Ottawa Star - Voume 1 Issue 16

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Ottawa Star The Voice of New Canadians www.OttawaStar.com • April 1, 2014 • Volume 1, Issue 16

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Opening your homes and hearts to immigrants

The latest airline perk for super elite fliers A safe distance from the masses

By Scott Mayerowitz, The Associated Press

NEW YORK—On flights from San Francisco to Hong Kong, first-class passengers can enjoy a Mesclun salad with king crab or a grilled USDA prime beef tenderloin, stretch out in a 3-foot (0.91-meter)-wide seat that converts to a bed and wash it all down with a pre-slumber Krug “Grande Cuvee’’ Brut Champagne.

Yet some of the most cherished new international first-class perks have nothing to do with meals, drinks or seats. Global airlines are increasingly rewarding wealthy fliers with something more intangible: physical distance between them and everyone else.

The idea is to provide an exclusive experience—inaccessible, even invisible, to the masses in coach.

It’s one way that a gap between the world’s wealthiest 1 per cent and everyone else has widened.

Many top-paying international passengers, having put down roughly $15,000 for a ticket, now check in at secluded facilities and are driven in luxury cars directly to planes. Others can savour the same premier privileges by redeeming 125,000 or more frequent flier miles for a trip of a lifetime.

When Emirates Airline opened a new concourse at its home airport in Dubai last year, it made sure to keep coach passengers separate Continued on page 13

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Tony Young, organizer of Ottawa International Connection, and his wife Elena. Photo: Ellen O’Connor

By Ellen O’Connor

H

ome is where the heart is.

It’s a common saying, and one that rings true within the walls of Tony Young and his family’s cozy Glebe loft.

As his wife Elena served dinner with the help of their 5-yearold son Savva-Antonio, it was

clear that while their apartment lacks square footage, they make up for it with their open minds and warm hearts that would make anyone, Ottawa-born or a recent immigrant, feel immediately welcome in their home.

Young is the organizer of Ottawa International Connection (OIC), an online group

formed in 2009 using the website Meet Up to facilitate safe connections with new coming immigrants and established Canadians.

“We have no funds at all, we just do it from pure love,” said Young, who pays for everything out of pocket. “With very little money, we do a lot of

what government agencies are trying to do, and we do it with nothing. And I think in many ways, we’re very effective.”

The forum serves as a place to connect with others, engage in objective discussions on international issues, and stay informed about upcoming Continued on page 2

Was the Afghan mission worth it?

By Lauryn Oates

VANCOUVER—Was it worth it?

As Canada’s mission in Afghanistan comes to an end, that question is most often asked from the perspective of Canadian self-interest. We look at the number of dead and the cost in taxpayer dollars and conclude that this was an expensive mission in a place far removed from our everyday lives.

Afghanistan is far away from us—in fact, it is exactly

Lauryn Oates

on the other side of the world from Canada’s most westerly points and much of what was accomplished there gets lost

because of the distance between our two countries.

But the perspective of Afghanistan as far removed from our everyday lives, and as an inherently backward, irreconcilable backwater, is not shared by the thousands of Canadians soldiers who served in Afghanistan—or their families, or the aid workers who worked there or the journalists who covered the war— and became familiar with the country and its people.

It is also not shared by those Canadian companies, investors and employees of private businesses which staked their interests and not insubstantial capital in Afghanistan’s emerging economy.

But despite all that, Afghanistan is still poorly understood within Canada. As the last Canadian soldiers leave this month, I regret that we failed to move beyond polarized views of both our mission in Afghanistan, and of Afghan society.

Continued on page 10

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Community

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

The Rwandan Genocide 20 years later To remember, unite and renew.

By Samantha Ammoun

A

few weeks ago, the remains of Chantal Mudahogora’s father’s body were found near the church where he was killed in twenty years ago in Rwanda.

“When we came back from refugee camps, three months after the genocide had come to an end, bodies were laying in different places and dogs were carrying bones and ribs in their mouths, so we decided to bury the bodies collectively in a mass grave,” said Mudahogora. “We were able to recognize my mom at that time from what she was wearing and we were told she was shot in the forehead, and she still had the mark. We never identified my dad, but assumingly we thought he’d be with all the other bodies.”

This coming April, Mudahogora will be heading to relive the death of her father, after she had believed to have buried him not long after the genocide.

“It took me back,” said Mudahogora. “That’s why I say I never use the word heal, I say coping…I’ve been thinking for the last 20 years that I am good, that I am successful, that I have a career, and I’m raising my children. I think about the genocide, but it does not affect my day to day life. However when I was told my father’s remains were still there and we actually never buried him, all those walls I’ve built around me to be able to move on, they collapsed in a day.”

As Members of Parliament, friends of Rwanda and members of the High Commission of Rwanda gathered to light the Kwibuka Flame, symbolizing the remembrance, the resilience and

Members of Parliament, friends of Rwanda and members of the High Commission of Rwanda gathered to light the Kwibuka Flame to symbolize the remembrance, the resilience and courage of Rwandans over the past 20 years. Photo: Samantha Ammoun

courage of Rwandans over the past 20 years, a moment of silence filled the Barney Danson Theatre at the War Museum Wednesday, Feb. 26.

“Today, even as we reflect on the dark past, we are able to channel our energy toward a bright future, we are able to renew our commitment towards human rights, and the rule of law and to the protection of the vulnerable and the prevention of atrocities, so such evil never, ever are repeated again,” said Senator and Reverend Don Meredith, in his opening prayer.

Twenty years ago the world stood still as over a million men, women, and children were killed in the Rwandan genocide.

Kwibuka20, meaning to remember for the 20th time in Kinyarwanda, Rwanda’s language, was officially launched January 7, 2014 in Rwanda. It marked the beginning of a series of worldwide events leading up to the 20th commemoration of the Genocide against the Tutsi that will be held April 7, 2014.

These events have the goal of sharing the stories of survivors, educating

and creating discussion around Rwanda’s story of reconciliation and nation building, and to unite the broader community to ensure genocide never happens again.

“Today was very touching. I myself was a refugee of the Vietnamese communist regime and I’ve seen a lot of this, and today this ceremony reminded me a lot of those days back in 1975,” said Senator and advocate against communist oppression Thanh Hai Ngo. “All Canadians should know about this. We didn’t do much back then and that’s too bad and now we look at Ukraine and the situation there, we never know what will happen next.”

Shakilla Umutoni, First Counsellor and Chargée d’Affaires with the High Commission of Rwanda, reminded those gathered at the ceremony that Kwibuka20 calls on the global community to stand together against genocide.

Rwandans all around the world are holding their own unique commemoration ceremony under the Kwibuka20 banner. Umutoni highlighted the worldwide theme being: to remember, to unite and to renew.

The Canadian Museum of Human Rights partnered with the High Commission of Rwanda as well as with the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Prevention of Genocide and other Crimes against Humanity to make this national launch ceremony a possibility in the capital region.

The next event under the Kwibuka20 banner is scheduled for April 7 at Parliament Hill. More information is available on the High Commission of Rwanda website or Kwibuka.org.

Opening your homes and hearts to immigrants Continued from page 1

cultural events. Most importantly, it seeks to give newcomers a voice and help them adjust in their new country.

“The key is objectivity. I certainly do my best to be very objective about everyone, what we’re doing and why we’re doing it,” said Young, who often holds monthly dinner parties at his home called “The East West Connection,” that are designed to welcome to newcomers and celebrate Canadian culture.

“There’s also a specific purpose in what we’re doing. It’s not just to get together or to be nice, but it’s really about listening and learning from people who are new to Canada and from cultures that, politically, may have their troubles, but culturally have something to teach us.”

Young first began the International Connection Network in the year 2000 in

Washington, DC, where he is originally from. After close to 10 years of travelling abroad, working on NATO sites in Europe with the U.S. Air Force, learning about the Muslim faith while in Turkey, and liaising with churches in the Soviet Union, he returned to Washington at 29-years-old.

Experiencing culture shock upon his return to the U.S., it took him time to readjust to North American life. Feeling more connected to immigrants, he created the DC forum that focused on reaching out to Muslim and Arab populations being marginalized during the post-9/11 period.

In 2008, he connected with Iranian students in Ottawa and began travelling back and forth to hold events in Ottawa.

After meeting his wife Elena, originally from Russia and studying in DC, they de-

cided that Canada was the place for them and they immigrated to Ottawa in 2009.

“When I came here I was a little bit set back because I started seeing a lot of lonely immigrants. Ottawans are more reserved, and the model of multiculturalism is less inner-cultural and more separate communities,” said Young. He added that often this is out of politeness, but in reality immigrants want to interact with Canadians. The motivation to break down these barriers and encourage people to connect on a deeper level is what led to the creation of OIC and what continues to drive it today.

So far, Young and his wife have done over 600 events in DC and Ottawa that often see an equal representation of both immigrants and Canadians. Past events have included a Skype interview with Reza Kahlili, former Iranian Revolutionary Guard who

worked undercover for the CIA, faith-based events, and monthly Asian film salons.

Young is hoping more people will open up their homes and attend events, especially young Canadians who are interested in international politics and the future of Canada.

“How we treat immigrants is where Canada will go. If we open our arms to them, and listen to them, they will be the best Canadians there are,” he added.

His future goal to expand into other major cities has begun—people from Japan, Saudi Arabia and Iran have already approached Young to start their own International Connection Chapter.

The OIC is always looking for funding to help support their endeavours.

For more information visit www. meetup.com/Ottawa-InternationalConnection/

Community

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

www.OttawaStar.com • PAGE 3

Bridge My Talent A mix of everything artsy with a touch of Egypt

By Samantha Ammoun

W

hat do you get when you combine diversely talented individuals under a single roof ?

An evening filled with color, emotion and excitement, despite the stormy weather that hit Ottawa on the evening on Saturday, March 1.

From visual arts and stand-up comedy, to singers, musicians and electronically produced sounds, Bridge My Talent, hosted by the non-profit organization Bridges 2 Baladi at the National Library and Archives Canada, was not only an entertaining and interactive talent competition, but a showcase of the wide variety of artists living in the city.

The line-up of the evening included two choreographed dance performances, a young visual artist’s work, five musical acts and three standup comedy performances. Each act was given five minutes to impress, and was followed by comments from the judges and applause and cheers from the audience, often in Arabic.

“It’s my first public performance in more than two years and I was hoping that tonight would be a really great comeback, but it was a bit stressing performing in the setting of a talent show,” said Khaled El Ghayesh, a 28-year-old pianist who kicked off the show with a performance of two classical pieces including Nocturne by Chopin.

The competition followed a two-weekend audition period that took place early in February. Islam Balbaa, creative director and judge, evaluated many important performing aspects such as expression, creativity and incorporating something Egyptian when selecting the final 11 acts.

“Although the competition was not limited to Egyptians, we wanted to have some kind of Egyptian theme incorporated or flavour,” said Balbaa.

After two rounds of performances, the judges had the difficult task of narrowing down the contestants to just three of their favourite performances for the final round. Finalists included the band Mona and the Chebab, who had the whole room on their feet during their performance, Stephanie Boucher, for her fabulous jazz number inspired by the ancient queen Cleopatra, and standup comedian Djabriel, who had the audience laughing non-stop throughout the evening.

The three acts were given the chance to perform again, but this time the audience voted for the winner by texting “vote” to one of three phone numbers assigned to each finalist.

It was to no avail that Mona and the Chebab took home first prize after two standout performances that highlighted Mona’s flawless voice and the closeness of the band, as if they had been playing together for years.

“I didn’t expect it at all, it really gave us a boost,” said Mona, who has just recently come to work with the band, in response to the audience’s enthusiastic requests for encores following their first performance.

Other highlights throughout the evening included an audience sing-a-long to an electronic, saxophone and guitar rendition of the well-known Arabic song, “Ya Beint l Soltan” by Ahmed Adaweya, and the evening’s hosts trying out some of the performer’s dance moves to share in the excitement.

May Telmissany, film and media studies associate professor and acting director in department of modern Languages and literatures at the University of Ottawa, was thrilled to have been selected as one of the judges for the evening.

“I could see that we have talent in the Arab community particularly in the Egyptian community, and this is something we don’t see very often, especially among the young people,” she said. “This variety of talent is amazing for me to see.”

First-place winners Mona and the Chebab on stage during the Bridge My Talent Ottawa showcase held March 1. Photo: Samantha Ammoun

Mohammed Amer, engineer and cofounder of the Palestinian dance and acting group Baladna, was the third judge of the evening who added that he could not get over the talent he was seeing for the first time on stage.

Although the talent show was a first for the organization, Bridges 2 Baladi organizers were pleased with ticket sales, as they had based their marketing mostly on social media and word of mouth.

“It was difficult to market the event especially because people don’t know us much and were buying tickets last minute and at the door, but thank God the turnout is incredible,” said Alya Othman, event

organizer and volunteer with the organization. “It’s a great way for us to gather all these talented people and for them to get to know each other. This event was really not about raising money, we were organizing it in a way where that cost was to most likely break-even, but we sold over two hundred tickets and even made some profit.”

B2B usually hosts one or two fundraisers every year and have raised over $120,000 over two years. Working in conjunction with the charity Human Concern International, B2b aims to bridge Egyptians in Ottawa to Egypt by supporting development projects that create employment opportunities for the locals of impoverished areas.

PAGE 4 • www.OttawaStar.com

Community

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

Documentary explores bride-seeking regions in India

By Penny Bertrand

“Do they think girls will fall from the trees?”

It is a question that resonated throughout the documentary Tied in a Knot, directed and produced by filmmaker and academic, Reena Kukreja.

Kukreja, who divides her time between India and Canada while filming and researching, presented her new film and led a discussion on the issue of brideseeking regions of India at Ashbury College on March 9.

Sponsored by the India Canada Friendship Circle as a special International Women’s Day event, the film explores the plight of cross border brides brought to villages in Haryana in Northern India. Due to years of sex selection in Northern India, it has resulted in a serious deficit of girls. With fewer local women for men to marry, families have begun seeking brides from other regions of the country.

marry tend to be those too poor or old to attract the now scarce women in Haryana.

However, once the brides arrive in their new homes they are expected to carry very heavy workloads and are often Roohi Ahmed (left), Geeta Thakur, Reena Kukreja, filmmaker for Tied subjected to discriminain a Knot, Malti Keserwani, Penny Bertrand and Manju Anand Photo: ICFC tion and abuse because they are from a different caste, speak a different language, and have Kukreja explained to the 60 audience different customs. The ironies of this situamembers that at first she thought she was tion were actively explored in the discussion investigating human trafficking, which she with Kukreja following the film. did find instances of. However, as she delved Several audience members were father into her research, visiting over 200 villages and interviewing hundreds of people, struck by the complicity and the hypocrisy she discovered that it was more complicated. of the village leaders who aid and abet the As the film very poignantly demonstratacquisition of non-local brides, but then ed, women themselves have few choices. Too decry the presence of these out-of-caste poor to pay dowry in their own communities, women and their children. Local women, the offer to be married without bankrupting steeped in rigid beliefs about ethnicity and their families is compelling. The men they caste, seem unsympathetic as well.

Civil engineer turned author Ashok Malhotra’s The Golden Sparrow

By Ellen O’Connor

It’s not often that an engineer, with an eye for structural design and construction, would one day decide to try his hand at writing fiction. But that’s what sets Ashok Malhotra apart.

By day, Malhotra is structural engineer and one of the principals with Ottawa’s Parsons Brinckerhoff Halsall Inc., where he has worked for the past 47 years. But after hours, he has taken to picking up his pen and putting words to paper, resulting in his first published novel, The Golden Sparrow.

“Never in my wildest dreams had I thought of writing a novel,” said Malhotra, who has already sold several hundred copies of the book since its release in December 2013.

The Golden Sparrow is a historical fiction set against the backdrop of the Second World War and the 1947 Partition of India into two countries, India and Pakistan. The story features a mix of Indian, British and even a Canadian character, some fictional and some inspired by real people in Malhotra’s life.

It follows the Mehra family, Surinder Mehra, a professor of English literature, his wife Kamla, and their two sons, one named Vikram from whose perspective the story is told. Following the partition of India, centuries of religious and social tensions between Hindus and Muslims explode, resulting in riots that left hundreds of thousands massacred. Being Hindu, the Mehra family flee from Lahore to India where they settle down as refugees.

Born in Lahore himself, Malhotra and his family moved to New Delhi in 1947 at the time of the partition before immigrating to Canada in 1965. He began dabbling in the literary world back in 2008 when he wrote a short memoir about his early years in Lahore and India, and shared it with his colleagues who then encouraged him to write a novel.

“I took it light-heartedly,” said Malhotra, whose own father was a professor of English literature and inspiration for the character of Surinder. “I had written technical books, best practice guides, and I write reports on building problems every day. But then I thought of it as a personal challenge to try to write a novel and see what I come up with.”

In July 2010, he had written 60 pages of the novel and shared them with his friend and Ottawa architect, Barry Padolsky. Desiring a critique from a stranger and professional in the field, Padolsky connected him with Boyce Richardson, a Canadian journalist, author and recipient of the Order of Canada.

Over lunch, Richardson handed Malhotra a three page critical appreciation of his work, saying he had read the 60 pages over the course of one afternoon.

“He told me, ‘Keep writing like this and don’t listen to anybody. It’s your work, so write whatever you feel like writing.’ That was what really gave me the encouragement to go on and continue writing,” said Malhotra.

Now after four years and 2,209 hours dedicated to writing while his wife Anjou sat by his side to edit each page hot off the screen, The Golden Sparrow is being sold and read by people of various backgrounds.

It is available on Amazon, eBay, Barnes and Noble, as well as Ottawa locations such as Coles in Bayshore, Indian Express on Somerset, and Ishina Indian restaurant in Bells Corners, and Francesco’s Coffee Company in the Glebe.

He was also featured in an interview on Aaj Kal on Vision Television.

The most interesting part of the book for Malhotra was the inclusion of the decade’s old relationship between Canada and India, as shown through the role of the fictional Canadian character, Max Hoffer, inspired by a real person.

“Very few Canadians know the history of Canada’s presence in the subcontinent, first during the World War II and then during Canada’s contribution to the United Nations Peace Keeping Force in Kashmir. It is to show this connection, that I selected a place known as Verinag, in the state of Jammu and Kashmir, as the location of the fictional Ashram.”

Malhotra said he is shocked by all the positive feedback he has received from readers—both his close friends and strangers. His sequel The Golden Sparrow Won will be released in July 2014. For more information visit www. goldensparrowbook.com.

Kukreja reminded the audience that sex selection is by no means restricted to India and that gender-based violence is an international phenomenon.

“Here in Canada there is a shameful crisis for aboriginal women who are far more likely to be subjected to gender based violence,” said Kukreja, who also teaches in the department of film & media studies, and gender studies at Queens University in Kingston, Ont. “Is there hope for change?” was the final question posed by Kukreja, and one she does believe in. Her documentaries are often used as tools for grassroots activism and she explained that Tied in a Knot has been shown in the very villages where she conducted her interviews and research.

While she agreed that public education is crucial, she also pointed out that it will not stop sex selection beacuse statistically the most educated and affluent families are the biggest users of prenatal screening and subsequent elimination of girl fetuses.

Egypt in all its flavours

By Samantha Ammoun

W

ith over 84 million inhabitants, a history that spans over centuries and a land heavily influenced by its ancestors, it is to no avail that the young and old continue to be inspired by the heritage of Egyptians.

Although Egypt has gone through a great deal of political turmoil in the last couple of years, the Egyptian Student Association at Carleton University had no difficulty sharing with students the accomplishments of a powerful and dynamic nation during their second annual Egyptian Culture Week exhibit (ECW2014).

“Last year, we focused on one aspect which was tourism, this year we wanted a more broad approach to what Egypt has to offer,” said Ahmad Salah, student and president of the Egyptian Student Association.

Between March 10 and March 14, the Egyptian Student Association invited everyone to rediscover Egypt in an interactive and colourful way as volunteers guided visitors around the different exhibits, which featured paintings, hieroglyphs, pictures, memorabilia and more.

“I am proud of those who are behind this great exhibition,” said Counsellor Mohamed Koteishi, with the Embassy of the Arab Republic of Egypt in Ottawa. “What drew my attention also is the great number of attendees.”

The association’s main purpose is to put an end to Egyptians’ homesickness by embracing all Egyptians on campus. As the organization continues to grow every year, Salah said he feels it is important to host events like Egyptian Culture Week to be able to raise awareness, get younger and new members involved, and to share with others Egypt’s rich history.

Continued on page 8

Community

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

RAW awakens Ottawa

By Samantha Ammoun

I

t is not every day that an art show, a runway, live performances, makeup artists and hair experts are found together in one place, let alone in a nightclub on a Thursday night.

But RAW: Natural Born Artists of Ottawa felt it was time to step away from the white-wall gallery into something that truly resembled the underground.

The official launch of RAW: Natural Born Artists of Ottawa known as The Awakening took place downtown at the Mansion Nightclub Thursday, Feb. 27 2014.

“I am so pleased. Ottawa is a tough city to get people to get out to things,” said Tahlia McNeil, the showcase director with RAW Ottawa.

It was the first of its kind in the city.

With pop-up art showcasing at every corner, models strutting down the runway wearing the upcoming fall and winter col-

lections of Babes and Gents and KellyRay and the smell of hairspray filling the air, there was no doubt that RAW had created an event that encompassed art in almost all of its forms.

“I’ve done many art events before, but nothing like this with all these elements,” said Tahlia. “It’s fantastic to see all these artists coming together.”

McNeil is a photographer herself, which made recruiting artists an easier task.

Through personal contacts, friends and word of mouth, Ottawans had the chance to meet with the artists and discuss with them their inspirations, struggles to make it mainstream and the advantages of social media.

Nathalie Van, one of the many artists who showcased work at the launch, has sold over 1600 paintings in Canada and worldwide online, but had never before showcased her nature-inspired canvases in an art show.

It was to her delight to finally see people’s reactions to her work in person.

www.OttawaStar.com • PAGE 5

Freelance hairstylist Ashley-Dawn Ronse styled many of the models’ hair for the runway show.

“It’s all about supporting local artists, the underdog, the people who really have to make it,” she said, as she teased some of the models’ hair Artist exhibitions along with musical performances and a runbefore her runway way show filled Mansion Nightclub for the official launch of RAW. appearance.

Meredith Lyman, makeup artist, “I’m pretty much a lone wolf artist, couldn’t agree more. but when Talia emailed me, I just say yes, I “It’s an exciting night and it’s rare to really wanted to be a part of this,” she said. have all these artists here in one space,” RAW’s mission is to specifically showshe said. “People complain all the time case artists within the first 10 years of their that Ottawa doesn’t have an art scene, career to help provide them with a platbut tonight is just fantastic.” form, which RAW refers to as the “seen, Tickets were sold for $20 at the heard & loved” concept. door and Tahlia hoped to use the eve“It’s just art everything,” said ning’s profits to organize the next RAW Amirmahdi Hassanzadehzargari, the event in Ottawa.

Babes & Gents designer.

Glebe Collegiate’s second annual Film Festival

By Elsa Cattelan

T

he lobby was packed at Glebe Collegiate Institute as students lined up— or rather crowded around—to buy their last minute film festival tickets. At five dollars a ticket, and all profits going to CHEO no one wanted to be left out and organizers were nearly overwhelmed by the last minute surge of buyers at 8:30 AM on Thursday the 20th of February. It was Glebe Collegiate’s second annual Film Festival and the hype for the event had been building up for the past month. But the posters did their jobs and the day of brought in about 600 students…and a couple of dirty looks when the crowd blocked the office doors!

Organized and put on by students, Glebe’s Film Festival features short films— anywhere from sixty seconds to just under half an hour—made by the students at Glebe as well as a stand-up act by a former student and this year’s main event, a performance by the band Eleven Past One. The

band opened the show, rousing the students from their slightly sleepy states and sending a buzz all around the auditorium. They may have taken a while to warm up, but by the time the band left the stage, the students were all standing up, singing along or dancing in the crowd of people that had collected around the stage. Student-designated crowd regulators even had to pull one over-enthusiastic fan off stage!

Opening with their song ‘Light Me Up’ the band followed it with their all too appropriately-titled song ‘Wake Up’, ‘Tonight’s The Night’, then a cover of Avicii’s ‘Wake Me Up’. Cell phone flash light apps stood in for lighters and there was even a slow dancing couple as Eleven Past One played more of their original songs singing ‘Heart Screams’ and finally finishing with their hit single ‘The World is Ours’. The band was a huge hit both on and off stage as they were taking pictures and giving autographs after the show. “It was fun to ‘fangirl’ them” com-

Is It Time For A Second Opinion?

mented one grade nine girl attending the Film Festival for the first time.

In between showings, returning comedian and Glebe graduate Louis Muthathi preformed his sure to be annual tradition of movie genre stand-up. As for the films themselves, the genres varied widely with 13 movies presented in total and the audience filling out ballots to vote for their favourites.

Each and every movie was written, directed and in most cases performed by students going to Glebe and the end results were amazing. “The films were a lot higher quality this year,” says Sanjay Dhawan, Film Festival creator and coordinator in grade 11 at Glebe, “Everyone who submitted a video worked really hard and they came out really well.”

In the end the winners were: in first place The Invited; a seven and a half minute horror film showing what happens when the uninvited kid snaps. In second place: Experiment 467, written and directed by a Glebe student with characters played by professional actors and filmed in

the famed Diefenbunker. The plot follows an overworked scientist, on another allnighter, watching cells in a petri dish grow when the world starts shaking and ends with an unexpected twist. Finally voted in third place a four minute clip called That Thing In My Wardrobe featuring one of the many teens who should have cleaned out his closet long ago.

“All in all this year went way better than the last,” says Sanjay “Things ran smoother, everything played when it should, the event itself was better…there was a lot more pre and post buzz—we even got an interview on Rogers TV—and we got some great positive student reviews.” With the help of about 10 students and the assistance of Glebe’s communication technology teacher Ms. Rosenbloom, and of course the event’s creators Mithun and Sanjay, this year’s Film Festival was a success raising $800 for CHEO. All films submitted this and last year can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/user/ GlebeFilmFestival.

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Opinion

PAGE 6 • www.OttawaStar.com

Editorial

The plane that vanished in thin air M

alaysia Airlines flight MH370 disappeared after leaving Kuala Lumpur bound for Beijing on 8 March, with 239 people on board.

Even after three weeks of all the false leads, wild speculations, fresh suspicions, new theories that were debunked as soon as they were created, the hunt for the missing plane continues with many questions still unanswered. The challenges facing the search effort continue to mount. In addition to fighting the extremely hostile conditions of the southern Indian Ocean which is a huge place; searchers are increasingly at the mercy of deteriorating weather as the region now heads into autumn.

“This is very unusual to have something just go missing without a trace,” says Sunjoo Advani, an expert in flight simulation. “We can’t lose airplanes.

We can’t let airplanes just disappear on us.”

Today with our state of the art aircraft tracking technology, omnipresent GPS, ubiquitous mobile communications it sounds absurd that we have no clue what happened to the plane, where did it go, what caused the plane to suddenly disappear, and what happened to all the passengers on board.

It has come to be a “riddle wrapped in a mystery inside an enigma.’’

Calculated from satellite data and lacking physical evidence, the revelation was met with grief and mistrust by anxious, frustrated relatives of the missing.

“So they said everybody died. How? Why? Where?

They showed us nothing to prove anything. Just one stupid text message to end the whole thing?” said one of the relative.

“I just want to see some debris off the aircraft and the black box to know what exactly happened because there are too many unanswered questions” said Bimal Sharma, whose sister Chandrika was on the plane.

It’s very easy for us to get caught up in speculating what went wrong and scour through the sea of latest data analysis and totally forget the grieving families who are waiting day in and day out for any kind of clear information or closure.

Among the families of the missing there is a sleepless father who never turns off his cell phone waiting for his son to call up, a girlfriend who refuses to unpack moving boxes, the orphaned children of the Canadian couple asking their grandparents when their Mom and dad are coming back. There are husbands, wives, children, and friends still waiting and— heartbreakingly— still hoping.

Let us take a moment to think of the 239 lives and lives of their families they left behind and pray for them because the mystery of the missing plane isn’t any TV crime drama or any reality TV. It’s a real tragedy with real lives at stake. Even with all the advanced and sophisticated technology we can still be powerless to do anything and left wondering why and how this happened.

Editorial by Sangeetha Arya.

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Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

Here comes the spring!

By Sangeetha Arya

“S

pring is when you feel like whistling even with a shoe full of slush.”-Doug Larson Spring is such a happy season and everybody’s favorite and it is certainly easy to understand why. It’s a time when the earth comes back to life and we are all out from the hibernation and chills of winter and waiting for the season of renewal. Especially this year, after a long, brutally cold winter everybody is desperately and eagerly looking forward to welcoming spring.

Spring signifies rebirth, renewal and hope. Eminent thinkers have used spring as the metaphor for hope, optimism and positive thinking even when the going was tough. Wasn’t it Shelley who beautifully said, “O, wind, if winter comes, can spring be far behind?”

We need to experience the hardships of winter to appreciate the joys of spring. Good

Publisher: Chandrakanth Arya Chief Editor: Sangeetha Arya Editor: Ellen O’Connor

things come to those who persevere and never lose hope. If we had no winter, the spring would not be so pleasant: if we did not sometimes taste of adversity, prosperity would not be so welcome, said Anne Bradstreet.

The power of spring and its rejuvenating effects has been celebrated by every major religion and culture. As a result spring season is replete with many festivals. From Passover to Easter, Navrooz, Baisakhi, Yugadi, Chinese New Year, it seems that every culture marks spring with a celebration of renewal and new life. It is easy to understand how from time immemorial mankind has been overjoyed by the power of spring and the beauty of new life. Robert Browning went so far as to say: The year’s at the spring, God’s in His heaven-All’s right with the world!

Spring is nature’s way of saying, ‘Let’s party!’ -Robin Williams I love the sweet smell in the air, the sounds of the birds, and the hints of warm summer to come. Spring is such a wonderful time for all kinds of walks,

whether in warm spring showers or balmy sunshine. The scent of the earth reawakening and the sight of the brilliant display of color every which way you see will make you think how wonderful it is simply to be alive.

The earth seems greener and so full of dazzling sunlight.

Perhaps it’s because resurrection is this season’s signature. It is why our spirits seem to soar.

The season of darkness diminishes as the season of Light increases in strength. In the garden, primroses, pansies, violets, tulips, and lilacs burst with color. We continue to grow gracefully, creatively, and joyously into our authentic selves. Food for the eye is to be found almost everywhere.

Take comfort and joy in simple spring time rituals of rejuvenation. Relax in the shady grove of trees; walk in the beautiful garden in the early morning, sit in an outdoor café basking in the sunshine---- can help us realize the inner tranquility. Take joy in your life as it unfolds day by day.

Emily Dickinson summed up the mood of the spring when she said, “To live is so startling, it leaves little time for anything else.”

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Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

Opinion

www.OttawaStar.com • PAGE 7

Why our health system works for Canada

By Robert McMurtry

T

ORONTO—In the past 18 months I have required two major, but unrelated surgeries, experiencing first hand Ontario’s version of Medicare. The two interventions necessitated down-time and an enforced idleness for reflection on life and what it means to be Canadian. I feel blessed.

It is not just the absence of any indebtedness related to care, though that certainly helps, but the core elements of what Medicare represents: efficiency, equity and effectiveness or doing it well, availing the care to all and delivering improved health – social justice in a time when it is an endangered species.

This is no small feat and should never be taken for granted.

What is the history of single-payer health insurance and why is Medicare Canada’s most treasured social program?

The first mandatory health insurance was introduced in Germany (1883). Thereaf-

ter, many western European countries followed suit. In Canada, Saskatchewan’s rural municipality of Sarnia created an early form of Medicare (1915) followed a year later by a municipal hospital act. In 1947 The Hospital Insurance Act (1947) came into being, again in Saskatchewan, which all provinces followed by 1961. In 1962 Saskatchewan introduced universal Medicare. In short, an idea spawned in Europe and taken up by Tommy Douglas set the stage for the passage of the Medical Care Act by the Canadian parliament in 1966.

My own life intertwined with this history from the 1950s to the present in many ways. The first exposure was to life without Medicare when my father suffered a stroke, leaving him at age 54 with a permanent severe neurological deficit. Occurring at the peak of his career, he was never able to return to more than a small fraction of his original activity, eventually succumbing to complications of the stroke. I well remember my mother struggling with our much reduced economic status to find the money to pay the healthcare bills. Had he been taken ill a few years later she would have been relieved of that burden.

I remember, too, being a medical student of the wards of the old Toronto General Hospital and the many differ-

Canada’s definedbenefits healthcare system threatened

By Roslyn Kunin

V

ANCOUVER—Can you imagine: • having not only your income, but your assets assessed before government will pay for your healthcare?

• paying extra tax if you are overweight, smoke or have other risky behaviours?

• having some government health services cut off as you gets older?

These are the kinds of drastic alternatives that are already being mentioned by those connected with delivering health services here. Jurisdictions outside Canada are already acting along these lines.

Provision of healthcare was the topic of a Vancouver Board of Trade Forum held in Vancouver in late February and attended by over 400 people. The conference was unique

because patients, the public sector, unions and the private sector were all represented.

The initial speaker, Richard Saltman, a professor of health policy from Emory University in Atlanta, set the tone for the day. His remarks were based on extensive research in healthcare delivery systems in the U.S., Europe and elsewhere.

Economics has been called the dismal science. Saltman clearly demonstrated that it deserved that title. He pulled out of the headlines and business media all the facts that show that economic growth in the industrialized world is weak at best and will not be returning to the levels that were expected and enjoyed in the decades when welfare and healthcare systems were being implemented. Austerity is now the new normal.

The reasons for this shift (demography, rising strength of the developing world, etc.) are well known, but the logical consequences have not yet been full absorbed. Weak economies cannot provide the expensive services like healthcare that they committed to when incomes were rising, especially when the costs of the services are rising as well. To take just one example, a CAT scan

ences between “private” and “public” status. To emphasize that reality there was a Private Patients Pavilion – a whole wing of beds for the exclusive use of those who were “paying customers.”

The impact of Medicare was dramatic.

In my subsequent practice as an orthopedic surgeon spanning over 40 years, I can state that there has never been an instance in which a course of treatment or surgery agreed to by my patient and I that was ever thwarted by cost considerations. Sometimes criticized for failure to change, Canada’s healthcare system has seen advances in cancer, cardiac, trauma care among others. Many advances seen in recent decades were facilitated by the single payer model of insurance that Medicare represents.

Similarly, the complex “state of the art” medical and surgical treatment I received in 2012 and 2014 was unconstrained by cost considerations. There is so much for which to be grateful in the legacy of Tommy Douglas.

This gratitude is clearly shared by Canadians throughout our country, as I learned while being a medical advisor to Roy Romanow during the Royal Commission of 2001-2. The five conditions of

insurance under the Canada Health Act (1986) have become iconic: universality, portability, public administration, comprehensiveness and accessibility.

Public support, however, is not unconditional. Medicare needs to respond to evolving needs, should have much greater uptake on best practices, needs to focus on a host of proven upstream practices thereby promoting health and preventing disease. Indeed, the future of Medicare depends on an ability to change.

To preserve Medicare is the responsibility of all. This includes ensuring our own health literacy and physical fitness.

We must be clear about the implications of those who seek to commodify healthcare; it is a matter of social justice that care should always be based on need and not ability to pay.

I am a very grateful Canadian and can only hope that collectively we have the wisdom to ensure the future of a program which above all supports Canadian values.

Robert McMurtry is an expert advisor with EvidenceNetwork.ca and an orthopedic surgeon, a former dean of medicine, founding assistant deputy minister of health federally and a medical advisor to the Romanow Commission. He is also a Member of the Order of Canada. Article courtesy: www.troymedia.com

costs many times the price of an X-ray.

World leaders have recognized that change in healthcare delivery is coming. Willem Alexander, the king of the Netherlands, has declared that we can no longer afford the welfare state. Gro Harlem Brundtland, a former Labour prime minister of Norway, head of the World Health Organization and a medical doctor by training, believes that societies can no longer afford the present healthcare schemes as the population ages.

Solutions are always more difficult than merely describing the problem, but before we can get to solutions we have to admit that we have a problem and that all of us are going to have to make some changes. Otherwise, we succumb to the insanity of expecting different results from the same old behaviour. And, since the only one who really likes change is a wet baby, we are all going to have to accept some changes that we may not like.

Introducing greater efficiencies is one way to improve healthcare. Some 70 per cent of Canadians die in hospitals. Canadian hospitals heal rather than kill their patients, but all of us have to die some time. When that time comes (and it is not always easy to predict) should we be taking up expensive acute care beds? If not, who should pay for palliative care? This is just one example of the complexities of introducing efficiencies.

Delivering care electronically is becoming increasingly feasible. It will mean more and better care available in more places, but it will take significant capital costs to implement and the increase in services provided will mean that it will not reduce the overall

cost of healthcare, just slow its rate of increase. The adjustments needed to get both doctors and patients to accept remote treatment will take time and effort.

Then there is the single payer system about which many Canadians care deeply.

No other country (with the exception of North Korea) forbids its citizens from buying their own healthcare. And what happens when the single payer can no longer afford to pay? You may be familiar with pensions that are increasingly defined contribution (you know how much money is going in) rather defined benefit (you know what benefits you will receive). Right now, our healthcare system is defined benefit.

We expect all basic healthcare needs to be met even with wait times and some exceptions. What if the government goes to defined contribution and tell the provinces or healthcare providers ‘this is all you are going to get; do as much as you can’? Not an ideal solution, but many at the forum consider that or something like that inevitable.

Finally, there is one solution that was supported by everyone at the forum, but the government can’t do it for us. We have to do it for ourselves, that is, adopt a healthier life style. Getting more exercise, eating more veggies and partying a little less heartily might not be sexy, but it just might get our healthcare needs down to a level where we could afford them.

Troy Media BC’s Business columnist Roslyn Kunin is a consulting economist and speaker and can be reached at www.rkunin. com. Article courtesy: www.troymedia.com

Community

PAGE 8 • www.OttawaStar.com

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

Summit opens doors for immigrant integration

By Ellen O’Connor

A

drian Harewood, CBC anchor and summit moderator on March 19, with Employer Excellence Award recipients Blair Organ, Zhigang Hu, Christine Stevens, Christine Stigter and Carol Brazeau of TD Bank. Photo: Neil Valois Photography.

Hire Immigrants Ottawa (HIO) and the Employer Council of Champions (ECC) held their annual Employer Council of Champions Summit to exchange ideas of how to effectively integrate skilled immigrants into the labour force and recognize Ottawa employers that have done so.

Held March 18 and 19 at the National Arts Centre, over 100 employers and stakeholders gathered for the two-day event. Following this year’s theme, Leveraging Immigrant Talent to Grow and Diversify Ottawa’s Economy, the summit included panel presentations, roundtable discussions, immigrant entrepreneur stories, and final award presentations.

The HIO and ECC presented TD Bank with an Employer Excellence Award for its outstanding practices in the recruitment of skilled immigrants. Five individuals were also recognized for their leadership

in championing immigrant employment.

“At TD, diversity and inclusion are part of who we are and everything we do.

Like Hire Immigrants Ottawa, we recognize and value the experiences, perspectives and talent that new Canadians bring to the table,” said Manjit Singh, Senior Vice President of Finance at TD Bank and member of TD’s Diversity Leadership Council.

Since 2008, more than 15 organizations, including Pythian, Bridgehead, the City of Ottawa, Kivuto Solutions Inc. and Algonquin College, have been recognized for their implementation of innovative policies and practices around the recruitment, retention and integration of skilled immigrants into their organizations.

“Our Summit helps to raise public awareness about the importance of integrating newcomers into jobs commensurate with their skills,” said Gaye Moffet, founder of GEM Healthcare Services and co-chair of ECC. “That task is made easier when we can point to real examples of employers, such as TD, that are working so effectively to create inclusive workplaces.”

The keynote speakers for the summit were Bruce Linton, CEO of Martello Technologies, and Edward Greenspon, Canadian

Home Sweet Home Housing initiative helps vulnerable families

By Ellen O’Connor

It could happen to anyone. A student struggling with struggling with tuition fees, a new family that’s just immigrated to Ottawa, or someone who just lost their job and can’t make rent. Without family members to fall back on, thousands of people in Ottawa lose their home and end up in a shelter or an unsafe, rundown building.

The Multifaith Housing Initiative is an organization working to get families out of unsafe environments and into affordable and well maintained housing so they can live comfortably and get their lives back on track.

“To have a place to live that was affordable was amazing, but was more incredible was the support I had from Multifaith,” said a former tenant in a video clip on the Multifaith website who rented an apartment for three years. “I didn’t have to worry constantly if I was late on a rent payment would I be evicted, or if I had certain circumstances come up would I be kicked out.”

Formed in 2002 by different faith communities across the city, MHI raises money to purchase apartments in city buildings, which they rent to individuals and families at below market value. MHI currently owns 41 apart-

ments in three buildings across the city and over 90 people including children live in the units.

Close to half of the units are rented to people on the City of Ottawa waiting list for social housing, which has approximately 10,000 families listed, while the other half are rented to people from MHI’s internal list.

“People come to us from all over,” said Micah Garten, staff member with MHI. “They find us on the Internet or different faith groups, community centres and all the people that know about us and who we house will refer families to us.”

Garten said he found that immigrants are particularly susceptible to high housing prices in town, particularly since Ottawa rentals rank as one of the highest in Canada.

“When people come here, it can take them a while to find a job, find a place to live, and to get retrained or recertified for their career. They may be working a minimum wage job, but just can’t afford to rent a unit,” said Garten. Right now, about one-third of the units are rented to New Canadians.

However, the benefit of the housing initiative is that the buildings and communities they form are very diverse, with a colourful palette of tenants that include seniors,

Editor-at-large, Bloomberg News. In their addresses to participants, Linton and Greenspon underscored the business opportunities that can result from engaging global talent.

Linton said the current issue is not lack of job opportunities or of skilled immigrants, but the disconnect that exists between employers and immigrants or hiring agencies, which can lead to young educated immigrants return to their home country because they can’t find a job here.

Collaboration between service providers to provide information for immigrants, and reaching out to students who come here to study needs to be a priority.

Another theme that arose in panel presentations was the high number of immigrant entrepreneurs. Michelle Parkouda, Senior Research Associate, Education, Health and Immigration Programs with Conference Board of Canada, said the top reasons entrepreneurs are often immigrants is the appeal of creativity, challenge and personal freedoms, as opposed to blocked mobility or barriers.

“Spend less time trying to find a job and more time making one,” added Bruce Lazenby, President and CEO of Invest Ottawa and panelist. Lazenby said that if you

students, disabled persons, families, and immigrants, making it representative of the real world.

“While they are there for only two or three years, they can become educated, get established and settled in the community, and are able to mingle with people and have a better background,” added Wajahat Mian, board member for MHI. MHI is currently working on the A Place to Call Home - $500,000 Capital Campaign with the goal to acquire about 25 additional units to house 40 - 60 people. They have almost reached 80 per cent of their goal through donations from churches and faith groups, community organizations and generous donors throughout Ottawa.

On May 4, the organization will also be holding their annual Tulipathon, a walk around the city beginning at Dow’s Lake to raise funds to support the cause.

Although additional units will help more at-risk families and individuals, Garten and Mian agree there is certainly a need for more help from the city or other organizations. Decreasing the city budget for affordable housing will be an issue because in the long run, affordable housing is the cheapest investment option compared to its alternatives—city shelters, hospitals, and jail, they said.

“It’s important for economic reasons and also because people can then contribute to society. Do you want people living place-to-place or do you want to give them an opportunity to flourish?” asked Garten.

love the entrepreneurial idea but don’t have one, you should match up with people who need help bringing their idea to life.

A prime example of successful entrepreneurialism was guest speaker Abdul Haseeb Awan, co-founder of the company BitAccess that created the Bitcoin Teller Machine. Ottawa’s first BTM was installed at the Clocktower Brew Pub in the Byward Market and converts cash into Bitcoins, a form of digital currency used in peer to peer networks as an alternative payment.

“The world is moving toward a global economy right now. We have customers in Australia who are buying from a Pakistan citizen who is living in Canada, manufactured in U.S., and shipping from a Hong Kong-based warehouse,” said 27-year-old Awan who immigrated from Pakistan to Ottawa in 2010 to do his Masters in Engineering at the University of Ottawa.

BitAccess is Ottawa-based with a staff of 10 and all manufacturing is done in Ottawa. Awan said they will soon be opening offices in Australia and Eastern Europe, are operating in 12 different countries across the world including Dubai, Hong Kong, Belgium and Mexico, and have a goal of operating in 100 counties in 18 months.

Continued from page 4

“I am really optimistic as Egypt, despite difficulties, is on the right track of democracy,” said Koteishi. “We made the constitution and soon Presidential elections will be held to be followed by the Parliamentary elections. This will constitute the main pillars of democratic life, and I do believe here that Egypt is heading towards a brighter future.”

Abdelrahman El Beherf, an engineering student in charge of IT with the organization, said according to his most recent stats, the association’s social media has reached 50 per cent more people than the previous year.

They just opened their first Twitter and Instagram account, which were used to market the event using the hashtag #ECW14, as well as making daily posts on their Facebook page to help grow the organization’s network.

“You always have to keep up with the new trends that are going on,” he added. “We even had people come see what we’re doing just from having seen our Instagram photos.”

With over 30 more volunteers this year, it is not only the social media followers that have grown, but the number

of engaged individuals offering their time to make the weeklong event a success.

“For me, this shows how the event got its own reputation from the success we had last year,” said Marwan Ghalib, volunteer coordinator.

Three months ago, volunteers were divided into eight groups and each assigned a separate theme to research and present creatively, such as tourism, the revolution of food, and the everyday life of an Egyptian.

Those who had the opportunity to visit the exhibits enjoyed an insightful tour as well as the chance to get henna printed on their hands, arms or anywhere they liked.

“It’s my first time getting it done, it’s really pretty,” said Julieth Beltran, a young student of Columbian heritage. “Truth is I just really love Arabic culture, and I’ve been here all week.”

Salah also made a recent trip to Egypt bringing back with him authentic Egyptian memorabilia for sale at the event, such as jewelry, papyrus, and key chains. Pharaoh’s House restaurant provided traditional Egyptian food for the event and the Embassy provided the group with much of the art work and displays showcasing Egyptian Civilization.

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

Community

www.OttawaStar.com • PAGE 9

Promising to end violence against women

By Ellen O’Connor

A

promise is a promise.

That was the theme of this year’s International Women’s Day Celebration held in Ottawa to encourage people to take action and end genderbased violence by creating awareness of gender equality, educating young men, and empowering women.

The celebration drew a crowd of over 100 men and women to the Chinese-Canadian Heritage Centre on Thursday, March 6 to listen to speeches from a panel of influential women within the Ottawa community.

“In comparison to other countries, Canada is somewhere near the top, but all together we have to do so much more to end violence against women and it starts from the bottom, from our own families, and how we teach our children and those we’re surrounded by,” said Snezana Minic, event organizer and language programs manager at Ottawa Chinese Community Service Centre.

Since their first International Women’s Day event in 2011, the OCCSC has invited a panel of women to speak who have made a difference in the community.

This year, the guest speakers included Erin Leigh, executive director of the Ottawa Coalition to End Violence Against Women (OCTEVAW), Frances Daly and Barb Wolfe, from Oshki Kizis Lodge, and Staff Sgt. Isobel Granger, as well as emcee Carol Anne Meehan, CTV News anchor and keynote speaker Jan Harder, Ottawa City Councillor Referencing her own experiences climbing the career ladder, Harder spoke about the importance of having women in positions of power where they can enact change, such as as leaders in politics, business, or police services.

“The differences that we’ve seen in policing, I think in no small way, are because the number of women involved with the Ottawa Police Service and other police services has increased,” said Harder, who is on the Ottawa Police Board.

She added that in her years of working in fields that are male dominated, she, like other women, have had to work harder to get the respect due.

“It was almost a ‘Why are you here?’ to “What took you so long’ change,” said Harder.

Following Harder, guest speaker Leigh spoke about the work of OCTEVAW, a coalition of front line service providers such as shelters and community centres that help women and children.

Much of her speech drew from two recent incidences at the University of Ottawa— sexually aggressive comments made toward a student leader, and sexual assault allegations made against members of the men’s hockey team—that were being addressed that same day in a press conference at the university.

“What happened at the University of Ottawa is not isolated to just UOttawa.

It’s something that is happening at every single campus in the city of Ottawa as well

as across Canada,” said Leigh. “The silver lining is that it opens up space for dialogue and conversation and moves it off of the campuses and into the community.”

Some of the different projects that OCTEVAW is working on include a needs assessment on Ottawa campuses, a social media app called RISE (React Intervene Support Educate), and a program for young men called “I Can Manifest Change.”

Guest speaker Staff Sgt. Isobel Granger, one of 73 people trained in the International Criminal Court to investigate genderbased violence and war crimes, and officer in charge of the domestic violence section in

the OPS, said that while up to 70 per cent of women experience sexual violence from men in their lifetime, so few report it.

In her work, Granger deals with domestic homicides, the relocation of women under the Witness Protection Program, instance of human trafficking and arranged marriages that although under the radar, do occur in Ottawa.

Speaking about immigrant women, Granger said often violence is perpetuated by social and economic conditions and isolation.

“When you come from a community where the man was earning good salary, and then you come here, all of a sudden

he feels emasculated and a lot of the time they take it out on their wife,” said Granger. She added that many times with immigrants there is the perception that the doors are closed because they fear that if they speak up they will be sent back.

“We had a case recently where a man was trying to send his wife back and was going to have her killed in another country because he had married someone else, so we intervened and relocated her,” said Granger.

The afternoon’s events closed with a traditional Chinese dance performance by Shiyu Zhang and a performance by the Chinese-Canadian Heritage Centre band.

Canada

PAGE 10 • www.OttawaStar.com

Sixties scoop Aboriginals adopted into white families want formal apology

By Chinta Puxley, The Canadian Press

W

INNIPEG—Some aboriginal people who were adopted into white families during the so-called Sixties Scoop say it’s their turn for reconciliation and are calling for a formal apology from the federal government.

Dozens of adoptees gathered in Winnipeg on Marc 24 to tell their stories —many for the first time— and figure out how to get justice.

Coleen Rajotte was taken from her Cree community in Saskatchewan when she was three months old and raised by a Manitoba family. Adoptees were robbed of their real families and feel someone has to be held accountable, she said.

“If someone came into your home today, took your children and shipped them to the United States and around the world, we would want answers,” she said. “That’s what we as adoptees are asking for. Someone has to take responsibility for this.”

From the 1960s to the 1980s, thousands of aboriginal children were taken from their homes by child welfare services and placed with non-aboriginal families. Many consider the adoptions as an extension of the residential school system, which aimed to “take the Indian out of the child.”

Rajotte said she was lucky enough to be placed into a loving home, but she lost her language, her culture and her connection to her ancestral home.

When she recently went to the home she would have grown up in had she not been adopted, Rajotte said it was overwhelming.

“I was physically ill for days just trying to process all of that,” she said.

But while residential school survivors have had a formal apology

and are the subjects of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, adoptees haven’t been formally recognized.

“Personally, I would like to see some kind of formal apology to all adoptees that were taken from their homes,” Rajotte said. “That’s a lot of children—20,000 children across Canada.”

A spokeswoman for federal Aboriginal Affairs Minister Bernard Valcourt said there would be no comment.

“As this case is currently before the courts it would be inappropriate to comment further,” she said in an email.

A class-action lawsuit launched by some survivors in Ontario in 2009 is slowly making its way through the courts. The lawsuit was certified, but Canada recently won leave to appeal that decision.

Manitoba Aboriginal Affairs Minister Eric Robinson said it’s time adoptees were given the same opportunity for reconciliation as residential school survivors. Some adoptees were put with families where they were treated as farm hands or subjected to horrific abuse, he said.

“It’s not an easy thing to talk about the hurts that many of them endured as children, not knowing who they were, being a brown face in an all-white school as an example,” said Robinson, a residential school survivor who organized the two-day gathering.

“Those things are very difficult to talk about in this current day but they have to be addressed.” Those adoptees at the gathering hope to emerge with a strategy for recognition and a sense of what supports they need to heal, he said.

“Compensation no doubt will come up,” Robinson said. “There’s got to be a certain degree of accountability by governments.”

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

Canadians living outside country may be surprised to learn they owe Ottawa taxes

By Ross Marowits, The Canadian Press

MONTREAL—Globalization is luring Canadians every year to work, travel or retire in low- or tax-free countries with the mistaken belief that they can shed their tax obligations at home.

But experts in the field say the only way to legally free yourself of Canadian income tax is to completely sever ties with the country and become a permanent resident elsewhere.

Things like maintaining provincial health coverage, Canadian bank accounts, cars, membership in social clubs or supporting a spouse and dependent children living in Canada affect your status as a non-resident in the government’s eyes.

“You cannot reduce your tax burden if you are a Canadian resident working and living abroad,” says Allan Madan, a chartered accountant and tax expert in Toronto.

Cleo Hamel, a senior tax analyst with H&R Block, says many Canadians only realize their mistake years after departing the country. Many assume payment of Canadian taxes isn’t required if they live outside the country for a year.

“Most people think about the actual move or they think about the life that they’re going to lead outside of the country, without actually thinking or researching if there are any tax implications,” she said from Calgary.

Expats who maintain close ties with Canada must file tax forms annually and pay Canadian taxes on their worldwide income. Credit is given for any taxes paid to the 93 countries that have tax treaties with Canada to prevent double-taxation.

Technology that allows electronic records to flow easily between governments is making it harder to get away with not paying taxes on worldwide income. Canadian law requires that the government be notified of transfers from foreign to Canadian bank accounts.

The restrictions have prompted some Canadians to completely sever their Canadian ties.

Madan says he’s been fielding a growing number of calls in the past couple of years, especially from middle-aged, high-income execu-

tives seeking to relocate to tax-free or low-tax zones in the Caribbean or the Middle East.

“For the most part, that’s where their work is taking them, but they’re decision is heavily influenced by the tax situation,” he said in an interview from Toronto. Someone making $1 million a year abroad can save more than $450,000 in Canadian taxes by changing their residency from Ontario to a tax-free country like Saudi Arabia.

The tax savings would be much less if they relocate to the United States or Europe where tax rates are similar to Canada.

Michael Cadesky, an international tax specialist with Cadesky and Associates, says people are much more mobile these days because of globalization, EU laws that let their passport holders work without permits, and NAFTA that allows some professionals to work in the United States, Canada and Mexico. The Toronto tax expert said workers tend to relocate to countries where jobs are available in their industry, while retirees move to warmer climates or the U.S. Some leave to return to their country of birth.

While tax savings influence the decision about becoming a non-resident of Canada, Cadesky said it is rarely the only factor and driving force.

“The tax rates in Canada are sufficiently manageable, even though they’re high, particularly for people that have investment income,” he said.

Canada Revenue Agency says about 20,000 people a year request a determination of residency, with 60 to 75 per cent coming from people leaving Canada. Cadesky said the easiest way to qualify in the 93 countries that have tax treaties with Canada is to establish a permanent residency in the new country. He said CRA tends to be “quite reasonable.”

Cadesky warns there are many traps that can ensnare foreign workers who try to navigate through the process without the help of a tax professional. “It’s a horrible exercise if you try to do it yourself,” Cadesky said.

He advises that workers being transferred by their company seek an allowance to spend on tax advice.

Was the Afghan mission worth it?

Continued from page 1

Canadian coverage of Afghanistan often fell into a vortex of misinformation, myths and memes that stripped the mission of a more nuanced public understanding, focusing instead on the extremes, perhaps a more interesting and easily digestible narrative.

Afghanistan is a land of extremes: the most hospitable people to ever walk the earth juxtaposed with the brutality of the Taliban and of tribal customs that are often antithetical to human dignity; millions of children back in school—the highest enrollment rates in Afghan history—with millions more not in school, many of whom are engaged in child labour; seven-year-old girls married

against their will and 14-year-aids dying during childbirth with university-educated married couples who fell in love as adults and have happy, healthy relationships.

You will also find the greatest misogynists to ever walk the earth: for instance, Taliban founder Mullah Omar, who comes from the same region in Southern Afghanistan as Ehsan Ehsanullah, founder of the Kandahar Institute of Modern Studies and one of the most enlightened human beings I’ve ever encountered. And while conservative forces in the Afghan parliament sabotage legal progress for the protection of women’s rights, heroic individuals are working to advance gender equality, the rule of law,

education, freedom of expression, human rights, and democracy.

But in all of the soul-searching and analyses expected in the aftermath of Canada’s military involvement in Afghanistan, I hope that at least some attention will fall on the more important question: was it worth it for Afghanistan? When that question is asked, the answer is a resounding yes.

Because, at the end of the day—or the end of the mission—life in Afghanistan is infinitely better today than it was under Taliban rule.

According to the Washington Times, “900,000 Afghan children were enrolled in school in 2001, virtually none of them girls.

Today, the number is approaching eight mil-

lion, and about one-third are girls. During the same period, life expectancy has risen from 42 years to 62. The child mortality rate has fallen from 172 to 97 per 1,000 live births. Electricity now reaches 18 per cent of Afghans. Land line and cell towers provide phone service to 90 per cent of the population. The telecom industry provides about 100,000 local jobs.”

These changes are tangible, real, and I believe they will last come what may in the days, months and years to follow the departure of the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan. And that was worth it.

Lauryn Oates manages education projects and programs in Afghanistan, including a teacher training program which recently graduated its 5,500th teacher. She has worked to promote the rights of Afghan women since 1996, and holds a PhD in literacy education from the University of British Columbia. Article courtesy www.troymedia.com

Canada

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

www.OttawaStar.com • PAGE 11

Provincial agencies band together want more young people buying lotto tickets

By Steve Lambert, The Canadian Press

W Supreme Court of Canada

Five important takeaways from Supreme Court’s decision on Nadon appointment The Canadian Press

OTTAWA—The Supreme Court of Canada issued a landmark ruling on Friday in rejecting the appointment of Justice Marc Nadon to the high court.

Here are five key points to consider: 1. It was the second Supreme Court rebuke for the Harper government in less than a week. On Mar 20, the court ruled that a government attempt to take away early parole rights from some prison inmates was unconstitutional. The justices appear to be sending the message that even a majority government can’t have everything its own way.

2. The justices placed constitutional armour on the Supreme Court Act, saying the federal government cannot, on its own, change the criteria for selecting high court judges. Changes to essential features of the court would require the consent of at least seven provinces representing at least half of the population.

3. In an unusual move, the six members of the majority demonstrated a united front of sorts by all taking shared credit for writing the decision. Normally, one or two judges write the decision with the others simply concurring.

4. The ruling clearly caught the government off-guard. The Prime Minister’s Office said in a statement that it was “genuinely surprised” and that it would take the time to consider its options.

5. Prime Minister Stephen Harper appointed five of the eight sitting justices, but that doesn’t give him leverage on the bench. The justices rule as they see fit and that may be of concern to Harper, who is looking to the court for guidance on how far he can go on Senate reform without starting a constitutional fracas.

INNIPEG—Provincial lottery agencies are facing a big problem—millennials aren’t buying lottery tickets nearly as much as their parents do.

The agencies are banding together to try to develop a new national lottery aimed at people under 35. They also want to find ways to make ticket-based gambling more attractive to the video-game generation.

“We know that this young adult demographic has changed and that the kinds of games we’re offering—the big lotto games—are not necessarily as appealing to today’s younger adults,” said Andrea Marantz, spokeswoman for the Western Canada Lottery Corp., which covers the territories and three Prairie provinces.

“Lottery is like any other kind of consumer product. We have to expend some effort in (research and development) to just keep products relevant.”

The Interprovincial Lottery Corp., which represents all provincial and territorial lottery agencies, is looking for consultants who can come up with ideas for

a new game similar to Lotto 6-49, in which players select numbers.

A request for proposals says the winning consultant will lead “face-toface brainstorm … sessions to generate … ideas for a new, national lottery game that will be attractive to the 18-34-year-old player base.”

Another task will be to “analyze and understand provided research that has been completed on the motivations and barriers to play for 18-34 year-old lottery players.”

It may be a challenge. Statistics on the Ontario Lottery and Gaming Corp.’s website indicate that among Ontarians who buy lotto tickets at least once a week, only 13 per cent are under 35. The mean age of players who take part at least once a week is 52.

Across the country, the decline is sharp.

“The two national lottery products (Lotto 6-49 and Lotto Max) are experiencing historic levels of decline for the young adult demographic … by anywhere from 8-31 per

cent,” says the request for proposals.

“If we do not attract younger players … to play lottery games, over time the lottery business is at risk of decline.”

Sally MacDonald, a 32-year-old social service worker in Winnipeg, is one of the many millennials who are not interested in lottery tickets. She says the long odds are a prime reason.

“There’s no results from it. I’ve watched my dad play 6-49 for years and years, and he’s maybe won $500.”

MacDonald says people her age get more enjoyment out of surfing the web and filling out online questionnaires on sites such as Buzzfeed, where one recent page asked readers what actress would portray them in a movie of their life.

“You look at how many people do those Buzzfeed quizzes because there’s something funny or entertaining out of it, right?

“But something like a lottery ticket, unless you’re winning, you’re not getting entertained.”

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World

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

Hundreds of Tamil women defy arrest threats to demand information on war missing in Sri Lanka

By Krishan Francis, The Associated Press

M

ANNAR, Sri Lanka—Hundreds of ethnic Tamil women demanded information on Mar 21 about relatives who have been missing since Sri Lanka’s civil war, defying widespread military surveillance, threats and the possibility of arrest.

The protesters held a peaceful rally in the northern town of Mannar and issued a 10-point memorandum to the United Nations high commissioner for human rights.

The letter asked the commissioner to help obtain information about their relatives and determine who was responsible

if they are dead. It also called for an independent international inquiry into allegations of war crimes during the civil war between government troops and defeated Tamil Tiger rebels, and the release of private land and homes occupied by the military.

The women say they have received no information about sons and husbands who surrendered to the military at the end of the fighting in 2009.

The protest came days after police arrested a mother and daughter who campaigned for the release of their kin.

Balendran Jeyakumari and her 13-year-old daughter were prominent

in protests by relatives of the missing.

Jeyakumari has a strong case against the government because of a photograph of her missing son in government custody. The photo appeared in a government publication, but authorities have refused to give her details about him or release him.

Jeyakumari was detained under the country’s tough anti-terrorism law on charges that she harboured a former Tamil Tiger rebel. Her daughter has been handed over to probation officials.

Days later, two prominent human rights activists including a Catholic priest who tried to investigate what happened

to Jeyakumari were arrested, sparking international criticism. They were released without charges but have been banned from travelling.

Rights defenders say the arrests are part of the government’s efforts to intimidate its critics into silence. People who appeared to be secret police were seen photographing the protesters and writing down vehicle numbers.

Sri Lanka is facing a U.S.-sponsored resolution at the current session of the U.N. Human Rights Council over its failure to conduct an inquiry into alleged war abuses and human rights violations after the war.

WHO declares India polio free after 3 years with no new cases; last is lively 4 year old girl

By Manik Banerjee, The Associated Press

S

HAHPARA, India—The scourge of polio ends in India with a lively 4-year-old girl, Rukhsar Khatoon, who became ill as a baby after her parents forgot to get her vaccinated.

Her barely perceptible limp the only lingering sign of the disease, Rukhsar was the last person to contract polio in the nation of 1.2 billion people.

The World Health Organization formally declared India polio-free on Mar 27, after three years with no new cases. It said the milestone means the entire Southeast Asian region, home to a quarter of the world’s population, is considered free of the disease.

Being declared polio-free once was considered all but impossible in a nation hobbled by corruption, poor sanitation and profound poverty. Although the disease could return, eradicating it is a landmark public health achievement.

Polio is a vaccine-preventable disease that has been eradicated in most countries. But it still causes paralysis or death in some parts of the world, including Nigeria, Pakistan and Afghanistan.

Children younger than 5 are especially vulnerable to the disease, which is spread through contaminated water or food.

The virus attacks the central nervous system, causing paralysis of muscles that leave limbs stunted or withered.

Rukhsar’s father, Abdul Shah, said the family had missed the regular polio vaccination camp in the village three years ago because Rukhsar was sick.

After she recovered, the family simply forgot about getting her the polio drops.

“We only got worried when she got a fever when she was around 15 months old and her foot was swollen,’’ Shah said.

A child carries a flag reading `Goodbye Polio` during Pulse Polio Day in Kolkata on Jan.19, 2014. Photo: IANS

Rukhsar has recovered well. She helps her mother with chores, washing dishes by pumping water from a handpump that supplies the household’s drinking water. She plays easily with her three other siblings, all younger than 10.

“But if she walks for long, or runs around too much, her leg aches,’’ Sabedabibi said.

“I realized we had been very negligent when the doctors told us Rukhsar had polio,’’ said Shah, a farm labourer

who supplements his meagre income by making ‘zari,’ the gold thread embroidery used to embellish saris.

“We’ve been lucky,’’ he said, as Rukhsar climbed into his lap. “No one should suffer this fate.’’

World

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

The latest airline perk for super elite fliers A safe distance from the masses Continued from page 1

from those in business and first class. The top floor of the building is a lounge for premium passengers with direct boarding to the upstairs of Emirates’ fleet of double-decker Airbus A380s. Those in coach wait one story below and board to the lower level of the plane.

London’s Heathrow Airport took a private suite area designed for the royal family and heads of state and in July opened it to any passenger flying business or first class who’s willing to pay an extra $2,500.

“First class has become a way for a traveller to have an almost private jet-like experience,’’ says Henry Harteveldt, an airline analyst with Hudson Crossing. Airlines “will do everything but sing a lullaby.’’

The front of the plane has always been plusher than the back. But in recent years airlines have put a greater focus on catering to the most affluent fliers’ desire for new levels of privacy.

There’s a lot of money on the line.

At big carriers like American Airlines, about 70 per cent of revenue comes from the top 20 per cent of its customers.

The special treatment now starts at check-in. American and United Airlines have both developed private rooms, located in discreet corners of their terminals in New York, Chicago and elsewhere, that allow for a speedy check-in.

Boarding passes in hand, travellers exit through hidden doors leading to the front of security lines.

Some foreign airlines have gone further.

Lufthansa offers first-class passengers a separate terminal in Frankfurt.

There’s a restaurant, cigar lounge and dedicated immigration officers. For those who choose to shower or take a bath, the private restrooms come with their own rubber ducky—an exclusive plastic souvenir for the international jet set. When it’s time to board, passengers are driven across the tarmac to their plane in a Mercedes-Benz S-Class or Porsche Cayenne.

“That sort of exclusivity plays to the ego of people who are in a position to spend that much money on airline flight,’’ says Tim Winship, publisher of travel advice site FrequentFlier.com.

At Heathrow’s private suites, designed for up to six people, fliers pass swiftly and privately through their own immigration and security screening.

While they’re waiting, hors d’oeuvres and Champagne are provided. Steak, sushi or other meals can be delivered from airport restaurants. When it comes time to actually fly, passengers are driven to their plane in a BMW 7 Series sedan and escorted to their seat.

U.S. airlines have copied a bit of that touch. United started in July and Delta Air Lines in 2011 driving their top customers who have tight connections at major airports from one gate to another in luxury cars. No need to enter the terminal, let alone fight the crowd on the moving walkway.

Want to board first? No problem.

Want to be the last one seated, moments before the door closes? Sure. Airlines will even save room for your bags in the overhead bin.

International first class has long been distinguished by gourmet meals, wide seats and giant TVs preloaded with hundreds of movies and TV shows. But in recent years, airlines also upgraded their international business class sections, ripping apart cabins to install chairs that convert into lay-flat beds. That left very little to differentiate first class from business class.

So some airlines scrapped the ultrapremium cabin. Others have cut the number of first-class seats in half, thereby creating a more intimate experience that commands the higher price. For instance, a roundtrip flight in July between New York and Hong Kong on Cathay Pacific costs $1,600 in coach, $7,600 in business class and $19,000 in first class. Other airlines charge similar price differences among their passenger classes.

Besides privacy, that extra cash provides an outsize seat, attentive service and superior wines and liquors. Austrian Airlines, Etihad Airways and Gulf Air are among the carriers to staff planes with their own first-class chefs. Instead of having flight attendants reheating meals cooked on the ground, these chefs prepare the meals at 35,000 feet.

Sometimes, that smell wafts back to the rest of the plane.

“You know they’ve got something good up in front of the curtain, and you know you don’t have anything close to it,’’ Harteveldt says. “When you fly coach, you are reminded of the fact that you are unimportant as a traveller.’’

In the ultimate show of indulgence, Emirates has offered an onboard shower for first class passengers on its A380s since the plane joined the fleet in 2008.

Once back on the ground, that luxury treatment continues. At airports in Paris, London, Istanbul, Bangkok, Sydney and elsewhere, airlines offer their top passengers fast-track cards allowing them to speed past immigration lines.

And then, while other passengers wait in lines for buses, taxis or shuttles, chauffeurs in suits meet these fliers ready to— once again—whisk them out of the chaos.

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www.OttawaStar.com • PAGE 13

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World

PAGE 14 • www.OttawaStar.com

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

Bangladesh investigators accuse largest Islamist party of war crimes, seek ban

By Julhas Alam, The Associated Press

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HAKA, Bangladesh—Bangladesh investigators probing crimes during the country’s 1971 independence war against Pakistan recommended Tuesday that the largest Islamist party be banned for alleged involvement in genocide and other offences.

The government-appointed investigators submitted a detailed report to the chief prosecutor accusing the opposition Jamaate-Islami party of crimes against humanity.

Chief investigator Abdul Hannan Khan said there is evidence the party formed several citizens’ brigades and auxiliary forces to help Pakistan’s army eliminate people fighting for independence.

Bangladesh says at least 3 million of its citizens were killed and 200,000 women were raped during the nine-month war against Pakistan in 1971.

Several top leaders of the party have already been tried and convicted of war crimes, and a senior leader has been executed. Those verdicts triggered violent protests, and the move to ban the party could further destabilize the country’s politics.

Opponents of Jamaat-e-Islami say it is a fundamentalist group with no place in a secular country. Bangladesh is predominantly Muslim, but is governed by largely secular laws based on British common law.

Jamaat-e-Islami earlier shared power with former Prime Minister Khaleda Zia, who now heads the main opposi-

tion alliance. The party was banned after Bangladesh became independent, but the prohibition was later overturned.

It openly campaigned against independence and its then leader, Ghulam Azam, toured the Middle East to mobilize support for Pakistan. It has denied committing atrocities.

Bangladesh became independent on Dec. 16, 1971, with the help of India, which sheltered nearly 10 million refugees along its border.

“We want complete dissolution of the party,” Khan told a news conference in Dhaka. “The party cannot avoid its command responsibility for the atrocities committed during the independence war.”

The investigators, appointed by the government to help prosecutors conduct war crimes trials in two special courts, also sought a ban of the party’s publication, Dainik Sangram, which published articles denouncing the fight for independence in 1971.

Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s government initiated the war crimes trials in 2010. Critics say they have primarily targeted members of the opposition, and Jamaat-e-Islami says they are politically motivated. Authorities have denied the allegation.

The party was banned from taking part in January elections after the High Court ruled that its charter violates the spirit of the national constitution.

German firms discriminate against applicants with foreign sounding names like ‘Ali’ The Associated Press

B

ERLIN—A study has confirmed what many immigrants in Germany had long believed: When it comes to getting a job, someone named Hans has an unfair advantage over a rival named Ali. The non-profit Expert Council for Integration and Migration says it sent two applications for paid apprenticeships to 1,794 companies – identical except for the names. The aim was to see if resumes with German names received a better response.

They did. The group said Wednesday that “applicants” with German names on average submitted resumes five

times before they were invited to an interview – while those with Turkish names needed an average of seven times.

The Expert Council says the results show how stereotypes harm Germany’s ability to recruit skilled workers and prevent immigrants from successfully integrating.

World

Ottawa Star • April 1, 2014

www.OttawaStar.com • PAGE 15

Arabs air differences during summit meeting, with anger at Qatar and frustration over Syria

By Hamza Hendawi, The Associated Press

K

UWAIT CITY—Arab leaders openly feuded over the region’s most intractable problems at their annual summit on Tuesday, particularly the inability to resolve Syria’s civil war and anger at Qatar for its support of the Muslim Brotherhood.

A day of speeches at an opulent Kuwaiti royal palace painted a picture of an Arab leadership crippled by divisions.

The Arab world’s latest fault lines are surfacing three years after Arab Spring revolts swept the region, removing autocratic leaders in Egypt, Libya and Tunisia and collapsing into interminable war in Syria. The revolts empowered Islamist groups, particularly the Muslim Brotherhood, though the group is now reeling after Egypt’s military last summer removed Islamist President Mohammed Morsi.

The region’s two powerhouses – Saudi Arabia and Egypt – have declared the Brotherhood a terrorist organization.

They, along with the United Arab Emirates and Bahrain, withdrew their ambassadors from Qatar to protest against its support of the group and what they call its meddling in their internal affairs.

In the summit’s first day, the Saudi Crown Prince, Kuwait’s ruler and Egypt’s president pushed for a joint approach to terrorism, saying it posed an imminent danger to regional security.

The calls amounted to a way to pressure Qatar, which supports the Brotherhood, is home to many of its leaders and is accused by its Gulf neighbours of arming Islamic militants among the Syrian rebels.

Egypt’s interim president, Adly Mansour, called for Arab interior and justice ministers to meet before June to draft guidelines for what every nation must do to confront terrorism.

The implication was that Qatar will be held to any guidelines that emerge – and could face isolation or reprisals if it failed to meet them.

In a clear dig at Qatar, Mansour called for the extradition of wanted individuals – a reference to Brotherhood figures – and the “rejection of providing them with shelter and support in any form.”

Qatar’s leader, Sheik Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, fired back in his own opening address.

Tamim called on Egypt to start a “comprehensive political dialogue” to achieve stability. The comment was a veiled criticism of the fierce crackdown on the Brotherhood waged by the military-backed interim government since Morsi’s removal.

The Brotherhood, which denies being a terrorist organization, says the government is trying to crush it as a political rival. More than 16,000 people have

been arrested and hundreds killed in the crackdown, and most of the Brotherhood’s leadership – including Morsi – is jailed and facing trials.

Tamim also showed differences with Iraq’s Shiite prime minister, Nouri al-Maliki, who recently accused Qatar and Saudi Arabia of supporting Sunni militants in Iraq.

Tamim criticized the Iraqi government of discrimination against the country’s Sunni minority, which often complains of being excluded from power by the Shiite majority. Iraq saw a wave of Sunni protests the past year, and Sunni extremists have seized control of the western city of Fallujah.

“It’s about time for Iraq to emerge from the vicious circle of violence and differences,” Tamim said. “That cannot come about through the sidelining of entire segments of society or accusing them of terrorism if they demand equality and inclusion.”

Al-Maliki stayed away from the summit. Vice-President Khudeir al-Khuzaie, also a Shiite, led Iraq’s delegation.

Addressing the summit, he rejected Tamim’s charges and insisted that Iraq was a democratic nation that respected the rights of its ethnic and religious factions.

“We will never give up the freedoms we have struggled to win,” he said.

Another split came with Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas. The Qatari leader renewed calls for an Arab minisummit to resolve differences between the militant group Hamas, which rules the Gaza Strip, and Abbas’s Westernbacked Fatah group in the West bank.

Qatar supports Hamas.

In his own speech to the summit hours later, Abbas snubbed the Qatari ruler. He poured lavish praise on Saudi Arabia for what he called its generous financial aid to the Palestinians – and made no mention of a proposal by Qatar’s Tamim to set up a $1 billion fund to help the Arab residents of eastern Jerusalem. Tamim said the resolution to set up the fund adopted a year ago was never implemented, so Qatar will go ahead to set it up on its own with $250 million from its coffers.

Qatar, a tiny but petro-rich Gulf nation, as well as a U.S. ally and home to one of Washington’s largest military bases abroad, has in recent years played an outsized role in Arab affairs, spearheading efforts to resolve the Syrian crisis, mediating in some of Sudan’s internal con-

flicts and attempting to gain influence in Libya and Egypt.

Qatar’s backing of the Muslim Brotherhood has infuriated Saudi Arabia, other Gulf nations and Egypt. Qatar was a strong supporter of Morsi during his year in office in Egypt. The Egyptian government accuses the Qatar-based Al-Jazeera television network of inciting violence and backing Morsi’s supporters since his ouster.

Saudi Arabia is also angered by what it believes is Qatari support to Shiite rebels in Yemen, an impoverished Arabian Peninsula nation that is of strategic significance to the kingdom.

At the summit, the Arab leaders also sounded notes of despair over the bloodshed in Syria.

Arab League chief Nabil Elarabi said a negotiated settlement to the conflict remained out of reach. He warned that the civil war was proving “disastrous” for the entire region, threatening the security of Syria’s neighbours.

The representative of the Syrian opposition in the summit decried that he was not given Syria’s seat, as was the case in last year’s summit in Qatar. He also made a desperate plea for more Arab aid.

Pakistani government negotiators hold direct talks with Taliban in northwest

prevented the government team, headed by Secretary for Port and Shipping Habibullah Khan Khattak, from travelling by helicopter to the northwest.

The negotiations come at a sensitive time for Pakistan, where daily militant attacks challenge the government’s authority.

The Taliban, who operate in the northwest, have announced a cease-fire during the talks, but attacks claimed by their splinter groups have continued. Shahid, the TTP spokesman, has denied the group’s involvement in the recent violence.

The main challenges of negotiating a peace settlement are the many groups and factions behind the violence. Many groups operate independently of the Taliban, including both local and foreign al-Qaida-linked militant outfits.

Before Wednesday, the two sides held only indirect talks, with the Taliban represented by Khan and another cleric, Maulana Samiul Haq. Haq also participated in Mar 26 meeting.

The Pakistani and Afghan Taliban share a similar ideology, but the Pakistani Taliban have a separate leadership structure and focus their efforts on attacking the Pakistani government and trying to impose their harsh form of Islam in the country. The Afghan and U.S. governments have held indirect talks through intermediaries with the Afghan Taliban.

By Munir Ahmed, The Associated Press

I

SLAMABAD, Pakistan—A Pakistani government team held direct talks with the Taliban after travelling Mar 26 to a secret location in the country’s northwest, a Taliban spokesman and senior Cabinet minister said.

Although previous Pakistani governments have spoken directly with Taliban representatives, these are the first such negotiations since Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif took office last June. In recent weeks, intermediaries representing the two sides have met and laid the groundwork for the direct talks, part of a push

by Sharif ’s government to strike a peace deal to end an insurgency that has killed thousands of people in recent years.

Information Minister Pervaiz Rashid did not share any details of the talks, saying only that once the negotiators returned, it would be up to

the government to make statements to media.

“The government team is there for the talks with the Taliban, and the peace process is progressing well,” he said.

The Taliban spokesman, Shahidullah Shahid, spoke positively of the meeting.

“The talks with the government team were held in a cordial atmosphere today.

The two sides discussed all the issues, including how to exchange each other’s prisoners and continue the cease-fire,” he said. Shahid said the Taliban treated the government team as “guests” and that the team was on its way to a safe location.

Earlier, Ibrahim Khan, a professor and a cleric who has represented the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan – as the Pakistani Taliban is formally called – told reporters that the face-to-face discussions were aimed at ending the violence.

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