February 22, 2013
Ottawa, Ontario
Prime Minister Stephen Harper today announced the following changes to the Ministry at a private swearing-in ceremony at Rideau Hall:
The Honourable Bernard Valcourt, as Minister of Aboriginal Affairs and Northern Development, will continue the Government’s work to advance dialogue on Aboriginal issues and take achievable steps that will provide better education and economic outcomes for Aboriginal peoples across Canada.
Access To Information Act
Click Here to download the Act.
Purpose 2. (1) The purpose of this Act is to extend the present laws of Canada to provide a right of access to information in records under the control of a government institution in accordance with the principles that government information
should be available to the public, that necessary exceptions to the right of access should be limited and specific and that decisions on the disclosure of government information should be reviewed independently of government.
Graham Hughes / THE CANADIAN PRESS
Pierre Duhaime leaves SQ headquarters in Montreal on Wednesday, November 28, 2012. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Graham Hughes.
MONTREAL—Pierre Duhaime, the former chief executive of Canada’s biggest engineering firm, has been granted more flexibility to travel within the country pending trial on fraud charges.
Duhaime, a prominent Quebec businessman and once the head of engineering powerhouse SNC-Lavalin, was formally charged with fraud on Monday. He was not in the courtroom as his lawyer, Michel Massicotte, pleaded not guilty on his behalf. A change was made to conditions surrounding Duhaime’s release. Initially, he was forbidden from leaving Quebec. The Crown has now agreed he can travel elsewhere in Canada — but not go beyond its borders.
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February 8, 2013
Vancouver, British Columbia
The Government of Canada has made significant accomplishments in three key areas: tackling crime by holding violent criminals accountable for their crimes, giving victims of crime a stronger voice, and increasing the efficiency of the Justice system. In total, over thirty measures have been enacted into law since 2006.
TACKLING CRIME
The Ending House Arrest for Property and Other Serious Crimes component of the Safe Streets and Communities Act (Bill C-10) (Effective date: November 20, 2012)
These amendments restricted the use of conditional sentences including house arrests. A conditional sentence is a sentence of imprisonment that may be served in the community provided certain conditions are met. The amendments provided an expanded and clear list of offences for which conditional sentences are not available.
The Targeting Serious Drug Crime component of the Safe Streets and Communities Act (Bill C-10) 
(Effective date: November 6, 2012)
The Safe Streets and Communities Act amended the Controlled Drugs and Substances Act (CDSA) to address serious organized drug crime. The CDSA now provides mandatory minimum penalties for serious drug offences, including those carried out for organized crime purposes and those that involve targeting youth. The legislation supported the National Anti-Drug Strategy’s efforts to combat illicit drug production and distribution and help disrupt criminal enterprises by targeting drug suppliers.
The Protecting Canadians from Violent and Repeat Young Offenders component of the Safe Streets and Communities Act (Bill C-10) (Effective date: October 23, 2012)
The Safe Streets and Communities Act included reforms designed to help ensure that violent and repeat young offenders are held fully accountable, and that the protection of society is given due consideration in applying the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
The Protecting Children from Sexual Predators component of the Safe Streets and Communities Act (Bill C-10) (Effective date: August 9, 2012)
The Safe Streets and Communities Act amended the Criminal Code to better protect children from sexual predators by ensuring that the penalties imposed for sexual offences against children are consistent and better reflect the heinous nature of these acts, and by creating two new offences that take aim at conduct that could facilitate the sexual abuse of a child.
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“Teachers, the people who warm our hearts and give us the gift of knowledge.”
I finally found the time to really dig deep and look over Bill 115 after seeing the Ontario Secondary Schools Teacher Federation(OSSTF) FighBill115.ca Ad all over the internet. The conclusion I come to is this, the content of the bill is very strong in reason and rationality and it should be passed and accepted by the teachers this one time. Given the hard fiscal position Ontario is currently in the OSSTF marketing campaign has alienated the valid concerns some teachers actually have with Bill 115. It is overwhelming agreed within society that we need to protect our teachers, and make sure that they are cared for. However it is more important to protect the young minds of the children first.
I don’t think the Ad campaign FightBill115 has been effective and clear with its message on why parents should side with the union vs. the Liberal government that was just re-elected a year ago. This campaign shows the OSSTF blatant position that it is holding children’s lives and extracurricular activities hostage it is an unnecessary aggressive ad campaign.
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Serving as the Federal Government Liaison for the Eastern Woodlands Metis Nova Scotia. Doing my best to help support our most vulnerable.
“Our mission with the Eastern Woodland Métis Nation is to promote and preserve the Metis identity and heritage in our community. We strive to promote education, training, business opportunities, leadership, health and justice. Our goal is to be economically sustainable and self‑reliant. Our values of the ultimate authority of the Eastern Woodland Métis Nation reside with its membership. A consensus is sought from the grassroots membership and is ensured by organizational structures that take into account traditional values that our ancestors have given to us with the belief that the whole community and not just one individual group is to be represented. Our vision is to be self‑actualized, as laid out in the Royal Commission Report on Aboriginal Peoples”
Unrevised Transcript, December 5th, 2012 : Senate of Canada Committee on Aboriginal People.
In my personal opinion and experience even still today here in Canada, I find most police officers or “peace officers” still use excessive tactics of intimidation and force. I think this alienates the core rights and freedoms that are supposed to be protected under the law.
I fundamentally believe individual human rights and freedoms are worth fighting to protect, and even though institutional racism is a reality I choose NOT to turn a blind eye but instead work towards a modern solution that focuses on the self, because the system will not do it for us.
The Conflict Hits Home & In The Office
A Free Syrian Army fighter carries a baby, the only survivor in his family after an artillery round destroyed his home in Aleppo this month. Photograph: Sipa USA/Rex Features
You hear politicians in Ottawa everyday talking about foreign policy, values, etc. However I had the opportunity last week to interview for myself a young man who just arrived back to Canada a month ago after living in Damacaus, Syria for the last 15 years.
The job candidate was a first generation Canadian who was born to Syrian parents who immigrated to Canada in the 1980’s. After reviewing his profile I noticed that he was indeed the same age as me 27. He presented very well like a solid young professional. He had excellent work experience and a strong educational background. Before the conflict he was working in the Aerospace industry as a flight controller, with a bright future ahead. He had a home, car, career, a family with a very bright future. However he had to leave it all behind because in the end his personal health and safety was more important then any material wealth or societal status could ever be. I came away after speaking with the candidate really wanting to know more about the situation on the ground in Syria.
Last week I watched the 60 Minutes special on the internal Syria conflict. I also followed the American presidential debate between Obama and Romney that was on foreign policy. This was done in a hope that some substantive things would be talked about however these mediums left me unsatisfied. Fortunately I was follow @UN on twitter and was able to come across some very important information that addressed my concerns from the direct sources involved in the relief coordination.
