Kenney: Conservative anti terror bill needs to walk a fine line

2015/01/29 Leave a comment

Will be interesting to see how the Government walks that fine line when the Bill is tabled Friday.

Kenney, given his strong belief in freedom of religion, will likely have weighed in during Cabinet and other discussions (his initial reaction to one of the periodic Quebec controversies over the niqab was more accommodating than his present positions):

There’s a fine line between legitimate religious expression and inciting terrorism, says Conservative cabinet minister Jason Kenney.

It’s that line the government will be walking – carefully – in its new anti-terrorism bill, expected to be unveiled Friday.

The bill is the government’s long-awaited legislative response to two attacks carried out on Canadian soldiers last fall by men believed to have been influenced by radical Islam – attacks the government considers acts of terrorism.

Though police already have the power to go after those suspecting of being on the verge of committing terrorist attacks, the new bill is partially aimed at stopping the seeds of those attacks from germinating altogether.

“Our objective is not to diminish legitimate expression of political or religious views, but rather incitement to terrorism – and there is a fine line there that the legislation will try to draw,” Kenney said in an interview Tuesday.

“Obviously there are some malevolent religious influences that can add to the process of radicalization towards violent extremism, and we have to be extremely mindful of that.”

Kenney: Conservative anti terror bill needs to walk a fine line.

Filed under Multiculturalism, Radicalization, Religion Tagged with ,

CIJA spokesman Steve McDonald gives effective tips how to advocate for Israel

2015/01/29 1 Comment

Rather candid and open advice, and more nuanced than one would judge from public statements:

McDonald proceeded to offer a series of useful and concise tips to anyone who is interested in advocating on behalf of Israel:

• “Don’t feed into the complexity of the situation”; that would only make it more difficult for the average Canadian to understand.

• We need to take the other side’s arguments off the table.” Agree that Palestinians deserve a “democracy”. “What they don’t deserve is Hamas.”

• Acknowledge the legitimacy of some Palestinian grievances.

• Say that it’s “not about taking sides”. “Also, the argument that the other side shot first doesn’t work.”

• “If our first response to Palestinian suffering isn’t empathy, we lose.”

• Point out that Israel did withdraw from Gaza and has always accepted ceasefires.

• Finally, “when you’re having a conversation with someone about Israel, have a real conversation. Never defend the indefensible, i.e. settlements.”

CIJA spokesman Steve McDonald gives effective tips how to advocate for Israel.

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Muslims have marched, even if the west hasn’t noticed – Caplin

2015/01/29 Leave a comment

Gerry Caplan’s rant regarding the hypocrisy of many world leaders and their participation in the Charlie Hebdo march:

Too bad, because by any measure it was one of the great demonstrations of hypocrisy and double standards of our time. Most of the world has seen the historic photo of world leaders marching with linked arms. Charlie Hebdo’s satirists might have had a grand old-time mocking these peace-loving, justice-loving, free-press-loving presidents, prime ministers and the like. The World Press Freedom Index and Reporters Without Borders accuse well over a dozen of their governments as guilty of serious attacks on press freedom and journalists. But their own suppression of press freedom at home was of course different from the attacks on Charlie Hebdo’s journalists in Paris, as everyone except me seems to understand.

And the prominent world leaders in that splendid photo also have much to teach us about democracy, human rights, peace and free expression. Think the U.S., Britain, France, Turkey, Israel, Russia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, the Palestinian Authority. In fact, it’s startling how many of the world’s ills can be traced directly back to these countries. Among a multitude of possible examples:

America’s initial supply of cash and arms to the Mujahedeen in Afghanistan, enabling the Taliban. America’s post-9/11 invasion of Afghanistan. The U.S.-Britain invasion of Iraq. The coalition that overthrew Gadhafi in Libya, a country now in turmoil. France’s complicity in the Rwandan genocide, still unacknowledged and unapologized for. Saudi Arabia’s lavish funding of madrassas and jihadis and the enabling of the Islamic State. Russia’s aggression in Ukraine. Israel’s occupation of the West Bank. Egypt’s deep-sixing of the Arab Spring. Turkey’s authoritarianism.

What titillated most observers, naturally, was the presence – at opposite ends of the line, to be sure – of the Prime Minister of Israel and the President of the Palestinian Authority. I know it sounds unhinged even to say these words, but in a sane world they would have marched arm-in-arm. For in a real sense, whoever suffers directly from acts of terror, the ultimate victims in our time are Jews and Muslims. What’s worse, instead of demonstrating the solidarity of victims, as would happen in a sane world, the two are ferocious, lethal enemies. Twisted men who are Muslim go out and murder Jews in the name of the Prophet. While invoking the Holocaust, twisted men in Israel scream “death to Arabs.” This is not only insanity. It’s a recipe for permanent war.

What we need is a multi-million person march of Muslims and Jews together, joined by all those around the world who truly love justice and peace. WE ARE JEWS AND MUSLIMS. It’s a crazy idea, but not as crazy as the alternative.

Muslims have marched, even if the west hasn’t noticed – The Globe and Mail.

Filed under Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Sikh MP Tim Uppal says there is ‘so much we can learn’ from the Holocaust

2015/01/29 Leave a comment

Interesting profile on Uppal’s interest and connection to Holocaust awareness and remembrance, and says something about Canadian multiculturalism to have a Sikh Canadian lead the Canadian delegation:

Holocaust remembrance is not a faith-based cause, Mr. Uppal said.

“I was doing something as a Canadian, this is something that affects us all,” he said.

“It wasn’t because of anything of my own faith, but this is something that I felt was important to us all as Canadians.”

‘This is something that affects us all’

Mr. Uppal has become a fixture on the Jewish community lecture circuit, addressing crowds ranging from the influential American Israel Public Affairs Committee to groups of teens about to depart on March of the Living trips.

He said he hopes to one day expose his own children, now six, four and two, to the story of what happened to the 11 million people who fell victim to the Nazi government’s racist policies.

“It’s so important that we pass on this history to future generations,” he said.

For Mr. Uppal, the issue of racism also hits closer to home.

Sikh MP Tim Uppal says there is ‘so much we can learn’ from the Holocaust

Filed under Holocaust, Multiculturalism Tagged with ,

Quebec reopens its identity can of worms – Gagnon

2015/01/29 Leave a comment

Appropriately cutting commentary by Lysiane Gagnon:

What’s the link between an Islamist terrorist and a daycare worker who wears the hijab? Any sensible person would find the question utterly silly, but not Quebec’s radical secularists – and they’re at it again.

Here they are, shamelessly exploiting the terrorist attacks in Paris that left 12 dead three weeks ago, calling for a ban on religious symbols – as if such a ban was some sort of guarantee against potential terrorist attacks. (If it were, France wouldn’t have been targeted so often by home-grown terrorists, since it has the most stringent secular policies by far in the Western world.)

The blood of the Paris victims wasn’t even dry when Quebec’s radical secularists, led by the Parti Québécois opposition, began campaigning for some sort of revival of the secular charter that died when former premier Pauline Marois’s government was defeated after months of divisive and emotional debate.

The PQ, knowing full well that Premier Philippe Couillard is uncomfortable with identity politics, is pushing the government to pass legislation his Liberals promised, unwisely, before the election. The legislation, a much milder version of the PQ charter, would forbid public-sector employees to cover their faces (a non-existent problem) and set rules for “reasonable accommodations” between institutions and religious customers or employees (a problem that’s already been solved by local administrations).

Quebec reopens its identity can of worms – The Globe and Mail.

And Don Macpherson of the Gazette, on some of the internal PQ politics following Jean-François Lisée’s decision to pull out of the leadership race:

On sovereignty, Lisée said, the PQ had to “look the situation in the face.” It had to win the support of young people, who have “turned their backs on us,” and minorities, which “do not recognize themselves in us.” It had to accept the possibility that even with hard work, it might not win a mandate in the 2018 general election to hold a referendum.

The party had to “re-examine the contours of our project,” with a referendum process negotiated with the rest of Canada and “real independence,” with a Quebec currency as well as a Quebec citizenship. It had to end its “ambiguity on its identity” and show clearly that it is left-of-centre, environmentalist and humanist. It could no longer be against climate change and for developing shale oil.

And while the PQ continued to fight against the decline of French and for secularism, it had to have “a more open attitude” toward the English-speaking community and “a more active one” on the integration of immigrants.

But, Lisée said, there was no point in his going on; the election in May had already been decided, and Pierre Karl Péladeau had won. Lisée spoke with resignation and a trace of bitterness about the PQ wanting to “live its Pierre Karl Péladeau moment right to the end.” It was as if the PQ was infatuated with his rival for its affections, a passion against which Lisée was helpless and hopeless.

Don Macpherson: The PQ is determined to have its PK Peladeau moment

Filed under Charte de la laïcité, Interculturalisme, Multiculturalism, Radicalization Tagged with , , ,

60 millionaire immigrant investors to be offered permanent residency

2015/01/28 2 Comments

Still distasteful ‘selling of citizenship,’ the only difference is the price. After all, these are not active investors or entrepreneurs, just people with money to put into an arms-length venture capital fund:

The new Immigrant Investor Venture Capital program will open on Jan. 28 to Feb. 11 or until a maximum of 500 applications are received, the government quietly announced before MPs returned to Ottawa this week.

“This pilot program is designed to attract immigrant investors who will significantly benefit the Canadian economy and better integrate into our society, which will contribute to our long-term prosperity and economic growth,” Immigration Minister Chris Alexander said in a written statement.

No more than 60 principal applicants will receive permanent resident visas under the pilot program, even though the government says it will accept up to 500 applications.

Each investor will be required to make a non-guaranteed investment of $2 million over approximately 15 years into a fund managed principally by BDC Capital, the investment arm of the Business Development Bank of Canada.

The government said the fund “will invest in innovative Canadian startups with high growth potential.”

“Proceeds from the IIVC fund will be distributed to the immigrant investors periodically… based on the performance of the investments,” a spokesman for Alexander said in an email to CBC News.

The details of the program along with the selection criteria to apply appear in the latest ministerial instructions published in a government publication over the weekend.

The government is hoping to have better luck with this program than it did with the last one.

“Under the former Immigrant Investor Program (IIP), immigrant investors had to invest $800,000 in Canada’s economy in the form of a repayable loan, without meeting skills and abilities requirements of most of Canada’s economic immigration programs,” the government acknowledged in a public statement before MPs returned to Ottawa this week.

“Research indicated that immigrant investors under the previous program were less likely than other immigrants to stay in Canada over the medium to long term. Also, they contributed relatively little to the Canadian economy, earning very little income and paying very little tax.”

60 millionaire immigrant investors to be offered permanent residency – Politics – CBC News.

Filed under Citizenship, Immigration Tagged with ,

Monument to Jewish refugee ship MS St. Louis could be Halifax-bound

2015/01/28 Leave a comment

Good reversal (see earlier post Holocaust survivors: ‘Shameful’ that Pier 21 not displaying memorial to victims of ‘voyage of the damned’):

The future of the Wheel of Conscience, designed by world-renowned architect Daniel Libeskind to honour the vessel turned away by Canada and other nations during the Second World War, had been up in the air while it remained in a warehouse after being sent to Toronto-based builders Soheil Mosun for repairs last summer.

The museum and the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA) had been working together to find a better home for the monument, which features moving gears that had been experiencing technical difficulties since it was unveiled in 2011.

CIJA sent an email to members of the Canadian Jewish Holocaust Survivors and Descendants Monday to share the news that they had found a way to return the Wheel of Conscience to the museum, currently undergoing renovations, after it reopens in May.

“In the interim we will find a (site) for it in Toronto to ensure that it operates properly outside of the warehouse in which it is currently being stored,” Cindy Osheroff, assistant director of GA services and project management wrote in the email Monday.

Osheroff directed questions to CIJA head Shimon Fogel, who said in an email Monday that it was too early to comment.

Chapman said the monument will now be displayed on the main floor, which will provide easier access, and that the builders have resolved its earlier problems.

“(They) have said that they’ve made it much more robust and shored up the gears and things so that hopefully it won’t experience the same behaviours it experienced the last time it was here,” said Chapman.

Sidney Zoltak, co-president of the Canadian Jewish Holocaust Survivors and Descendants, said he welcomed the news.

“I’m glad that it came to positive conclusion and hope that we don’t have to sort of have these kinds of disputes of things that have to do with feelings,” Zoltak said.

Monument to Jewish refugee ship MS St. Louis could be Halifax-bound | Toronto Star.

Filed under Historical Recognition Tagged with , , ,

Rock concert, rallies overwhelm Germany’s anti-Islam group | Merkel Comments

2015/01/28 Leave a comment

Merkel is remarkably consistent in her language against all forms of antisemitism and all forms of racism. Canadian politicians, in their legitimate attention to antisemitism, have largely forgotten the broader anti-racism message:

Earlier on Monday, on the eve of Tuesday’s 70th anniversary of the liberation of the Nazi death camp at Auschwitz, Chancellor Angela Merkel said Germans had an everlasting responsibility to fight anti-Semitism and all forms of racism.

In what appeared to be an indirect reference to PEGIDA, Merkel told a memorial for the victims of Auschwitz: “We’ve got to fight anti-Semitism and all racism from the outset.”

“We’ve got to constantly be on guard to protect our freedom, democracy and rule of law,” she said. “We’ve got to expose those who promote prejudices and conjure up bogeymen, the old ones as well as the new.”

Merkel said it was a disgrace that some Jews or those expressing support for Israel had been threatened or attacked in Germany, which was responsible for the Holocaust, and that protecting the growing Jewish community was a national duty.

Rock concert, rallies overwhelm Germany’s anti-Islam group | Reuters.

Filed under Antisemitism, Multiculturalism, Racism Tagged with , ,

L’intégrisme est un choix personnel, juge le premier ministre | Le Devoir

2015/01/28 Leave a comment

Sensible voices in Quebec:

Philippe Couillard n’a aucune intention de limiter le droit des intégristes de pratiquer une version radicale de leur religion, un choix personnel, selon lui, dans la mesure où ils respectent la loi.

« L’intégrisme, c’est une pratique religieuse poussée à l’extrême qui, tant qu’elle n’enfreint pas les droits des autres — des autres, exemple, les femmes —, bien sûr fait partie des choix personnels de chacun », a déclaré lundi Philippe Couillard, avant de participer au caucus présessionnel de ses députés.

Il ne faut pas confondre intégrisme et terrorisme. « Il y a beaucoup d’amalgames qui sont faits sur des concepts qui sont très distincts », a soutenu le premier ministre. Le terrorisme est « l’expression des extrémismes de tout type, bien sûr celui de l’islam radical, mais il y a d’autres extrémismes sur la planète. Mais celui-là est bien sûr celui dont on est préoccupé. »

Les propos de Philippe Couillard rejoignent ceux qu’a exprimés dans La Presse samedi Gérard Bouchard. « Il y a manifestement un lien entre intégrisme et terrorisme, mais l’un ne conduit pas nécessairement à l’autre. D’où la question : la prévention de la radicalisation religieuse conduira-t-elle à surveiller tous les intégristes et à restreindre leurs droits ? Ce serait inadmissible », juge l’historien et sociologue.

L’intégrisme est un choix personnel, juge le premier ministre | Le Devoir.

Filed under Radicalization, Religion Tagged with , ,

Do Australian Movies Really Reflect Our Multiculturalism?

2015/01/28 Leave a comment

Interesting discussion and debate over diversity and Australian film (Canadian record not so great either):

But many others strongly believe that national cinema industries, especially publicly-funded ones, have some responsibility to open hearts and minds – and that great stories are missed if diversity is ignored.

“Filmmaking is about having something to say and letting people think about it,” says Caradee of his own cinema practise. His production company’s stated aims include challenging audiences and asking questions about identity and justice. The radicalisation of young Australian men, a hot political issue, is a dominant theme in the planned My Country.

“In TV we tell these stories because we have SBS and the ABC, but there’s no equivalent in film,” says Caradee. More diversity within the filmmaker ranks will result in more diverse films, he adds.

“When stories are written by people not from the culture in which they’re set, they come up fake and the rhythms of speech are wrong,” says scriptwriter and assessor Karin Altmann. She estimates that of the 130-160 scripts she reads annually, only about a dozen are not driven by Anglo Saxon creators.

Caradee is for affirmative action focussed on multicultural groups and involving mentoring and technical upskilling; she’s more into creating opportunities, more broadly. “Writers, emerging filmmakers, people from other cultures: all have less opportunity, and when you open up opportunities it is surprising what happens,” she says.

… Another aspect to multiculturalism is Australian cinema’s appalling record of colour-blind casting. In other words, lead roles are usually played by white people, and taxi drivers and criminals by brown or black people.

Do Australian Movies Really Reflect Our Multiculturalism? | Movie News | SBS Movies.

And from Queensland (where Brisbane is located), strong support for inclusive multiculturalism prior to the state elections:

But he [Premier Campbell Newman] also asked the new citizens to respect Australia’s “democracy, our rule of law, our court system”.

“Multiculturalism works,” he said.

“It makes us stronger, it makes us richer. There are all sorts of wonderful things that take Australia forward from being a successful multicultural community.”

Mr Newman said the world had given Australia much and it was up to its citizens to embrace the melting pot of cultures.

“We have ties to people all around the world that help us economically,” he said.

“We have fantastic things that we can see and do, food and dance and festivals and it works.

“Today I say to you it only works while we continue to work hard to embrace one another, to understand one another, to actually be enthusiastic and appreciate of that diversity.

“There have been some things that have happened in the last year or so and we must keep that well and truly behind us. We must say that we are going to continue to make this country work and be so successful.”

Multiculturalism works: Newman

Filed under Multiculturalism Tagged with , , ,

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