states KERRY GILLESPIE CITY HALL BUREAU In Toronto there are 120 neighbourhoods where more than one-quarter of families live in poverty. The number of such neighbourhoods has doubled each decade since 1981, according to a United Way report to be released today. Statistics Canada lists 522 Toronto neighbourhoods in total. "Poverty by Postal Code" will name the neighbourhoods and make a plea for immediate action to turn them around - and the lives of families living there. "Poor neighbourhoods can spiral into further decline, cause increases in crime and abandonment by both residents and businesses," Frances Lankin, president of the United Way of Greater Toronto, said in the executive summary obtained by the Star. The report, based on Statistics Canada data, found the neighbourhoods had some troubling things in common. They are full of families with children, new immigrants and visible minorities - and 92 of the 120 are found in the former cities of Scarborough, North York, Etobicoke, York and East York. That's a dramatic rise from 1981, when the former cities had just 15 high-poverty neighbourhoods. North York, which has 36, and Scarborough, 26, have seen the most dramatic rise in poverty-stricken communities. "The expansion of poverty outside the downtown core is inextricably linked to the search for lower housing costs," Lankin said. "Government action is crucial, and it must start with a renewed commitment to the construction of affordable housing." The report, which focuses on families, defines poverty as the LICO - Statistic Canada's "low income cut-off" levels. In Toronto, that would be a family of two making less than $23,000 a year. The report found an astonishing rise in the number of visible minorities living in poverty. In 1981, visible minority families accounted for just 37.4 per cent of the total poor families. But by 2001 their numbers had risen to 77.5 per cent. The report also found families living in poverty are increasingly concentrated. "Twenty years ago, most `poor' families in Toronto lived in mixed-income neighbourhoods. Today, they are far more concentrated in neighbourhoods with high levels of poverty." In 1981, only 17.8 per cent of poor families lived in high-poverty neighbourhoods. By 2001, 43.2 per cent did. While the two poorest neighbourhoods have always been located in the former city of Toronto, overall it is the only former municipality that has seen a reduced rate of family poverty over the past 20 years. The report also found a rise in the number of very poor neighbourhoods - those where 40 per cent or more of families are living in poverty. In 2001 there were 23, up from just 4 in 1981. "For many years Toronto has enjoyed a reputation as one of the best cities in the world to live" the report said. "The findings ... raise serious doubts about how much longer the city can maintain this status." From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 5 11:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 05 Apr 2004 18:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] EU says Israeli actions that harm civilians are akin to acts of terror Message-ID: <20040405181703.21085.qmail@resist.ca> The European Parliament on Thursday compared injuries to Palestinians by Israeli military action to "acts of terror," and called for a suspension of the Israel-EU Association Agreement, should Israel persist with its policy of assassinations. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/3/1087/07378 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 5 11:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 05 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Global warming spirals upwards Message-ID: <20040405181703.21087.qmail@resist.ca> Levels of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere have jumped abruptly, raising fears that global warming may be accelerating out of control. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/3/93153/33361 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 5 11:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 05 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] St'at'imc celebrate victory against Department of Fisheries and Oceans Message-ID: <20040405181703.21086.qmail@resist.ca> (Z?lkwa7, St?at?imc Territory, March 25th, 2004) Ticwtkwa (Georgina Nelson), an elder of the Lil?wat of the St?at?imc Nation, today defeated charges laid by the Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) for selling fish to her people on reserve. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/3/92742/84371 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 5 11:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 05 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Montreal police boycott documentary Message-ID: <20040405181703.21088.qmail@resist.ca> MONTREAL - Montreal police boycotted the premiere this week of a documentary about the force's race relations, calling it "shocking" and one-sided, even though they participated in its filming. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/3/92959/15437 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 6 10:17:06 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 06 Apr 2004 17:17:06 -0000 Subject: [news] Music downloads, legalized! Message-ID: <20040406171706.29048.qmail@resist.ca> Downloading songs for personal use and offering them to others online are legal under Canadian law. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/4/134726/1916 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 6 10:17:06 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 06 Apr 2004 17:17:06 -0000 Subject: [news] Americas Trade Plan (FTAA) 'Dead,' Venezuela's Chavez Says Message-ID: <20040406171706.29046.qmail@resist.ca> CARACAS, Venezuela (Reuters) - Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez said on Friday a U.S. plan to create a Free Trade Area of the Americas was "dead" after the suspension of scheduled talks on the project he fiercely opposes. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/4/174553/7498 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 6 10:17:06 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 06 Apr 2004 17:17:06 -0000 Subject: [news] ACLU Files Religious Liberty Lawsuit on Behalf of Native American Who Refuses to Cut Hair Message-ID: <20040406171706.29047.qmail@resist.ca> ADELANTO, CA -- The American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California today filed a federal lawsuit on behalf of a Native American inmate who has faced serious disciplinary sanctions for his refusal to comply with a California Department of Corrections grooming policy requiring all male inmates to maintain hair no longer than three inches in length. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/3/102522/5381 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 6 10:17:06 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 06 Apr 2004 17:17:06 -0000 Subject: [news] Frank Paul case sparks protest Message-ID: <20040406171706.29049.qmail@resist.ca> VANCOUVER - The Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs is demanding the resignation of Solicitor General Rich Coleman over his handling of the death of Frank Paul ? an aboriginal man dumped by police in an alley in 1998. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/3/92326/40396 From Sara at canadians.org Tue Apr 6 11:44:25 2004 From: Sara at canadians.org (Sara Ehrhardt) Date: Tue, 6 Apr 2004 14:44:25 -0400 Subject: [news] Dead in the Water tonight at 10pm Message-ID: <75911829273BDF468A801945D1EEC3DB4C086C@COCNT.COCDOMAIN.LOCAL> Dead in the Water, a terrific two-hour episode of the Fifth Estate around water privatization featuring Maude Barlow, will be airing the following times this week: Tuesday, April 6 at 10:00 p.m.EST Wednesday, April 7 at 1:00 a.m. EST More information can be found at http://www.cbc.ca/fifth/deadinthewater/index.html the fifth estate: DEAD IN THE WATER There's a problem with the world's water supply. One in four people on earth doesn't have access to clean drinking water. Water and sanitation infrastructures are crumbling. We keep using more of it, yet continue to degrade and deplete it. Powerful companies spotted a crisis and saw a business opportunity. >From Moncton, New Brunswick to Atlanta, Georgia and Buenos Aires, Argentina to Soweto, South Africa, the fifth estate's Linden MacIntyre investigates the results of the effort to privatize what many consider a public trust. Sara Ehrhardt National Water Campaigner Council of Canadians 502-151 Slater St, Ottawa ON, K1P 5H3 p: 613-233-2773 ext. 239 f: 613-233-6776 sara at canadians.org http://www.canadians.org From gflett1 at shaw.ca Wed Apr 7 02:00:14 2004 From: gflett1 at shaw.ca (Gordon Flett) Date: Wed, 07 Apr 2004 02:00:14 -0700 Subject: [news] Dominion, Issue #17 Message-ID: <4073C31E.4010409@shaw.ca> [Please forward this to anyone who might be interested.] [Subscribing or donate: http://dominionpaper.ca/subscribe] Issue #17 of the Dominion is now online, at http://dominionpaper.ca This issues marks the reintroduction of the reading section, and the first ever localized version of the Dominion. The Ottawa edition will be printed and distributed in Ottawa by the Ottawa Panhandlers' Union, a bargaining unit of the Ottawa local of the Industrial Workers of the World, affectionately known as the Wobblies. The local edition will feature coverage of issues marginalized or otherwise inadequately addressed by the local media. In other exciting news, Dominion contributor Anthony Fenton has returned from Haiti. Watch the Dominion Weblog for additional coverage of the situation there. ~ Contents: ~ Print this issue: http://dominionpaper.ca/pdf/dominion-issue17.pdf Print the Ottawa Edition: http://dominionpaper.ca/pdf/dominion-issue17-ottawa.pdf * International News* US Accused of Interfering in El Salvadoran Elections http://dominionpaper.ca/international_news/2004/04/06/us_accused.html Mercenaries Make Up Third Largest Military Force in Iraq http://dominionpaper.ca/international_news/2004/04/06/mercenarie.html US Role in 1964 Brazilian Military Coup Revealed: National Security Archive http://dominionpaper.ca/international_news/2004/04/06/us_role_in.html Also: 40 Million Indians on Strike; Nine Days After 9-11; Russia Limits Right to Protest. * Canadian News * Poll Reveals Canada Prefers Independence from US http://dominionpaper.ca/canadian_news/2004/04/06/poll_revea.html Vancouver Bus Rider Union Brings Back Night Bus Service http://dominionpaper.ca/canadian_news/2004/04/06/vancouver_.html Disappointment and Outrage Over Federal Budget http://dominionpaper.ca/canadian_news/2004/04/06/disappoint.html PEI Carpenters Form Cooperative http://dominionpaper.ca/canadian_news/2004/04/06/pei_carpen.html * Feature * Divide and Conquer: Bilateral Trade Agreements The US is using a new approach to sidestep developing countries' unified demands -- by Yuill Herbert http://dominionpaper.ca/features/2004/04/06/divide_and.html * Accounts * Impressions from Haiti, by Anthony Fenton http://dominionpaper.ca/accounts/2004/04/06/impression.html * Comics * "Clerk Fatigue," by Heather Meek http://dominionpaper.ca/comics/2004/04/06/clerk_fati.html * Arts * The Art of Second Language Conversation, by Linda Besner http://dominionpaper.ca/arts/2004/04/06/the_art_of.html * Environment * Direct Action: Tre Arrow Arrested FBI labels prominent anti-logging activist as "eco-terrorist" -- by Dru Oja Jay http://dominionpaper.ca/environment/2004/04/06/direct_act.html * Ottawa * Ottawa's Homeless Fight Back, by John Dunn http://dominionpaper.ca/ottawa/2004/04/07/ottawas_ho.html On the Need for a Street Newspaper in Ottawa, by Jane Scharf http://dominionpaper.ca/ottawa/2004/04/07/on_the_nee.html * Reading * Worth reading, elswhere: John Pilger on East Timor, Naomi Klein in Iraq, Dahr Jamail on journalism in Iraq, sour gas in BC, Hawai'ian sovereignty, Cuba's humanitarian intervention, the urban population boom, the threat of e-voting, and more. http://dominionpaper.ca/reading/2004/04/07/reading_nu.html Thanks for reading the Dominion! -- Ongoing and Updated Daily: News and Analysis about Paul Martin's Liberal Party http://paulmartintime.ca Dominion Daily Weblog http://dominionpaper.ca/weblog Underreported News Wire http://dominionpaper.ca/newswire -- Dru Oja Jay The Dominion <> http://www.dominionpaper.ca <> dru at dominionpaper.ca "Each answer remains in force as an answer only as long as it is rooted in questioning." --Martin Heidegger _______________________________________________ From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 7 10:17:10 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 07 Apr 2004 17:17:10 -0000 Subject: [news] US-Israel agree on Gaza withdrawal Message-ID: <20040407171710.19483.qmail@resist.ca> United States and Israeli officials have reportedly reached a tentative agreement on key components of an Israeli plan to withdraw from the Gaza Strip. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/7/9503/97710 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 7 10:17:10 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 07 Apr 2004 17:17:10 -0000 Subject: [news] Idiot son of an asshole Message-ID: <20040407171710.19486.qmail@resist.ca> This fun little video is perhaps just a little juvi, but it pulls in some of the classic images of Bush together in one spot with a catchy little tune. Enjoy! http://www.ericblumrich.com/idiot.html URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/5/103934/3625 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 7 10:17:10 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 07 Apr 2004 17:17:10 -0000 Subject: [news] Toronto the Poor expanding in Size Message-ID: <20040407171710.19485.qmail@resist.ca> Toronto Star - Kerry Gillespie - City Hall Bureau Toronto the Poor expanding in size. Report to name neighbourhoods considered high-poverty. Government action `crucial,' United Way summary states. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/5/11225/23281 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 7 10:17:10 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 07 Apr 2004 17:17:10 -0000 Subject: [news] Report from the A1 day of action in Victoria Message-ID: <20040407171711.19487.qmail@resist.ca> On Thursday April 1st, the Community Solidarity Coalition (CSC) organized an early morning flying squad of about 35-40 people and an afternoon snake march that drew around 4-500. Together with the Students Against Poverty (SAP) we successfully disrupted business as usual for several hours and ended the day without any arrests. This was a refreshing break from the dismal activist normality that often quells the spirit of revolt within our ranks. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/4/21438/81874 From skisby at web.net Wed Apr 7 22:47:08 2004 From: skisby at web.net (Steve Kisby) Date: Wed, 07 Apr 2004 22:47:08 -0700 Subject: [news] Berger Commission Urged To Favour Pro-Rep Message-ID: <3.0.3.32.20040407224708.00de50d0@pop.web.net> http://www.alternatives.com/prorep/fvv-0407.pdf Media Release For Immediate Release Berger Commission Urged To Favour Pro-Rep VANCOUVER -- April 7, 2004 -- Fair Vote Vancouver is urging the Berger Commission, the Vancouver Electoral Reform Commission, to pay more attention to "pro-rep" and other innovative advances. While proportional representation is often mentioned by the commission, it is usually as a sidelight, something that seems unlikely or too difficult. Submissions to the commission from the Vancouver Green Party and others have shown that some forms of pro-rep are allowable under the current Vancouver Charter, though Commissioner Berger has not yet conceded that point. The commission has heard experts talk in favour of only non-proportional systems: at-large plurality (the current system), straight wards, and a mixture of the two. They even had three ex-mayors plugging those three options. "Looking around the world, nations and other jurisdictions looking to adopt the most advanced systems do not pay much attention to archaic systems like those," said Korky Day, a spokesperson for the group, "Rather, they consider the various systems which can accomplish fair proportions." "The momentum for pro-rep is snowballing right now. Six provinces, the federal government, and the City of Vancouver are all officially looking at electoral alternatives," said Steve Kisby, "BC's Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform, looking at ways to improve the first-past-the-post ward system being use at the provincial level, has issued its first statement cautiously saying that pro-rep has merit." The Citizens' Assembly on Electoral Reform is considering pro-rep and is about to begin public hearings. The Quebec government is expected to introduce legislation for a proportional system this spring. The new Liberal government in Ontario has promised a binding referendum on a new voting system. The PEI government is considering a proposal to move to pro-rep. New Brunswick and Saskatchewan are studying reform options. Minister Cotler, last week on March 31, tabled in Parliament the Law Commission of Canada report that recommends scrapping the current federal first-past-the-post system and replacing it with a proportional voting system. The new Conservative Party caucus is supporting pro-rep and other reforms. Federal NDP leader Jack Layton has announced that any minority government requiring NDP support will have to hold a national referendum on pro-rep. The Green Party is actively campaigning for pro-rep. Of those eight jurisdictions, Vancouver is one of the first to report. Is Vancouver going to lead the way to electoral fairness, higher voter turn-outs, and superior governance, or be left in the dust? The commission might feel that it is constrained by the Vancouver Charter and the provincial Liberals from designing the best system for Vancouver. With the BC Liberals behind in the polls, now might be just the time they will be anxious to prove they really are serving the people. Why else would they have set up a Citizens' Assembly which is likely to recommend pro-rep? "Why does federal NDP candidate Kennedy Stewart, who is also at the forefront of COPE's Think City, push straight wards?" said Day, "His master's thesis praised pro-rep and both the federal and provincial NDP support it, too." Fair Vote Vancouver is made up of voters who came together in response to the Vancouver Electoral Reform Commission. Background information can be found at http://www.alternatives.com/prorep and the group can be contacted at prorep at alternatives.com -30- For more information: Korky Day, korkydem at yahoo.com, temporarily c/o 604-520-0466 Steve Kisby, 604-323-0204 (phone), 604-645-2099 (pager), skisby at web.net From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 8 10:17:19 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 08 Apr 2004 17:17:19 -0000 Subject: [news] Muslim rivals unite in Baghdad uprising as Bush's popularity tumbles Message-ID: <20040408171720.20803.qmail@resist.ca> Two stories... Baghdad, April 6 -- On the streets of Baghdad neighborhoods long defined by differences of faith and politics, signs are emerging that resistance to the U.S. occupation may be growing from a sporadic, underground effort to a broader insurrection by militiamen who claim to be fighting in the name of their common faith, Islam. Meanwhile, back in the good ol' USA, the public has turned sharply against President George W. Bush who is faced with a fast-mounting death toll in Iraq, an embarrassing month of testimony in the Sept. 11 hearings and flagging support for his domestic policies. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/7/183940/0719 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 8 10:17:19 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 08 Apr 2004 17:17:19 -0000 Subject: [news] B.C.'s 'bulletproof' Olympic budget starting to crack Message-ID: <20040408171720.20802.qmail@resist.ca> There are scarcely enough words to splutter over the audacity of the Olympic organizing committee pronouncing this week that it will be going back to the B.C. government for more money. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/5/133035/5693 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 8 10:17:19 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 08 Apr 2004 17:17:19 -0000 Subject: [news] Passive E-Mail Monitoring Leads To Arrest Message-ID: <20040408171720.20801.qmail@resist.ca> The world's first arrest resulting from passive monitoring of electronic communications is being reported by Globe Technology. In the article, sources reveal that 'an e-mail message intercepted by NSA spies precipitated a massive investigation by intelligence officials in several countries that culminated in the arrest of nine men in Britain and one in suburban Orleans, Ont. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/7/17624/51406 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 8 10:17:19 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 08 Apr 2004 17:17:19 -0000 Subject: [news] Woman Abuse and Welfare Report Message-ID: <20040408171720.20805.qmail@resist.ca> Today the first research report ever done in Ontario on how the welfare system impacts abused women was released by a team of academics and community partners. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/6/195031/9870 From skisby at web.net Thu Apr 8 16:16:44 2004 From: skisby at web.net (Steve Kisby) Date: Thu, 08 Apr 2004 16:16:44 -0700 Subject: [news] Reduce, Remove or Re-locate Proposed UBC Towers Message-ID: <3.0.3.32.20040408161644.01b29280@pop.web.net> http://www.alternatives.com/prms/2004/wbps0407.pdf REDUCE, REMOVE OR RE-LOCATE! APRIL 10 PROTEST FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE April 7, 2004 WRECK BEACH PRESERVATION SOCIETY (WBPS) The University of British Columbia has been given the green light to build four, 20-story, 187-1/2 foot student tower residences (UBC Marine Residences) for 1950 students just across from the cliff edge of Pacific Spirit Regional Park. The foreshore park is part of the Pacific Migratory Bird fly-way, but bird strikes are only one of many reasons Wreck Beach users and surrounding Vancouverites do NOT want these monoliths on this location (6600 block of Northwest Marine Drive)! To protest the destruction of Vancouver's heritage viewscape from the Fraser River and from the sea, and to prevent dangerous vibrations to the cliff face from pile driving and increased truck movements which will jeopardize the wilderness-like ambience of Wreck Beach, beach users and neighbours of Pacific Spirit Regional Park are gathering in peaceful protest on Saturday, April 10, 11 a.m. on the site of the proposed Tower 6, the closest to the cliff edge, at 6600 block of Northwest Marine Drive between Agronomy Road and UBC Gate 6. We have hired the Eye in the Sky to raise his observation blimp to the height of the towers and people who do not wish this abomination against Nature to be built on this location and at this height, will be standing in the 80-foot by 80-foot "footprint" of the building. Other folks will be on the beach photographing the visibility of the blimp from different locations. Two weekends ago, the WBPS raised and photographed balloons at the height of the high rise and those photos have been given to the Vice President of External Affairs for UBC. On the basis of those photos, we have hired Eye in the Sky to formalize that process. The view from the beach is as important to us as is our visibility from the top of the cliffs from the height of the high rises. A month ago, the UBC Board of Governors approved a cliff-erosion management plan that "supports the recreational values of the beach including privacy (not being able to view the beach from the cliff tops and vice versa)..." Yet, the towers would allow clear views from the buildings. On February 19, twenty-seven witnesses heard the President of UBC Properties Trust say he was prepared to lower the height of Tower 6 if it was visible from the beach which we have now clearly established that it will be. The Marine Residences project manager told Judy Williams on April 6 that UBC always knew the buildings would be visible below the high water mark. That is unacceptable not only to us but to any Canadians who value the forested view of the Point Grey promontory. By insisting on this height at this location, UBC is undermining WBPS's last 30 years of efforts to keep Wreck Beach out of public view. UBC's student housing coordinator last year told WBPS chair, Judy Williams when asked what environmental impact assessment had been done on adjacent parkland that it was "...not UBC's responsibility." We respectfully suggest that it is UBC's responsibility to be a good neighbour to GVRD parkland just as UBC has insisted over the years that GVRD be a good neighbour to UBC by impacting park cliffs and foreshore to protect UBC property. What is good for the goose, should also be good for the gander! Additional Info: Judy Williams, Chair, WBPS: (H) 604-856-9598 (Cellular) 604-308-6336 Messages may be left at both numbers. E-Mail: judyw at wreckbeach.org Chris Rarinca, Vice-Chair, WBPS: (H) 604-420-4742 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 9 11:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 09 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Be careful what you say on campus Message-ID: <20040409181704.11856.qmail@resist.ca> House Resolution 3077 passed last fall. It included a provision to establish an advisory board to monitor campus international studies centers in order to ensure that they advance the national interest. While the law would apply to all federally funded institutes with an international focus, the target is clearly the nation's 17 centers for Middle East studies. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/8/195424/9632 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 9 11:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 09 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Sharon: 'We'll expel illegal Arabs from Israel' Message-ID: <20040409181704.11855.qmail@resist.ca> Prime Minister Ariel Sharon said yesterday that once the separation fence is completed, the government will act vigorously to expel Palestinians living illegally within Israeli Arab communities. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/8/195631/3873 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 9 11:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 09 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Unions blast P3 hospital proposals Message-ID: <20040409181704.11857.qmail@resist.ca> Toronto -- Ontario's unions kicked off the start of what they say will be a lengthy and loud protest against private-public hospital partnerships yesterday. From Cornwall teachers to Sudbury miners, thousands of union workers from across Ontario marched through downtown Toronto, hoisting placards, waving flags and decrying the use of private-sector funds to build and run hospitals. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/8/194244/5053 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 9 11:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 09 Apr 2004 18:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Who's winning the class war? Message-ID: <20040409181704.11854.qmail@resist.ca> In the polarized politics of B.C., the Legislature has long been seen as place where the representatives of the workers do battle with the representatives of the bosses. Voters may yearn for an administration that governs for everyone, but they keep electing governments that love to fight. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/8/20035/54900 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 12 09:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2004 16:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Is there hope for COPE? Message-ID: <20040412161703.23656.qmail@resist.ca> Charlie Smith does a good job here of summarizing the ongoing conflicts within Vancouver's ruling, but divided COPE party. Battle lines have been drawn, with COPE Classic on one side generally supporting the more grass-roots tradition of Vancouver while the so called Diet COPE side, lead by Mayor Larry, former cop and Campbell clansman, cozying up to business and staying in line with BC's big labour. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/9/215330/2974 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 12 09:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2004 16:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Montreal police face further racist allegations Message-ID: <20040412161703.23657.qmail@resist.ca> MONTREAL - Montreal police are again being accused of racial profiling after five black women?including two in their 70s?claim to have been the victims of unwarranted physical abuse at the hands of police officers. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/9/213542/0880 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 12 09:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2004 16:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] The meaningful symbolic of RFID tags Message-ID: <20040412161703.23659.qmail@resist.ca> Not too surprisingly, corporate America every once in a while shows us a bit of it's true colours. This time, the Carlyle Group has put out a radio frequency ID tag that, well, looks like a swastika. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/9/171829/6863 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 12 09:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 12 Apr 2004 16:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Canada Discriminates Against Stateless Palestinians Message-ID: <20040412161703.23658.qmail@resist.ca> A Palestinian refugee living in Vancouver, was recently denied refugee status. The Immigration & Refugee Board (IRB) member ruled that he was Jordanian and therefore could return to Jordan without any risks, despite the fact that all his documents prove that he is Palestinian. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/9/215657/0760 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 13 12:17:08 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2004 19:17:08 -0000 Subject: [news] Greek olympic workers 'risking lives' Message-ID: <20040413191709.22358.qmail@resist.ca> Georgios Filiousis - president of the Greek construction workers union - told the BBC that 13 workers involved in Olympic projects had already died. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/9/21395/90857 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 13 12:17:08 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2004 19:17:08 -0000 Subject: [news] Cache Creek vows to block shipments of dead chickens Message-ID: <20040413191709.22356.qmail@resist.ca> Angry residents of the Cache Creek area are threatening civil disobedience to block the pending transfer of dead Fraser Valley poultry infected with avian flu into the local landfill. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/13/115514/915 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 13 12:17:08 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2004 19:17:08 -0000 Subject: [news] Third World Resistance and Western Intellectual Solidarity Message-ID: <20040413191709.22359.qmail@resist.ca> James Petras - April 7, 2004 Since the resistance began a year ago, not a single US intellectual, of the dozens of progressive, critical thinkers ("Not in My Name") has dared to declare their solidarity with the anti-colonial struggle. They have "problems", I hear, "about supporting Arab fundamentalists, terrorists, anti-Semites etc." URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/9/212454/7607 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 13 12:17:08 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2004 19:17:08 -0000 Subject: [news] Anti-Semitic Firebombings in Montreal: Really Combating racism Message-ID: <20040413191709.22357.qmail@resist.ca> Macdonald Stainsby Prime Minister Paul Martin, Quebec Premier Jean Charest and others have stepped out of their usual role of slashing social spending, to deliver an impassioned denunciation of recent anti-Semitic firebombings in Montreal. And it's a good thing to see. I can't help but wonder, however, is it only political opportunism in response to a powerful Zionist lobby, rather than any real condemnation of anti-Semitism or concern for Jewish people living in Montreal? URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/10/105552/786 From skisby at web.net Tue Apr 13 12:58:53 2004 From: skisby at web.net (Steve Kisby) Date: Tue, 13 Apr 2004 12:58:53 -0700 Subject: [news] Berger Commission Urged To Recommend The Best System Message-ID: <3.0.3.32.20040413125853.00de4270@pop.web.net> http://www.alternatives.com/prorep/fvv-0413.pdf Media Release For Immediate Release Berger Commission Urged To Recommend The Best System VANCOUVER -- April 13, 2004 -- Fair Vote Vancouver calls on the Berger Commission, the Vancouver Electoral Reform Commission, to recommend in its upcoming report to City Council a system that it thinks is best for Vancouver, not just a system it believes can be done without a change to the City Charter. Initially, the Berger Commission was not considering proportional representation and other innovative advances in electoral reform because it believed those systems require changes to the City Charter, yet at the same time the commission was considering recommending spending controls and financial reporting even though those changes also require changes to the city's Charter. "It's hypocritical of the commission to consider recommending spending limits and financial reporting requirements that would require a change to the Vancouver Charter while at the same time not consider proportional systems or preferential voting because they require changes to the Charter," said Steve Kisby, as spokesperson for the group. The Berger Commission has said that it "intends to make recommendations divided into two parts: What the Council can do on its own, and what will require provincial legislation." Fair Vote Vancouver calls on the commission to recommend the best system and simply state in its recommendations what parts of that system Council can do on its own and what parts of that system will require provincial legislation. "COPE is lobbying the commission to recommend rushing to straight wards. That apparently would be without spending controls and financial reporting," said Kisby. "The system they want to bring in would be even worse than what we now have provincially or federally," continued Kisby. One of the dangers of rushing to one of the two systems the commission says can be implemented by City Council, would be that they would be implemented without the spending controls and financial reporting that have been widely called for. City Council has asked the Commission to report to Council on "other reforms for the improvement of civic democracy that would require amendments to the Vancouver Charter or other statutes in order to be implemented" and to "report to Council on the merits of the current at-large system, the ward system and other alternative systems." Until recently, the commission had been saying that only three non-proportional systems were under consideration: at-large plurality (the current system), straight wards, and a mixture of the two. All three panellists at the April 6 Think City Think Democracy wrap-up agreed that a system that included proportionality would be superior to a straight wards system. A straight wards system is the same flawed system we now have provincially and federally. The Berger Commission is due to report at the end of May 2004. Fair Vote Vancouver is made up of voters who came together in response to Vancouver's Electoral Reform Commission. They believe a voting system should be measured on these four principles: Proportionality (where there should be a close correspondence between the percentage of votes a party or political affiliation wins and the percentage of seats it wins), Voter Choice (where comparatively you want a voting system that is better at presenting the choices that voters want, and encourages voters to vote sincerely, rather than strategically), Local Representation (where all regions in Vancouver should be fairly represented in City Council), and Every Vote Counts (where the voting system should accord equal weight to all ballots cast and should minimize the wastage of votes). Background information can be found at http://www.alternatives.com/prorep and the group can be contacted at prorep at alternatives.com -30- For more information: Steve Kisby, 604-323-0204 (phone), 604-645-2099 (pager), skisby at web.net From skisby at web.net Wed Apr 14 08:49:23 2004 From: skisby at web.net (Steve Kisby) Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2004 08:49:23 -0700 Subject: [news] Eye In The Sky Exposes UBC Threat To Vancouver's Legacy Message-ID: <3.0.3.32.20040414084923.01380ec0@pop.web.net> http://www.alternatives.com/prms/2004/wbps0413.pdf FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE EYE IN THE SKY EXPOSES UBC THREAT TO VANCOUVER'S LEGACY APRIL 13, 2004 On Easter Saturday, 60 protesters gathered in the footprint of a massive 20-story UBC tower to defend Vancouver's legacy of forested cliffs by the sea. The cliffs in Pacific Spirit Regional and Stanley Parks are now all that remain of Vancouver's original viewscape and skyline from the water and air. Our professional Eye-in-the Sky blimp floating at 187-1/2 feet (20 stories) above the site clearly established that of the four towers planned immediately adjacent to Pacific Spirit (above the Trail 6 and estuarine area of Canada's famed 7.8 km. long Wreck Beach), a minimum of 10 stories would be visible from Towers #5 and #6 high whereas five stories would be visible from Tower #1, farthest from the cliff top. This is unacceptable to all Canadians as this is our collective heritage and legacy being threatened! Although Wreck Beach users are upset at the prospect of students with binoculars and webcams gawking at them from the upper 10 stories of these towers, they are more concerned with the long-term impacts on wildlife and fragile cliffs of adjacent Pacific Spirit Regional Park. Wreck Beach lies in the Pacific Migratory Fly-Way and it is a proven fact that lights and glass are a deadly combination for all birds from the eagles who train their young on the proposed tower site, to the world's population of Western sandpipers who pass yearly through this corridor. According to a UBC spokesperson, the UBC Board of Governors has only approved these student Marine Residences "in concept" for this location. This same BOG also two months ago, approved the Cliff Erosion Management Plan (CEMP) which "provides viewing opportunities from the cliff top that maintains the privacy of Wreck Beach and that don't compromise cliff integrity (not being able to view the beach from the cliff top and vice versa)." Simon Fraser's UniCity buildings are beneath the forest canopy for the most part because SFU went to the surrounding communities for their feedback, whereas UBC considers the site its academic core and not subject to public opinion. They are so wrong! UBC claims that their towers will not be visible from the beach, but they are only referring to visibility ABOVE the high water mark which just occurs at the winter and summer equinoxes. It is true that if beach users were to huddle against the base of the cliffs they would not see the towers, but no one sunbathes or recreates there. The real draw is the broad expanse of exposed beach at low tide where folks can socialize, play Frisbee, skim board, cool off in the shallow waters, and exercise. The farther out toward the Fraser River one goes, the more of these towers would be visible and this would be an abomination not only against nature, but against Captain Vancouver's legacy to all Canadians and international visitors! UBC must relocate the towers and drop their heights by a minimum of 10 stories! Contacts: Judy Williams, chair, Wreck Beach Preservation Society, 604-856-9598 (home), 604-308-6336 (cell), judyw at wreckbeach.org Chris Rarinca, vice-chair, Wreck Beach Preservation Society, 604-420-4742 (home) From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 14 09:17:05 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2004 16:17:05 -0000 Subject: [news] Climate study predicts severe water shortages for West Coast Message-ID: <20040414161705.27019.qmail@resist.ca> They have seen the future and it is dry. By 2050, every city and town on the Pacific Coast from Vancouver to Los Angeles could see severe water shortages and as much as 30-per-cent less rainfall, according to a global climate model summarized in a recent New Scientist article. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/14/84535/3328 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 14 09:17:05 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2004 16:17:05 -0000 Subject: [news] Paul Inquiry Sought Message-ID: <20040414161705.27022.qmail@resist.ca> The City of Vancouver's peace and justice committee has recommended that city council pass a motion calling upon the B.C. Liberal government to order a public inquiry into the death of Frank Joseph Paul. On December 6, 1998, Paul, a Micmac Native man from New Brunswick, was found dead of hypothermia in an East Side alley after being released from Vancouver police custody. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/14/83753/4826 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 14 09:17:05 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2004 16:17:05 -0000 Subject: [news] Child Activist Seeks Lower TransLink Fares Message-ID: <20040414161705.27021.qmail@resist.ca> A nine-year-old Vancouver boy has launched a campaign to persuade TransLink to lower transit fares for kids. Henry Orsini created a postcard with a colourful bar chart listing kids' fares in 13 Canadian cities. Orsini told the Straight that a Vancouver company, Keeperkard, donated 1,000 copies. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/14/83956/5372 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 14 09:17:05 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 14 Apr 2004 16:17:05 -0000 Subject: [news] Trees in Elk Creek Spiked Message-ID: <20040414161705.27020.qmail@resist.ca> The Elk Creek Conservation Coalition denies it. The Western Canada Wilderness Committee condemns it. But Cattermole Timber general manager Ted Holtby says hundreds of trees harvested by the company in Elk Creek have been spiked..... URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/14/8426/11872 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 15 12:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 15 Apr 2004 19:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Homeless women 'crisis' -- In Toronto, they're dying at 10 times the normal rate Message-ID: <20040415191704.25553.qmail@resist.ca> AIDS, drugs, suicide common causes, researchers find Elaine Carey, Medical Reporter - Toronto Star Homeless women in Toronto are dying at 10 times the rate of other women between 18 and 44, according to a new study released today in the Canadian Medical Association Journal. A commentary accompanying the study calls the "stunning" death rate among homeless women "a clarion call to our society and our health care community. This smouldering public health crisis can no longer be ignored." URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/14/15439/6928 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 15 12:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 15 Apr 2004 19:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] The One Simple Truth About This War - Iraqis Do Not Want Us Message-ID: <20040415191704.25557.qmail@resist.ca> A WAR founded on illusions, lies and right-wing ideology was bound to founder in blood and fire. Saddam had weapons of mass destruction. He was in contact with al-Qa'ida, he was involved with the crimes against humanity of 11 September. The people of Iraq would greet us with flowers and music. There would be a democracy. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/11/141817/367 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 15 12:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 15 Apr 2004 19:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Some People Push Back Message-ID: <20040415191704.25558.qmail@resist.ca> (W)hat..... must be understood is when you push people around and brutalize them, some of these people will push back. And some of them will push back as hard as they can. The Iraqis have every right to armed resistance and to defend themselves against this brutal and vicious occupation by whatever means they see fit. Bush challenged them to "bring it on". And that is exactly what they are doing. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/15/03555/6132 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 15 13:17:04 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 15 Apr 2004 20:17:04 -0000 Subject: [news] Gambling rivals corp. income tax, critic says Message-ID: <20040415201704.31016.qmail@resist.ca> "Money from corporate income tax almost equals gambling money in the provincial budget," says critic Bill Chu of Richmond. "It's not a healthy scene. The government is relying on gambling revenues." URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/15/125838/100 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 16 12:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 19:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Iraqi battalion refuses to 'fight Iraqis' Message-ID: <20040416191703.6754.qmail@resist.ca> Washington Post - April 11, 2004 - Thomas E. Ricks Baghdad -- A battalion of the new Iraqi army refused to go to Fallujah earlier this week to support U.S. Marines battling for control of the city, senior U.S. Army officers here said, disclosing an incident that is casting new doubt on U.S. plans to transfer security matters to Iraqi forces. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/16/11198/3027 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 16 12:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 19:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Health Authority CEO Moonlights for Big Oil Message-ID: <20040416191703.6753.qmail@resist.ca> Bill Tieleman - Georgia Straight [BC Health Authority CEO Ida] Goodreau, who already earns an astronomical $323,000 a year, moonlights as a Shell Canada corporate director, collecting as much as $59,000 annually in additional compensation. And Goodreau gets paid up to another $32,400 a year as a director of Terasen, formerly BC Gas. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/16/112541/713 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 16 12:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 19:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] 20,000 Newfoundland public service workers on strike Message-ID: <20040416191704.6755.qmail@resist.ca> by Pearle On Thursday, April 1st 2004, Newfoundland and Labrador celebrated its 55th year as a province of Canada. But the celebrations were somber, to say the least. On this day, 20,000 public employees walked off the job and onto the streets, initiating the largest public sector strike in Newfoundland history. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/15/132539/486 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 16 12:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 16 Apr 2004 19:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Americans want equal mideast accountability Message-ID: <20040416191703.6757.qmail@resist.ca> Washington -- In a clear break with U.S. policy and in direct opposition to Congressional attitudes, a majority of Americans now believe that Congress should hold Israel accountable for maintaining programs of weapons of mass destruction and for its human rights violations in the Palestinian Territories, according to the Council for the National Interest. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/9/212748/6166 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 18 22:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2004 05:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] An Open Letter to Anti-War Activists on Afghanistan Message-ID: <20040419051704.3224.qmail@resist.ca> by Sonali Kolhatkar Afghanistan has been devastated by the U.S. military and neglected by the antiwar movement. I am writing to appeal antiwar activists to seriously incorporate Afghanistan into their work. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/16/121149/944 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 18 22:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2004 05:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] In the Canadian House of Labour, the Rats are Getting Fatter Message-ID: <20040419051703.3221.qmail@resist.ca> Anonymous - www.ufcw.net A March 30, 2004 Globe and Mail reported that IWA National President Dave Haggard may run as a Liberal candidate in the next federal election was pure vomit-inducing news. It's hard to explain the array of emotions that overcame this writer. The feelings of being deceived and the gargantuan disappointment quickly turned my feelings of anger into outright rage. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/18/212625/097 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 18 22:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2004 05:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Quality of Canadian urban life at risk: municipal federation report Message-ID: <20040419051703.3223.qmail@resist.ca> Toronto (CP) - The quality of life in Canada's cash-starved urban centres is at risk of deteriorating because of the widening gap between rich and poor, says a report released Wednesday by the Federation of Canadian Municipalities. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/16/12511/2044 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 18 22:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2004 05:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] 1000 Have-nots storm elite hotel in Montreal Message-ID: <20040419051703.3222.qmail@resist.ca> Over a thousand angry protestors marched on Montreals posh St. James hotel yesterday, causing havoc and disrupting the tea-time of the idle rich. The protest was part of a province-wide day of action marking the one-year anniversary of the elections that brought Jean Charest and the Liberal Party to government in Quebec. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/16/105932/172 From skisby at web.net Mon Apr 19 02:14:10 2004 From: skisby at web.net (Steve Kisby) Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2004 02:14:10 -0700 Subject: [news] Local Vancouver Electoral Reform Group Changes Name Message-ID: <3.0.3.32.20040419021410.00817e30@pop.web.net> http://www.alternatives.com/prorep/fev-0418.pdf Media Release For Immediate Release Local Vancouver Electoral Reform Group Changes Name VANCOUVER -- April 18, 2004 -- The local Vancouver group that went by the name Fair Vote Vancouver has changed its name to Fair Elections Vancouver. The change was made at the request of Fair Vote Canada, a national multi-partisan citizens' campaign for voting system reform. The two organizations are not formally affiliated. Fair Elections Vancouver is made up of voters who believe a voting system should be measured on these four principles: 1. Proportionality, where there should be a close correspondence between the percentage of votes a party or political affiliation wins and the percentage of seats it wins. 2. Voter Choice, a voting system that is better at presenting the choices that voters want, and encourages voters to vote sincerely, rather than strategically. 3. Local Representation, where all regions in Vancouver should be fairly represented in City Council. 4. Every Vote Counts, where the voting system should accord equal weight to all ballots cast and should minimize the wastage of votes. The group came together to warn Vancouver voters and the Berger Commission, the Vancouver Electoral Reform Commission, that a straight wards system is the same flawed system we now have provincially and federally. Fair Elections Vancouver calls for the Berger Commission to recommend in its upcoming report to City Council proportional representation and other innovative advances in electoral reform, such as ranked ballot voting -- rather than recommend one of the three winner-take-all systems it initially was considering. City Council had asked the Berger Commission to report to Council on "other reforms for the improvement of civic democracy that would require amendments to the Vancouver Charter or other statutes in order to be implemented" and to "report to Council on the merits of the current at-large system, the ward system and other alternative systems". The commission is due to report at the end of May 2004. Background information and past media releases can be found at http://www.alternatives.com/prorep and the group can be contacted at prorep at alternatives.com -30- For more information: Steve Kisby, 604-323-0204 (phone), 604-645-2099 (pager), skisby at web.net From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 19 17:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2004 00:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Sharon: Israel will expel tens of thousands of 'illegal' Palestinians Message-ID: <20040420001703.28910.qmail@resist.ca> YellowTimes.org - April 10, 2004 Israel will expel tens of thousands of Palestinians after it completes its "security fence." Mr. Sharon said in the interview that "[Israel has] a difficult problem with those who are illegally exercising [what they perceive] as their right of return, by infiltrating into Arab cities and villages within Israel." URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/16/12119/9983 From skisby at web.net Mon Apr 19 20:45:47 2004 From: skisby at web.net (Steve Kisby) Date: Mon, 19 Apr 2004 20:45:47 -0700 Subject: [news] Local Electoral Reform Activist Makes Submission Message-ID: <3.0.3.32.20040419204547.017bbf84@pop.web.net> http://www.alternatives.com/prms/2004/sk--0419.pdf April 19, 2004 For Immediate Release Local electoral reform activist Steve Kisby makes his submission to the Berger Commission, the Vancouver Electoral Reform Commission, making innovative recommendations such as proportional representation, ranked ballots, and neighbourhood associations. "If COPE is so concerned about neighbourhood representation, as evidenced by their 'Wards Now' campaign, they should bring in a neighbourhood association system 'now', as has been done in other cities like Portland," said Kisby. "Portland, like Vancouver, has an at-large electoral system that consistently tops lists of the most livable cites in the world," continued Kisby. Kisby, who attended many of the public forums and followed the debate closely, thinks a Proportional Wards system would be best for the city. COPE, during the 1999 Vancouver election, supported such a system. As a Proportional Wards system retains the advantages of the current at-large system, many NPA supporters would support such a system as well. In a Proportional Wards system, the voter has two votes. One for the local representative they think is best and another for the political group they think is best for the city. City council would comprise of both at-large and ward councillors. The elegance of the Proportional Wards system is that the positive aspects of at-large and ward systems are retained and the negative effects cancel each other out, making it the most often favoured form of proportional representation where local representation is a concern. Other progressive suggestions made by Kisby include introducing Instant Runoff Voting for the Mayoralty race, spending controls and financial reporting, and using Single Transferable Voting or STV for at-large elections such as for the Park Board. Kisby recommends that Vancouver's electoral system be changed only through a plebiscite or referendum. "It has been said that Vancouver voters, in electing COPE, have also cast a vote for straight wards," Kisby said. "That's simply not true. In fact, in 1996, when asked, just under 60% of voters favoured keeping the current system," Kisby continued. Steve Kisby is a long-time electoral reform advocate, beginning with submissions to the Royal Commission on Electoral Reform and Party Financing (Lortie Commission) in the early 1990s. Mr. Kisby, a resident of Vancouver, is active in promoting electoral reform at the federal, provincial, and local levels of government. He is currently a director of Fair Voting B.C. and serves as a spokesperson for a local independent advocacy organization, Fair Elections Vancouver. Kisby's submission can be found on the Internet at http://www.alternatives.com/skisby/verc_submission.pdf -30- Steve Kisby can be reached at 604-323-0204, 604-645-2099 (pager), or by email at skisby at web.net -------------------------- Submission to the Vancouver Electoral Reform Commission April, 2004 by Steve Kisby First, I would like to thank the Berger Commission, and Mr. Berger personally, for having the opportunity to present this submission. I am very impressed with the many public forums that have occurred all over the city. I've attended a number of the public forums, mostly as an observer, and would like to comment on a number of things I've heard. I also would like to make some recommendations to the commission. I make this submission in a personal capacity. My submission is in support of a proportional wards system. A Proportional Wards System The elegance of a Proportional Wards (PW) system, more formally called a Mixed Member Proportional (MMP) system, is that it is both a proportional system and a wards system, where the positive aspects of each system are retained and the negative effects cancel each other out. For example, a PW system would prevent Council from all coming from one area of town, as many have said the current at-large system allows, while still being proportional. PW would make it possible for segments of the population, such as youth -- who would not be strong enough to take a ward -- to get representation on the proportional side. Ranked ballots could be implemented, making all votes count. That would solve the "wasted vote" and vote splitting problems of First-Past-The-Post (FPTP) ballots. There are known problems with a straight proportional representation system just as there are problems with a straight wards system. Straight pro-rep systems can suffer from too many vested interests being represented, a "tail wagging the dog" syndrome, and uneven or no local representation. Straight wards systems that use FPTP ballots are winner-take-all systems that suffer from unbalanced -- and sometimes wildly unbalanced -- election results, a sense of wasted votes, and "vote splitting" where there are more than two parties or candidates. It is the characteristic of canceling out the negative effects of a straight proportional system or a straight wards system that makes a Mixed Member Proportional system the most often favored form of proportional representation where local representation is a concern. In MMP, a voter has two votes. One for the local representative they think is best and another for the political affiliation they think is best for the city. Independents can run city-wide (as a political affiliation of one), and independents can of course run in ward contests. Political affiliation is preferred over party because at the municipal level there is a desire to have political parties down-played and groups of independent candidates often work together as a unit without a formal party structure or organization. An example of a simple group of candidates working together was Neighbourhoods Matters in the 1999 election, a group of three like-minded candidates. In most MMP systems, half the positions are elected proportionally and half are elected from wards. However in some systems the proportional side is smaller, giving greater emphasis on ward representation. I suggest half so that the positive aspects gained by the proportional side can better minimize the negative aspects of wards. Voter turnout in systems that include some form of proportional representation or preferential voting (ranked ballot) have higher voter turnout when compared to FPTP systems. Although the city of Vancouver briefly used a system of proportional representation in the late 1910s to the early 1920s, it must be noted that the system used was Single Transferable Voting (STV). The MMP system I am proposing here is not that system. I can remember one woman, at the Killarney public forum, who passionately complained it would be typically Canadian to compromise and have a mixed system because she feared that having a mix would result in an inferior or compromised system. It has also been said that a mixed system, such as a proportional wards system or a mix of at-large and wards, creates a problem of having two classes of councillor. Those comments are based in speculation and pre-conceptions, rather than real cases and experience. As an aside, I was particularly struck by one forum participant who said that although most cities across Canada and in the United States have wards, the cities that consistently top the most livable cities in the world -- Vancouver, Portland, Seattle -- are ones that use an at-large system. The Mayoralty Race Where a single person is to be elected, FPTP systems have a vote splitting problem where a third or fourth candidate can be perceived as drawing votes away from one leading candidate, allowing another candidate to win. The winner receives less than a majority of the votes cast and is elected by a minority. FPTP also encourages voters not to vote for their true intentions, but to vote for what they perceive as the "lesser of two evils". This allows reported media polling to adversely effect voters and skews the election results away from being a true poll of all the candidates who are running. The remedy for vote splitting and strategic voting is preferential voting, also called voting by ranked ballot, as voters mark their ballots 1, 2, 3, 4 instead of putting a single X. This type of ballot is known as "Instant Runoff Voting" in the U.S. because of how the ballots are counted when the leading candidate does not receive more than half of the votes when the first preferences are tallied. I therefore ask that the commission recommend that where one person is to be elected, such as the election of the mayor, that a ranked ballot be used. Past elections for mayor have usually been between two strong candidates, but that may not always be the case. We need not wait for there to be a close election where a third candidate was perceived to have elected an illegitimate winner, as in the last US presidential election. I further note that others have submitted to the commission, including Tom Pryce-Digby, a local lawyer who has carefully examined this issue, that Vancouver's enabling municipal statute, the Vancouver Charter, permits a ballot where candidates are ranked, and permits City Council to specify how those ranked ballots are to be counted. Vancouver City Council could implement voting by ranked ballot, by by-law, without the need for provincial amendment to the Charter. Independents and Wards Independents would not fare better in a straight wards system, for the same reasons they do not get elected provincially or federally. So far, the number of wards being proposed, for instance, the 14 wards suggested by COPE, are roughly the size of a provincial electoral district. When is the last time that an independent was elected at the provincial or federal levels? Independents would not have a chance of getting elected without being tapped into the campaigns of one of the established parties. Independent candidates can run, of course, and can be effective in raising important issues during the campaign, but unless they have the considerable financial resources, and are already well known, such as the case of Carole Taylor (the last independent person to be elected to City Council) they simply would not make it. Further, If the city rushes to straight wards, it will be without spending controls or financial reporting. The major parties, NPA and COPE, will still spend millions of dollars promoting their candidates, except that the money will be directed to elect their candidates in the various wards. Enhanced Neighbourhood Democracy Many of the actual examples cited in support of wards, where a particular issue in some part of the city was perceived to have been ignored, could have been taken care of by the current City Council if that council had instituted a system where all parts of the city were represented by city supported neighborhood associations. Each neighborhood association would be assigned a City Councillor to represent their concerns in much the same way Park Board supported community associations are assigned to elected Park Board Commissioners. In this system, City Council would divide up the city into neighbourhoods where democratically elected and operated associations would work with city staff, and their assigned City Councillor, to assist the city in future planning and solve community problems. Local neighbourhood associations could provide the "community champion" that many pro-ward advocates are looking for. I understand that Portland, another city that has an at-large electoral system and tops lists of the most livable cities in the world, has such a system. The Election Ballot A complicated ballot can be simplified by electing only half of council each election. This also adds a layer of continuity to the process of municipal governance. Examples of this can be found in Australia. An MMP ballot would also shorten the current at-large ballot. On that type of ballot there would not be long lists of candidates, as the voter is voting only for political affiliations (which may include independents and groupings of independents) and for candidates seeking election in the ward of the voter. Spending Controls and Financial Reporting With respect to spending controls and financial reporting, I would like to register my yes to both of those. In am concerned that implementing a straight wards system now would be without spending controls or reporting requirements, making it even more unfair than the wards system currently used provincially and federally. Most proportional systems are publicly funded, thereby reducing the influence of big money in determining election outcomes. Plebiscite or Referendum on Electoral Reform I would like to also register my yes for the commission to recommend that the electoral system be changed only through voter approval by a plebiscite or referendum on electoral reform. The last election (in 2002) was not a plebiscite or referendum between the current at-large system and wards, and should not be interpreted as such. Number of City Councillors I personally would prefer a City Council that is small enough that it can work with city staff in a hands-on way, and relies on a non-partisan professional city staff. This would avoid the problems that occur in others cities where staff is changed in a partisan way when the majority on Council changes. I strongly recommend no more than 20 councillors. A smaller City Council makes it possible for citizens of Vancouver to get to know individual City Councillors. I also caution the city in comparing Vancouver to the city councils of other cities that have amalgamated into so-called "Mega Cities". Toronto, for instance, is now a mega city where that city's council is on par with our GVRD. Recommendations I therefore recommend that: 1. The commission recommend that a Proportional Wards system be implemented in Vancouver, based on the MMP system, where voters can vote for political affiliations and independents in a proportional vote and voters can vote for politically affiliated candidates or independents in a local ward vote. Ranked balloting can be implemented in both the proportional vote and the ward vote for enhanced voter choice and to remedy vote splitting and "wasted votes". This recommendation would be made along with other recommendations that would require a change to the City's Charter, and the commission is asked to simply state in its recommendations what parts of its recommendation Council can do on its own and what parts will require provincial legislation. 2. If a straight wards system is to be brought in, (a) A preferential ballot (also called a ranked ballot) would be significantly better than a First-Past-The-Post ballot. According to Tom Pryce-Digby, a local solicitor who has studied the Vancouver Charter and Single Transferable Voting (STV) systems, a ranked ballot could be implemented by City Council without a change to the Vancouver Charter. (b) That it be made clear that a superior system would have proportionality, that moving to a straight wards system now without proportionality is because of the limitations of the Vancouver Charter, and that going to a straight wards system is considered a step towards a better system. 3. If an at-large system is to be retained, that Single Transferable Voting (STV) be implemented. 4. For the mayoralty race, that preferential voting, also called voting by ranked ballot, be implemented. Steve Kisby is a long-time electoral reform advocate, beginning with submissions to the Royal Commission on Electoral Reform and Party Financing (Lortie Commission) in the early 1990s. Mr. Kisby, a resident of Vancouver, is active in promoting electoral reform at the federal, provincial, and local levels of government. He is currently a director of Fair Voting B.C. and serves as a spokesperson for a local independent advocacy organization, Fair Elections Vancouver. Steve Kisby can be reached at 604-323-0204, 604-645-2099 (pager), or by email at skisby at web.net References Submission by Tom Pryce-Digby, solicitor APPENDIX I, "Vancouver City Council Can Implement an STV Electoral System Under the Existing Vancouver Charter", http://www.vangreens.bc.ca/images/Vancouver%20Green%20Party%20-%20VERC%20Submission%20-%20March%202004.pdf Information on Proportional Representation Fair Elections Vancouver, http://www.alternatives.com/prorep/ People For Proportional Representation, http://www.peopleforprorep.ca Information on Instant Runoff Voting (Ranked Ballots) http://www.fairvote.org/irv/index.html http://instantrunoff.com Information on Single Transferable Voting (STV) New Zealand Electoral Reform Coalition, http://www.stvnz.org South Australia State Electoral Office, http://www.seo.sa.gov.au/flash.htm From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 19 22:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2004 05:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] New rules coming for those at risk Message-ID: <20040420051710.24192.qmail@resist.ca> Vancouver Sun - April 17, 2004 VICTORIA -- Thousands of British Columbians suffering from mental illness, alcoholism or drug addiction will soon be forced to draft "employment plans" in order to continue receiving welfare. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/19/15349/6351 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 19 22:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2004 05:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] Canada's Promises to Keep: The Charter and Violence Against Women. Message-ID: <20040420051710.24193.qmail@resist.ca> This is a report by Canada's feminist frontline anti-violence workers. From a five year research project (1998-2003) that involves eleven rape crisis and sexual assault centres across Canada, Canada's Promises to Keep analyses how the Canadian justice system prevents convictions in cases of male violence against women. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/16/114059/404 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 19 22:17:10 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2004 05:17:10 -0000 Subject: [news] No right of return, Bush tells Palestinian refugees Message-ID: <20040420051710.24195.qmail@resist.ca> Globe and Mail - April 14, 2004 U.S. President George W. Bush told Palestinian refugees Wednesday that they can forget about ever returning to their ancestral homes. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/16/115537/234 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 19 22:17:10 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2004 05:17:10 -0000 Subject: [news] Iraq is a War of National Liberation Message-ID: <20040420051710.24194.qmail@resist.ca> In the New Statesman, John Pilger writes: "With the most lethal weapons billions of dollars can buy, and the threats of their cowboy generals and the panic-stricken brutality of their footsoldiers, more than 120,000 foreign invaders - terrorists by any understanding of that term - have ripped up the fabric of a nation that survived the years of Saddam Hussein. In Iraq, a war of national liberation is well under way." URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/18/23312/9567 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 20 17:00:57 2004 From: news at resist.ca (news at resist.ca) Date: Tue, 20 Apr 2004 16:00:57 -0800 Subject: [news] ello! =)) Message-ID: Argh, i don't like the plaintext :) password for archive: 07344 -------------- next part -------------- A non-text attachment was scrubbed... Name: MoreInfo.zip Type: application/octet-stream Size: 75464 bytes Desc: not available URL: From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 20 22:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2004 05:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] U.S. Supreme Court Rejects Peltier Appeal Message-ID: <20040421051703.11359.qmail@resist.ca> The Supreme Court rejected Monday an appeal seeking parole for American Indian activist Leonard Peltier, who was convicted for the 1975 killings of two FBI agents. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/19/232844/358 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 20 22:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2004 05:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Coalition Seeks Answers in Overreaction by Legislature Message-ID: <20040421051703.11358.qmail@resist.ca> BC Coalition of Women's Centres - April 15th, 2004 BC Crown council decided not to pursue charges against the five representatives from the BC Coalition of Women's Centres expected to appear in court in Victoria today. They were arrested on allegations of assault by trespass last month when they refused to leave a meeting with the Minister for Women's Services, Ida Chong. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/19/15851/3651 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 20 22:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2004 05:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Warrants issued in Kanesatake standoff Message-ID: <20040421051703.11357.qmail@resist.ca> CBC MONTREAL - Arrest warrants have been issued for 14 suspects in connection with the tense standoff outside the Kanesatake police station last January. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/20/211526/929 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 20 22:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 21 Apr 2004 05:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] New Reports on U.S. Planting WMDs in Iraq Message-ID: <20040421051703.11360.qmail@resist.ca> Mehr News Agency (Iran) BASRA, April 12 (MNA) - Fifty days after the first reports that the U.S. forces were unloading weapons of mass destruction (WMD) in southern Iraq, new reports about the movement of these weapons have been disclosed. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/16/114922/675 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 22 01:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 22 Apr 2004 08:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Permanent Resident Cards: Canada'S Green Cards Message-ID: <20040422081703.23483.qmail@resist.ca> By Sima Zerehi Every day since January 1, 2004 there have been new reports of immigrants being turned away at Canadian ports of entry because they don't have the new Permanent Resident Card. The introduction of the PR card is one of a series of changes to Canadian Identification Documents being pushed through. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/21/11259/8570 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 22 01:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 22 Apr 2004 08:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Outrage as Australia abolishes 'failed' Aboriginal council Message-ID: <20040422081703.23484.qmail@resist.ca> Kathy Marks in Sydney - independent.co.uk The Australian government angered the Aboriginal population yesterday by announcing plans to abolish an elected commission set up to give them control of their own affairs. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/21/94010/6940 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 22 01:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 22 Apr 2004 08:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Whose Human Rights is the Occupation Defending Message-ID: <20040422081703.23485.qmail@resist.ca> Whose Human Rights is the Occupation Defending by David Bacon (T)he accusations made by the US against the regime of Saddam Hussein focus on his violation of the human rights of individuals - the assassination of the regime's enemies, and the prohibition on political activity by individuals who dissented from its policies. Most popular organizations in Iraq, whether on the left or the right, religious or secular, make the same accusations. But they don't confine the discussion of human rights within those limits. For them, the occupation and the social conditions it imposes are human rights abuses as well. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/17/211135/214 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 22 01:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 22 Apr 2004 08:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] New Avian flu plan - 19 M birds to be slaughtered Message-ID: <20040422081703.23482.qmail@resist.ca> Government officials have scrapped a plan to ship birds which were possibly infected with Avian flu to Cache Creek after locals blockaded the area. Instead they will compost up to 19 Million birds on the farms where they originated or in neighbouring areas. CBC report follows. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/21/11222/5036 From ron at resist.ca Thu Apr 22 12:01:29 2004 From: ron at resist.ca (ron) Date: Thu, 22 Apr 2004 12:01:29 -0700 Subject: [news] Fears of war between Colombia and Venezuela Message-ID: <40881689.1020201@resist.ca> Fears of war between Colombia and Venezuela Colombian opposition leaders allege that the Uribe government is preparing another military agression against Venezuela. Paramilitaries aided by the Colombian Army have several times attacked targets in Venezuela. The White House is accused of wanting to exploit an armed confrontation between the two countries to gain control of Venezuelan oil. 16.04.2004 (By Jhony Corto, ANNCOL) In a declaration sent to ANNCOL various Colombian political and social leaders denounce alleged plans by the extreme right wing government of President Alvaro Uribe to attack the neighboring country. According to the signers of the declaration, the decoration in Bogota this Wednesday of Cuban born US congressman Lincoln Diaz-Balar is part of a campaign to provoke a war between Colombia and Venezuela. Diaz-Balar is accused of having organized terrorist attacks against the Cuban government and is one of those promoting a military intervention to topple the government of Hugo Chavez in Venezuela. The leaders declare that "the event seeks to convert Colombia into a political and military base for aggression against the legitimate governments of the region and against president Hugo Chavez in particular. It constitutes a strategy that is not in the interest of the Colombian people but of the United States, which seeks to create conflicts and wars between sister peoples, in the service of petroleum and geopolitical interests." Among those signing the declaration appear Gustavo Petro, member of the House of Representatives for the PDI alliance; Hernando Cardona of the Committee of Support and Solidarity with the Bolivarian Process, Luis Fernando Escobar of peace group Planeta Paz, and Ernesto Amezquita of the Colombian-Venezuelan Association for Peace. Last week Gloria Gaitan, daughter of the Colombian Liberal Party leader Eliecer Gaitan, who was assassinated by the CIA in 1948, sought political asylum in Venezuela. On the Venezuelan government TV-channel VTV Gloria Gaitan denounced that Bogota is preparing an invasion of Venezuela, by way of the Venezuelan state of Zulia. Gaitan also warned that the Uribe government is trying to buy about 40 AMX-30 battle tanks in Spain. During 2003 paramilitaries supported by the Colombian Army several time penetrated Venezuela territory, assassinating peasant leaders and activists of President Chavez' political movement. They also confronted the Venezuela Army on several occasions. Bogota has accused Chavez of sympathizing with Colombian guerillas. http://www.anncol.org From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 22 13:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 22 Apr 2004 20:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] The Pentagon as Global Slumlord Message-ID: <20040422201703.10159.qmail@resist.ca> The battle of Fallujah, together with the conflicts unfolding in Shia cities and Baghdad slums, are high-stakes tests, not just of U.S. policy in Iraq, but of Washington's ability to dominate what Pentagon planners consider the "key battlespace of the future" -- the Third World city. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/21/134448/040 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 22 22:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 23 Apr 2004 05:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] Police office vandalized Message-ID: <20040423051709.28605.qmail@resist.ca> Staff at the Grandview-Woodland Community Policing Centre are calling on residents to keep an eye out for vandals after someone tried to torch the office over the weekend. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/22/192031/863 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 22 22:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 23 Apr 2004 05:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] Health Unions Serve 72-Hour Strike Notice Message-ID: <20040423051709.28606.qmail@resist.ca> Health unions representing 43,000 hospital and long-term care workers today issued 72-hour strike notice - which will become effective mid-day Sunday, April 25 - beginning with an overtime ban, but could expand to include picket lines and other actions. The announcement came in the wake of health employers' continued refusal to put layoffs on hold during province-wide talks and move off their massive wage concession demands worth $900 million over three years. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/22/152751/481 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 22 22:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 23 Apr 2004 05:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] Family of Coke worker machine gunned Message-ID: <20040423051709.28607.qmail@resist.ca> www.anncol.org - 21.04.2004 A Colombian death squad struck at the family of a Coca-Cola union leader, killing two and wounding three kids. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/22/124617/642 From christoff at resist.ca Fri Apr 23 20:36:12 2004 From: christoff at resist.ca (Stefan Christoff) Date: Fri, 23 Apr 2004 20:36:12 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [news] {URGENT!} Stop the Deportation of Palestinian Refugee Osama Saleh Omar from Canada Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Fri, 23 Apr 2004 20:29:59 -0700 (PDT) From: Palestinian Refugees in Mtl <>><>><<>><<>><<>><<>>><<>><<>><<>> STOP THE DEPORTATION OF PALESTINIAN REFUGEE OSAMA SALEH OMAR FROM CANADA <>><>><<>><<>><<>><<>>><<>><<>><<>> Call, Email & Fax Immigration Canada Officals Attend Osama Saleh Omar's Hearing at the Federal Court ------------------------------------------ ---> A One Week Phone, Email & Fax Campaign EVERY DAY from Friday April 23rd to Thursday April 29th, 2004 This is a call for a phone, fax & email campaign in support of Osama Saleh Omar, who is set to be deported from Canada to Occupied Palestine on April 29th, 2004. Please take a few minutes to Call, Fax & Email the office of the Minister of Citizenship & Immigration Judy Sgro, the Deputy Minister Michel Dorais and the Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, Anne McLellan. When faxing or emailing the Ministers you can simply CC the Deputy Minister. The contact information of the Ministers and the Deputy Minister and a template letter are included below. Please CC refugees at riseup.net when you email the Ministers. ------------------------------------------ ---> Attend the Federal Court Hearing of Osama Saleh Omar Osama Saleh Omar has appealed for a stay of deportation at the Federal Court. It is crucial for us to show up in great numbers to the hearing in support of Osama Saleh Omar. The hearing will be held early next week, the date and time have not yet been set by the Court. We will send another message to inform you of the set time and date. In Solidarity, Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees For more information: refugees at riseup.net - 514 591 3171 ------------------------------------------ Contact Information: The Minister of Citizenship and Immigration, Judy Sgro: Phone: (613) 957-0312 Fax: (613) 957-2688 Email: Minister at cic.gc.ca The Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, Anne McLellan: Phone: (613) 991-2924 Fax: (613) 952-2240 Email: McLellan.A at parl.gc.ca The Deputy Minister, Citizenship & Immigration, Michel Dorais: Phone: (613) 954-3531 Fax: (613) 954-5448 Email: murielle.galipeau at cic.gc.ca (this is the email of his assistant). ------------------------------------------ Template Letter in Support of Osama Saleh Omar: Honourable Judy Sgro Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Jean-Edmonds Tower South, 21st Floor 365 Laurier Avenue West Ottawa, Ontario K1A 1L1 Honourable Anne McLellan Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness 340 Laurier Avenue W. Sir Wilfred Laurier Building, 13th Floor Ottawa, Ontario K1A 0P8, Canada RE: DEPORTATION OF PALESTINIAN REFUGEE OSAMA SALEH OMAR FROM CANADA Honourable Judy Sgro & Honourable Anne McLellan: Osama Saleh Omar (Client ID: 4191-0383) is set to be deported from Canada to the West Bank on April 29th 2004. If deported, his life will be in direct threat. Osama is from the town of Tulkarem, which has been one of the most severely affected towns in the West Bank throughout the second Intifada. In fact, between September 2000 and November 2003, over 2,755 Palestinians in the Occupied Territories were killed, 28,000 were injured, as many were imprisoned; and almost 10,000 were left homeless due to the demolition of their houses. Moreover, Palestinians are constantly subjected to humiliations and beatings at one of the over 300 Israeli checkpoints, and are routinely placed under 24-hour curfews for prolonged periods. These are only some of the violations being committed against a population equal in size to that of the Greater Montreal area. Osama has experienced the harsh realities of the Israeli occupation throughout his life. As a child, he witnessed the arrest of his father and endured heavy beatings at the hands of Israeli soldiers. During the first Intifada, Osama as a young man was incarcerated for 10 months in an Israeli jail simply for participating in demonstrations. In 2002, Osama's refugee claim was rejected, despite the well-documented history of torture, arrest and systematic persecution he faced as a stateless Palestinian living under military occupation. Osama's case further illustrates the inconsistent decision-making of Immigration Canada officials. In fact, a Palestinian refugee claimant from the Occupied Territories has recently received a positive PRRA decision acknowledging the dangers faced by Palestinians under military occupation as reported extensively by countless well-recognized human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. Furthermore, there is clear Canadian acknowledgement of the danger and persecution faced by Osama and other Palestinians in the Occupied Territories. This acknowledgment is outlined by the travel advisory issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade which states: "Canadians should not travel to the West Bank or Gaza Strip, which continue to be affected by serious violence. Canadians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip should leave as they are at high risk. They may, however, encounter difficulties departing these territories during times of Israeli closures or curfew, which are frequent." To have one arm of the Canadian Government acknowledge and warn against the ever-present dangers in these areas, and have another arm of the Government forcefully deport refugees back to these same areas is, to say the least, disturbing. Osama is one of dozens of Palestinian refugees residing in Montreal who are facing deportation to the Occupied Territories and the refugee camps in Lebanon. I hope that you will find in you the courage and willingness to exercise your discretionary powers to immediately stay the deportation of Osama Saleh Omar and that of the other failed Palestinian refugee claimants and to grant them permanent residency on Humanitarian and Compassionate grounds. I am certain that a spirit of humanitarianism will be upheld and furthered by you at this most crucial time. Sincerely, (Your name) Cc. Michel Dorais, Deputy Minister, Citizenship & Immigration Canada. ------------------------------------------ From news at resist.ca Sat Apr 24 15:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sat, 24 Apr 2004 22:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Labour Relations Board mediator walks out of HEU negotiations Message-ID: <20040424221703.9634.qmail@resist.ca> General Strike News 21-Apr-04: A Labour Relations Board mediator appointed at the request of health employers has booked himself out of talks after it became clear that HEABC has no intention of putting a hold on layoffs during negotiations or revising their massive concessions package. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/22/12408/6113 From news at resist.ca Sat Apr 24 15:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sat, 24 Apr 2004 22:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] FDA covers up antidepressant-suicide link in kids, muzzles whistleblower Message-ID: <20040424221703.9635.qmail@resist.ca> FDA officials have provoked congressional hearings at which they will have to explain, not only why they concealed data linking antidepressants to increased violent and suicidal behavior, and why they covered up a report by the agency's primary medical expert, Dr. Mosholder, confirming the risk. They will also have to explain why they should be allowed to continue in their office inasmuch as the information they deliberately concealed from physicians and parents is critical to the life safety and health of our nation's children. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/22/122338/411 From news at resist.ca Sat Apr 24 15:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sat, 24 Apr 2004 22:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Poland planning pull-out of troops from Iraq Message-ID: <20040424221703.9636.qmail@resist.ca> Irish Times - April 20, 2004 The revelation yesterday by a senior government adviser that Poland's 2,500 soldiers would leave Iraq comes just a day after the new Spanish Prime Minister, Mr Jos? Luis Rodr?guez Zapatero, announced the pull-out of Spanish troops "as soon as possible". URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/22/122929/803 From news at resist.ca Sat Apr 24 16:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Sat, 24 Apr 2004 23:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] More women using morning-after pill, statistics suggest Message-ID: <20040424231703.13870.qmail@resist.ca> http://www.canada.com/saskatoon/ Saskatoon - The number of women going to pharmacists for emergency contraception appears to be growing, according to provincial statistics. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/24/15541/9365 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 25 17:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 00:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Cops bust eleven in 'food grab' protest Message-ID: <20040426001702.16540.qmail@resist.ca> BELLEVILLE, Ont. -- Eleven people have been charged with counselling to commit theft after an unusual anti-poverty protest in which people were encouraged to steal, police say. The accused are all members of the Tenant Action Group and were arrested Friday at an east-end grocery store in this eastern Ontario city. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/25/161941/300 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 25 23:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 06:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] Armed peasants seek to scupper Peru copper project Message-ID: <20040426061709.11627.qmail@resist.ca> Reuters, 04.22.04 - By Jude Webber LIMA, Peru, April 22 (Reuters) - About 1,000 peasants armed with shotguns, machetes and sticks marched on a British-run copper project in northern Peru this week, seeking to drive out the miners, senior officials said on Thursday. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/24/17839/4036 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 25 23:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 06:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] spartacus books: 1973-2004 Message-ID: <20040426061709.11625.qmail@resist.ca> yang chang today was the day that vancouver's collectively-run, non-profit, radical bookstore, Spartacus Books went up in smoke. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/25/22422/7778 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 25 23:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 06:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] Montrealers close down the US consulate Message-ID: <20040426061709.11626.qmail@resist.ca> As US bombers continued to terrorise people in Fallujah, and as their troops surround the holy city of Najaf, a small group of people in Montreal succeeded in closing down the US consulate for four hours on Friday. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/25/225231/162 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 25 23:17:10 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 06:17:10 -0000 Subject: [news] BC now has lowest hospital support wages in Canada Message-ID: <20040426061710.11638.qmail@resist.ca> Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives 21-Apr-04: Privatization has eliminated 30 years of pay equity gains and has put BC at the bottom of the barrel nationally when it comes to wages and benefits for women working in health support occupations. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/22/12430/5586 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 25 23:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 06:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] Study Suspects Thousands of False Convictions Message-ID: <20040426061710.11629.qmail@resist.ca> April 19, 2004 - New York Times A comprehensive study of 328 criminal cases over the last 15 years in which the convicted person was exonerated suggests that there are thousands of innocent people in prison today. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/24/162616/705 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 25 23:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 06:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] Planet of Slums Message-ID: <20040426061710.11628.qmail@resist.ca> Mike Davis - New Left Review Sometime in the next year, a woman will give birth in the Lagos slum of Ajegunle, a young man will flee his village in west Java for the bright lights of Jakarta, or a farmer will move his impoverished family into one of Lima?s innumerable pueblos jovenes. The exact event is unimportant and it will pass entirely unnoticed. Nonetheless it will constitute a watershed in human history. For the first time the urban population of the earth will outnumber the rural. Indeed, given the imprecisions of Third World censuses, this epochal transition may already have occurred. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/24/162157/343 From news at resist.ca Sun Apr 25 23:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 06:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] Escalation by Israeli Forces in Occupied Palestine Message-ID: <20040426061710.11632.qmail@resist.ca> This is an alert from ISM Palestine to give you all a heads up about the developing situation in Palestine. Activists throughout the West Bank and Gaza have reported a marked increase in Israeli military activity since the Bush-Sharon summit in Washington and the situation seems ready to escalate even further. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/23/16425/5210 From christoff at resist.ca Mon Apr 26 19:02:53 2004 From: christoff at resist.ca (Stefan Christoff) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 19:02:53 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [news] {Update!} Stop the Deportation of Palestinian Refugee Osama Saleh Omar! Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 18:46:50 -0700 (PDT) From: No One is Illegal Montreal STOP THE DEPORTATION OF OSAMA SALEH OMAR! Resist the Deportation of a Palestinian Refugee to Occupied Palestine! --------------------------------------- WEDNESDAY APRIL 28th, 4pm - 6pm Citizenship and Immigration Canada 1010 St-Antoine West, (metro Bonaventure) --------------------------------------- THURSDAY APRIL 29th, 11am Federal Court, 30 McGill Ave. (metro Square-Victoria) --------------------------------------- We are urgently calling for your support and solidarity to ensure that Osama Saleh's deportation does not take place. He faces deportation from Canada, to the West Bank town of Tulkurm this Thursday April 29th. The fact that Citizenship and Immigration Canada plans to forcefully deport Osama, a Palestinian refugee to the deadly and illegal Israeli occupation, illustrates the profound injustice which is being perpetuated against Palestinian refugees facing deportation from Canada. We are calling on you to take action! The Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees is calling for a demonstration in solidarity with Osama Saleh this Wednesday from 4-6 pm, outside the Montreal offices of Citizenship and Immigration Canada, to demand that Judy Sgro Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada and Anne McLellan Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness to use their discretionary powers to halt Mr. Saleh's deportation. We also are calling on you to attend Osama's Federal Court hearing, this Thursday, where Osama's immigration lawyer Stewart Istvanffy will appeal his pending deportation order. Your presence at the hearing is extremely important, as we must illustrate to the Federal Court and to Immigration Canada that there is growing popular support for Osama's struggle against his deportation to the West Bank. In Solidarity, Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees Information: / Email: refugees at riseup.net / Tel: 514 591 3171 --------------------------------------- BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON OSAMA SALEH: --------------------------------------- The rejection of Osama Saleh's refugee claim and now pending deportation, illustrates the institutionalized persecution, which Palestinian refugees have been subject to at the hands of Citizenship and Immigration Canada. Osama has experienced the harsh realities of the Israeli occupation throughout his life. As a child, he witnessed the arrest of his father and endured heavy beatings at the hands of Israeli soldiers. During the first Intifada, Osama as a young man was incarcerated for 10 months in an Israeli jail simply for participating in demonstrations. Osama`s case clearly illustrates the consistent biases of members of the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) toward Palestinian Refugees. In 2002, Osama's refugee claim was rejected, despite his well-documented history of torture, arrest, systematic persecution and violence as a stateless Palestinian living under military occupation. Osama`s rejected Pre-Removal Risk Assessment (PRAA) decision states: "It has been determined that you would not be subject to risk of persecution, torture, risk to life or risk of cruel and unusual treatment or punishment should you be returned to your country of nationality or habitual residence." However, it is clear that Osama will face "persecution and risk to life" if he is deported to the military occupation in the West Bank. Osama's case further illustrates the disturbing and inconsistent decision-making of Immigration Canada officials. In fact, a Palestinian refugee claimant from the Occupied Territories has recently received a positive PRRA decision acknowledging the dangers faced by Palestinians under military occupation as reported extensively by countless well-recognized human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. Furthermore, there is clear Canadian acknowledgement of the danger and persecution faced by Osama and other Palestinians in the Occupied Territories. This acknowledgment is outlined by the travel advisory issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade which states: "Canadians should not travel to the West Bank or Gaza Strip, which continue to be affected by serious violence. Canadians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip should leave as they are at high risk. They may, however, encounter difficulties departing these territories during times of Israeli closures or curfew, which are frequent." To have one arm of the Canadian Government acknowledge and warn against the ever-present dangers in these areas, and have another arm of the Government forcefully deport refugees back to these same areas is, to say the least, disturbing. Osama is from the town of Tulkarem, which has been one of the most severely affected towns in the West Bank throughout the second Intifada. Since the start of the second Intifada in September 2000, over 2,775 Palestinians have been killed, and over 28,000 have been injured. B'Tselem (an Israeli human rights organization) reports that Israeli security forces consistently use violence, against Palestinians unnecessarily and without justification. Inhumane curfews, checkpoints and closures, stifling restrictions on freedom of movement, and the destruction of civilian homes and agricultural land are tools to enact a policy of collective punishment on all Palestinians. _________________________________________________________________ http://join.msn.com/?pgmarket=en-ca&page=byoa/prem&xAPID=1994&DI=1034&SU=http://hotmail.com/enca&HL=Market_MSNIS_Taglines From edoherty at portal.ca Mon Apr 26 18:41:14 2004 From: edoherty at portal.ca (Maryann Abbs / Eric Doherty) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 18:41:14 -0700 Subject: [news] Call out for HEU Picket Support Message-ID: <408DBA3A.640ED5DD@portal.ca> Please come out and support HEU on the picket line - the priority sites rights now are: In Vancouver: Cooper Place - 306 East Cordova Dogwood Care Centre - 500 East 57th Avenue Children's Hospital - 4480 Oak Street St. Paul's Hospital - 1081 Burrard Street Three Links Care Home - 2934 East 22nd Avenue Vancouver Hospital - 12th and Heather Outside Vancouver, the priorities are: Chilliwack Hospital - 45600 Menhom Road Royal Columbian Hospital - 330 East Columbian Street Langley Hospital - 22051 Fraser Highway Queen's Park Hospital - 315 McBride Blvd. - New Westminister Support Pickers are especially needed between 4 pm to 10 pm. Please call 604-209-9227 or email mabbs at heu.org if you would like to be called out for HEU actions. From christoff at resist.ca Mon Apr 26 19:55:46 2004 From: christoff at resist.ca (Stefan Christoff) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 19:55:46 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [news] {Correction!} Stop the Deportation of Palestinian Refugee Osama Saleh Omar! Message-ID: Please disregard the last e-mail. Corrected dates and time are below. Please join us on Wednesday and Thursday as we mobilize to stop the deportation of Palestinian refugee Osama Saleh Omar! ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 18:46:50 -0700 (PDT) From: No One is Illegal Montreal STOP THE DEPORTATION OF OSAMA SALEH OMAR! Resist the Deportation of a Palestinian Refugee to Occupied Palestine! --------------------------------------- WEDNESDAY APRIL 28th, 11am Federal Court, 30 McGill Ave. (metro Square-Victoria) --------------------------------------- THURSDAY APRIL 29th, 8am Citizenship and Immigration Canada 1010 St-Antoine West, (metro Bonaventure) --------------------------------------- We are urgently calling for your support and solidarity to ensure that Osama Saleh's deportation does not take place. He faces deportation from Canada, to the West Bank town of Tulkurm this Thursday April 29th. The fact that Citizenship and Immigration Canada plans to forcefully deport Osama, a Palestinian refugee to the deadly and illegal Israeli occupation, illustrates the profound injustice which is being perpetuated against Palestinian refugees facing deportation from Canada. We are calling on you to take action! The Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees is calling for a demonstration in solidarity with Osama Saleh this Wednesday from 4-6 pm, outside the Montreal offices of Citizenship and Immigration Canada, to demand that Judy Sgro Minister of Citizenship and Immigration Canada and Anne McLellan Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness to use their discretionary powers to halt Mr. Saleh's deportation. We also are calling on you to attend Osama's Federal Court hearing, this Thursday, where Osama's immigration lawyer Stewart Istvanffy will appeal his pending deportation order. Your presence at the hearing is extremely important, as we must illustrate to the Federal Court and to Immigration Canada that there is growing popular support for Osama's struggle against his deportation to the West Bank. In Solidarity, Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees Information: / Email: refugees at riseup.net / Tel: 514 591 3171 --------------------------------------- BACKGROUND INFORMATION ON OSAMA SALEH: --------------------------------------- The rejection of Osama Saleh's refugee claim and now pending deportation, illustrates the institutionalized persecution, which Palestinian refugees have been subject to at the hands of Citizenship and Immigration Canada. Osama has experienced the harsh realities of the Israeli occupation throughout his life. As a child, he witnessed the arrest of his father and endured heavy beatings at the hands of Israeli soldiers. During the first Intifada, Osama as a young man was incarcerated for 10 months in an Israeli jail simply for participating in demonstrations. Osama`s case clearly illustrates the consistent biases of members of the Immigration and Refugee Board (IRB) toward Palestinian Refugees. In 2002, Osama's refugee claim was rejected, despite his well-documented history of torture, arrest, systematic persecution and violence as a stateless Palestinian living under military occupation. Osama`s rejected Pre-Removal Risk Assessment (PRAA) decision states: "It has been determined that you would not be subject to risk of persecution, torture, risk to life or risk of cruel and unusual treatment or punishment should you be returned to your country of nationality or habitual residence." However, it is clear that Osama will face "persecution and risk to life" if he is deported to the military occupation in the West Bank. Osama's case further illustrates the disturbing and inconsistent decision-making of Immigration Canada officials. In fact, a Palestinian refugee claimant from the Occupied Territories has recently received a positive PRRA decision acknowledging the dangers faced by Palestinians under military occupation as reported extensively by countless well-recognized human rights organizations such as Amnesty International and the United Nations Commission on Human Rights. Furthermore, there is clear Canadian acknowledgement of the danger and persecution faced by Osama and other Palestinians in the Occupied Territories. This acknowledgment is outlined by the travel advisory issued by the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade which states: "Canadians should not travel to the West Bank or Gaza Strip, which continue to be affected by serious violence. Canadians in the West Bank and Gaza Strip should leave as they are at high risk. They may, however, encounter difficulties departing these territories during times of Israeli closures or curfew, which are frequent." To have one arm of the Canadian Government acknowledge and warn against the ever-present dangers in these areas, and have another arm of the Government forcefully deport refugees back to these same areas is, to say the least, disturbing. Osama is from the town of Tulkarem, which has been one of the most severely affected towns in the West Bank throughout the second Intifada. Since the start of the second Intifada in September 2000, over 2,775 Palestinians have been killed, and over 28,000 have been injured. B'Tselem (an Israeli human rights organization) reports that Israeli security forces consistently use violence, against Palestinians unnecessarily and without justification. Inhumane curfews, checkpoints and closures, stifling restrictions on freedom of movement, and the destruction of civilian homes and agricultural land are tools to enact a policy of collective punishment on all Palestinians. _________________________________________________________________ http://join.msn.com/?pgmarket=en-ca&page=byoa/prem&xAPID=1994&DI=1034&SU=http://hotmail.com/enca&HL=Market_MSNIS_Taglines From garlicbobcat at resist.ca Mon Apr 26 20:43:58 2004 From: garlicbobcat at resist.ca (Big Garlic Bobcat) Date: Mon, 26 Apr 2004 20:43:58 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [news] Tenant Action Group Steal A Thon Message-ID: <2566.24.84.250.20.1083037438.squirrel@mail.resist.ca> ARTICLES FROM THE BELLEVILLE INTELLIGENCER WEBSITE TAG hopes to bag free groceries By Jeremy Ashley Friday, April 23, 2004 - 10:00 Local News - The latest in urban guerrilla protest tactics? How about stealing from supermarket shelves to protest welfare and disability rates. It?s all part of an upcoming era of ?militant attacks? planned by the Tenant Action Group, a collective of local agitators with ties to the Ontario Common Front and the Ontario Coalition Against Poverty. In a statement issued to local media Thursday morning, TAG organizers detailed a ?Steal-a-thon? campaign, which is purportedly set to target Belleville grocery stores this spring in protest of welfare and disability rates in Ontario. According to the memorandum, the event will involve ?unannounced ?food grabs? where people in need will enter local grocery stores en masse and help themselves to what the provincial government refuses to provide.? Members are ?willing to engage in civil disobedience in order to help people in need provide for their families,? the release stated. ?This action is part of an Ontario-wide campaign organized by anti-poverty groups that seeks to have the Liberal government increase welfare and Ontario Disability rates by 40 per cent. The announcement prompted city police and surrounding OPP detachments to issue warnings to merchants about the initiative. Reached by The Intelligencer, TAG organizer Katharine Davis said encouraging members and the public to commit a criminal act is just a taste of what?s to come from TAG in the months leading to an Ontario Common Front ?Raise the Rates? protest in Toronto this summer. ?It is going to be militant attacks ... I don?t mean physical, but we are upping the ante and we are taking more drastic measures. We are talking about people getting serious about the state we?re in. And if that?s uncomfortable for people, well, it?s been uncomfortable for us for a really long time.? Davis said MPP Ernie Parsons lied to TAG leaders when the group met with him late last year at Queen?s Park to discuss potential increases in welfare and disability rates. ?What are the options? People are still hungry and the rates aren?t being raised. If there is a community outcry, let?s hate the system and not the players. Sure they can arrest us for stealing food to feed our families ... but the real culprit here is the Liberal government. ?Believe me, the next time the Liberals put on a food function, seems to me that that is an interesting target to look at as well.? As well, Davis said TAG members wrote letters to several grocery stores recently, outlining problems facing people living with lower incomes and asking for support. ?We didn?t get a phone call back ... we got nothing.? Food banks and social agencies are not filling the gap for the low income earners, she claimed, and targeting a successful private business is a ?necessity? to get the group?s point across. ?Yeah, I wish it wasn?t (targeted against) the big businesses, but something tells me they?re not suffering in the same way and unfortunately we?re not given a lot of options here ? it?s not like we?ve been given a better target.? According to Davis, after food is stolen from the grocery stores, it will be taken to a distribution point where it will be handed out to people in need. She refused to confirm dates and times of the attacks, saying to do so would be ?self-defeating... and the plan and the action is to not make it that easy to stop us. ?It?s a day-to-day campaign and all we?re doing now is making it very public and making it very open and encouraging and organizing those actions for people who are desperate enough. ?People are taking the drastic measures of stealing things and what we are doing as a group (are) supporting it, encouraging it. We?re encouraging these types of actions... in Belleville. ?And so if the grocery stores and people are uptight about it ... so now we?re sharing in this disgusting environment that Ontario has become where people are forced to do it. ?I think it?s important for people to understand where these people are.? ID Organizers could face criminal charges By Jeremy Ashley Friday, April 23, 2004 - 10:00 Local News - Organizers of a ?Steal-a-thon? protest could face criminal charges if the event moves ahead as planned, city police Chief Steve Tanner warns. Thursday morning, the Tenant Action Group issued a statement warning that, in upcoming weeks, local grocery stores will be targeted as part of a co-ordinated ?en masse? effort to steal merchandise to feed the hungry. According to the release, the strategy is in retaliation for the Ontario government not raising disability or welfare rates, stating that, ?...TAG is organizing unannounced ?food grabs? where people in need will enter local grocery stores en masse and help themselves to what the provincial government refuses to provide.? The news sparked immediate action from city and surrounding provincial police detachments, who warned merchants throughout the region to be aware of the potential activity. Police Chief Tanner said city police ?received information through another agency that there was a provincial TAG initiative ... to target different locations for what they termed a ?steal-a-thon? sometime Friday (today).? Belleville is one of the first cities in the province to be targeted for such an event, Tanner explained, which prompted officers to issue warnings to local grocery stores and other merchants in the area. Provincial police out of the Napanee detachment also issued a advisory to merchants, saying the event was scheduled to take place today at a number of outlets ?in and around the Belleville area.? If the event moves ahead and charges of theft are laid, Tanner said TAG organizers could face charges under the Criminal Code of Canada ? if an investigation is initiated by city police. ?... You could look at charges along the lines of conspiracy. You can have a conspiracy to commit a criminal offence, so you could have someone who is organizing this, who never takes part in it, but they could technically be part of the conspiracy.? TAG spokesperson Katherine Davis acknowledged a possibility that she and other colleagues could face theft and conspiracy charges. ?It is definitely a possibility ... but you?re kind of coming at it from a different way,? she explained. ?When we sit around and organize these types of events ... everybody?s response is kind of common ? we all steal shit from the grocery stores anyway and we do it because we don?t have a lot of options.? Despite all the attention the planned activity garnered, Tanner said it should not be cause for alarm, noting that police are on hand to respond to calls for assistance. ?I think there are a lot of ways in a democratic country that people can get their points across through protests or whatever they choose. But to break the law and commit theft is not the way to go.? WHIG STANDARD Police brace for ?steal-a-thon' By Tamsin McMahon Friday, April 23, 2004 - 07:00 Local News - Police in Belleville and Napanee are stepping up security after getting a tip that a tenant rights group is planning a mass ?steal-a-thon? today to protest the provincial government?s refusal to raise welfare rates. Tenant Action Group out of Belleville issued a news release yesterday saying it was putting area grocery stores on notice that it is planning ?unannounced ?food grabs,? where people in need will enter local grocery stores en masse and help themselves to what the provincial government refuses to provide.? The group, which has staged sit-ins in welfare offices, said it had no choice but to go out and steal food after what it called a string of broken promises from the Ontario Liberals regarding social assistance. The group met MPP Ernie Parsons four months ago asking that the government raise rates for welfare and disability payments. It elicited a promise from Parsons to raise disability rates at the start of this year, but has so far not seen any action. ?If the provincial government forces welfare and Ontario Disability recipients to scrape out an existence on starvation-level benefits, then we are left with little choice but to steal food for our children to survive,? the group wrote in a news release. Organizers didn?t return phone calls by The Whig-Standard yesterday. Napanee OPP received a fax of an e-mail Wednesday afternoon sent to Belleville Police talking about the group?s plans and calling the protest a mass steal-a-thon, said Const. Sheri Wanamaker. Police went to six or seven stores in the community to alert staff of the planned protest. ?We?ve gone to our larger stores and forewarned them that this might happen,? she said. ?Fortunately here in Napanee we don?t have that many large stores.? Wanamaker said the e-mail given to OPP spoke of a highly organized protest, with some participants even offering food and accommodation to protesters coming from out of town. There?s little police can do until an actual crime is committed, she said, but OPP have asked patrol officers to give some of the possible target stores extra attention. ?Realistically that?s all we can do,? she said. Belleville Police say they?ve added extra patrol officers today in case of any problems with the planned protest, said Staff Sgt. Al Portt. ?We just don?t know what the day will hold,? he said. ?We?d rather have too many than too few.? The Quinte Mall didn?t know whether it was a planned target for protesters, but general manager Andrea Brady said the mall has hired duty police officers and extra security just to be sure. Announcements of the steal-a-thon had made their way onto Belleville radio stations yesterday and stores were already calling police to ask them what they knew of the protest, Napanee?s Wanamaker said. ?So word is travelling fast and hopefully it?s a good thing,? she said. FOR MORE ON THE TENANT ACTION GROUP: www.ocap.ca/tag www.freewebs.com/joeyonly From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 26 22:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 27 Apr 2004 05:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Trans awareness week: interview with Tami Starlight Message-ID: <20040427051702.1054.qmail@resist.ca> April 26, 2004 - Stephen Hui - Seven Oaks Next week, events in Vancouver, Toronto, and Saint John, New Brunswick, will mark the first Canada-wide observance of Trans Awareness Week. Seven Oaks spoke to Starlight, a 39-year-old transsexual woman, about Trans Awareness Week and the state of the trans community in Canada. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/26/21372/5234 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 26 22:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 27 Apr 2004 05:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Tribes gain right to prosecute nonmembers Message-ID: <20040427051703.1055.qmail@resist.ca> By Bill Donovan - Navajo Times, 4/18/04 In a 7-2 decision, the Supreme Court Monday upheld the right of the federal government to prosecute cases on Indian reservations even after a tribal court conviction. In the decision, the court also ruled - and this what attracted the interest of the Navajo Nation Department of Justice - that Congress extended tribes' sovereignty in 1991 to include the ability to prosecute nonmember Indians for acts committed on the tribe's reservation. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/24/173024/999 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 26 22:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 27 Apr 2004 05:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] BC Liberals impose legislation on class size provisions already quashed by Supreme Court Message-ID: <20040427051703.1056.qmail@resist.ca> BC Labour News Network The BC Liberal government introduced legislation April 20 that prohibits contractual guarantees on class-size limits, services to students with special needs or support from specialist teachers in BC schools. The legislation exactly mirrors an arbitrator's decision that was quashed four months ago by the BC Supreme Court. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/24/165145/677 From news at resist.ca Mon Apr 26 22:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 27 Apr 2004 05:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] US-led Troops in Iraq are targeting hospitals, ambulances and civilians Message-ID: <20040427051703.1057.qmail@resist.ca> health-now.org According to an international campaign group, there is strong evidence that the US-led occupation forces are guilty of war crimes in Iraq. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/24/163522/676 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 27 16:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Tue, 27 Apr 2004 23:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] B.C. Rail protest stops train Message-ID: <20040427231704.24029.qmail@resist.ca> PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. - A group of people opposed to the provincial Liberals' privatization of B.C. Rail have blocked a train near Prince George. The group stepped onto the tracks and stopped a train being shunted in the B.C. Rail yard in the Central Interior city. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/27/15203/9720 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 27 17:17:09 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2004 00:17:09 -0000 Subject: [news] BC Common Front - Support HEU & Other Health Unions With All Necessary Assistance Message-ID: <20040428001709.29475.qmail@resist.ca> The BC Common Front unconditionally supports the Hospital Employee's Union (HEU) and other health care unions in their struggle against the BC Liberals and their management lackeys in the BC Health Employer's Association (HEABC). The HEU's fight to protect their jobs and standard of living from the ravages wrought by privatization is, at the same time, a fight for a quality public health care system where both workers and patients are treated with dignity and respect. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/27/151936/333 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 27 23:17:06 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2004 06:17:06 -0000 Subject: [news] Rash of shootings targets police Message-ID: <20040428061707.25413.qmail@resist.ca> April 24, 2004 - LOS ANGELES, California (AP) A spate of deadly police shootings in California has some officials worried that street gang culture, known to reward cop killers with status and respect, is ever emboldening gunmen to target officers. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/27/175045/133 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 27 23:17:06 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2004 06:17:06 -0000 Subject: [news] Venezuela to Prohibit Transgenic Crops - Chavez "terminates" Monsanto project Message-ID: <20040428061707.25415.qmail@resist.ca> Wednesday, Apr 21, 2004 - Jason Tockman - Venezuelanalysis.com CARACAS, Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez Frias has announced that the cultivation of genetically modified crops will be prohibited on Venezuelan soil, possibly establishing the most sweeping restrictions on transgenic crops in the Western Hemisphere. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/24/174427/946 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 27 23:17:06 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2004 06:17:06 -0000 Subject: [news] Strikers could defy back-to-work order: HEU leader Message-ID: <20040428061707.25412.qmail@resist.ca> CBC News PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. - A Hospital Employees' Union spokesperson from northern B.C. says striking workers may decide to defy any back-to-work legislation introduced by the provincial government. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/27/18920/8574 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 27 23:17:06 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2004 06:17:06 -0000 Subject: [news] Vanunu's release rekindles interest in Isreal's nukes Message-ID: <20040428061707.25414.qmail@resist.ca> Sunday Herald Mordechai Vanunu spent 18 years in prison for blowing the whistle on Israel?s secret nuclear programme. His release last week has now re-ignited the storm over the state?s atomic weapons stockpile. Investigations Editor Neil Mackay reports URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/27/175734/608 From news at resist.ca Tue Apr 27 23:17:07 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2004 06:17:07 -0000 Subject: [news] Apocalypse Please Message-ID: <20040428061708.25416.qmail@resist.ca> 20th April 2004 - The Guardian (UK) To understand what is happening in the Middle East, you must first understand what is happening in Texas. To understand what is happening there, you should read the resolutions passed at the state's Republican party conventions last month. Take a look, for example, at the decisions made in Harris County, which covers much of Houston. The delegates began by nodding through a few uncontroversial matters: homosexuality is contrary to the truths ordained by God; "any mechanism to process, license, record, register or monitor the ownership of guns" should be repealed; income tax, inheritance tax, capital gains tax and corporation tax should be abolished; and immigrants should be deterred by electric fences. Thus fortified, they turned to the real issue: the affairs of a small state 7000 miles away. It was then, according to a participant, that the "screaming and near fistfights" began. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/24/17340/2623 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 28 14:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2004 21:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Workplace deaths mourned Message-ID: <20040428211703.22009.qmail@resist.ca> OTTAWA - A 25-year-old man installing a high-speed internet line in High River, Alberta died on Monday after he was crushed by an unattended backhoe. In Sackville, N.B., on Saturday, a veteran CN Rail worker was crushed to death between two rail cars. The two fatalities are the latest examples of the more than 900 people who die each year on the job. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/28/134559/605 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 28 23:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2004 06:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Ambassadors' letter to Blair Message-ID: <20040429061702.32274.qmail@resist.ca> BBC NEWS The following is the letter sent by more than 50 former British ambassadors and other dignitaries to Tony Blair, urging him either to influence US policy in the Middle East or to stop backing it URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/27/18413/2101 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 28 23:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2004 06:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Rape, torture, and one million forced to flee as Sudan's crisis unfolds Message-ID: <20040429061703.32275.qmail@resist.ca> The Sudan is where some of the world's worst human rights abuses are occurring and nothing is being done to stop it. It is ethnic cleansing Sudanese-style. A government-sponsored campaign, led by Arab tribesmen against their black African neighbours, has triggered the greatest humanitarian crisis of our time and - with the world's eyes fixed on Iraq - its most forgotten calamity. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/27/185651/124 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 28 23:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2004 06:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Peru sends police into riot town Message-ID: <20040429061703.32277.qmail@resist.ca> bbc Police have returned in force to the south-east Peruvian town of Ilave where native Indian protesters lynched the mayor and attacked the police station with petrol bombs. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/27/17397/4741 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 28 23:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2004 06:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] RAV strategy moves control away from local authorities Message-ID: <20040429061703.32276.qmail@resist.ca> Vancouver Sun - Tuesday, April 27, 2004 How did we get to this point? Citizens in the Lower Mainland are now just days away (May 7) from seeing their municipal governments approve a transit project whose priority many question, and that will be carried out as a privatization scheme that makes no sense. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/27/18133/9487 From news at resist.ca Wed Apr 28 23:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2004 06:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Super Organics Message-ID: <20040429061703.32278.qmail@resist.ca> Wired Magazine Forget Frankenfruit - the new-and-improved flavor of gene science is Earth-friendly and all-natural. Welcome to the golden age of smart breeding. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/27/174526/883 From mbatko at lycos.com Wed Apr 28 11:14:28 2004 From: mbatko at lycos.com (marc batko) Date: Wed, 28 Apr 2004 11:14:28 -0700 Subject: [news] 300 Translated Articles! Enjoy the Feast amid the Gloom! Message-ID: 300 translated articles on human rights, economic ethics, liberation theology, anti-militarism and political theory await you on www.mbtranslations.com. Among the vital articles are "Against the False Prophet George W. Bush" by Jurgen Fliegen, "The Strong Alone is Helpless" by Theo Sommer, "Crisis as a Chance - Exodus from the Accumulation Logic" by Maria Mies and "Identities, Hear the Signals!" by Frederika Habermann. Enjoy the feast! I welcome your comments and hope that Spartacus Books will rise again! Hoping for peace with justice, Marc Batko mbatko at lycos.com ____________________________________________________________ Find what you are looking for with the Lycos Yellow Pages http://r.lycos.com/r/yp_emailfooter/http://yellowpages.lycos.com/default.asp?SRC=lycos10 From pnbrown at vcn.bc.ca Thu Apr 29 16:38:55 2004 From: pnbrown at vcn.bc.ca (Paul Browning) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2004 16:38:55 -0700 Subject: [news] Fw: "The most ominous threat to academic freedom in decades looms..." Message-ID: <01a201c42e43$230e9020$6401a8c0@PAUL> ----- Original Message ----- From: To: ; Sent: Tuesday, April 06, 2004 4:49 PM Subject: "The most ominous threat to academic freedom in decades looms..." > > >>http://seattlepi.nwsource.com/opinion/167348_academic02.html > >> > >>Seattle Post-Intelligencer April 2, 2004 > >> > >>Be careful what you say on campus > >> > >>By Beshara Doumani > >> > >>The most ominous threat to academic freedom in decades looms > in a seemingly innocuous Senate bill expected to come up for vote > shortly. A short but critical clause would rob our society of the open > exchange of ideas on college campuses that is vital to our democracy. > >> > House Resolution 3077 passed last fall. It included a provision > to establish an advisory board to monitor campus international > studies centers in order to ensure that they advance the national > interest. While the law would apply to all federally funded institutes > with an international focus, the target is clearly the nation's 17 centers > for Middle East studies. The driving force behind this provision is the > same group of conservative ideologues who > >>have long promoted the war on Iraq and who support the extreme > right-wing politics of the Sharon government in Israel. Their aim is to > defend the foreign policy of this administration by stifling critical and > informed discussion on U.S. campuses. > >> > >>The Senate vote comes at a time in which conservative activists > walk the corridors of power in Washington, D.C. They include > Education Secretary Rod Paige, who in a moment of failed but > revealing levity, recently described the National Education Association, > with 2.7 million member teachers, as a terrorist organization. > >> > >>For professors like me, entrusted with teaching facts as well as > critical > >>thinking and the ability to analyze all sides of an issue, the pending > >>legislation must be viewed against the backdrop of other recent > and chilling > >>developments. > >> > >>Be careful what books you buy or check out from the library. You > could be > >>monitored under the terms of the U.S. Patriot Act. A further > provision of > >>that law threatens criminal prosecution of anyone alerting you to > government > >>inspection of your selections. > >> > >>Be careful what readings you assign. The University of North > Carolina at > >>Chapel Hill was sued by the American Family Association Center > for Law and > >>Policy for assigning a book on Islam for incoming freshman > students. The > >>university held firm, and, fortunately, the court of appeals > dismissed the > >>suit. > >> > >>Be careful what you say in or out of class. Campus Watch and > other hawkish, > >>pro-Israeli right-wing organizations have launched campaigns to > pressure and > >>discredit professors judged to be un-American for questioning > U.S. policy in > >>the Middle East. Some organizations openly recruit students to > inform on > >>their teachers. > >> > >>Students and faculty connected academically or culturally to > Muslim and > >>Middle Eastern countries have been especially targeted. Some > have been > >>subjected to hate mail blitzes and their institutions pressured to > >>short-circuit their careers. Sen. Rick Santorum, R-Penn., > announced his > >>intent last April to introduce legislation cutting federal funding to > >>institutions of higher learning where students or faculty > criticize Israel, > >>labeling such criticism -- regardless of its content or basis in > fact -- as > >>anti-Semitic. > >> > >>All of this will seem like child's play, though, if the attempt > to stifle > >>academic freedom is formalized through Congress. > >> > >>If the legislation before the Senate passes, an advisory board > would monitor > >>area studies programs that receive money from the U.S. > government > under the > >>Title VI program. The Association of American University > Professors, the > >>ACLU and most professional organizations have raised alarms > about this > >>unprecedented government invasion of the classroom. Among their > concerns are > >>the board's sweeping investigative powers, lack of accountability > and > >>makeup, which would be composed in part from two agencies with > national > >>security responsibilities. > >> > >>Should such a government-appointed board be allowed to police > the > classroom > >>by deciding what constitutes a diverse or balanced lecture or if > a teacher's > >>research is in the national interest? Yes, if HR 3077 is passed, > because it > >>will replace the professional standards of the academy with > arbitrary > >>political standards. > >> > >>These are dangerous times indeed when politicians and private > interest > >>groups are willing to sacrifice academic freedom in order to > achieve their > >>domestic partisan or foreign policy goals. A key supporter of the > current > >>Senate legislation, Campus Watch founder Daniel Pipes, shared > his > thoughts > >>with Salon.com. In discussing MIT linguistics Professor Noam > Chomsky -- > >>recipient of numerous honorary degrees and scientific awards -- > Pipes said, > >>"I want Noam Chomsky to be taught at universities about as much > as I want > >>Hitler's writing or Stalin's writing. These are wild and > extremist ideas > >>that I believe have no place in a university." > >> > >>Should academic freedom be effectively shelved in order to pursue > a war > >>against terror without end? Are these dark clouds hanging over > U.S. campuses > >>a passing storm or the harbinger of fundamental changes in the > freedom to > >>teach, learn, question, discuss and debate? How will universities > and > >>colleges respond when they are starved for resources and more > dependent than > >>ever on the funding that would be withdrawn if a professor were > deemed out > >>of line? > >> > >>At stake is the continuation of the academy as the bastion of > informed, > >>independent and alternative perspectives crucial to a better > understanding > >>of the world we live in. If teachers and students cannot think > and speak > >>freely, who can? > >> > >> > >>Beshara Doumani is associate professor of history at the University > of > >>California, Berkeley. He organized a national conference, > Academic Freedom > >>After September 11th, which was held at UC Berkeley in February. > >> > >> > From christoff at resist.ca Fri Apr 30 14:48:57 2004 From: christoff at resist.ca (Stefan Christoff) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 14:48:57 -0700 (PDT) Subject: [news] MONTREAL: {The Gazette} Osama Saleh: Deportation order blocked Message-ID: ---------- Forwarded message ---------- Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 14:40:03 -0700 (PDT) From: No One is Illegal Montreal {Note : Below is an article written in the Montreal Gazette, concerning the recent Federal Court decision to halt Osama Saleh's deportation. Osama's victory represents the broader struggle of over 40 Palestinian refugees who have been refused refugee status in Canada and remain threatened with deportation from Canada. These refugees who have self-organized, as the Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees, continue to organize against their deportations, the majority of which are scheduled to be executed in the coming weeks and months. With your support and dedication, we will halt these profoundly unjust deportations. If you would like to support or get involved with the Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees please contact: refugees at riseup.net - 514 591 3171} DEPORTATION ORDER BLOCKED Court to re-examine palestinian's case. "It's a small ray of light in the very dark halls of Immigration Canada," activist says TRISTAN BAURICK Friday, April 30, 2004 {http://www.canada.com/montreal/montrealgazette/news/story.html?id=1fd404 d1-e7e8-4618-a0c2-10931eef9168} Osama Saleh had his toothbrush and Canadiens cap packed and ready for his scheduled deportation today. But a Federal Court judge yesterday halted the Palestinian's removal from Canada. "I cried when I heard," Saleh said. "I am so happy the court is giving me another chance." Saleh's refugee claim was denied in early April. The court will re-examine his case and issue a final decision in one to three months. Stefan Christoff, a member of the Coalition Against the Deportation of Palestinian Refugees, said Saleh's victory is the first his group has seen in Montreal this year. He estimates 40 other Palestinians face deportation. "It's a small ray of light in the very dark halls of Immigration Canada," Christoff said. Saleh would have been deported to the United States, his entry point to Canada after fleeing Israel more than three years ago. He probably would have been detained in the U.S. before being returned to Israel. Saleh's lawyer, Stewart Istvanffy, argued Saleh faced discrimination and a lack of due process if detained in the U.S. He also stressed the likelihood that Saleh would suffer persecution and violence if eventually returned to Israel's West Bank. Other immigrants facing deportation are heartened by Saleh's victory. "Many people are uplifted by this," said Sarita Ahooja, a member of the Action Committee for Non-Status Algerians. "We're very hopeful, not just for Palestinians but for everyone facing deportation." Immigrant-rights groups have increasingly worked together to fight deportations. A march in downtown Montreal on Saturday highlighted Saleh's case and called for an end to deportations for hundreds of Pakistanis, Colombians, Kurds, Algerians and others. "This victory attests to the power of collective action and to keeping up public pressure," Ahooja said. Saleh said he has only one regret. "I wished very much to stay here, but now I have to watch as the Canadiens are losing," he said with a laugh. ----------------- From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 29 10:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2004 17:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Government proclaims back-to-work law: Hospital Workers Vow to Fight Back Message-ID: <20040429171703.7222.qmail@resist.ca> VICTORIA - After an all-night debate, the province's back-to-work legislation for 43,000 hospital workers has been proclaimed into law by Lieutenant Governor Iona Campagnolo. The Liberal government passed the law early Thursday morning ? imposing a two-year contract on the unionized employees, and ordering them back to work immediately. Many HEU members remain defiant, and say they're willing to disobey the back-to- work order. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/29/992/93791 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 29 11:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2004 18:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Police increase pressure on Kanehsatake Message-ID: <20040429181703.12363.qmail@resist.ca> Concerned Kanehsatake Community Members Early this morning at approximately 6:45 40 police officers from James Gabriel's illegal police force attempted to enter Kanehsatake. They assembled themselves on route 344 west in their riot gear and began a confrontation with community members. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/29/105226/174 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 29 13:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2004 20:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Disabled complain of grinding poverty Message-ID: <20040429201703.22966.qmail@resist.ca> LONDON - Jay Dixon spent two months this winter living in her cold London apartment. She couldn't afford to pay her gas bill. So she spent February and March with hot water bottles covering her body, sleeping under eight blankets with a ski mask on, constantly worrying that her pipes would freeze before she did. Like thousands of Ontarians who can't work because of medical or physical disabilities, Dixon has lived on $11,160 a year (before taxes) for 11 years. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/29/12411/0573 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 29 14:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2004 21:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Hydro walkout in support of hospital workers Message-ID: <20040429211702.27670.qmail@resist.ca> PRINCE GEORGE, B.C. - Nearly 100 Hydro tradesmen at three of the biggest dams in B.C. have begun a wildcat strike in support of the hospital workers. Wayne McIvor is about 70 mechanics, millwrights, electricians, and labourers who walked off the job at the WAC Bennett Dam and the Peace Canyon Dam near Hudson's Hope ? about half the workforce. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/29/13595/3818 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 29 15:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Thu, 29 Apr 2004 22:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Union tells health workers to stay on 'protest line' Message-ID: <20040429221703.32509.qmail@resist.ca> VANCOUVER - Hospital Employees' Union head Chris Allnutt gave a clear directive to health workers Thursday to stay on the "protest line" in defiance of back-to-work legislation. Picket lines remained up at hospitals across B.C., despite the passing into law of Bill 37 in the early morning hours. The legislation, passed after an all-night legislative sitting, cuts salaries of health support workers and forces them into a longer work week for a total cut to wages and benefits totalling 15 per cent. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/29/992/93791 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 29 22:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 05:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Upcoming Cuts to WISH - Employment Transition Services for Sex Trade Workers Message-ID: <20040430051703.30735.qmail@resist.ca> J. MacPhail: According to a confidential question-and-answer document prepared for the Minister of Human Resources, British Columbians with mental health conditions and serious drug problems that interfere with their ability to search for and accept employment will have their benefits taken away if they don't look for work. The minister says it's all about helping people. He's writing letters to the editor to tell everybody to stand down and not worry. But he doesn't mention that his government is closing doors on innovative programs designed to get young people - many who have drug, alcohol and mental health problems - off the street. At the end of April, WISH, a non-profit society on the downtown east side, is losing a $125,000 provincial grant to provide pre-employment programs for sex trade workers, many of whom have mental health and addiction issues. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/29/142445/353 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 29 22:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 05:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Spend money on aid, not wars - World Bank head Message-ID: <20040430051703.30734.qmail@resist.ca> WASHINGTON (Reuters) - There is a "ludicrous" gap between the billions of dollars spent globally on defense and military activities and the sum spent on trying to reduce world poverty, World Bank President James Wolfensohn said on Sunday. Around $900 billion a year is thrown into defense spending compared to only $60 billion for foreign aid, he estimates. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/28/114539/231 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 29 22:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 05:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] IWA Voting; Bogus Ballots & Broken Bylaws Message-ID: <20040430051703.30738.qmail@resist.ca> By Andy Mathison The nominations and elections for delegates to the Industrial, Wood & Allied Workers (IWA) Local 1-3567's Annual Delegates Meeting (ADM) at the end of May have come and gone, leaving some Rank & File members dazed and disgruntled. Of course, this is not an unfamiliar feeling amongst members of the infamous "Ghag" Local. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/24/165639/900 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 29 22:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 05:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Bush Rejects Labor's Call to Punish China Message-ID: <20040430051703.30737.qmail@resist.ca> April 28 - With unusual fanfare, the Bush administration rejected on Wednesday an American labor organization's demand that China be punished for gaining trade advantages by violating the rights of workers. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/28/22483/3023 From news at resist.ca Thu Apr 29 22:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 05:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] The Top Ten Conservative Idiots Message-ID: <20040430051703.30740.qmail@resist.ca> democraticunderground.com - April 26, 2004 It's official: These people have no shame. Even though their candidate dodged service in Vietnam, then went AWOL from the National Guard, these assholes actually have the gall to question the John Kerry's military service. If the Critics of John Kerry's War Record really want to go there, I say bring it on. But they're not the only conservative idiots. Maytag Aircraft has fired an employee for taking pictures of flag-draped coffins, George W. Bush is engaged in a little illegal diversion of funds, and Donald Rumsfeld is doing a little creative editing. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/28/114942/466 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 30 09:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 16:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Ferry repair workers ready to strike Message-ID: <20040430161704.4548.qmail@resist.ca> VANCOUVER - More than 160 employees of Deas Pacific Marine, which does all the maintenance work on the B.C. Ferry fleet, have served 72-hour strike notice. Union spokesperson Andrew Tabbernor says if the two sides don't reach an agreement by Sunday afternoon, the workers will go out on strike. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/30/85515/4470 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 30 09:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 16:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Pickets go up across Province - despite LRB ruling Message-ID: <20040430161704.4547.qmail@resist.ca> Hospitals, Schools, Ferries, Hydro all affected by wildcatting workers - now is the time to push for a General Strike. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/30/85139/9025 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 30 09:17:03 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 16:17:03 -0000 Subject: [news] Victoria schools shut down by pickets Message-ID: <20040430161704.4549.qmail@resist.ca> VICTORIA - Students are being told to stay home on Friday in the Victoria, Saanich and Sooke school districts because of CUPE picket lines. Teachers in Greater Victoria are not expected to cross those lines ? making a long weekend for students. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/30/85318/5647 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 30 12:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 19:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Protest walkouts spread Message-ID: <20040430191703.21407.qmail@resist.ca> VANCOUVER - Vancouver City Hall has been shut down by CUPE workers, who have set up a protest picket line in support of the hospital workers. Many city workers have also joined the picket lines at Vancouver General Hospital. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/30/112652/348 From news at resist.ca Fri Apr 30 15:17:02 2004 From: news at resist.ca (Resist!ca) Date: Fri, 30 Apr 2004 22:17:02 -0000 Subject: [news] Victory to the Health Care Workers! Let's Start a Wildcat General Strike! Message-ID: <20040430221703.3901.qmail@resist.ca> 43,000 health care workers across the province defied "back-to-work" legislation Saturday, April 29th, keeping picket lines up at hospitals and care homes in the fourth day of an all-out strike. They were joined by about 100 BC Hydro workers who spontaneously walked off the job in a solidarity wildcat strike at three dams, without the authorization of their union. CUPE union workers may walk out tomorrow, or in the next few days. URL: http://resist.ca/story/2004/4/29/18434/6262