Showing posts with label The Roma. Show all posts
Showing posts with label The Roma. Show all posts
Tuesday, May 13, 2014
Wednesday, November 27, 2013
JRAN On Canada's Refugee Policy
In the resurrected Canadian Jewish News:
On Dec. 1, the Jewish National Fund will be holding an event to raise funds for the Stephen J. Harper Hula Valley Bird Sanctuary Visitor and Education Centre in Israel. The facility itself sounds like a wonderful place to visit and an important and safe refuge for migrating birds. Yet it is ironic that a prime minister who is responsible for making it more difficult for families to find protection in Canada would have this facility named for him.
Read the whole letter through the link. Coincidentally, Canada the day this letter was published, The Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinic (HIRC) released Bordering on Failure: Canada-U.S. Border Policy and the Politics of Refugee Exclusion. From the executive summary:
...this report finds that
1.Canada'is'systematically'closing'its'borders'to'asylum'seekers'and'avoiding' its'refugee'protection'obligations'under'domestic'and'international'law;''
2. Through' the' Safe' Third' Country' Agreement,' Canada' jeopardizes' asylum' seekers’'ability'to'obtain'fundamental'legal'protections'by'returning'them' to'the'United'States'despite'clear'deficiencies'in'the'U.S.'asylum'system;''
3. The'Safe'Third'Country'Agreement'has'prompted'a'rise'in'human'smuggling' across' the' CanadaFU.S.' border,' making' the' border' more' dangerous' and'disorderly,'and'raising'security'concerns'for'Canada'and'the'United'States.!!'
So there you have it.
On Dec. 1, the Jewish National Fund will be holding an event to raise funds for the Stephen J. Harper Hula Valley Bird Sanctuary Visitor and Education Centre in Israel. The facility itself sounds like a wonderful place to visit and an important and safe refuge for migrating birds. Yet it is ironic that a prime minister who is responsible for making it more difficult for families to find protection in Canada would have this facility named for him.
Read the whole letter through the link. Coincidentally, Canada the day this letter was published, The Harvard Immigration and Refugee Clinic (HIRC) released Bordering on Failure: Canada-U.S. Border Policy and the Politics of Refugee Exclusion. From the executive summary:
...this report finds that
1.Canada'is'systematically'closing'its'borders'to'asylum'seekers'and'avoiding' its'refugee'protection'obligations'under'domestic'and'international'law;''
2. Through' the' Safe' Third' Country' Agreement,' Canada' jeopardizes' asylum' seekers’'ability'to'obtain'fundamental'legal'protections'by'returning'them' to'the'United'States'despite'clear'deficiencies'in'the'U.S.'asylum'system;''
3. The'Safe'Third'Country'Agreement'has'prompted'a'rise'in'human'smuggling' across' the' CanadaFU.S.' border,' making' the' border' more' dangerous' and'disorderly,'and'raising'security'concerns'for'Canada'and'the'United'States.!!'
So there you have it.
Monday, September 09, 2013
CBSC Dings Ezra
Ottawa, September 9, 2013 - The Canadian Broadcast Standards Council (CBSC) today released its decision concerning comments made about “Gypsies” on Sun News Network. During his program The Source, Ezra Levant made negative comments about that ethnic group. The CBSC found the broadcast in violation of the Canadian Association of Broadcasters’ (CAB) Code of Ethics and Equitable Portrayal Code.
The CBSC did not, however, require that Sun News announce this decision on air, having decided that the network had grovelled sufficiently via its previous apologies, which I wrote about here.
Tuesday, July 23, 2013
Bernie Farber Has Advice
Now that Jason Kenney has left his position as Minister for Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism, Bernie makes some suggestions to his successor, Chris Alexander:
Refugees - Remove Hungary and Mexico from the Designated Safe Country list. This can be done immediately and without legislative reform. These designations impact vulnerable communities - ethnic minorities, the LGBTQ community and women facing gender violence. The Minister can also propose an amendment to the law to provide for an expert human rights panel to assess whether a country might be safe, rather than allow designation by statistics. And he can seek to amend the law to provide an automatic periodic review after designation and add appeal rights to persons from designated countries.
I haven't written much about Mexico in this regard. In the case of Hungary, however, it is quite clear that the country is no longer safe for either its Roma or Jewish minorities. What is particularly galling is the possibility that these groups are being sacrificed in the name of a Canada-EU Free Trade agreement.
Bernie also suggests:
Health Care - Change the Order in Council to restore the same health care system that has worked well since 1957. No legislative amendment is required, it can be done immediately. Institute a means test as suggested by Canadian Doctors for Refugee Care.
The kind of changes that Bernie wants rolled back were made to the Interim Federal Health Program, I believe. These recently resulted in a mid-East refugee, who had left home because he had been persecuted for his Christian beliefs, being denied chemotherapy in this country. As Brad Wall said at the time:
“It’s unbelievable that some of the decisions that have been taken federally are having this impact on people who are clearly the most vulnerable, refugees who are obviously fleeing something quite terrible — that’s why they’re refugees..."
“On the face of it, you just consider the case of this particular gentleman or others who, for example, as it was pointed out … might need prenatal care, this is just common sense. You just do this.
“This is the kind of country we are. You cover it.”
In this case, Saskatchewan eventually picked up the cost of treatment. So, to prevent the poor fellow from dying, the province paid for a bad federal policy.
And Bernie's last recommendation:
Immigration - Scrap the proposed regulatory amendment to lowering the age of dependency to 18 from 22. This will affect every family applying for permanent residence in Canada. No family believes a 19 year old should be excluded from a family application and left behind.
I am not terribly familiar with these particular changes, I will leave this bit unglossed.
Bernie's piece, incidentally, is entitled Restoring Canada’s Dignity and Respect, and the entirety of it lies behind the Globe pay-wall. Good luck digging it out.
Refugees - Remove Hungary and Mexico from the Designated Safe Country list. This can be done immediately and without legislative reform. These designations impact vulnerable communities - ethnic minorities, the LGBTQ community and women facing gender violence. The Minister can also propose an amendment to the law to provide for an expert human rights panel to assess whether a country might be safe, rather than allow designation by statistics. And he can seek to amend the law to provide an automatic periodic review after designation and add appeal rights to persons from designated countries.
I haven't written much about Mexico in this regard. In the case of Hungary, however, it is quite clear that the country is no longer safe for either its Roma or Jewish minorities. What is particularly galling is the possibility that these groups are being sacrificed in the name of a Canada-EU Free Trade agreement.
Bernie also suggests:
Health Care - Change the Order in Council to restore the same health care system that has worked well since 1957. No legislative amendment is required, it can be done immediately. Institute a means test as suggested by Canadian Doctors for Refugee Care.
The kind of changes that Bernie wants rolled back were made to the Interim Federal Health Program, I believe. These recently resulted in a mid-East refugee, who had left home because he had been persecuted for his Christian beliefs, being denied chemotherapy in this country. As Brad Wall said at the time:
“It’s unbelievable that some of the decisions that have been taken federally are having this impact on people who are clearly the most vulnerable, refugees who are obviously fleeing something quite terrible — that’s why they’re refugees..."
“On the face of it, you just consider the case of this particular gentleman or others who, for example, as it was pointed out … might need prenatal care, this is just common sense. You just do this.
“This is the kind of country we are. You cover it.”
In this case, Saskatchewan eventually picked up the cost of treatment. So, to prevent the poor fellow from dying, the province paid for a bad federal policy.
And Bernie's last recommendation:
Immigration - Scrap the proposed regulatory amendment to lowering the age of dependency to 18 from 22. This will affect every family applying for permanent residence in Canada. No family believes a 19 year old should be excluded from a family application and left behind.
I am not terribly familiar with these particular changes, I will leave this bit unglossed.
Bernie's piece, incidentally, is entitled Restoring Canada’s Dignity and Respect, and the entirety of it lies behind the Globe pay-wall. Good luck digging it out.
Thursday, March 21, 2013
Ezra Off Hook For Hate Speech Charge?
Dr Dawg, and Haroon Siddiqui in the piece Dawg references, think that the Ontario Attorney General, John Gerretson, will not file hate speech charges against Ezra Levant for his anti-Roma screed of six months ago.
However, the following except from a missive by Gina Csanyi-Robah of the Toronto Roma Community Centre, re her meeting with police and the AG's people on March 14th, seems to indicate that no final decision has yet been made:
This is dated March 20th, so I would assume it is the latest information available. Its also easier to read if you click on the image.
However, the following except from a missive by Gina Csanyi-Robah of the Toronto Roma Community Centre, re her meeting with police and the AG's people on March 14th, seems to indicate that no final decision has yet been made:
Tuesday, March 19, 2013
I, Ezra
You can read the official document here, but The Sun News Network mole has slipped me a copy of Ezra's first draft. As you can see, it's been changed quite a bit:
Dear viewers,
As you all must know, I'm pretty much fucked right now. I've lost one defamation case, the Warman thing is still coming down the pipe, and there's even some Muslim kid who may be into my pockets to the tune of six figures. Worst of all, dad's threatening to pull my allowance and, unfortunately, free speech don't feed the bulldog. Or pay the lawyer's bill.
So here I am. Watch me grovel. Because I need this job. Really...need...this...job. Its a 24 hour bus ride back to Lethbridge, and dad's basement gets pretty cold in Winter. Beside's, what's back there for me? One way streets; shitty coffee from Tim's. Yokels in flannel talking hockey and "How about dat snow, eh?" Fuck that bullshit. I shill for the oil patch. There's no fucking way I intend to hang out in it.
And what would I do with myself anyway? Start-up another magazine, start Muslim bashing, publish those damn cartoons yet again? Its old man, its old. I gotta stop living in 2008. I need a new schtick.
And anyway, it used to be when you bad-mouthed Allah all that happened was some nerd from the human rights commission sent you a letter. Now everything's a 319 offence. 319 this; 319 that. Some big copper shows up at your door waving a copy of the criminal code. Jail cells are cold, man. People puke in them. You can get scabies. Not that I've seen the inside of one, yet, but I'm starting to dream about them, and if this mea culpa doesn't fly I may wind up living in one, married to the convict with the most cigarettes.
How did this all happen, anyway? You're riding high! Dozens of people are watching your show every night! And then WHAMMO!!! You say the wrong thing and the police are at your door and the CRTC wants to confiscate your pay-check. Its like ole Tom getting greased by those Indians. Now I'm getting Flanaganed by another bunch of damn swarthies. Maybe these people are smarter than I thought.
So, Roma, I am really, really, really fucking sorry. Really. I'm not shitting you because my lawyer advised me. See this picture? That's my kid. They'll be needing braces pretty soon. Set me free, Roma! Huh? How about it?
Dear viewers,
As you all must know, I'm pretty much fucked right now. I've lost one defamation case, the Warman thing is still coming down the pipe, and there's even some Muslim kid who may be into my pockets to the tune of six figures. Worst of all, dad's threatening to pull my allowance and, unfortunately, free speech don't feed the bulldog. Or pay the lawyer's bill.
So here I am. Watch me grovel. Because I need this job. Really...need...this...job. Its a 24 hour bus ride back to Lethbridge, and dad's basement gets pretty cold in Winter. Beside's, what's back there for me? One way streets; shitty coffee from Tim's. Yokels in flannel talking hockey and "How about dat snow, eh?" Fuck that bullshit. I shill for the oil patch. There's no fucking way I intend to hang out in it.
And what would I do with myself anyway? Start-up another magazine, start Muslim bashing, publish those damn cartoons yet again? Its old man, its old. I gotta stop living in 2008. I need a new schtick.
And anyway, it used to be when you bad-mouthed Allah all that happened was some nerd from the human rights commission sent you a letter. Now everything's a 319 offence. 319 this; 319 that. Some big copper shows up at your door waving a copy of the criminal code. Jail cells are cold, man. People puke in them. You can get scabies. Not that I've seen the inside of one, yet, but I'm starting to dream about them, and if this mea culpa doesn't fly I may wind up living in one, married to the convict with the most cigarettes.
How did this all happen, anyway? You're riding high! Dozens of people are watching your show every night! And then WHAMMO!!! You say the wrong thing and the police are at your door and the CRTC wants to confiscate your pay-check. Its like ole Tom getting greased by those Indians. Now I'm getting Flanaganed by another bunch of damn swarthies. Maybe these people are smarter than I thought.
So, Roma, I am really, really, really fucking sorry. Really. I'm not shitting you because my lawyer advised me. See this picture? That's my kid. They'll be needing braces pretty soon. Set me free, Roma! Huh? How about it?
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