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The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
Up the Hill Minority government or not, timing right for provincial lobbyist in Ottawa: political scientist By Jeff Ducharme The Sunday Independent
A
provincial government office in Ottawa may have a friend in the federal minority government elected June 28th, says political scientist Steven Wolinetz. “It would seem to me that the government of Newfoundland and Labrador will be very successful simply because Paul Martin will be going to an election in two, to two and a half years — minority governments don’t last in the Canadian context,” Wolinetz, head of Memorial’s political science department, told The Sunday Independent. “So if the federal Liberals wanted to lose the five out of seven Newfoundland seats that are Liberal, not keeping their promise would be a good way to set it up,” says Wolinetz, referencing Martin’s last-minute election promise that Newfoundland and Labrador would be made the prime beneficiary of provincial offshore revenues. The pledge could fatten up provincial coffers by approximately $700 million over four years. Premier Danny Williams is convinced that a lobbyist can push the proverbial boulder up the country’s most famous hill. Williams announced the office in the Tory’s March budget. The idea of having a lobbyist that could take this province’s concerns into the offices of the movers and shakers on Parliament Hill has long been the premier’s pet project. “To give you an exact time frame, it just depends on the candidate, it depends on when we can put that person in place, but I would have to say that hopefully by the end of the summer we would have that office opened up,” Williams told The Sunday Independent. The biggest critic of the office, Liberal Opposition leader Roger Grimes, was unavailable for comment. “… Anytime you put money into anything other than health care then the argument can be made that it can be better spent on health care because when you talk about medication or pharmaceuticals or drugs for people, what’s more important than that?” says Williams. “What’s more important than lifesaving
equipment? What’s more important than hospital beds?” Even provincial NDP Leader Jack Harris can find little wrong with the Tory plan to open a Newfoundland and Labrador office in Ottawa. “What we do need is a consistent opportunity to press our agenda on a whole number of different items and there’s dozens of them that have to be pursued and the question is whether that can be best done by us staying here and going to Ottawa from time to time or having a permanent liaison operation in Ottawa …,” says Harris. Wolinetz says the premier is on the right track. “A lobbying office in the right context can be very successful, but it’s not something that’s necessarily going to be instantly successful,” says Wolinetz. With 30 years of teaching political science, Wolinetz knows that the person sent to the Hill will need time to learn what buttons to push and where those buttons are located. “The more you have a sense, you have a sense of who has influence within the cabinet, who has influence within the prime minister’s office and the privy council office, possibly the better you are going to do. But you don’t get that right away when you set up an office.” Natural Resources Minister John Efford welcomes the idea and doesn’t take it as an affront to his effectiveness in the House of Commons. “The more relationship and the more interplay you have with the federal MPs’ offices in Ottawa, with the federal bureaucracy in Ottawa, with the federal ministers in Ottawa … I can’t see it being nothing but a plus.” While Efford mentions Ross Reid’s name as a potential candidate, Williams remains coy on who might sit behind the province’s desk in the Ottawa office. A hard-hitting provincial budget, a massive public-sector strike and a federal election have all contributed to slowing down the selection process, says the premier. “So that process will take place, hopefully in July, with a view to have someone in place by the end of September.” jeff.ducharme@theindependent.ca
Talking the same language From page 1 Quebec and not Newfoundland, Hearn says it’s a claim that sounds strangely familiar. “It’s no more than us disputing the nose and tail of the Grand Banks.” Hearn says any coalition with the Bloc is touchy considering the anchor of the party’s platform is Quebec sovereignty and the erosion of Confederation. “We should take a lesson
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from the Bloc in dedicated support for your province. However, if the screw tightens where you’re looking to put forward your separatist views, then government can’t give into those wishes,” says Hearn. If the Bloc and the Conservatives do find themselves in bed together when Parliament reconvenes, Hearn says it would likely be done on an issue-by-issue basis. “We’re talking the same language — most of the time.”
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Premier Danny Williams
Bumpy road From page 1 will need almost $800 million in transportation infrastructure work over the next 10 years. “The (Transportation) department recognizes the importance of these projects to the road users of the province as well as the road building industry,” Rideout said. “I anticipate that tenders will be issued in the
near future for these projects. This roads program demonstrates this government’s commitment to providing a safe and reliable transportation network within our province,” The almost $1.5 million allotted to the Labrador West district will go towards such projects as the application of chip seal to the Trans-Labrador Highway near the towns of Wabush and Happy Valley-Goose Bay.
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
NEWS
Page 3
To be (in cabinet) or not to be Will John Efford remain in the inner circle or does the prime minister have other plans?
By Ryan Cleary The Sunday Independent
F
our days after the federal election on a lazy Friday afternoon, MP John Efford could be found on the deck of his yacht, Sea Princess, tied up at the wharf next to the Royal Canadian Legion in Bay Roberts. He had planned to sail to nearby Trinity Bay, but there’s no time — Efford must return to Ottawa today for meetings. So do those meetings include a stop by Prime Minister Paul Martin’s office for an invitation to stay in cabinet? “I have no idea. It’s only the prime minister (that) knows that.” Technically, Efford remains the minister of Natural Resources — a portfolio (his first) he took on in December — “until the prime minister decides otherwise.” So what will Martin do? Given that five Liberal ministers — Stan Keyes (Revenue Canada), Helene Chalifour-Scherrer (Canadian Heritage), David Pratt (Defence), Bob Speller (Agriculture), and Rey Pagtakhan (Western Economic Diversification Fund), went down in defeat in the June 28th election, Efford predicts Martin will move quickly to fill the vacancies.
Photo by Paul Daly/The Sunday Independent
Federal Natural Resources Minister John Efford
“I have no idea what he (Martin) is planning, but usually when five ministers go down the changes will be made soon.” Of course, the province has four other Liberal MPs besides Efford, including Gerry Byrne, who spent time at the cabinet table as minister responsible for the Atlantic
Canada Opportunities Agency. Efford, however, is generally seen as the most logical choice as Newfoundland’s representative in the federal cabinet. He says he doesn’t want any particular portfolio. “You can’t speculate. You can only wait until the prime minister makes his deci-
sion. No other individual has any say into it.” That said, Efford has unfinished business in Natural Resources, a job he intends to tackle with a slightly different approach. “I spent those first few months learning my department … now I’m ready to take charge and yes, I’ll be different when I go back. I’ll be tougher.” As for the meetings Efford’s returning to Ottawa for, one of them will be a Monday morning staff meeting to deal with issues that were dropped when the election writ was handed down. Efford has a list of priorities when it comes to Natural Resources, topped with intentions to cut down on red tape. As an example, he says it takes two years for a company to get permission to carry out oil and gas exploration work on the Grand Banks. “There’s no other country in the free world that takes that long,” he says. “Our red tape in Canada is absolutely unbelievable.” Efford also has a priority list when it comes to Newfoundland and Labrador. No. 1 on that list is following through on Martin’s commitment to ensure the province is the principle beneficiary of offshore oil
royalties, a provision of the Atlantic Accord. Ottawa currently collects 85 per cent of royalty revenues from the offshore oil projects. The Hibernia and Terra Nova fields produced $4.9 billion last year alone. Newfoundland, meantime, received $123.8 million in royalties. Premier Danny Williams has said the changes that Martin has agreed to will mean an extra $100 million in royalties the first year, rising to $300 million by the fourth year. “We’ve got to finalize the commitment that the prime minister made,” says Efford, whose second priority is to address foreign overfishing. “Our commitment was to make sure the foreigners didn’t do any more overfishing on the nose and tail of the Grand Banks,” says Efford, adding he will press for custodial management if all else fails. “I can’t see how things could be accomplished without custodial management,” he says. “What custodial management means is allowing the foreign ships to still fish there but under restricted quotas the same as any other fishery within the 200-mile limit.”
Court goes Wilds
Hotel partly owned by premier used to sequester provincial juries; city hotels blocked By Jeff Ducharme The Sunday Independent
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rovincial court jurors have been sequestered at The Wilds, a resort complex just west of St. John’s that Premier Danny Williams is a shareholder in, The Sunday Independent has learned. “Certainly I can tell you there’s never been any direction come out of this office,” Williams told The Independent regarding the decision where jurors should stay. The jurors were sequestered at The Wilds on at least two occasions in 2004, once in the spring and then again in June. Staff at the Office of the High Sheriff confirmed the use of The Wilds, but referred further comment to High Sheriff David Jones, who was on holidays and unavailable. The sheriff’s office is responsible for court operations that include finding accommodations for sequestered juries. “Before I got into politics, I was a minority shareholder in The Wilds,” says Williams. “As well, that is now in a blind trust,” Finding accommodations for juries is often a challenge because
when tourism season begins, conventions jam city hotels, leaving the Sheriff’s Office scrambling to find rooms. The Wilds is approximately an hour’s drive from St. John’s on the Salmonier Line. The 40-room, 19-cabin complex also has an 18-hole golf course. The premier also owns shares in The Willows at Holyrood. “I think it would be most unfair to those other shareholders, however, if The Wilds was on a blacklist whereby the government couldn’t use The Wilds whatsoever,” Williams says. “I mean it is a resort. It’s been employing people significantly in that area. It’s been a major contributor to the economy.” According to a hospitality source who asked not to be identified, the newest hotel on the city’s skyline, the Capital Hotel, was approached, but couldn’t take the jurors because it wasn’t ready to open its doors to guests. Daily room rates at The Wilds vary from a low of $92 for a single-bed room to a high of $139 for an executive suite. The Sunday Independent reported last week that the commissioner of members’ interests, Wayne
RECLINING SOFAS
The Wilds in Salmonier.
Green, had given 30-days notice to firms Williams hired to address a number of concerns surrounding the premier’s financial holdings. All members of the House of Assembly are required to disclose all financial interests to Green’s office to avoid conflicts of interest. All MHAs, including Williams, met the April 1 deadline, but Green has asked the premier to take certain actions such as setting up a blind trust or disposing of certain assets. According to William’s 2003/04 filing to Green’s office, the pre-
Photo by Paul Daly/The Sunday Independent
mier has an investment portfolio of 12 companies that includes well-known firms such as BCE Inc., Torstar Corp., Gillette Co., Wackenhut Correction Corp. and Canadian Imperial Venture. His wife holds a portfolio that includes such giants as Barrick Gold, TD Bank and the Bank of Montreal. The premier also holds “significant and controlling” interests in a handful of numbered companies, The Willows Golf Course, The Wilds at Salmonier River, Fantastic Reality and Lex Holdings. He also remains a director with
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Rogers Cable and with the companies he still retains a vested interest in. His wife draws an income from Lex Holdings. The Newfoundland and Labrador Association of Public and Private Employees also criticized Williams after the College of the North Atlantic used the resort for meetings. “CONA made the decision themselves,” says Williams, who calls such accusations “unfortunate.” jeff.ducharme@theindependent.ca
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NEWS
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
An independent voice for Newfoundland & Labrador
P.O. Box 5891, Stn.C St. John’s, Newfoundland A1C 5X4 Tel: 709-726-4639 Fax: 709-726-8499 www.theindependent.ca The Sunday Independent is published by The Sunday Independent, Inc. in St. John’s. It is an independent newspaper covering the news, issues and current affairs that affect the people of Newfoundland & Labrador.
NEWSROOM Managing Editor Ryan Cleary Senior Editor Stephanie Porter Picture Editor Paul Daly Senior Writer Jeff Ducharme Reporter Alisha Morrissey Layout John Andrews OPERATIONS Managing Director Deborah Bourden
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Operations Andrew Best Consultant Wilson Hiscock Account Executive Mike Wells mike.wells@theindependent.ca Account Executive Nancy Burt nancy.burt@theindependent.ca Office Manager Rose Genge E-MAIL Advertising: sales@theindependent.ca Production: production@theindependent.ca Circulation: circulation@theindependent.ca Newsroom: editorial@theindependent.ca All material in The Sunday Independent is copyrighted and the property of The Sunday Independent or the writers and photographers who produced the material. Any use or reproduction of this material without permission is prohibited under the Canadian Copyright Act. © 2004 The Sunday Independent
LETTERS POLICY The Sunday Independent welcomes letters to the editor. Letters must be 300 words in length or less and include full name, mailing address and daytime contact numbers. Letters may be edited for length, content and legal considerations. Send your letters in care of The Sunday Independent, P.O. Box 5891, Station C, St. John’s, NL, A1C 5X4 or e-mail us at editorial@theindependent.ca
T
own is changing, don’t you know. The two landmarks St. John’s is best known for in bays far and wide are its malls, the Avalon and Village, once great anchors of the east and west ends. An outport elementary school wouldn’t dream of taking a field trip to St. John’s in the mid-1970s without darting by the Village. The youngsters still had energy to burn after crucifying the poor ducks in Boring Park for a few hours. The Avalon Mall was plan B in case of rain, which wasn’t a bad thing considering the cash that burned holes in the pockets of the shopping hordes that were the grades 4s, 5s and 6s at St. Francis. The security guards got their workouts once the busses drove up and the terror was unleashed for two and a half hours of browsing for their major purchases, Cokes and fries. The Avalon peaked in popularity when the Wonderful Grand Band’s Tommy Sexton raved about its fancy food court. You can drink your coffee from a paper cup, spill it on the floor and not have to wipe it up. At the mall, at the Babylon Mall. There wasn’t
a dry floor in the mall after that song smacked its head off the top of the Newfoundland charts. Most events were tied to the malls — Christmas, back-toschool, weddings, anniversaries, birthdays, funerals. Official reunions weren’t half as successful at pulling together a crowd as Midnight Madness. Even today, it’s practically impossible to walk the length of the Avalon Mall without meeting an acquaintance from as far back as elementary school, reminiscing about the days spent hunting the Caribou (statue), hidden in the dense brush of Boring forest. (The west end park was apparently renamed Bowring in recent years.) A trip to the malls doesn’t seem such an event these days. WalMart pulled out of the Village months ago and settled in Mount Pearl, leaving behind a building with only one working wing (Sears). Wal-Mart paid the lease on the empty space at the Village long after it left to prevent another tenant from moving in quickly and taking over its customer base. Soon after, Canadian Tire closed across the way. Wal-Mart has also announced
its intention of pulling out of the Avalon in favour of a new freestanding store (Please see Page 15). Retail outlets in the city are moving towards big-box outlets in areas like Stavanger Drive, the north end of Kenmount Road and the backside of Mount Pearl. The city — St. John’s and Mount Pearl are considered as one to all but those who live there — is going through another growth spurt like it did when the Avalon first opened 37 years ago and downtown took such a hit. Water Street is haunted by the ghosts of Woolworth’s, The Arcade, Ayre’s and dozens of other stores that have passed on. Retail trade is moving further away from the core, chasing the sprawling development to the outer fringes of the city limits. Other changes have coincided with the retail shift. In the east end, the old Janeway hospital has closed. In the west, the Grace stands abandoned and curtainless. St. John’s and area is growing, stretching with the influx from the dying outports. So much of rural Newfoundland is shrinking, collapsing with the loss of the cod fishery. For all the changes, town
is doing well enough; there’s still the Confederation Building, Memorial University, the Health Sciences and the boom in real estate to keep the economy strong. Grocery stores are going up left, right and centre. Memorial Stadium will probably even be converted into aisles of produce, with the wind measured on Regatta Day using a Dominion bag flying from the boathouse. Who knows, perhaps the city limits will keep growing until they one day extend across to Port aux Basques. That would be one way to lower the unemployment rate and turn this place around. Andy Wells would be happy, too, once he’s king of the land. Who knows, the Avalon Mall could also one day extend across the width and breath of the province and all will be right with this battered place. Ryan Cleary is managing editor of The Sunday Independent. rcleary@theindependent.ca
Letter to the Editor
Fighting for the right to speak out Dear editor, I wish to write about an incident I recently experienced in my work as a ticket seller with the Canadian National Institute for the Blind (CNIB). Over the past 10 years the CNIB has contacted me asking if I would sell a few tickets for them to help raise money for the charity. Most often I agreed to do that since I am disabled with a visual impairment myself. In the beginning, I started in my neighbourhood knocking on doors. Later, I sat at a ticket table in a supermarket for
a few weeks. Then, in 2002, I began working in the hallways of malls in the city. Last January I made an effort to secure some time at the Avalon Mall on the CNIB recreational vehicle annual fundraiser. To my surprise, during the last week of the project two non-disabled men made the decision to refuse any days for me to sell tickets there. I felt this was unfair and I went to the CNIB management to complain — since I live without 90 per cent of my vision.
I expressed to the CNIB how I felt I was being treated unfairly. The matter has been referred to mediation talks in hopes of reaching a suitable resolution. I recently approached the CNIB to inquire about the possibility of having some house lottery tickets to sell. I was denied tickets and was told that I am not a good ambassador to represent the CNIB any longer since I complained about being treated unfairly last winter. I expressed how I felt I was being punished for exercising my right as
a Canadian citizen and that banning me from having tickets to sell was insulting. I haven’t done anything wrong; I’ve been honest in handling money and did the work well. My right to speak out about how any organization treats me is afforded to me through the democratic process we live with in this country and no one can control a person to the extent where this right may not be exercised. Anthony Fagan, St. John’s
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
NEWS
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Letters to the Editor
Organizing a Newfoundland-first attitude Dear editor, On June 29, we asked Newfoundlanders and Labradorians to consider working toward a political force dedicated to providing a voice for Newfoundland, independent of mainstream party lines. For a start, we need action, not more political promises, from the federal government to have an action plan to rebuild our cod stocks; to curb foreign overfishing; for joint fishery management; to develop lower Churchill power; to receive appropriate offshore oil revenues; and to have transportation policies (sea, land, and air) that will strengthen and develop the province’s self sufficiency within the Canadian economy. While we support the province’s current collaborative and cooperative approach with the federal government in trying to achieve fairness and equality for Newfoundland in national issues, we remain skeptical that this approach will not regress into the traditional confrontational approach. We recognize the royal
commission of 2003 that explored renewing and strengthening our place in Canada as a significant and accurate finding for our way forward. We believe, in election 2004, we have seen a tremendous outpouring of dissatisfaction for how little federal political choices have benefited our province. Yet, we feel open-line shows and letters to the editor provide not much more than a pressure relief valve for individuals. Our challenge to Newfoundlanders and Labradorians is to funnel this sentiment and energy into organized effort that can make a real difference. We take inspiration from the Bloc Quebecois party in Quebec in this current Confederation. If the Bloc can make a difference for Quebec, why can’t we have a NL First party for Newfoundland and Labrador? Prove that we do not live in a culture of defeatism. Reach us at nlfirst@hotmail.com or contact the undersigned. Help us grow. Fred Wilcox, St. John’s
Higher expectations Dear editor I read a recent article in The Sunday Independent (Playing telephone, June 13 edition) and found myself so disappointed in the journalistic quality that I find myself compelled to communicate my point of view. The article was apparently about the ongoing strike by Aliant’s unionized employees. However, it failed to cite relevant supporting information and read rather like a disjointed high school essay. The article’s opening paragraph eluded to a childhood game in which children are seated in a circle and a message is whispered from ear to ear — the end result usually being much different from the original information. This was a wonderful seguay and I expected to read an article that provided detailed examples of various rumours and hearsay circulating regarding the strike and the recent events surrounding the situation. Instead, I found myself reading complete nonsense about the people on the picket line eating dessert! This is of no interest and has no bearing on the strike, rumours sur-
rounding the work stoppage, nor its repercussions. Interspersed with the dietary options of those on the picket line was a brief mention of the unfortunate incident from June 9 involving the deliberate sabotage of Aliant’s fibre optic cable. Now this is an item of interest, and would have been a strong basis for a wellwritten story. However, I failed to read anything that provided any coherent theories on the topic. There were some references to the incident, but they were so poorly communicated and lost in irrelevant details that they failed to communicate any real point. There are literally thousands of people affected by the Aliant strike, and I would have expected a more professional and relevant article on such and important issue. Wendy Burt St. John’s Editor’s note: The Sunday Independent has carried numerous articles on the Aliant strike — both news and feature stories. The feature in question put a human face on the ongoing strike.
Be Your Own Boss!
Photo by Paul Daly/The Sunday Independent
Rooms with a view
The St. John’s skyline was once dominated by the Basilica of St. John the Baptist. The Rooms, the opening of which has been delayed by a year, is today’s dominating structure.
Rant and Reason
by Ivan Morgan
Dissecting the decision
A
h summer. The election is behind us, the weather is warm and I get to dash off a quick column tarted-up as an election post mortem and get back to my deck and gin and tonic. Politicians pay a great deal of money for expert advice — and there are no end of folks who will charge a great deal of money to give it. So I thought I would offer some unsolicited advice to a few of the folks who had the guts to offer themselves for our consideration this time around. All it will cost them is a buck. Seems pretty reasonable, doesn’t it? It is my impression that Siobhan Coady will try again. With that in mind, here are a few suggestions I picked up from your constituents. You might want to give them serious consideration before the next outing. By all means work hard. By all means be seen as tireless and energetic, but enough with the signs. No, really. Also, don’t use automated dialing machines to send messages to your constituents. It even pissed off your supporters. You don’t need an automatic vote-losing machine. Also, maybe next time lose the trailer. I spoke to someone who was stuck behind it in traffic. Your grin is burned into his neo-cortex. Father Des McGrath spoke on election night after getting shellacked by Bill Matthews. He said the one thing he knew to be true is that the average Newfoundlander is a New Democrat at heart. Truer words were rarely ever uttered. The question I have, however, is that if that’s true (and I believe it is), then what does it say about the brain trust that runs the party?
Rex Barnes was mealymouthed the day after he lost. Dude, no one likes to lose. You should have taken the high road in front of the microphone. You will have many years to slag the guy who trounced you in every bar and restaurant in the riding. Scott Simms said wonderful things about you (which would frost my cookies too, but there it is). You should have managed to say something nice about him. Loyola Hearn was also nasty the morning after, growling about fighting scare tactics throughout the campaign. Mr. Hearn, listen to the electorate. They elected you because you are not scary. Take a closer look (why can’t I let that go?) at your Conservative colleagues. Ask yourself this question: Could it be that your opponents use scare tactics because your buddies frighten the bejesus out of us? What happened in Ontario tells me (and should tell your Mr. Harper, not that he’s going to listen) that Joe Clark was right. Stephen Harper is also going to have to teach some of the orangutans in his caucus that Canadians (God love them) are not right-wing. In the words of the fabulous Scott Brison, the Alliance will have to learn that phrases like “family values” are not code words for bigotry and prejudice. Amen to that, Scott. Maybe Norm Doyle and Loyola Hearn can teach that to the Alliance? Gentlemen, you will excuse me if I don’t hold my breath. Paul Martin was a big success in business to a large extent because he registered his ships in places
where he didn’t have to deal with unions. Now he is going to have to deal with a snootful of union types, as well as new agers, yuppies, and university profs. I’ll bet he doesn’t like it. He’s going to have to learn to get along, to get along. The nasty little backroom weasels whose plotting, scheming, wheeling and dealing got him stuck in this mess aren’t going to last in this new environment. I’m betting the national (please note the difference) New Democrat backroom people are a lot more savvy than the Martin folk. So are the Bloc people. Damn this is going to be fun to watch! Watching the TV coverage election night, I was struck at the high percentage of Newfoundlanders giving their two cents worth. Rick Mercer, Rex Murphy, Andrew Younghusband and Tim Powers were all there, front and centre on CBC. Tobin was all over the CTV network, Something for us all to be proud of — even if Mr. Powers is one of the bad guys. And finally, I would like to have a quiet word with my old friend, Brother Fenwick. Peter, I nearly had an aneurysm when I heard you compared Stephen Harper to Robert Stanfield. I was (and you know how rare this is) momentarily speechless. Shame on you.
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The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
Opinions Are Like...
by Jeff Ducharme
Blame (central) Canada J
ust after 11 p.m. on election night, my phone rang. It was a childhood friend from Ottawa calling. Since I knew why he was calling, I didn’t bother to pick up the phone. “Well it looks like once again the East Coast of Canada has managed to attempt to reelect a bumbling, incompetent, corrupt and, worst of all, arrogant Liberal party,” my buddy’s voice crackled through the answering machine. “Absolutely pathetic. Here I am in central Canada and I’m just drooling with hatred.” Whether my buddy was actually “drooling with hatred” or because he drank the last beer from the fridge is a matter of conjecture, but what wasn’t in doubt is that he was pretty ticked off. He wasn’t alone. On CBC TV I watched as a central Canadian went ballistic, via webcam, on Atlantic Canadians blaming us, in no uncertain terms, for putting the Liberals back in power. Oh please. Give your head a shake. What happened to B.C. holding the results of the election in the palm of their hands? More importantly, the know-it-alls in Ontario were the ones who rescued Paul Martin and the Liberals by giving them 76 out of a possible 106 seats. There are a total of 308 seats in the Commons. So, my buddy, you only have yourself to blame. It’s hard to say if some central Canadians are just stunned, or if it’s just a new twist in the way some central folk treat Atlantic Canadians. We’ve always been the whipping boys of Confederation, but this is ludicrous. Canada is one of the most tolerant nations on earth, but don’t expect us to elect the Conservatives to prove it. “The (expletive) Liberals,” he continued, quickly giving up on the academic approach and adopting more of a white-trash tact. While Atlantic Canadians would love to think that they determine the outcome of a federal election, that’s a bit of a stretch.
There are only 32 seats in Atlantic Canada — seven in Newfoundland and Labrador. The Liberals won 22 seats in Atlantic Canada. Lets face it, Ontario just doesn’t have the guts to fall on the sword and admit that they put the Grits back in to power. Being the convenient fall guy for Ontario is a role that Atlantic Canada has become quite used to being in. “And what the hell are you people out there on the Rock thinking? I just can’t figure it out,” he ranted on. My buddy and I had this talk even before the election was called. He was doing some pseudo pre-election arm twisting. Seemingly, my buddy had lost all sense of social reason, surprising since he and his wife recently had a child and lost their DINK (dual income no kids) status. He literally pleaded
with me to vote Conservative and trounce Martin and the Liberals out of office — not because Conservative leader Stephen Harper is good — but because Martin is bad. Having to cast a vote against a political party rather than for a party you believe in just shows how barren our political lands have become. He was willing, and thought all his friends should also, to work without a social safety net just to rid the country of the Liberals. He didn’t care if the Reform/Alliance retread candidates continued to espouse some disturbing ideals. Let’s have two-tier health care, ban gay marriage, repeal a woman’s right to abortion, and use the Charter of Rights and Freedoms’ notwithstanding clause to hustle Canada back into the dark ages. “I thought some political venting would
do me some good,” my buddy sighed over the phone lines. More importantly, a few bore holes in my buddy’s old noggin would likely do him more good. Sure the Liberals are arrogant. Sure the Liberals are riddled with scandal. But the only reason the Conservatives aren’t arrogant or riddled with scandal is because they’ve been out of power for more than a decade. How soon they forget Brian Mulroney and his stooges. The Liberals didn’t win this election; the Conservatives lost it. Harper proved himself as the best of the three mainstream leaders, but he simply couldn’t keep some of his less socially stable, lunatic fringe candidates in line. Every time Harper and the new Conservatives were approaching normal, one of his former Reform/Alliance wingnuts would leap out of the shadows, their rednecks glowing and their lips flapping. That’s what beat the Conservatives. Harper overestimated his ability in changing the spots on the dog and underestimated the Canadian electorate’s ability to realize that the spots hadn’t changed. “And Jeff, I’ll try you on your cell. You must be working the evening here, reporting on the tragedy that’s unfolding.” I didn’t answer my cell either. But considering the reality of minority governments in this country, my buddy will likely be calling me in 12 or so months to rant and rave so more. I can’t wait. Jeff Ducharme is The Sunday Independent’s senior writer. jeff.ducharme@theindependent.ca
Cheaper than expected Inmates and staff at province’s prisons butted out easily By Alisha Morrissey The Sunday Independent
T
he smoking ban at the province’s eight prisons was cheaper to implement than expected, saving government just over $25,000, The Sunday Independent has learned. A $40,000 budget had been set aside for stop-smoking aids, staff training and counselling but only $15,000 was spent because inmates and prison staff have apparently had an easy time giving up the butts. Marvin McNutt, spokesman for the Justice Department, says he was surprised that staff and inmates took the ban so well. The “patch,” a stop smoking aid, was distributed free of charge for a two-week period, although McNutt (who hasn’t touched a cigarette himself in 20 years) says
half the inmates and staff stopped using the patch after the first week. The patch is still available at prison canteens, costing $27 for a two-week supply. The $25,000 in savings was achieved primarily from the decision to scale back a full-time counsellor to part time. McNutt has no idea why inmates and staff gave up the stop-smoking aid. He also says the ban didn’t cause any uprisings or disturbances at the prisons. “All we can hope for is that it did provide them with enough information so they would know what to anticipate and how to prevent a relapse,” he says. The Justice Department has yet to carry out a study on the smoking ban. One quitting aid that wasn’t provided to inmates is nicotine
gum. Correctional facilities don’t allow inmates to have gum, which can be used to jam locks. “That could be a serious security hazard, or in the event of an emergency, like a fire, it could be a life-safety hazard,” says McNutt. Tobacco is now considered contraband in the prison system. And, like other forms of contraband (marijuana, hashish) there have been attempts to pass tobacco through visiting rooms. Cigarettes have even been thrown over the wall. “We have not witnessed any great violation of the rules so far,” says McNutt. David Patrick Fleming was one of the driving factors behind the introduction of the smoking ban. He filed a lawsuit in July 2002, alleging second-hand smoke in the prison contributed to his lung cancer.
The federal correctional system is currently looking into its smoking policy as well, although there are no federal prisons in this province. The Justice Department reviewed the success of smoking bans in other provinces before introducing the ban here. According to information obtained by The Independent
through the Freedom of Information Act, Saskatchewan introduced a smoking cessation program in 2000 that resulted in a minor inmate uprising at the Regina Correctional Centre. Manitoba also implemented a program in early November 2003, which led to a minor inmate uprising at the Winnipeg Remand Centre.
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
NEWS
Page 7
International opposition
Foreign students at Memorial say tuition hikes forcing them to think twice about coming here By Clare-Marie Gosse For The Sunday Independent
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s an international student studying at Memorial University in St. John’s, Kethy Sosso-Kolle has seen ongoing renovations being carried out on campus, including construction of a new dining hall. She can’t help but think, however, that the money for the work is coming from the high tuition that her family back in Cameroon — as well as the families of other international students — pay to the university every year. The provincial government has frozen tuition at Memorial in recent years, although the freeze doesn’t include international students. Since the fall of 2003, the fees have been rising by 10 per cent a semester. By this time next year, foreign students will pay $960 per course, compared to the $660 they had been paying last year. Canadian students, meantime, pay $255 per course. The explanation for the tuition hike given to Memorial’s International Student Centre was that the university wanted to provide overseas students with better services. Sosso-Kolle says that hasn’t happened. She says that aside from relocating and expanding the International Student Advisory office, improvements have been minimal and are predominantly targeted towards making the campus more esthetically pleasing. She says the price is too high. Atul Singh Anand, student president of the International Student Center, says the steep rise in tuition for international students “is a lot of money,” particularly in his home country of India, where the average yearly salary is equivalent to about $1,000 Cdn. “We got 2000 students to sign a petition saying they oppose the increase,” says Anand, adding the student centre also organized a march and other forms of protest. Still, university officials haven’t backed down from the tuition hike. Anand insists they were told that any international students who didn’t want to pay the amount
Photo by Paul Daly/The Sunday Independent
Memorial international student Kethy Sosso-Kolle.
were replaceable. Overseas students aren’t eligible for loans from the federal or provincial governments. Anand says they have little, if any, bargaining power. “Because we are not allowed to vote, we are restricted. We cannot show a protest. If locals protested, the government would give them funds.” Sosso-Kolle says people are often under the mistaken impression that international students come from rich families with endless amounts of money. In her case, however, “Everything’s on a budget. “I’m supposed to do an honours to get into grad school, but my father has said the fees keep increasing and we can’t really work with that. If my fees keep increasing what will happen to my brother? He’s getting out of high school in two years, so that’s another person who will have to go to university.” Sosso-Kolle says that the few universities she knows of in Cameroon seem to be quite good, but she admits that a degree from a university in a country like
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Canada has more validity worldwide, particularly since she’s hoping to enter the medical field. She plans to leave Memorial in May 2005 when she graduates with a degree, as opposed to staying to complete her honours. Michael Collins, Memorial’s
vice-president of academics, says tuition was raised for international students because the fees were low to begin with. “The fact of the matter is that our tuition fees are still fairly comparable to the other Atlantic universities,” he says, adding fees
cover additional costs, including an advisory office for international students. “(Memorial) provides a lot of services that not all universities offer. There is a support structure in place, and that costs money,” Collins says. While Danny Williams’ first budget as premier continued the freeze of tuition rates, the university was also asked to find $2 million in savings. As a result, Collins says MUN has increased the number of overseas recruitment trips to attract foreign students. Once Memorial’s international tuition fees fall in line with other, more geographically accessible universities in the country, Anand wonders what will make students want to come here. “Many international students left, many of my friends – including me – are planning to leave,” he says. For his part, Collins isn’t concerned about the possibility of losing international students, particularly because MUN currently has about 100 more overseas students this year than 2003. “I’m very hopeful that the numbers will take off next year,” he says. “We have a better understanding of what students are looking for. Newfoundland is very attractive to international students. It’s a safe and welcoming place.”
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NEWS
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
Mighty Churchill (stink) Sewage continues to back up on province’s largest river Happy Valley-Goose Bay By Bert Pomeroy The Sunday Independent
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erald Dyson remembers when residents of Happy Valley-Goose Bay would get their drinking water from the Churchill River. Those days are long gone. “If you went down by the river in some areas now before you had your supper, then you wouldn’t be able to eat,” says Dyson, who’s spent most of his life living and working on the river. “If you went down there after you ate your supper, then you would probably lose it — it’s not a good smell.” The stench comes from the two million gallons of raw sewage dumped daily into the province’s largest river. Some days the smell is almost unbearable for those who live along the river’s banks. “On a hot day it’s terrible,” says Clarice Blake Rudkowski. “There are sandbars on the river behind my house that were never there before this year, and the one closest to the river bank keeps getting bigger. We’re metres below an outfall and the waste is getting hung up on the sandbars. Something has to be done, not only for the smell, but for the health and safety of residents as well.” Happy Valley-Goose Bay Mayor Leo Abbass took a first-hand look at the situation recently. While he says he sympathizes with those residents who are affected, there’s very little the town can do. “We can’t afford to build a treatment plant on our own,” says the mayor. “We have
applied to the province for a funding arrangement with the federal government on a one-third basis, but we don’t seem to be getting very far with it.” The ball is in the province’s court, says Abbass. “We’ve been told our proposal is acceptable, but the province has to move the application to the federal government on our behalf — that’s how the process works.” A sewage-treatment facility to replace the two outfalls on the river would cost about $12 million to build and $350,000 a year to maintain, Abbass says, adding that the town’s share would have to be recovered through tax increases. “It’s at the top of our list of priorities,” he says, “but we have to secure the necessary funding from the other two levels of government before we can move forward.” Dyson says he’s been hearing the same answer for years. “I have been bringing this issue up at council for years and I go to just about every meeting,” he notes. “They tell me it’s a money problem. A couple of years ago they told me a plant would cost about $2.6 million to $3 million — now it’s over $12 million. The cost will continue to go up, so we can’t afford to wait any longer.” Dyson says he opposed the decision to place a second outfall on the river about 15 years ago, but his concerns at the time fell on deaf ears. “I told them that there would not be enough water in the river to flush it away,”
he says, an argument he would eventually prove true. “I went to the same outlet a couple of years ago and threw a stick in the water. I went back a couple of days later and the stick was still there — there’s no flow.” The situation has not improved in recent years, says Blake Rudkowski. “The waste is going into the river, but it’s not going anywhere because the sandbars are in the way — it’s disgusting.” Blake Rudkowski says she fears the problem will worsen if the provincial government moves forward with its plans to build a causeway and bridge upstream. “What kind of impact will this development have on the flow of the river?” That’s the same question the Happy Valley-Goose Bay town council wants answered. “The flow is not adequate now,” says Abbass. “Are we going to end up with a cesspool?”
The river has changed dramatically since the construction of the massive hydro-electric facility at Churchill Falls in the early 1970s, notes Dyson, and the proposed 500 metre causeway and 360-metre bridge will cause further damage. “There’s more sandbars in that river now than in the past and below the community there were three islands that have completely disappeared,” he recalls, noting that several families had once lived on one of the islands. “People used to water-ski on the river, and big boats, 35- and 40-feet long would steam up it no problem at all. They wouldn’t be able to do that now,” Dyson says. Meantime, the town council will continue monitoring the sewage situation, says Abbass, and may consider dredging the river near one of the outfalls to increase flow rates. “We’ve had to do that in the past.”
Crab fishery looks healthy in most areas landings down on northeast coast By Ryan Cleary The Sunday Independent
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id-way through the crab season and catches appear healthy, although some areas on the island’s northeast coast are reporting poor landings and an abundance of molting or soft-shelled crab, which often die when returned to the sea. Catch rates in most areas appear on par with last year; other areas are experiencing a slight improvement, says Roy Russell, with the federal Fisheries department in St. John’s. Concerns, however, have been raised over low catch rates in White Bay, and Notre Dame Bay. Fishermen there also report high landings of soft-shelled crab, which are commercially worthless and often die after being handled. “Not necessarily,” says Russell when asked whether problems in the two bays may be a sign of failing crab stocks. All the fishing data isn’t in yet for scientists to analyze, he noted, adding scientists don’t conduct their own crab surveys until the fall.
Simply better rates Simply better service
Simply better
“The crab fishery, overall, I would have to say is looking on par with last year’s,” says Russell. “There are concerns in some areas and we’re working with the fishermen and their representatives to address those concerns as they occur.” As of July 1, an estimated 70 per cent or 39,000 tonnes of the 53,590 tonne quota had been taken. The fishery, which officially opened in mid-April, runs in most areas until Aug. 15 and includes about 2,500 inshore fishermen and 750 offshore fishermen — all of whom are allotted individual quotas. The start of the crab fishery was delayed this year until May because of a price dispute between fishermen and processors. According to the crab price agreement, the minimum price for crab is based on a market formula tied to current market prices and foreign exchange rates updated every two weeks. The price per pound generally stands at about $2.40. The crab fishery had a landed value of $277 million in 2003.
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The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
NEWS
Page 9
In and out
Scott Simms savours his role as MP; Rex Barnes not looking back By Clare-Marie Gosse For The Sunday Independent
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s the new Liberal MP for the federal riding of Bonavista-Exploits, the first thing Scott Simms has to do is get used to the telephone. And how it never stops ringing. “My phone starts ringing at seven in the morning and it never stops,” he says, laughing. The former national weather broadcaster is still riding on the whirlwind of a hard-fought campaign victory and the celebrations marking an exciting win. Since election night, Simms has been inundated with media attention at every turn, and admits to fruitlessly trying to grab a nap between interviews. He acknowledges that his schedule is only going to get busier. As a 34-yearold single dad, any free time that he once put aside for hobbies such as working out and boxing, will be spent with his 10-year-old son, Jackson. “Someone the other day said, ‘Why is it you don’t have a woman in your life?’ I said, ‘Well first of all I’ve got to find one who’s willing.’ I have politics now, so I’m way too busy. I don’t know if any lady would want to sign up and be involved in that.” He laughs, and suggests putting “Former forecaster looking for companionship” as an ad in the paper. Defeated Conservative incum-
bent Rex Barnes, who held the seat for two years, would probably be more interested in the job section. Although disappointed by the election result (he lost by 2,184 votes), Barnes says the “burden has been lifted,” and has adamantly sworn off federal politics. “I made a promise to my wife, and that’s not because I’m disgruntled, but because I was (already) there. I would have loved to be reelected, but it wasn’t meant to be.” Barnes is finally able to allocate himself some free time. “I’ve taken three weekends off in two years and now I’m going to have two months to spend with my family.” Despite his amiable attitude, Barnes has made some pointed remarks since the election regarding the role that Premier Danny Williams and his government may have played in the federal election. Williams’ first budget was a tough one, cutting 4,000 positions. The 28-day public-sector strike didn’t exactly win the premier many fans, either. Barnes stands by his comments. “Everywhere I go people say to me, ‘Every time I look at my motor vehicle registration at $180, it turns me from the Conservative party.’ What Danny Williams has done, regardless of who wants to say what, he’s taken real money from the people. This was part of the reason I got defeated, because of this $180,” says Barnes. “Danny Williams is not out on the ground. He hasn’t got a clue
about my view with regards to being out on the ground with the common person, and that’s sad because he’s a great person, but he hasn’t got the reality check.” Barnes says the only way he might consider entering provincial politics is “if something good comes out of the Conservative party in Newfoundland and Labrador.” He mentions the possibility of running for mayor if Grand Falls-Windsor and Bishop Falls amalgamate. For the immediate future, however, he hopes to return to his previous profession as a paramedic. Simms is casting his former profession as a weatherman aside, which might be just as well, as he seems to have lost his touch. “I predicted the weather for election night and it turned out completely different,” he says ruefully. Simms is turning his attention towards the political climate now. He says that although he was confident he could win on June 28th, he was “surprised by the spread of vote,” as well as the rapid calculation of the numbers. He confesses to avoiding following the internal polls during his campaign, but in hindsight discovered that when he wasn’t running neck and neck with Barnes, he was only a short distance behind. The Bonavista-Exploits MP says that he needs to get used to his new responsibility within a bureaucracy. He intends to focus on issues such as reforming Employment Insur-
Photo by Paul Daly/The Sunday Independent
CBC Television’s Glen Deir talks with Scott Simms, former Weather Network host.
ance, and pushing for followthrough on the pledge made by Prime Minister Paul Martin regarding the province becoming primary beneficiary of offshore resources. “I will have discussions with the Fisheries department as well as Foreign Affairs so I can get a full handle on the situation with NAFTA (North American Free Trade Agreement) and the European Union, and see how I can per-
sonally get involved,” says Simms. As for Barnes, he’s preparing to enjoy the sensation of being (at least temporarily) very much uninvolved. As Simms hurries off to grab a cup of coffee and a brisk shower before an interview with CBC, Barnes is anticipating a two-month holiday, beginning with a visit to his previously neglected cabin and sailboat.
Blacktop battle Roads association president says feds have sent province down dead-end By Jeff Ducharme The Sunday Independent
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ith no railway and a crumbling road network, the president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Road Builders Association says the federal government has derailed an industry. “The biggest problem we have is with the federal government, basically the roads for rails agreement,” says Kevin Keating. In 1988, the federal and provincial governments came to an agreement that was the final nail in the railway’s coffin. The feds offered the province $640 million to build a road network and tear up the rails. Called the Newfoundland Transportation Initiative, it became known across the province as “roads for rails.”
“Basically the agreement expired and right now it’s costing the government nothing here in Newfoundland.” VIA Rail, which services the Canadian mainland, received $257 million from the feds in 2002. The province’s Gulf ferry service, Marine Atlantic, is subsidized to tune of $36.9 million a year. According to Keating, the federal government should be subsidizing the Trans-Canada Highway above and beyond the current infrastructure programs it offers Newfoundland because the province no longer has a railway. “The problem we have is that our railway is gone and everything that’s moved here on the island of Newfoundland now in terms of goods and tourists and everything else travelling down
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our highways … it takes a tremendous toll on our highway system,” says Keating. Natural Resources Minister John Efford agrees that something has to be done to fix the province’s highways. “The one thing that I can agree with is that there is a major problem on our highways,” Efford told The Sunday Independent from his boat, the Sea Princess. “We have a major problem with our highways and the reason for it is the fact that we have no railway and all of the heavy transport trucks are going over the highways 24 hours a day, seven days a week, 365 days a year.” Efford says the federal government might have to look at creating a more effective “national” highway infrastructure program. “There is money there now, but
it’s matching dollars with the province and the province needs to come up with their share.” Efford says there is currently $69 million available in 50/50 cost-shared infrastructure funding to the province. “So that’s $138 million. That’s a lot of money that could be spent on improving our highway system.” The province has already announced $30 million in road work this year, including $6.9 million under the 50/50 cost-shared Strategic Highway Infrastructure Program. Keating says his association is “quite pleased” with the amount of money the province is putting into road work this year. “It is quite frustrating and we also don’t really put the onus on the provincial government
because actually over the past 10 years they’ve established $23 million a year and this year they’ve increased the funding by $7 million to $30 million.” According to Keating, Newfoundland will put down 200,000 tonnes of asphalt this year compared to Alberta’s plans to lay down one million tonnes of black top. Keating says for every million spent on road work, 54 people are employed across the province. But his association, which represents 120 suppliers and contractors, has seen at least three companies close up shop because they can barely afford to make the payments on their equipment. “I think it’s going to have a drastic affect on our industry.” jeff.ducharme@theindependent.ca
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West Words
NEWS
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
by Frank Carroll
Sometimes you get what you need W hat are your plans for the summer? Me, I know I won’t be thinking much about politics. No, I’ve just about had my fill. Just about. The final and nastiest week of the recent federal election campaign coincided with the first week of what passes for summer in Newfoundland. The weather was bad enough, but the foul mood of the electorate and the ugly rhetoric that spewed out of the TV made this season of misery even worse. Newfoundlanders were so fed up that less than half of them bothered to vote. I wasn’t one of the disaffected, but I must admit I didn’t know how I was going to vote until I stepped into the ballot box. Thank God it’s over. Bring on the sunburn and nippers, which aren’t half as irritating as the political pundits and pollsters. Nobody got what they wanted in this election, which made it typically Canadian. The Tories failed to capture the government, the Liberals failed to win a majority, and the NDP failed to become kingmakers. Well, I shouldn’t say nobody got what they wanted. The Bloc Quebecois dominated the election in la belle province by winning 54 of 75 seats. But Gilles Duceppe must know in his heart that Quebeckers didn’t so much vote for his party as they voted against the Liberals. The Green Party also had mixed results. It failed to win seats but won enough of a percentage of the popular vote to qualify for the political-welfare money Canadian taxpayers so placidly hand out to the parties. That brings me to the voters, who also didn’t get everything they wanted. Each party that vied for power had something valuable to offer, but it was obvious that each one also had its shortcomings. Canadians may have taught them all a lesson by not giving any one party a majority, but those same voters must deal with the consequences of having a government that may at times be stymied by its tenuous grasp on power. Part of being an adult is realizing you can’t always get what you want. But, like old Mick says, sometimes you get what you need. So, what have Canadians gotten? Well, in my opinion, what we needed: A decent government led by a decent and competent prime minister. And it would have been the same had the Conservatives or NDP taken power. I’m not saying it doesn’t matter who governs. Ideology does matter
Photo by Paul Daly/The Sunday Independent
Françoise Enguehard, general director of Société 2004.
— more than it should. But the sky is not going to fall because the Liberals have been reelected and it wouldn’t have fallen had the Tories or NDP assumed power. (The Bloc? OK, maybe the sky would have fallen in that unlikely case.) Albertans may beat their breasts about “western alienation,” socialists may cry foul about corporate influence, Liberals may fret about the “hidden agenda” of social conservatives, but such fears are exaggerated during an election campaign, and where does fear get you anyway? On June 29, the day after the election, we didn’t wake up living in Saudi Arabia or North Korea. We woke up in a land of peace, order and good government. And it would have been no different had we awoken to a new government in Ottawa. Demonizing politicians — or at least assuming the worst about them — is one of Canada’s favourite pastimes. Upon assigning me to interview Paul Martin, a former boss of mine warned that I would probably find the thenFinance minister aloof and condescending. I found no such thing. Martin struck me as very sincere and respectful, as well as brilliant. We could do much worse. If you’re upset about the outcome of the election — like the Albertan woman who broke down and sobbed on a radio phone-in show — then maybe you ought to stop dwelling on the negative, accept the results and get on with your life. It’s summertime, for crying out loud. Hop in the car, head to the park, put up your feet, and put on the Rolling Stones. But please don’t play I can’t get no satisfaction. That tune has been overplayed lately. Frank Carroll is a journalism instructor at the College of the North Atlantic’s Stephenville campus. He can be reached at frank_carroll_nf@yahoo.ca
Bonjour b’y Society celebrates 500 years of French presence in Newfoundland; surprising how many of us still don’t know about it By Alisha Morrissey The Sunday Independent
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he head of the society established to celebrate the 500th anniversary of French presence in the province says it’s surprising how many Newfoundlanders aren’t aware of the rich French history and culture. Françoise Enguehard, general director of Société 2004, is from the French island of Miquelon off the south coast where the French presence is obvious. “So what we find is that Newfoundlanders in general of English decent and even francophone have no idea about their history, that’s what strikes me most,” she says. “What blows the mind of Newfoundlanders when I tell them is that besides Quebec and Acadia the richest (French) history in Canada is in Newfoundland.” The French, like many other cultures, settled in the province long before settling elsewhere in mainland Canada. There’s no specific summer festival planned for the commemoration of 500 years of French culture or the abandonment of fishing rights by the French 100 years ago, but there are many community events that will include French-related culture and education. “It’s not only a celebration, it goes much deeper than that,” says Enguehard, adding she’s proud of what communities like Conche and Croque on the Northern Peninsula have done with French
education and interpretation centres for three years now. Different communities decided on their own how they would celebrate the anniversary. “In that sense, communities have done a lot of looking into their own history,” says Enguehard, pointing out the society will have a role in the celebrations of each community. The celebrations actually began in January and will continue until the end of the year. One project Enguehard beams about is construction of seven bread ovens in French communities. Four are already built. “They’re not just for the duration, they’re fully operational,” says Enguehard, her tone rising with excitement. The ovens are built out of brick brought from France, copying ovens that once lined the French shores of Newfoundland. They will all be fired on July 24, an event in each community. “It’s an interesting project because it builds an oven like the French used to have on the shores of Newfoundland and it gives people a real community tool because a lot of community events surround an oven like this,” says Enguehard. The big disappointment for the society was the abandonment of the chaloupe boat building project. Historically, the chaloupe boats were widely used to fish cod and hunt whales. The plan with the towns of La Scie, Port au Choix, and Conch to build three chaloupes was cancelled due to a lack of funding
from the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency (ACOA). “The financing was put in place and everything was fine and all we needed was this approval from ACOA and they wouldn’t give it because we were on an election campaign,” says Enguehard. “Apparently they don’t nod during election campaigns.” Some of the highlights on Enguehard’s list brighten her eyes. “The fact we were able to reestablish, in 2004, the contact between the people of Miquelon and the Mi’kmaq,” she says. “They had been so close for centuries and it came to an end in the 19th century.” The two groups are now in discussions over aquaculture and other economic projects that could benefit both. One half of one per cent of the province’s population is of French descent. Enguehard says her biggest highlight over the past four years has been the opportunity for that small portion of the population to stand up and be counted. “It doesn’t sound like much but it’s a lot. It changes peoples’ perception,” says Enguehard, adding that, for her, it’s all about acknowledgment, understanding, recognition and respect. When asked what will happen to the society once the celebration year is over, Enguehard has no difficulty answering. “The work that has been started has to continue. There is a momentum that cannot be lost.”
Shipping News Keeping an eye on the comings and goings of the ships in St. John’s Harbour. Information provided by the Coast Guard Traffic Centre.
TUESDAY, JUNE 29 Vessels arrived: Atlantic Kingfisher, Canada, from Terra Nova. Vessels departed: Soloborg, Danish, to Bay Roberts.
MONDAY, JUNE 28 Vessels arrived: Maersk Placentia, Canada, from Hibernia; Maersk Chignecto, Canada, from White Rose. Vessels departed: Maersk Nascopie, Canada, to Hibernia.
WEDNESDAY, JUNE 30: No Report THURSDAY, JULY 1 Vessels arrived: Jean Charcot, British, from sea; Cicero, Canada, from Montreal; Akademic Ioff, Russian, from Denmark; Atlantic Osprey, Canada,
from White Rose; Maersk Norseman, Canada, from Hibernia. Vessels departed: : Atlantic Kingfisher, Canada, to Terra Nova; Atlantic Hawk, Canada, to White Rose; Cicero, Canada, to Corner Brook. FRIDAY, JULY 2 Vessels arrived: Stenna Foreteller, Sweden, from Halifax; Atlantic Eagle, Canada, from Hibernia. Vessels departed: Maersk Chignecto, Canada, to Grand Banks.
July 4, 2004
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The Sunday Independent
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‘Not like a zoo’ Salmonier Nature Park provides a home for injured wildlife
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either newly-introduced admission fees nor unseasonably chilly, drippy weather can keep the parking lot outside the Salmonier Nature Park, one of the Avalon’s top tourist attractions, from filling up on a holiday. The trails, lined with enclosures, home to a number of animals and birds native to this province, along with the visitors’ centre, appeal to more than kids. Families make up the bulk of the traffic on the three-kilometre boardwalk, huddling under trees for snack breaks, straining over fences to try and see caribou, moose, fox, and birds. On this particular day there’s also a young couple out for a stroll through the intermittent showers, holding hands as they try to spot a mink scampering around the low bushes in his pen. A few seniors’ groups, walking sticks in hand, gather to peer at the sign at the front gate, trying
to see if they’ll still get in free this year. Vicki Simms, a park interpreter and technician — and the staff supervisor on this day — walks between the parking lot, the visitors’ centre, and the activities on the lawn. “Oh, you just missed it,” she says, taking time out for a quick chat. “A couple of baby rabbits were brought in this morning, they could just fit in the palm of your hand.” The rabbits were found, abandoned, by the side of Kenmount Road in St. John’s. Now they’re in the nature park’s animal care facility, away from public eyes, close to the caring hands of trained employees. “People do that, if they find orphaned or injured animals,” Simms says. “The week before last, a lady called in … her dog had attacked a river otter and pretty much shook it and she called us and one of the guys went down and
we’re taking care of him now.” Simms reports the otter’s in pretty good shape; good enough, she hopes, that it will soon be released into the wild again. If, on the other hand, staff don’t think it will survive in his natural habitat, the otter will probably be given a new home within the safe confines of the park, about an hour’s drive west of the capital city. There are also a couple of woodchucks currently in the animal care centre. New additions to the park, woodchucks are not native to the island, but they are found in Labrador. “We’re trying to get them used to being in the park, after being inside all the time, so we’re putting them out there in good weather, a little bit at a time.” Not all visitors to the nature facility may be aware of this: Almost every animal seen from the
Photos by Paul Daly / Story by Stephanie Porter
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Appeals to more than kids From page 11 trail has been either injured or orphaned in the wild, and discovered by wildlife officers or the public. Exceptions have come from zoos across the country, facilities that had too many of a given species. “We’re not like a zoo,” Simms says. “We try to be more like a reserve or, as best we can, like nature.” She repeats: Ideally, animals brought to the park are cared for and released. Animals are only kept if the wildlife staff decide the animal won’t make it in the real world. Salmonier Nature Park, operated by the provincial inland fish and wildlife division, is about 1,400 hectares in total area. The trails and displays are found within a 40hectare section. The animals are sequestered in areas much like their wilderness homes. One of the first stops on the trail is the snowy owl’s habitat. Brilliant white with glowing yellow eyes, the owl watches visitors from its perch on a tree in its fenced-in area. There is no top on his enclosure; the owl cannot fly. Neither can the two bald eagles, not much further along. One attempts to take off, showing one full, powerful wing — and a small stubby flap on the other side. “Yes, one of our eagles only has one wing, the other has a wing-anda-half,” says Simms. “We don’t clip wings.” The park was, and is, considered to be quite progressive — especially considering the facility opened in the 1970s, when there wasn’t much in the way of environmental education. Its primary goal is to give visitors an understanding and appreciation of wildlife by showing animals in their natural habitat. There is also an emphasis on native plant life, and a demonstration of the interconnectedness of life — including humans. To that end, one of the park’s stated aims is to eventually have an example of virtually every species
of land mammal native to Newfoundland visible for the public. Simms says they’re getting close. “Well, we have the moose, which isn’t really native to here, but is seen by people, and visitors tend to get really mad if we don’t have a moose,” she says with a laugh. “Our little moose, we got her a year ago, when she was a month old. She was orphaned, we bottlefed her. If we let her go, she’d just hang around the park anyway. So she’s on the trail … and will go down and talk to you, especially to the staff members. “You really get to know the personalities of the animals here … the otter sometimes likes to come out, and look at you, get up on its hind legs.” As the walking trail — recently upgraded to be completely accessible — and interpretation centre have been improved over the years, so have the research and rehabilitation programs. The park is home to a major pine marten breeding program, an initiative that began in 1995 to rescue the species from the endangered list. The first live litter was born in 1999. “We’ve still got a couple of pine martens, and we’ve got them together, trying to get them to do their thing, to put it nicely,” says Simms. “They’re not on the trail, the public can’t see them — but we have a TV in the visitors’ centre, we’re hoping to have a video camera on them so the visitors can see them.” This is the first year the park has ever charged an entrance fee, as brought down in the 2004 provincial budget. It’s now $3 for adults, although children and students are free. So far, there’s no indication the admission has affected the number of visitors, which is recorded at 40,000 to 50,000 each year. “It’s a bit tricky, taking the fees,” Simms says carefully, adding the park has hired a couple of extra students to do the duty. “But people were pretty lucky to get in for free all these years.” stephanie.porter@theindependent.ca
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
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The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
Gallery Kevin Coates Woodcarving
O
ne-time cod fisherman Kevin Coates would never have guessed at his second career. The native — and still resident — of Winterton, Trinity Bay, picked up a woodworking magazine in 1997 and saw an article on caricature carving. “It looked interesting and I thought I’d give it a shot,” he says now. “I’d never done a thing with arts before. When I was small I might have coloured in a colouring book or something.” Those first carvings caught the eye of Coates’ uncle, who brought the work to the craft council in St. John’s. The council decided to put the work up for sale. Much to Coates’ surprise and delight, they sold quickly — and the shop still carries his pieces. Coates estimates he’s carved move than 2,500 figures in the past six years, mostly fishermen, sea captains, hangashores, berry pickers, Santas and mummers. Full of personality, the pieces provide a true flavour of the day-to-day life and activities in Newfoundland’s outports. “They’re not specific people,” Coates says. “But I do spend most of my time on the face; they are things or people that I remember seeing. I try to keep them different looking. “Coates’ carvings are done with Balsam fir, old blown-down trees he gathers himself. Once the carvings, which generally range from 10 to 40 centimetres in height, are complete, Coates dips the wood into a mixture of linseed oil, paint thinner and burnt umber oil paint — which brings
out the grain and prevents the paint from soaking into the wood. He then uses thinned acrylics to paint the figures. The Government of Newfoundland and Labrador purchased a community of Coates’ carvings for the province’s permanent collection, but the majority of his work finds its way into private collections. His “studio” is a small shed out back of his Winterton home, but it’s open to the public, and he says there’s a constant stream of visitors, particularly in the summer months. Coates says he puts as many hours into his woodwork as he can. “Knowing the demand is more than I can handle makes it good,” he says. “I generally get to work on what I know sells the best — this time of the year it’s the fishermen, around Christmas it’s the mummers.” At 44, Coates says he was “a little late” finding his talent for his craft. “But maybe if I’d found it earlier, I’d have been tired of it by now,” he says with a laugh. For more information, visit www.heritagecarvings.nf.ca Photos by Erick Walsh
The Gallery is a regular feature in The Sunday Independent. For further information, or to submit proposals, please call (709) 726-4639, or e-mail editorial@theindependent.ca
July 4, 2004
Page 15
The Sunday Independent
BUSINESS & COMMERCE
Photo by Paul Daly/The Sunday Independent
Avalon Mall to lose anchor tenant Wal-Mart store shutting down in favour of new location on Kenmount Road By Alisha Morrissey The Sunday Independent
T
he Wal-Mart store in the Avalon Mall in St. John’s will close within the next few months when a new store is slated to open further west on Kenmount Road, The Sunday Independent has learned. “In a number of markets where it makes sense we are building new stores from the ground up,” says Andrew Pelletier, spokesman for Wal-Mart, one of the largest, most successful department store chains in the world. St. John’s city councillor Dennis O’Keefe says the project was greenlighted by council about a month ago. “You can see the activity there,” says O’Keefe, referring to industrial development on Kenmount Road. “That’s a $50 million development and, of course, one of the box stores
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is the new Wal-Mart.” what are you going to do with that O’Keefe says the worldwide chain space? Do you have anything lined seems to be finding larger, free- up?’ and so on and at that time she standing stores more attractive, cit- had informed me that she hadn’t had ing Pearlgate and Stavanger Drive any formal notification from Wallocations as examples. Mart,” says O’Keefe. “The manage“That seems to be what Wal-Mart ment may not have been formally is doing in major cennotified yet.” tres, looking for standHe says a similar alone stores.” situation occurred “That seems to Pelletier agrees, be what Wal-Mart when Wal-Mart vacatadding he expects the ed the Village Mall in is doing in major the west end of St. new Kenmount Road location to be open by John’s in favour of a centres, looking the end of the year. At stand-alone location for stand-alone the same time, Avalon in Mount Pearl. In the stores.” Mall General Manager case of the Village Sue Freake told The — Dennis O’Keefe, Mall, Wal-Mart paid Sunday Independent she up the lease and, until city councillor knows nothing about recently, the mall was the Wal-Mart closure. prevented from leasO’Keefe says he ran into Freake ing the space. O’Keefe speculates the new store in the mall some months back and she seemed unaware at that time as on Kenmount Road will become the flagship location for the province. well. “I kind of informally asked, ‘Now He hopes it will lead to increased
3
employment. “This would be a bigger store and offer more services than the Avalon Mall, I would think, as a result of that there would be a net increase in employment.” Wal-Mart currently employs 2,000 Newfoundlanders and Labradorians in nine stores provincewide. Pelletier says employment levels will increase but only marginally. All the employees who currently work at the Avalon Mall location will be offered employment at the new store. Pelletier says there are no specific numbers available on how many new employees will be hired just yet. Wal-Mart deals with 115 suppliers in the province and invests $15 million into those companies each year. “That’s a significant investment,” says Pelletier. The new development on Kenmount Road will also include a Winners, Home Depot and Canadian Tire, says O’Keefe.
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BUSINESS
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
Still waiting
‘They are so far removed’
Six weeks after the deal was to close on her Myles-Leger home, Joanne Fennelly remains in the dark By Stephanie Porter The Sunday Independent
J
oanne Fennelly still doesn’t have her home. Fennelly, a 26-year-old young professional, was featured in a news story in the June 6 edition of The Sunday Independent. At the time, she was in what she called “a holding pattern.” She thought she was all set to close the deal on her first house and move in, when Myles-Leger Ltd. — the company building the homes — filed for protection from creditors. The developer reportedly owes more than $14 million to 128 companies. The deal, like many of the highprofile company’s projects, including condominiums and other residences around St. John’s, is still on hold. The home, located on the former Belvedere Orphanage property, is virtually finished. Fennelly was originally scheduled to move in May 20. A month-and-a-half later, her belongings are still in storage; she’s still back living with her parents; and still in the dark about what’s going on. “At least I’m well-fed,” she says with a laugh. “Honestly, I’m not letting it bother me anymore.” A month ago, Fennelly was more on edge, more impatient. Now she says she’s just letting her lawyer
Joanne Fennelly
and real estate agent do their thing. She’s heard a local building supply company had a lien against three homes — including hers. “I don’t really know any more than I did before,” she says. “A couple of days ago my real estate agent called and she said the deal might close this week. “But every time someone tells me the house is going to close in three days it doesn’t … I hear all sorts of things. I don’t know how true any of it is. I don’t really believe anything any more.” Fennelly has already made a $5,000 deposit on the house (she still hasn’t received a firm answer on whether she’ll see that money again). She already has invested hundreds more in fixtures and furnishings, and has a few thousand
dollars in appliances waiting to be delivered. On June 2, Supreme Court Justice Robert Hall appointed PricewaterhouseCoopers as interim receiver for Myles-Leger. The receiver took over the day-to-day financial dealings, future cash flow, and has some borrowing power. After a flurry of media coverage at the end of May and early June, the company has largely stayed out of the public eye. Jim Kirby, vice-president of PricewaterhouseCoopers says the company filed a proposal “as it was required to” with the court on June 24. He says it provides for the full payment of all creditors … in accordance with the cash flow statement.” On July 15, says Kirby, the creditors will decide whether to accept the proposal. If they do, MylesLeger can move ahead with its business developments. In the meantime, some of the Myles-Leger property sales have been able to close — others will close shortly, still others will close after the July 15 decision. In other words: No firm answers for Fennelly or anyone else in a similar position. As for Fennelly, has she learned anything from the ordeal? “I’m not going to buy a house again anytime soon,” she says. “I think apartment life is for me … less stress, for sure.”
From page 1
Telegram, who also serves on the company’s board of directors. Ayre has vehemently denied allegations The Telegram has ignored the strike. Cronk says no matter what issues his membership must deal with, the union is committed to keeping jobs in Atlantic Canada. Foley isn’t so sure. “Within three years we will all be paying our bills to Montreal or Toronto,” she says, accusing the company of not having a social conscience. “They are so far removed … I think Bell has an agenda,” she says. “They’re going to take it on the chin for the future.” All Foley’s worried about are her girls, and keeping their house. “They’ve been through so much in the past couple of years,” she says, shaking her head. “If it were just you, you’d sleep on a park bench …” Foley breaks down again, saying how good her girls have been and how they never ask for anything. Even so, she says her eldest is becoming cynical. “She’s more convinced when she’s older not to be poor,” says Foley. And so the strike continues — day after day, month after month. “Even the minutes are long,” says Foley. “Even the minutes are long.” alisha.morrissey@theindependent.ca
determination,” says Cronk, adding he hopes the strike ends sooner rather than later. “I don’t think anyone comes out a winner in a strike,” says Robinson. Throughout the strike, Aliant has insisted that customer service is the No. 1 priority, but customers are beginning to feel the pressure of limited service. Five hundred complaints have been registered with the Canadian Radio-television Commission, which monitors the phone company, since the strike began. Aliant says sabotage in all four Atlantic provinces is the cause of delays, slow installations and poor customer service. In Newfoundland, deliberate cuts to fibre optic cables in early June left 250,000 customers on the Avalon Peninsula without a “lifeline.” Cuts to lines in Nova Scotia left some 5,300 customers without service. Charges have yet to be laid but police investigations continue in both provinces. According to Aliant’s web page, “more than 20 suspicious network incidents have taken place over the course of this labour disruption.” The union claims the media has generally ignored the strike. Officials have even linked Aliant with certain media outlets — including Miller Ayre, publisher of The
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July 4, 2004
The Sunday Independent
INTERNATIONAL AFFAIRS
AFP PHOTO/Sebastian D'Souza
Residents go about their business in a colony of slum dwellings surrounding a newly-built flyover and high-rise appartments in the Bandra suburb of Mumbai (Bombay). Mumbai, where the world's anti-globalisation movement converges next week, is home to a plethora of multinational firms and massive slums, with power brokered between movie stars and Hindu fundamentalists.
‘Life continues, garbage piles up’ Derm English fights through scams and mounds of trash in India A voice from away By Derm English Bombay, India
I
’m writing from Mumbai (Bombay), waiting for the bus that will take me to the beaches of Goa. I need to clear my head of accumulated negativity before I enter the world of palm trees, sandy beaches and the Arabian Sea. A couple of hours ago, my temper finally boiled over and I committed the Indian equivalent of telling a taxi driver to “*#!& off.” What I actually said in exasperation was, “Enjoy your karma!” Last night I boarded the Rajdhani Express in Delhi, the fastest train to Mumbai, and arrived around 11 a.m. As usual, taxi drivers and their touts (people who steer you to particularly over–priced services for a commission) enter the train before you disembark to begin their plea for your business. Not wanting to be rushed into anything, I made my way to the platform outside to leisurely have a smoke and entertain the colourful stories of cheap fares to bring me downtown to the bus station.
Twenty minutes and many ques- away too angry to reply. All of the Later, while sipping a coffee tions later, my driver had con- travel books warn you of touts and close by, another tout struck up a vinced me to take a ferry which general gouging of inexperienced conversation — a soft sell for “his” runs two to three times a day to tourists. And I guess that one only tour operation, and within half an Goa; takes only eight hours, truly learns from experience. hour I had exactly what I wanted against 14 hours on the bus; and When I went to the New Delhi — a ticket to Mumbai in two days. costs only 700 rupees. The cab fare train station to book my ticket to And so I gladly said goodbye to there would be 350 – 400 rupees. Goa, I was barred from going Delhi and headed south. Watching Forty-five minutes later we from the train as it rolled arrive at the pier and disthrough the suburbs I realIn the more expensive air-condicover that the ferry runs ized that all the garbage I only twice a week and tioned cars, catered by workers sell- experienced in the old part costs 1,700 rupees — next of Delhi was not confined to ing everything you may wish to one in three days. just there. Such were the consume — after it is consumed, All of a sudden my drimounds of it on either side out the door go the leftovers. After of the tracks, and the people ver feigns innocence, doesn’t understand my frustrawho lived in it, and off of it, 14 hours, the toilets were not tion and offers to take me it seemed as though the railcleaned. The walls are now lined to the bus station. The fare way was built upon it. As I with soap, toothpaste and food. is at 370 rupees. Twenty was to discover though, it (sic) minutes later we are comes from the train itself. downtown and the fare is Garbage is indiscrimi1,070 rupees. I am incredulous. upstairs to the foreign ticket office nately thrown from the train, willyThe meter says 690 and I cannot by a man who said it was under nilly. It gets worse. On my first get an explanation. I take my renovation. I was foolishly (my visit to the washroom, I learned things, pay the fare and commit my fault) led via auto-rickshaw about from a notice posted inside that I verbal indiscretion. two kilometres away to a “govern- should refrain from using the toilet The driver then has the audacity ment” tourist reservation office that while stopped at stations. to ask if I’d like a ride to the bus informed me that I would have to This was because the toilet bowl itself after I purchase a ticket. I tell wait two to three weeks to travel by was just a tube that led to the bothim no, that I want to eat before the train. They almost had me buying tom of the train, and the tracks. I trip. “Oh,” he says, “There’s a a plane ticket before I finally left the toilet business undone. McDonald’s close by. I’ll take you awoke from my stupor and recog- There is something in my western there for a cheap price!” I turn nized the scam. upbringing that found the thought
of my “business” being strewn along two to four kilometres of track revolting. It is ironic that when I couldn’t hold myself any longer, I found myself stopped at a station. Unfortunately, I couldn’t be. Garbage, of all sorts, is the one issue this country needs to address. As the computer and automobile industries blossom by taking away American jobs; as Bollywood continues to be front-page news; as cricket is held with religious fervor and seen as a medium for peace with Pakistan; as Colin Powell visits and talks about nuclear disarmament — not U.S. of course; as almost a third of the population are millionaires and everyone else dirt poor; as life progresses, the garbage continues to pile up. The shopkeepers in the markets make a great show of cleaning up in front of their stores, but where does the garbage go? Back into the middle of the street, or into my legs as I walk by. On the train ride down from Delhi though, it really hits home that this is a country-wide issue. Town after town, piles of garbage Continued on page 19
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Page 18
INTERNATIONAL
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
Colombian government talks to warlords Discussions continue in spite of violations SANTA FE DE RALITO, Colombia By Dan Molinski The Associated Press
T
he leader of Colombia’s most powerful paramilitary group began peace talks with the government this week, saying his group was ready to disarm and turn itself into a legal political party. But Salvatore Mancuso, the supreme commander of the United Self-Defence Forces, or AUC, made no mention of his group’s involvement in drug trafficking and ceasefire violations, including the recent brief kidnapping of a former senator. The anti-guerrilla group has been blamed for some of the worst atrocities in Colombia’s civil war. “The Colombian people deserve peace,” Mancuso said during a ceremony in this rural safe haven granted for the negotiations, some 350 kilometres northwest of Bogota. “We the paramilitaries don’t want to move toward the dissolution of our organization, but the transformation into a mass political movement,” he said. Wearing a white open-neck shirt instead of his usual combat fatigues, Mancuso sat alongside nine other warlords who make up the AUC’s high command, Interior Minister Sabas Pretelt and other government officials under a blue tent. Although 700 invitations were sent out, no European country or the United Nations sent delegates. The United States sent a “senior diplomat,” but declined to name him. The talks are aimed at demobilizing at least 12,000 fighters in the AUC by 2006. The path to peace is fraught with obstacles, including deepening drug trafficking, persistent killings and kidnappings and little international involvement. The most recent hurdle was cleared late Wednesday when former Senator Jose Eduardo Gnecco was released. Uribe had stripped two paramilitary leaders of immunity granted for the negotiations but restored it after the release. Some 3,500 people are killed each year in the war, which pits leftist rebels against the paramilitary factions and government forces. The paramilitaries were started by wealthy ranchers in the 1980s to combat Marxist rebels. Mancuso embarked on a long defence of the AUC’s actions, saying the Colombian state had for decades failed to protect its own people from Marxist rebel attacks.
REUTERS/Daniel Munoz
Colombian paramilitary commander Botalon, right, is escorted to a ceremony at the start of peace talks with the Colombian government, in Santa Fe de Ralito. Colombia's far-right paramilitary warlords and the government began formal peace talks this week aimed at demobilizing 20,000 fighters and help end the Western Hemisphere's longest-running war.
“Colombia wants a state ... that will not abandon us again, either in peace or war,” he says. The disarmament process came about largely due to President Alvaro Uribe’s decision to boost military spending and wage all-out war on Colombia’s two leftist rebel groups. But in a reminder of the continuing violence, Colombian troops killed two suspected AUC fighters and captured 10 others in separate operations recently, the army says. Security forces, meanwhile, killed 19 leftist rebels in a southern Colombia clashes, officials said. Uribe has set a six-month time limit to reach a deal with the paramilitaries, a cornerstone of his efforts to pacify Colombia after 40 years of civil war. “The AUC agreed to a ceasefire, which was a condition for the start of the talks and that’s why the government is here,” Pretelt told reporters after arriving by helicopter. “I have a lot of faith in this process ... and I believe the paramilitaries are willing to make
peace.” The United States has labelled the AUC a terrorist organization and most of the group’s leaders, including Mancuso, are sought by the U.S. Justice Department on drug-related charges. International support is crucial if the talks are to succeed, since Colombia alone would be unable to foot the $120 million US bill to reinsert fighters into society. The key sticking point will likely be the fate of Mancuso and the other paramilitary leaders, who have made clear they don’t want to go to jail for any of the thousands of killings, massacres, kidnappings and other crimes their troops allegedly committed as they sought to put down the leftist insurgency. Human rights groups argue that is unacceptable. “The Colombian government is sitting at the table with some of the worst war criminals in the Western Hemisphere,” says Roxanna Altholz of the Washington-based Center for Justice and International Law. “These people cannot be amnestied from human rights violations.”
Robots will clear land mines VIENNA, Austria The Associated Press Robots designed to play soccer will clear mines in war-ravaged countries, an Austrian professor in charge of the project says. The small robots are expected to be effective mine-clearers, says Peter Kopacek, who leads a research team at the Vienna Technical University’s Institute for Robot Science. Robots are already used as mine-clearers in war zones around the world, but the soccer robots would “be much more individualized” allowing them to adapt to
different tasks unlike existing robots, according to Kopacek. In robot soccer, a computer server follows the robots’ moves with a camera, co-coordinating their movements to score goals. The robots could use this teamwork in mine clearing, Kopacek added. “I am convinced the same technique is applicable to the landmines as well. Instead of aiming for the ball, the robots would detect the mines and execute certain duties,” Kopacek says. The university team has dedicated several years to developing the robots and earlier this year,
they won a European robot soccer championship. It is only now, after extensive testing at the Royal Military Academy in Brussels that the robots are ready to be tested as mine sweepers, Kopacek says.
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
INTERNATIONAL
Page 19
Hong Kong natives march for vote Massive crowds flood downtown streets in protest HONG KONG The Associated Press
H
undreds of thousands of people marched in Hong Kong last week to demand the right to elect their own leaders, and lashed out at Beijing for clamping down on the territory’s democratic aspirations. Tempers have flared here since China ruled in April that ordinary citizens cannot elect the successor to their unpopular leader, Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa, in 2007 or all legislators in 2008. “We don’t want to be subservient to the central government,” says Ben Kwok, a 40-year-old factory owner. “We don’t want Hong Kong to become like the mainland, where even the news gets censored.” People took to the streets en masse, on the seventh anniversary of the handover from British to Chinese sovereignty. Protest organizer Jackie Hung, a Roman Catholic activist, told The Associated Press that at least 350,000 people had turned out, but the crowd was still growing in the late afternoon. Earlier, a police officer said at least 90,000 people were counted in less than an hour. “Only democracy can save Hong Kong,” says 65-year-old Cheuk Kuang, a former driver worried about Hong Kong’s future generations. “The communist government is intervening too much in Hong Kong and it’s trying to shut down all opposition voices.” Marchers filled all four lanes of a major downtown thoroughfare, peacefully chanting slogans, holding up signs and waving inflatable Tung dolls as they made their way to the fenced-off Hong Kong government headquarters. The march came on the anniversary of a protest by 500,000 people that stunned the Hong Kong and Beijing governments and
forced Tung to withdraw an anti-subversion bill that many had viewed as a threat to freedoms. The mood seemed less angry than it had been last year. Despite Beijing’s ruling in April that shattered hopes for universal suffrage in the near future, many of the demonstrators said they would keep pushing for reform. Tung and other dignitaries stood at attention as the Chinese and Hong Kong flags were solemnly raised to the sounds of the national anthem under hazy skies. Outside, a dozen activists tried to carry a mock black coffin toward the ceremony but were held back by a larger group of police. Protesters have rankled Beijing with what it views as a provocative rallying cry: “Return power to the people.” In Beijing, China’s government defended Hong Kong’s political system as “real and unprecedented democracy” and rejected criticism of its handling of the territory as foreign interference in its affairs. “The residents of Hong Kong enjoy real and unprecedented democracy, which can be witnessed by the international community,” Foreign Minister spokeswoman Zhang Qiyue told a news conference when asked to comment on the protests in Hong Kong. Pro-democracy figures hope the march will generate momentum for September legislative elections that will let ordinary citizens choose 30 of the territory’s 60 legislators, up from 24 years ago. The rest are chosen by special interest groups, such as businessmen, doctors and lawyers, who tend to side with Beijing. The central and territorial governments want to avoid ending up with a legislature that won’t back Tung, something that hasn’t happened in the seven years since Britain returned this former colony to China.
REUTERS/Kin Cheung
Police officers monitored hundreds of thousands of protesters in Hong Kong recently during one of the territory's biggest marches since it was returned to Chinese rule in 1997. Waving green and black banners and sheltering under umbrellas from the searing sun, protesters chanting “Return power to the people, fight for democracy” streamed from a park to government offices in the heart of the city several kilometres away.
Indians aren’t ‘dirty people’ From page 17 line the tracks, and built upon this are settlements of plastic homes, which frame the city views. It is only in rural India where the garbage lives alone along the track. In the more expensive air-conditioned cars, catered by workers selling everything you may wish to consume — after it is consumed, out the door go the leftovers. After 14 hours, the toilets were not cleaned. The walls are now lined with soap, toothpaste and food. As much as I believe in preserving a culture, this is an issue that needs to be addressed now with a long-term educational program and the infrastructure put in place to support it. India’s population is predicted to surpass China’s in the near future. Yet I cannot say that Indian people are dirty people. They wash their face and hands and feet more
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than any other people. They do sweep the streets in front of their homes and shops. And they are the most attractive race of people I have ever seen. Maybe it is because there is virtually no middle class. The rich are buffered by their wealth and the poor are too busy surviving. Millions are not even in the survival game. I’m sure that for a few rupees a day many would be privileged to clean up their country. But only with a little education; a lot of infrastructure; and the political will to continue it into the next generation and beyond, will this have any effect. Just as in the west,
the rich are still content to step over the homeless on their way to their million-dollar bank accounts. Western thoughts. Will I ever get rid of them? Maybe tomorrow. Do you know a Newfoundlander or Labradorian living abroad? Let us know at editorial@theindependent.ca Derm English is a graduate student at Memorial, currently in India writing a thesis paper on exploring a philosophy of listening. He can be reached at dermenglish@yahoo.com.
Mobile phone use soars in India NEW DELHI The Associated Press Indians are likely to be using more mobile phones than fixed lines by year-end as overall use of telephones soars, officials say. Still, only seven per cent of the country’s billion-plus population has any kind of telephone, despite India’s technology boom and one of the world’s largest telephone networks. But that compares with less than one per cent less than a decade ago, the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology says. The advent of cellular phones has allowed many Indians to bypass the state-run company, which in the past forced people to
wait years for a connection if they weren’t willing or able to pull strings and bribe officials. Even rickshaw drivers and domestic servants have turned to cheaper, easier-to-get mobile phones, and private operators are also now allowed to sell landbased connections. “The share of mobile phones in the total number of telephones is … more than 45 per cent,” a ministry statement says. “It is expected that by the end of the year, the number of mobile phones would be more than the fixed phones.” At the end of May, India was estimated to have 79.4 million telephones — 36.3 million of them cellular — the ministry says.
July 4, 2004
Page 20
The Sunday Independent
LIFE & TIMES
Photo by Paul Daly/The Sunday Independent
Meet Gordon Laurin The Nova Scotia artist is the first art gallery director at The Rooms (once it opens, of course) By Alisha Morrissey The Sunday Independent
T
alk about a let down. Gordon Laurin travelled across the Gulf from his Halifax home to take the job of his dreams — director of the art gallery at The Rooms — only to discover the province was in the middle of a public-sector strike and the brand spanking new facility had been mothballed for a year. “Everyone had been working quite hard on that so to have it deferred was disappointing, but at the same time it does give me a chance to get a little bit more familiar with the facility, the arts community and all the people that are working at the gallery,” Laurin told The Sunday Independent. Laurin currently works out of the old Art Gallery of Newfoundland and Labrador located in the St. John’s Arts and Culture Centre. Over the summer, he and his meager staff will be busy preparing 5,000 pieces of art work for transport to The Rooms, which is expected to open next summer. Laurin says when he enters The Rooms it doesn’t feel like “a big empty building.” Rather, he sees the space as brimming with possibility. “I mean these are without doubt the finest exhibition spaces in the
Atlantic region, and so you go into Working in this province doesn’t such a large facility and there is allow him the same access to connothing, no objects or displays in temporary art, although he does have there at this point,” Laurin says. access to more historical pieces, “You just see the potential that’s some 30 to 40 years old, in his curthere.” rent gallery. He says he’s excited to A graduate of the Nova Scotia have the opportunity to present more College of Art and Design, Laurin is of such work to the public. a visual artist — painting and media One of the things Laurin says he work are his specialties. He has little likes best about the artistic commutime for his own art, nity in St. John’s is the however, considering blending of artistic culhis day job. “I’m a come-from- tures, designs and tech“It’s a bit of a juggle away and I’m a niques. to find time between “There’s a lot of colmainlander and laborations making my own work and and working in the exchanges between the so I think in a gallery, so it’s trying to sense that I have different generations find a balance between and there’s a lot collabto acknowledge orations between the those two.” Before moving to St. that I don’t know different disciplines in John’s, Laurin worked the music and dance a lot about the for 11 years as curator and visual arts and visual arts of the art gallery at St. media-based practices. community in Mary’s University in So there’s a really Nova Scotia. healthy exchange … Newfoundland Then, in 1998, he and the broader public and Labrador took over as director. is really interested in right now.” “I was involved in and cares about the developing the main — Gordon Laurin arts.” programs and collaboThe artistic commurating with the other nity in the city held a staff. With the focus, I guess, pri- dinner and reception recently for the marily on contemporary art, a strong new director. Laurin called the event interest on regional and local … and an honour, saying it was a kind gesorganized about a dozen exhibitions ture to introduce him to the arts comeach year,” says Laurin. munity.
“I’m a come-from-away and I’m a mainlander and so I think in a sense that I have to acknowledge that I don’t know a lot about the visual arts community in Newfoundland and Labrador right now,” Laurin says. “So it’s a chance to learn and meet a new community and it’s really delightful to just see the range and depth of the artistic practices.” Lauirn and his staff are just finishing cataloguing the collection at the province’s art gallery, which is slated to move into The Rooms in April, 2005. While Laurin admits he’s a little disappointed with having to wait another year for the opening, he has high hopes for the facility that brought him to Newfoundland. “When it does finally open I think it will be a spectacular facility and we will be able to work with and collaborate with the arts community on a number of different types of programs and projects.” When asked about the future of arts in the province Laurin now proudly calls home, he doesn’t hesitate. “I think that the arts community in St. John’s is at a really fascinating point because there’s a growing community of young artists that are coming to St. John’s, and staying in St. John’s.” alisha.morrissey@theindependent.ca
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
LIFE & TIMES
Page 21
Photo by Paul Daly/The Sunday Independent
Leaving a legacy Louise Moyes celebrates the life of fiddler Émile Benoit in her Sound Symposium XII performance By Clare-Marie Gosse For the Sunday Independent
P
lacing the talents of Louise Moyes in a box might well prove difficult, but watching and listening to them promises to be anything but. This month, Moyes is collaborating with three other artists to present an original concert, a tribute to beloved Newfoundland fiddler Émile Benoit. Moyes, a native Newfoundlander, is returning as a performance artist to this year’s Sound Symposium, running July 8 to 18. The festival, which runs every two years in St. John’s, brings together culturally diverse artists of every creative sound discipline imaginable. Workshops, impromptu performances, planned performances, jam sessions and the famous Harbour Symphony can be seen and heard all over the city for 10 days and nights. This year, Moyes — who has participated in numerous symposia since the first in 1984 — will per-
form The Legacy of Émile Benoit twice during the festival. Moyes subtitles the project, “The Port-Au-Port story, jigs and songs”: A homage to the rich artistic heritage of Newfoundland’s French shore, and a dedication in recognition of the life and work of Émile Benoit. The musician spent his entire life on the Port-Au-Port peninsula, and was known as one of the best fiddlers and composers of traditional music in the province. He was a regular favourite at the Sound Symposium until his death in 1992. “The last Sound Symposium he was here was incredible,” remembers Moyes. “It still makes me cry to think about it, because he was dying of liver cancer, and he still came. He had to come into town to perform, and he played, and he had to keep stopping every now and then.” Moyes has always been fascinated with forms of creative expression, but because her work consists of so many different styles, she admits it can prove difficult categorizing it for prospective sponsors. She is often described as an interdisciplinary performer, drawing on whatever she needs in terms of singing, dancing and talking, in order to tell a story.
“I studied medicine actually,” she says, “and I’d go and see dance shows and I’d cry because I wasn’t dancing.” Growing up in Newfoundland as the daughter of cockney immigrants, and later studying dance in Montreal and learning to speak French fluently, helped Moyes develop interests in accents, gestures, and cultural diversity.
“I studied medicine actually and I’d go and see dance shows and I’d cry because I wasn’t dancing.” — Louise Moyes When she’s not performing, Moyes works as a freelance researcher for television documentaries. Because she conducts interviews and meets a broad range of people, she says her day job also helps influence her use of text and dance. Two cousins will be performing alongside Moyes in The Legacy of Émile Benoit, percussionist and musical director, Romano DiNillo,
and fiddler and step dancer Dougie Benoit (distant relatives of Benoit). Joining them will be storyteller and composer Mark Cormier. “(Dougie and Romano’s) grandmother has the largest repository in her brain of traditional French folk tunes,” says Moyes. “She sings chin music. I had no idea before this that it is actually a respected form of music.” Chin music comes from a time when instruments were not always accessible. Moyes performs an imitation, singing “Diddly-diddly-diddly-dee,” and explains how Dougie might well get a call in the middle of the night from his grandmother, who will “diddly” a freshly remembered tune down the line. Some of her music has been pre-recorded to be played at the performance. “It’s a mix of the tunes that Dougie’s been learning from his grandmother, and she’ll be introducing the tunes and we’ll hear her and Mark Cormier’s music as well, which we’re all learning. “Then Mark will tell a story and I’ll dance to his story, and then I will tell some of my own stories, and the musicians will accompany me in my dance.” Moyes is looking forward to once again participating in the Sound Symposium.
“I look forward to the Sound Symposium because it always brings me up another level, and it always challenges me. They want you to do your most challenging work, so it’s open to whatever you want to try.” She remembers the first year she took part with a laugh. She was performing in a choreographed number called Walk The Dog in Harbourside Park. “I had my friend’s dog. We were standing to attention, waiting to start and I felt a warm spot, and the dog was pissing on my leg!” Despite her dubious christening, Moyes was eager to return, explaining that the festival forces you to wonder how people can come up with so many varied and interesting ideas; concepts that might never have been seen or heard before. “You think, ‘Oh my God, I can’t believe they’re doing that,’ or ‘How did they think of that?’ At Sound Symposium you just feel like your brain, the neurons are connecting.” The Legacy of Émile Benoit will be performed twice: July 16 at the D.F. Cook Recital Hall, and July 18 at St. Andrew’s Church (the Kirk). For full Sound Symposium schedule, visit www.soundsymposium.com
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LIFE & TIMES
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
Local Spins
by Rick Bailey
Someone’s got to keep summer hot The Janet Cull Band The Janet Cull Band (Independent, 2004)
M
entioning this new CD to anyone may generate wild-eyed desire. Most likely, there’s already an awareness of Janet Cull’s sultry vocals, and prospects of getting them on disc … well, it sounds like a hot idea. Rightfully so. The Janet Cull Band’s debut is a steamy set of R&B and jazz-inspired songs perfect for keeping summer temperatures up where they should be. The nine-song disc’s first cut, Another Day, croons into a funkinfused chorus with complementary backing vocals from Crystal McCarthy, and a warm organ solo from Adam Foran. A slower, secretive obsessing over Frankie J leads into deep, funky blues and shades of grey, enhanced with Steve Miller’s guitar buzz on Crazy Love. You Say You Do hits those high notes with some fresh vocal weaving — a lightly-played love song with a soulful climax. Electric piano and percussive Latin rhythms bring a dawn chillout vibe for When The Morning Comes, drifting dreamily into ‘what could have been’ with Loverfriend, as the band lays down a tight groove. The next song, Ocean, is a darker and unhurried trip with a
desperate theme and melodious tension. Returning to fun times and catchy voices, From The Town To The City is a quick jazz jam busied by bassist Josh Ward and decked out with a hip solo from drummer Brad Kilpatrick. The album closes with slow funk in Silly Dreams, with spoken word and silky harmonies for the end chorus. Those looking to put their Roberta Flack collection on ice can opt for some new sounds with a local touch. There’s incredible singing, smart musicianship and smooth arrangements, without being overdone like many of today’s divas. This album from The Janet Cull Band should result in a soothing
summer nightcap, if you know what I’m saying. Put it on and get busy. Jacinda Beals Slip Into My Skin (Independent, 2002) When I went to the CD release show for The Janet Cull Band, I was thrilled to find out my pal Jacinda Beals was also performing a solo set. I’ve always known her to be a talented songstress, so I was truly excited when she handed me a copy of her debut album, Slip Into My Skin. And the positive hype you hear about the Labrador native is correct. She’s worked hard for this one, and
the proof is in the sound. The disc, recorded in Ontario at Distortion Studios, is a slick blend of impressive pop/rock hits and contemplative tunes of free will. The opening rocker, Got A Thing For You, strums forward with recurring keys and an airy chorus. More celebration of love found in the rapid follow-up, Flawless, with dominant acoustic guitar and charming pop lyrics. Stephen Clarke provides slap bass with Colin Mills’ electric guitar funk on a quick out from a boring relationship, Nothing Seems To Matter, slowing down as Jacinda’s pleasing voice reflects back to troubled times on the title track. A nouveau anthem for the Big Land is
next, Labrador To The Core, making it hard not to sing along with this salute to friends and home. Insane speaks of unwanted company yet easily sways with throbbing tremolo, lighter falsetto notes and relaxed solo wail. Beals is positive that love conquers all in the upbeat reassurance of Everything Is OK, followed up by a joyful and dreamy single, Can’t Help But Stare. There’s no holding back her Perfect Sin that stays carefree and aloft in the clouds, ending with questioning verse on a solemn Lost, for recovering youths in Sheshatshiu. This disc is a journey of confidence, conviction and perseverance — focused on life and love. Commendable songwriting choices, relaxed vocal style and high production quality adds up to a worthy achievement. She’s staying active with her gig schedule, so I advise you to watch for Jacinda Beals on her next flight in to rock Newfoundland. Rick Bailey is a radio DJ and musician. His next column appears July 18.
Gypsy in Newfoundland Duane Andrews’ debut CD is a fusion of traditional Newfoundland music, French gypsy jazz, and his own compositions By Dawne Brown For the Sunday Independent
D
uane Andrews smiles easily and often as we talk about his career and upcoming CD release. Although he seemed to be understating everything about himself, he says he did appreciate Jean Hewson’s introduction of him at a folk-club event last year as “the almighty Jesus Christ of the guitar from Carbonear.” Andrews is a cornerstone of the St. John’s indie music scene, an improviser at ease with many musical styles: Traditional, jazz, country and classical. He is a member of several local bands and has performed with Mopaya, the Discounts, Dennis Parker, Jenny Gear and the Whiskey Kittens, Fergus O’Byrne and the Chieftains. Andrews’ bio states he “began playing his mother’s guitar at age 10,” and then has him graduating from St. Francis Xavier University with a bachelor of arts in music in 1994. What happened in between? “Well, I pretty much just kept playing my mother’s guitar,” he says with a shrug. Dig a little deeper, please. Who were the influences? What were the milestones? When Andrews was in Grade 5, his mother, who “has an ear for music and can pick out a tune on just about any instrument,” started taking guitar lessons. That same year, he joined the school guitar group, which played mostly country music. There were strummers and pickers, he explains, and he strummed his way through Grade 5. There was “lots of encourage-
ment” at home and in the community, and he was influenced by musical relatives on both sides of his family: His aunt Maime was a local country music diva and his uncle Ern played guitar, but seemed to have one of every instrument. He learned his first bar chord from Jenny Gear’s uncle, Pat Palmer, who also lived in the community. In high school he studied with Wayne Young, a teacher who has influenced several guitar notables in St. John’s including Kirk Newhook, Glen Collins and Charlie Barfoot. In Grade 11, there was no music program at the school in Carbonear, and Andrews obtained permission to study music theory independently for credit. While studying at university, Andrews says he was one of a group of “classical rebels in the jazz program”: Students weren’t excited by their classes so they studied classical music on their own. Since graduating, he has continued to add to his repertoire, rediscovering Newfoundland traditional music and studying composition in Marseilles, France. Andrews’ debut CD, released this week, is a fusion of the stylings of the great French gypsy jazz guitarist Django Reinhardt, Newfoundland traditional music, and Andrews’ own compositions. Andrews’ eyes twinkle as he describes the cold winter evening two years ago, in a café in Paris, when he heard a guitarist named Moreno playing Reinhardt’s compositions. Andrews was impressed. “The music took everything I’d done to a new dimension,” he says. “I got it (that night); I realized
what Django was actually doing.” For the first time in many years, he found himself challenged, both technically on the guitar, and conceptually with new ideas about jazz. He came to understand that it was the most natural style of jazz for guitar because it utilized the instrument for its own properties and strengths, rather than having it mimic something else. At 12, Reinhardt backed Musette (A Parisian folkdance, usually featuring accordion) players. When Andrews returned from that winter in Marseilles, he began to explore Musette-style music with local musicians Steve Hussey, Frank Fusari and Patrick Boyle. They applied the style to traditional tunes from Newfoundland, Ireland and Italy, and to Andrews’ original compositions. They started with The Portuguese Waltzes, which Andrews recognized as a “sort of Portuguese dialect of Musette.” “Duane’s band is the first to meld Newfoundland music with Manouche (gypsy) in the same way that Django Reinhardt infused American jazz with gypsy melody,” says Hussey. Andrew’s debut recording offers 11 selections, including some familiar traditional tunes such as Breakwater Boys and Doherty’s in addition to The Portuguese Waltzes and three of Duane’s original compositions. Duane Andrews’ CD will be released July 5 at the Ship Pub, St. John’s. Dawne Brown is editor-inchief of The Broadside, a publication of the St. John’s Folk Arts Council.
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The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
LIFE & TIMES
Page 23
Nation down under Beneath the sea is a very different place, no matter where you’re from
By Jeff Ducharme The Sunday Independent
T
here are 15 Newfoundlanders on board HMCS Windsor, but there’s only one person hailing from the boat’s namesake city. “I think being an island nation, which really is what Newfoundland is, they are drawn to the sea because they’ve never been far from it and the sea is woven into the very fabric of Newfoundland,” Commander Dermot Mulholland told The Sunday Independent. Mulholland, captain of the Canadian navy submarine that was tied up in St. John’s harbour until today, sits in his cabin adjacent to the sub’s control room. His cabin is smaller than the average bathroom, but his accommodations are palatial compared to the rest of the crew. They sleep in racks that have no tolerance for sleepwalkers or those that toss and turn. The bunks offer just enough room for the average-sized person to stretch out, an iron ceiling looming only inches above. “There’s been more scars on people …” says master seaman and Labrador native Joe McDonald about restless sleepers who knock themselves silly when they wake up suddenly and slam facefirst into a bulkhead. Of the sub’s six officers, three of them are over six-feet tall. “They’re the fun ones to watch,” says McDonald with a mischievous grin. Fun to watch, he says, because the maximum clearance in the boat is about two inches below the height of the officers on board. “You find any way to amuse yourself that you can. You have to laugh about things like that or you go crazy. “You always know that someone tall just walked by because there’s hair sticking out,” says McDonald pointing to bolts that hang perilously low in one of the walkways that snake through the sub. The boat has just been refueled and the smell of diesel hangs in the air like the blanket of fog that so often socks-in St. John’s harbour. Surprisingly, the main areas of the sub are more spacious than Hollywood filmmakers would have one believe. But every inch is stuffed with valves, pipes and storage. Even the footstools in the various mess lounges have storage compartments below the cushions. A pair of scissors hangs by a string, tucked in a cardboard sleeve duct-taped to the sub’s bulkhead. “If it makes noise, take care of it. We’re big on that,” says McDonald, who is second-incharge of the boat’s sonar room. It’s his job to listen for and identify threats in a world that has no
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Master seaman, Walt Osmond, left, of Port aux Basque is a naval electronics technician; acoustics and master seaman, Joe McDonald of Wabush, Labrador, is second in command of the sonar section onboard the HMCS Windsor.
windows, only sound-painted images that the sub’s sonar equipment transmits, and then receives. He’s also responsible for securing anything on the sub that might make noise and betray its position. Under the ocean, things can horribly wrong in the blink of an eye, as McDonald found out while serving on one of the now-decommissioned Oberon-class subs. During one mission, the sub’s dive planes (they act like wings and change the angle of the sub’s bow) jammed. “It was one of those situations where you look at each other and you know something is not right because the boat is pointing about 35 degrees towards the ocean floor and you’re traveling,” says McDonald matter-of-factly about a moment that would have sent many screaming for high ground the moment the sub docked and hatches opened. “The fear is always in the back of your head — what if? But you have to push that away because if you lived on it, you would never go down in a submarine,” says McDonald. The Windsor is one of four subs the Canadian government bought from the British in 1998. The Brits had mothballed the subs and Canada’s Defence Department
saw the boats as a bargain at a total cost of just $750 million. Plagued with problems that ranged from torpedo tubes leaking to a sub with
“The fear is always in the back of your head — what if? But you have to push that away because if you lived on it, you would never go down in a submarine.” — Joe McDonald a bent frame, the bugs are finally being worked out of the rechristened Victoria class subs. But the constant barrage of criticism lobbed at the navy and the Canadian government by the media is a source of frustration for the crew, says Mulholland. “Unlike a surface ship which can sit on the surface of the water, this has to operate on three dimensions and also undergo extreme pressures underwater,” says Mulholland. “So for that reason the technical standards are vastly greater than they are for a surface ship. As a result, the slightest thing that is not up to
the required standard is treated very seriously and, of course, that’s the way we want it.” Mulholland admits that it does take a special breed of person to live in close quarters with 48 other people and live beneath the sea for as long as two months. “It must because the people we get down here, for the most part, don’t seem to miss the sunlight. I don’t know if that’s something to be worried about or not,” says Mulholland, adding it’s not the lack of sunlight that “will get you.” Unlike the American navy that refuses to allow women on board its subs, the Windsor has two female crewmembers. The Australians are the only other sub service to allow women to work on board. “It’s the living in close proximity to somebody day-in and day-out for weeks at a time and you can’t escape them. There is nowhere to go.” Newfoundlanders’ legendary happy-go-lucky attitude shines when under the waves, says Mulholland. “They’re characters and characters work out very well on submarines. Everybody appreciates them because they seem to bring the crew together. They
make it jell,” says Mulholland. McDonald has three other Newfoundlanders in his department of eight. Educating the rest of the crew to the traditions of Newfoundland and Labrador or expanding the culinary horizons on board the sub isn’t out of the ordinary. “The guys are looking around, (saying) ‘What the hell is fish and brewis?’” says McDonald. When you’re out at sea and the hours flow like molasses on a cold winter morning, everyone on board ends up educating each other about their corner of this vast country. “Because we are so close onboard, everybody tends to have a moment where they explain how things were where they grew up. “I think, though, we tend to accept the jokes and everything else a little more because we’re a little more lighthearted than some others,” says McDonald. The 32-year-old father of two stands on the barge that the sub is tied to and looks out towards downtown St. John’s and takes a deep breath. “It’s good to be home,” he says. jeff.ducharme@theindependent.ca
Page 24
LIFE & TIMES
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
I’se The Girl
I
by Deborah Bourden
‘A forever thing’
am Canadian. I have always enjoyed Canada Day — not just because it’s a holiday, but because it’s a day when everyone seems in the mood to celebrate. It’s a day when the red in the flag seems brighter and everyone seems prouder to be Canadian. I’m not sure, however, that those of us home-grown Canadians truly understand how blessed we are to be Canadian. This past Canada Day was more special to me than any before because the other half of our family became Canadian citizens. It was a wonderful ceremony at the Confederation Building in St. John’s. A quick glance around the lobby revealed the new Newfoundland and Labrador that’s emerging. It was a truly multi-cultural experience. It was clear to me that everyone receiving citizenship was excited and proud. There were friends and, in many cases, family there to cheer them on and share in the special occasion. It was no different for us. We sat there beaming with pride and soaking up every word. It was a fabulous way to celebrate Canada Day. Later that evening we continued the celebration with a gathering of friends
The Sunday Independent
and family. I know we’ll remember the day forever. The road to this wonderful day wasn’t an easy one. There’s a misconception that Canada’s doors are wide open for any and all to enter. That’s not true. Immigration is a challenging and often intimidating experience. It starts with the very difficult decision to leave your home country. To those of us who have never experienced it, political unrest and even war might seem like the perfect reasons to move somewhere else, but it’s not that simple. There
are so many things to consider. Think about all the little things that you may have struggled with on your last holiday: Driving on the other side of the road; different brands of beverages; ordering dinner in a different language. The one thing about vacations is that they end. Now think about spending the rest of your life in the place you holidayed, far from friends and family. For most people, immigration is a forever thing. My experience with the immigration process was somewhat secondhand but extremely enlight-
ening as I watched from the sidelines. There were the visas, the paperwork, the interviews, more paperwork, additional interviews, the costs, the legal advice and the struggles to adjust to so many new things. And, of course, the months and years of waiting and wading through the process — definitely not for the faint of heart. I remember distinctly the summons to an interview in Buffalo. We were informed that the children were required to attend the interview, which meant plane tickets to Toronto for everyone. Then we had to rent a vehicle and drive to Buffalo — not a preferred holiday destination — only to be told the children were not required at the interview. In the end, we didn’t get an apology or a cent in compensation — such is the process. After returning home we continued the waiting game and our struggles to get everyone settled into their new country. The first year is the most difficult, as well as the most exciting. It’s full of firsts. There was that first day of driving on the “right” side of the road. For the kids, it was their second first day at school. There was the purchase of the first vehicle in
a new country and the buying of the first home. Then there are things that aren’t so obvious: Not recognizing any of the brands on the shelves of the grocery store; buying brand after brand until finding one you like. Then there are the favourite things from home that you can’t find here — the adjustments never end. The immigration process takes so long that once you’re finally an official Canadian citizen you’ve long since been Canadianized. You don’t need directions to the Confederation Building where the ceremony takes place and you’re more than accustomed to driving on the right side of the road. Then you celebrate. Like most births, all the pain of getting there is quickly forgotten as everyone stands and sings the national anthem, mumbling the French part and feeling an incredible sense of belonging. Then, the best part, announcing “I am Canadian” for all the world to hear. deborah@theindependent.ca
Created for The Sunday Independent by John Andrews
THIS WEEK’S THEME:
Cooper’s CrissCross is a typical search-a-word puzzle except you must first decipher the word list based on the clues provided before searching. All of the clues will have a Newfoundland and Labrador flavour. Good luck! The word list and Answer grid can be found on page 26.
THE ODE
When ____ crown thy ____ clad ____, And ____ spreads ____ hand, When ______ voices _____ thy ____, We love _____ smiling ____ ... When _____ thy _____ of shimm'ring ____, At ____ stern _____, Thro' ____ day and _____ night, We ____ thee, _____ land ...
July 4, 2004
Page 25
The Sunday Independent
SPORTS
Photo by Paul Daly/The Sunday Independent
Weightlifter Ken Doyle of St. John's prepares for the Para Olympics in Athens at the Global Gym.
HEAVY weight
Paralympian hopes to place among top three in world at September Games By David Manning For The Sunday Independent
K
en Doyle says he’s the master of psyching himself up. Sitting in the background with a towel over his head blocking out the world, readying himself to push around 450 pounds of bar and plates, he becomes a different person. “The towel acts as a barrier between me and the outside world. People will tell you I’m different when it comes to competitions. It’s 90 per cent mental, and 10 per cent strength … it’s mostly in your head.” But then it probably does take a little extra mental preparation to move up to 500 pounds with just your arms. Doyle, who doesn’t have the use of his legs, is slated to attend his third Paralympic Games in Athens, Greece, this September. The Paralympics take place following the Olympics and are for those athletes with disabilities. Doyle, who has been lifting weights competitively for 16 years, came upon the sport
almost by accident. “I basically lucked into it. I just went into the gym with my father one day fooling around.” As a 12-year-old, Doyle jumped under the universal machine and bench-pressed 250 pounds eight times — a weightlifting career was born. “I didn’t realize how strong I was,” Doyle says of his early years. Doyle’s career has since taken off. Sponsored by the Canadian Wheelchair Sports Association since the age of 17, Doyle has bench pressed his way around the globe. “I’ve been to Europe I’d say 14 times, Saudi Arabia, Malaysia, Australia, parts of the States, but surprisingly not many places in Canada,” Doyle says of his travels. With the support of his sponsor and a training regime that keeps him busy and fit, Doyle placed seventh in his classification at the last two Paralympics in Sydney, Australia and Atlanta, Georgia. “I’m totally dedicated, that’s the key. Some days I can’t make
it, and sometimes it (the sport) does conflict with things, but it’s good,” Doyle says of his passion for the sport and its impact on his daily life. Doyle trains on Mondays, Fridays and then takes a break until the following Wednesday. “I only work on the bench press, so I need that time to recover,” says Doyle, who works out at Global
“It’s 90 per cent mental, and 10 per cent strength … it’s mostly in your head.” — Ken Doyle
Gym in St. John’s with his brother as his coach. This being Doyle’s third Paralympics, he’s looking to out achieve himself. “My goal is top three for sure this time around, and in terms for poundage, my goal right now is to go into
Athens and do 500 pounds,” says Doyle. Admittedly a little star struck the past two Paralympics, Doyle is as focused as ever to make his goal a reality. “My first Olympics I was amazed. My second I was amazed, it still gets me that I’m in the category of the (best in the) world,” Doyle says. What can possibly go through someone’s mind with 450 pounds over his chest supported only by two outstretched arms? “I hope I don’t drop it, and I just do the best I can psychologically,” Doyle jokes. The competition itself is a quick one. The weight comes off the rack and is held above your chest until the starter says go. The weight is then lowered and held on the chest for two seconds. The weightlifter then presses it back up and racks it. Pretty simple, right? Not exactly, says Doyle, adding that stabilizing that kind of weight while a panel judges how well you do it is more difficult than it appears. “When I rack it back up, I say to myself ‘Thank God it’s
over’,” says Doyle. Doyle says he owes a lot to weightlifting. He’s travelled the world competing and meeting hundreds of people along the way. “When I’m going to all these places and meeting all these people all over the world it’s just a great experience.” Doyle plans to give back to the sport that has given him so much. “I’m totally devoted. If I do retire because of some type of injury, I’ll still devote myself to coaching others.” With the dedication that Doyle has showed over his career there’s no doubt he’ll do his best to get into the top three and lift the 500 pounds he wants so desperately to lift. “It’s tough sometimes to realize why you’re there. I can’t explain it really, it’s overwhelming,” says Doyle of the Paralympic experience. Walking into the stadium with thousands screaming fans makes for a surreal event whether you are disabled or not. “Disabled is just a word.”
Page 26
SPORTS
This Sporting Life
The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
by Shaun Drover
Ryan makes TSN’s top 10 I
tem: Terry Ryan made a TSN piece that showcased some of the worst National Hockey League draft picks of all time. Comment: In the 1994-95 Western Hockey League season, Ryan scored 50 goals and 60 assists in 70 games. After that 110 point season, he was a highly touted player for the upcoming NHL entry draft, so high that he was selected eighth overall by the Montreal Canadiens. The pick didn’t workout for the Habs as Ryan tennis and mature her game. only played a handful of NHL games, talThe men’s draw was once again withlying just a few penalty minutes. The pick out Andre Agassi, who must still be feelgot even worse over time because the ing the embarrassment after losing in the Dallas Stars’ first-round pick that same first round of the French Open. I thought year — just three selections after Ryan — Agassi would never play on clay again, was some guy named Jarome Iginla. but why not grass? Could this be the end That had to hurt! of Agassi on any surface but hard court, According to TSN, the Iginla pick or is he regrouping to avoid future embarmakes Ryan the sixth rassment? worst draft bust. The No. Item: The NBA free1 bust of all time went to agency frenzy has begun poor old Brian Lawton with a questionable Kobe The latest rumour who was drafted first Bryant topping the list. overall by Minnesota in Comment: The has Shaq and his 1983. Maybe they should Phoenix Suns wasted no wife excited about a have taken a chance on time in making a qualifythe third pick that year, possible move to Dallas ing offer to Bryant. The Pat Lafontaine, or the to join the Maverick’s free agent market opened fourth pick, Steve Yzerone minute after midcolourful owner, man. night, which was when Mark Cuban. Ryan has kept himself Phoenix announced a cerbusy by playing ice tain $100-million deal hockey, ball hockey and they wished to discuss roller hockey. He’s also with Bryant’s agent. Even used the sport as a great opportunity to with a possible jail sentence in Bryant’s give back to the community by conduct- future, numerous teams are willing to ing camps for younger kids and aboriginal take a chance on the superstar. Other children. So even though his draft expec- teams said to be in the running for Bryant tations didn’t work out, he’s stuck with the are the Denver Nuggets and L.A. Lakers. sport and made use of his talents. Other news in Lakerland has an upset Item: Wimbledon is the site of this Shaq looking to make a possible move. week’s grand slam tennis event. Rumours surfaced after Laker officials Comment: Look out Anna Kournikova, expressed more concern for Bryant than there may be a new girl on tour. Wimble- Shaq. The latest rumour has Shaq and his don has been a coming-out party for a wife excited about a possible move to young Russian sensation. Maria Sharapo- Dallas to join the Maverick’s colourful va has taken the tennis world by storm as owner, Mark Cuban. Meantime, Cuban is busy trying to sign she made her way through the draw at Wimbledon. Her poise and play were like Canadian Steve Nash. Other highly that of a veteran and she’s only 17 years sought-after free agents include Kenyon old. Did I mention she’s absolutely beau- Martin, Jamal Crawford, and Rasheed Wallace. tiful? When Kournikova, a fellow Russian, Whatever happens, teams will have to broke on the scene she created quite a stir find a way to stop the newest dynamic with her looks. Sharapova has done the duo of Tracy McGrady and Yao Ming in same, but with one big difference — she Houston. McGrady was involved in one can play tennis. There are whispers that of the biggest trades in NBA history, she’s nothing but a girl of the hour, but which saw Steve Francis go to Orlando in those will stop if she continues to play exchange for McGrady, the one-time well. Keep an eye out for this young Raptor. superstar as she should continue to play shaundrover@hotmail.com
Solutions for page 24 SUNRAYS PINE HILLS SUMMER HER SILVERN TUNE RILLS THEE LAND SPREADS CLOAK WHITE WINTER'S COMMAND SHORTENED STARLIT LOVE FROZEN
Photo by Paul Daly/The Sunday Independent
High ball A friendly game of Rugby took place June 29 between the Dogs Rugby Club and British sailors from five naval ships that visited St. John’s harbour recently. The British lads say they try and have a game in most ports they visit. While they have no official team and many players didn’t know the rules, they had a great time playing — and losing in both Halifax and St. John’s (five tries to one). Alan Nekrews, an officer from Manchester, said it was a shame he couldn’t stay longer as he was enjoying the time visiting with an old friend and meeting new ones in the city.
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The Sunday Independent, July 4, 2004
Vansen makes Olympic committee CORNER BROOK llen Vansen has been appointed to the Olympic Selection Committee for Triathlon Canada. Part of a five-member committee, Vansen will represent the board of directors for Triathlon Canada. The committee will nominate two men and three women that will be Triathlon Canada’s nominees to the Canadian Olympic Committee (COC). “I am very honoured to be a member of the Olympic Selection Committee for Triathlon Canada,” Vansen said in a press release. “It’s a special honour to have any connection at all with the Olympic Games team, especially given the outstanding performance of Simon Whitfield at the Sydney Olympic Games.” The athletes who meet the COC’s criteria will be eligible to compete in the 2004 Olympics in Athens this August. “Only two men have met the criteria that has been agreed to by the COC, so we know already that Simon Whitfield and Brent McMahon will be diving off the start pontoon in Athens. On the women’s side, Jill Savege and Carol Montgomery have met the criteria that puts them on the starting pontoon.” This leaves the final women’s spot on the team undecided. The ITU Triathlon World Cup race, taking place in Edmonton on July 11, will be the deciding factor for this spot. Sharon Donnelly, Natasha Filliol, Samantha McGlone and Lauren Groves, all of whom have met the COC criteria, have the opportunity to grab the last spot on the Canadian team. The first of the group to snap the finish-line tape will round out the Canadian women’s triathlon team.
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Events JULY 4 • Family day at Memorial’s Botanical Gardens, St. John’s, 10 a.m.-5 p.m., 7378590. • Untitled adult performance hour with Montreal-based artist Cheli Nighttraveller, hosted by Edge Intermedia, Eastern Edge Gallery, Harbour Drive, St. John’s, 8:30 pm, 579-1153. Not suitable for children. JULY 5 • Duane Andrews CD release, Ship Pub, St. John’s, 7 p.m. JULY 6 • Weekly healthy garden workshop series, facilitated by Dr. Wilf Nicholls, 7378590. • Man in Black, a tribute to Johnny Cash, featuring performances by Mark Bragg, Anita Best, Chris LeDrew, Sandy Morris, Pat Moran, Erin Best and more. St. John’s Arts and Culture Centre, 8 p.m., 729-3900. JULY 7 • Folk night at the Ship Pub with Bill Garrett & Sue Lothrop, St. John’s, 9 p.m. • A night of storytelling and the launch of Haunted Shores: Ghost stories of Newfoundland and Labrador, by Dale Jarvis, 7-9 p.m., at the Masonic Temple. For more info call 739-4477. • Man in Black, a tribute to Johnny Cash, featuring performances by Mark Bragg, Anita Best, Chris LeDrew, Sandy Morris, Pat Moran, Erin Best and more. St. John’s Arts and Culture Centre, 8 p.m., 729-3900. • Live! On the Lawn Theatre , Hawthorne Cottage, Brigus. Plays are performed Wednesdays, Fridays and Saturdays at 3 p.m. • St. John’s Jazz Festival begins, 9:30 p.m. with the Mark Belbin quintet at Grafenberg’s. Continues until July 11, for complete listings visit www.atlanticjazzinitiative.com
JULY 8 • Youth coffee house provides a venue for young artists, Youth Services site, 12-16 Carter’s Hill Place, St. John’s, 8-10 p.m. Performers of all sorts wanted, given about 10 minutes each. • Salvage: Story of a House, written by Michael Crummey, presented by Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland, 8 p.m., Commissariat House, St. John’s, (709) 739-5091. • Sound Symposium XII begins: International festival of new music and the arts, day and night, at various locations throughout St. John’s. For more information visit www.soundsymposium.com or call 7543819. JULY 9 • Seniors’ day at MUN Botanical Garden, 10 a.m.-3 p.m., 737-8590. • Salvage: Story of a House, written by Michael Crummey, presented by Artistic Fraud of Newfoundland, 8 p.m., Commissariat House, St. John’s, (709) 739-5091. • One-day symposium on Women, Music & Technology. Morning session, 9 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.: Soundwalk, recording and sound editing with Andrea McCartney, to register call Sound Symposium at 7543819. Afternoon session, 1:30-5 p.m.: Panels discussions on Women, music & technology in Newfoundland & Labrador, and Research by the ‘In and Out of the Studio’ project members. Children’s activity room, A. C. Hunter library, Arts & Culture Centre. • Book launch: Unraveling Arva by Nicole Lundrigan, 5:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m., Bianca’s Bar, St. John’s, 757-2216. • Soldier’s Heart by David French, presented by the Seabird Theatre Festival, Newtown, 536-3220. JULY 10 • St. John’s Jazz Festival presents an allages jazz event, Prince Edward Plaza, George Street., noon-9 p.m.
• Exhibit opening: Summer Songs featuring the work of 15 artists at the Leyton Gallery of Fine Art, St. John’s, coincides with the Sound Symposium, 3-5 p.m. • Thunderstruck, a tribute to AC/DC at Club One, George Street, St. John’s. • MUN Botanical Garden floral art show. Arrangements created by the floral art group of the Newfoundland Horticultural Society on exhibit at MUN Botanical Garden, Mount Scio Road, St. John’s, noon-5 p.m. Continues July 11, 10 a.m.-4 p.m. • Redécouvrir Plaisance/Rediscover Placentia festival begins, to celebrate 500 years of French presence in the province and Placentia’s historic role as the Ancient French Capital. Call 227-9078, plan2004@nf.aibn.com. OTHER: • Rum, Romance and Rebellion, cultural and literary walking tour of St John’s, Tues.Thurs., 6:45 p.m., LSPU Hall, Victoria Street, 364-6845. • Where once they stood, O’Boyle’s historic walking tours, daily 10 a.m. at the Fairmont Newfoundland Hotel, St. John’s. Reservations required, (709) 364-6845. IN THE GALLERIES: • Gridlock: Abbey Road, by Bill Rose, at the Resource Centre for the Arts Visual Gallery until July 5. • Travelling Light, with works by Doug Buis, Catherine Kozyra, Ryan Barrett and more, all inspired by the Pouch Cove environment, James Baird Gallery, Water Street, St. John’s, until July 27. • Sealed by Ray Roddick, and Construction, by Carl Trahan, Eastern Edge Gallery, St. John’s. Opening July 10: Artist Statement by Stephan Kurr and Bad Ideas for Paradise by Emily Vey Duke and Cooper Battersby. • Annual Members Exhibit, Craft Council Gallery, Devon House, St. John’s, until Sept. 3.
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