Article Archive for May 2011
Syria’s tanks crack down on protesters. U.S. may impose sanctions
With tanks now patrolling the streets of a restive Syrian city, the Obama administration is preparing to take its first concrete steps against President Bashar Assad and his top lieutenants – the imposition of sanctions for an increasingly bloody crackdown on demonstrators.
New UNA program seeks to link diverse newcomers to media organizations
A roundtable was hosted in Halifax on March 22 at the Wooden Monkey restaurant by program officers of Multimedia & Multiculturalism (M&M) – a national program that links people of diverse cultures with media organizations in Canada.
European immigration policy assumes position of liberal, civilized society—Forum
A symposium on “Migration Parallels within the EU and Canada: Trajectories of Policy and Power” was hosted on April 8 at Dalhousie in Halifax. The forum explored traditional, formal and lived experiences with labour migration, with a focus on recent trends precipitated by neoliberal policies.
Symposium participants call for Employment Equity policy with teeth
An Employment Equity Partnership symposium was held in Halifax on April 15 to focus on building an inclusive workforce. It ended with symposium participants calling for policy that has teeth.
Nigeria’s elections, despite alleged vote buying, was most credible since 1999
Analysts say the initial round of parliamentary elections, which began on 9 April, have been more transparent than the country’s past three elections, which were marred by violence, but nonetheless, evidence of candidates in some towns employing desperate measures, including vote-buying, has emerged.
US/NATO forces made 730,000 Afghans homeless since 2006
One irony of the current security situation in Afghanistan is that international forces, whose apparent aim is to protect civilians while fighting the Taliban, may be responsible – directly or indirectly – for the bulk of internally displaced persons (IDPs) in the country, whose number is rising.
Mexico’s mass graves underscore fears over thousands missing
Dallas resident Manuel Villa hasn’t heard from his brother in Mexico for three years. In Mexico City, Trinidad Reynosa waits to see an investigator at the federal prosecutor’s office about his brother-in-law, who headed north to the U.S. three weeks ago but never arrived.
Canada’s economic performance as good as its rank in international soccer
The Conservatives’ drive for a majority is premised on positioning themselves as the best economic managers. After all, they say, Canada got through the recession much better than other countries. The government accepts no responsibility for the recession itself – which, they remind us, was “global.” But they happily take credit for Canada’s performance since.
