2005 WORLD SUMMIT MUST CONSIDER WAYS TO PROTECT,
PROMOTE WOMEN'S RIGHTS – UN OFFICIAL
New York, Jul  5 2005  6:00PM

With many competing interests and expectations vying
for attention in the run up to the 2005 World Summit,
world leaders must make sure that any decisions they
take in September will ultimately promote and protect
the rights of women, the top United Nations adviser on
women's issues said today.

Addressing the opening
<"http://www.un.org/News/Press/docs/2005/wom1510.doc.htm">meeting of
the 33rd session of the Committee on the
Elimination of Discrimination against Women, Rachel
Mayanja, Secretary-General Kofi Annan's Special Adviser
to the on Gender Issues and Advancement of Women
stressed the 23-member expert body's tireless
commitment to that aim – ensuring that real-life
benefits were the guiding principle in gauging how
women could gain from decisions taken by the
international community.

The 23-member Committee of experts, which monitors
implementation of the Convention on the Elimination of
All Forms of Discrimination against Women, also worked
diligently to highlight the specific areas of concern
in each of the States parties that came before it for a
constructive dialogue about their compliance, Ms.
Mayanja said.

She added the Committee's approach to gender equality,
as reflected in its general recommendations, statements
and concluding comments, made it very clear that States
parties to the Convention were obliged to tackle the
structural causes of discrimination against women.
Only by challenging the ingrained and systemic roots of
women's inequality would true equality with men be
realized, she said.
  ________________

For more details go to UN News Centre at
http://www.un.org/news
---------------------------------------------------------------


Former Brooklyn Bar Head Gets 27-Month Prison Term
New York Law Journal

New York federal Judge John Gleeson on Tuesday
sentenced a former Brooklyn Bar Association president
to 27 months in prison, six months less than the
minimum called for by the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines.
Imposing Edward Reich's sentence for accepting $10,500
in bribes while acting as a court-appointed referee,
Gleeson called the lawyer's acts "a flat out abuse of
power." In departing from sentencing guidelines,
Gleeson said he was influenced by Reich's health, age
and agreement to pay restitution.

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1120579816627


*************************

Brown's Name in the Mix of Possible High Court Picks
The Recorder

After Justice Sandra Day O'Connor announced her
resignation from the U.S. Supreme Court, Christian
groups, conservative commentators and others began
beating the drums to have Janice Rogers Brown named her
successor. But most political pundits said Brown --
recently confirmed for the D.C. Circuit after being
filibustered for nearly two years -- would be a highly
unlikely choice. "She's already been the source of
great controversy," said one law professor. "And she's
too new to the federal court system."

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1120579808111

============================================================

Putting Islam on the Stand
Legal Times

In a recent Virginia trial, the prosecutor told the
jury the defendant couldn't be trusted because of his
religious beliefs. The defendant, a U.S. citizen
accused of supporting terrorism, was convicted. The
religion in question: Islam. Now, attorney Edward
MacMahon Jr. is pushing for a new trial, saying
prosecutors secured the verdict by appealing to bigotry
against Muslims. The case raises the question of how
far is too far when it comes to using religious beliefs
as evidence of criminal intent.

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1120727114514


************


Judge: No Suits on Friday -- Dress Suits, That Is
Fulton County Daily Report

Superior Court Judge Mark Anthony Scott has declared
his courtroom "business casual" on Fridays, meaning men
don't have to don a tie or jacket during hearings and
pleadings held during humid Georgia summers. While some
local judges expressed surprise and skepticism about
the new policy, Scott said there would be safeguards
against "poor dress." The relaxed standards also apply
to women, but Scott added with a smile, "no Daisy Duke
attire, please."

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1120727112053

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stop violence against women campaign

svaw campaign project kits
violence against women human rights defenders

contact coordinator
cherylh@...

cheryl hotchkiss
c/o amnesty canada (english)
312 laurier ave east
ottawa, on  k1n 1h9

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1000 women for nobel peace prize 2005
http://www.1000peacewomen.org

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http://www.laughteryoga.org
http://www.worldlaughtertour.com
http://www.jesthealth.com

====================================================================

Parents group wants fines for Live 8 swear word

A parents group is demanding the ABC network be fined
for violating broadcast standards because it failed to
censor a swear word expressed during the recent Live 8
concert.

http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/07/14/Arts/Live8Swear_050614.html

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AWID Resource Net Announcements

E-learning Course: ''Health Outcomes and the Poor'' / 31 August - 12
October 2005 / Application Deadline: 10 August 2005 / For more
information,
please contact: Jo Hindriks at jhindriks@... / To apply,
please go
to the online application form at:
http://web.worldbank.org/WBSITE/EXTERNAL/WBI/WBIPROGRAMS/HNPLP/0,,contentMDK:202\
78727~menuPK:461072~pagePK:64157898~piPK:64156199~theSitePK:461054,00.html


PARTICIPANTS: (Health) Professionals involved in the Poverty Reduction
Strategy Papers process either as PRSP authors or as advisors to the
government

REGIONS TARGETED: Global

COURSE FEE: $500; fees waived for World Bank Staff, $250 for WHO
staff.

ORGANIZERS: The World Bank Institute and the World Health
Organization

LANGUAGE: English only


''Since the launch of the Poverty Reduction Strategy Paper process
(International Monetary Fund 1999 and World Bank 2000), many
countries have
taken on the challenge of centering their development agenda around
poverty
reduction and have engaged in consultative and analytical work to
support
policy development. To date, almost 50 countries have developed and
published Interim Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (I-PRSPs), and
more
than 30 countries have produced full PRSPs.  One of the main features
of
the PRSP process is an emphasis on country leadership and ownership.
This
means that there is no set template or framework for countries to
follow.
Moreover, there is no guarantee that health would even be addressed
in each
PRSP as the decision on which sectors to include is entirely up to the
authors (typically the government).  The absence of an imposed
structure or
format by the International Financial Institutions increases the
likelihood
of country  ownership and that the strategies identified address the
real
needs of each country and may lead to more individualized and creative
approaches. Since there are no set guidelines or rules to write PRSPs
there
is clearly an advantage in learning from past attempts at writing
them.

The course is intended to fill a need for training on what some of the
options are for writing the health component of the ''Poverty
Reduction
Strategy Papers''.  The key question is: ''What is the basic
relationship
between poverty and Health, Nutrition and Population (HNP) and how do
they
influence each other?'' This course is intended to provide the tools
for
PRSP authors and reviewers focusing on Health, Nutrition, and
Population.
The course will cover (i) typical problems faced by the poor and the
diagnostic tools that can be used to identify and analyze them; (ii)
pro-poor health sector policies with examples from existing PRSPs; and
(iii) Pro-poor actions and policies outside the health sector.''


RESOURCES
_____________________________________________________________________

Online Journal: Gender, Culture and Rights / To access this free
journal
online please visit:
http://www.agenda.org.za/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=264&Itemid=15\
3

For more information, please contact:
Christine Davis, Writing Programme Co-ordinator Agenda Feminist Media
Project tel: 031 304 7001, fax: 031 304 7018 editorial@...
http://www.agenda.org.za

The Special focus documents the papers and proceedings of the Gender,
Culture and Rights workshop held in Gauteng, 1-3 February 2005. The
workshop broadly aimed to examine current approaches to gender,
rights and
culture, in the context of 10 years of democracy in South Africa.
Speakers
delivered papers and participants engaged in discussion and debate in
the
areas of law, religion, masculinity, violence and health. As we enter
our
second decade of democracy in South Africa, it is the duty of all
citizens
to challenge discrimination in its myriad manifestations. This Special
Focus is one such challenge as it offers a space for speaking out,
seeking
alternatives and sounding a call to action. It is Agenda's hope that
this
call to action, and for response, that emerges from some of the
contributions will be acted upon by the authors themselves, by
participating partner organisations in this project and by society at
large.

_____________________________________________________________________

Handbooks: ICTs and small enterprise

The Heeks Development Informatics Group University of Manchester is
offering some remaining copies of two handbooks:

The first handbook is for support agency staff, advisers, consultants
and
researchers. It explains the role of information and communication
technologies in small enterprise. It provides clear, simple guidance
about
information, about technology, and about support agency strategies.

The second handbook is for entrepreneurs. It also explains the role of
information and communication technologies in small enterprise, from
the
entrepreneur's viewpoint. It explains what the technologies are, what
benefits they can bring, and how to get the most out of them.

If you would like hard copies posted out to you, please email
richard.heeks@... with the following two items of information:
a)
Your name and full postal address. b) Not more than 50 words
detailing your
or your organisation's work with small enterprise.

Online versions of the handbooks are also available at:
http://www.sed.manchester.ac.uk/idpm/research/is/ictsme/index.htm
Hard copies are
English language-only but the online versions are also provided in
French,
Spanish and Arabic.


Cross-posted from:
Ictforruralwomen mailing list
Ictforruralwomen@...
http://list.matrixlinks.ca/mailman/listinfo/ictforruralwomen


_____________________________________________________________________


URGENT ACTIONS AND CAMPAIGNS
_____________________________________________________________________

Statement by the Global Call against Poverty, marking the end of the
G8
summit

Marking the end of the G8 summit -- 8 JULY 2005

The people have roared but the G8 has whispered. Currently 50,000
people
die unnecessarily each day. If the leaders actually implement today's
announcement in an urgent manner, we estimate that by 2010 this will
fall
to around 37,000. Those who have joined the world's largest movement
to end
poverty can be proud that their voice and efforts will ensure that
millions
more people will live in health and dignity, but they will not rest
until
all of these needless deaths are stopped. The promise to deliver by
2010 is
like waiting 5 years before responding to the tsunami. Despite
constant
calls from people worldwide for trade justice it is desperately
disappointing that G8 leaders failed to act properly on this issue.
The
debt deal announced is a small belated step in the right direction and
though it is good that the principle of 100% cancellation has been
recognised, much more needs to be in done in terms of the number of
countries, the amount of money and the eradication of
conditionalities.

The Global Call to Action against Poverty will continue to pile on the
pressure on all of our demands, including debt cancellation and
challenging
the structures of injustice, in the run-up to the Millennium
Development
Summit in September and the WTO meeting in December. Given the track
record
of G8 leaders of broken promises, we will also be closely monitoring
their
commitments. GCAP calls on citizens and civil society organisations
around
the world to get involved and join their national coalition. The
white band
will continue to be a symbol in the fight for justice against
poverty''.

-Kumi Naidoo, chair, Global Call to Action against Poverty

For more information, please visit: http://www.whiteband.org
_____________________________________________________________________


Engendering the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs): A Call to Action

The Center for Women's Global Leadership (CWGL; email: cwgl@...),
Development Alternatives with Women in a New Era (DAWN; email:
fgdk@...), Women's Environment and Development  Organization
(WEDO;email: june@...)  and the NGO Working Group on Women Peace
and
Security (ngowgcoordinator@...)  are organizing to ensure
that
women's rights and gender equality are not left out of the Millennium
Summit review (MS+5) in September. They are developing gender-
sensitive
amendments for the Summit's outcome document, and asking supporters to
ensure their governments support the amendments. The MDGs, accepted by
United Nations member states in 2000, sets targets towards eliminating
poverty and promoting sustainable development throughout the world by
2015.

For more information see:  http://www.un.org/largerfreedom  or
http://www.whrnet.org

It should be noted that as the adoption of the Beijing Platform for
Action
and the revised Pacific Platform for Action were at high ministerial
level,
whereas the MDGs were was adopted by heads of states (the Pacific
Plan will
also be adopted at this level by Pacific government leaders in
October),
the gender equality commitments in the BPfA could be realigned with
the
MDGs as a way to balance the scales.

Call to action:
- Ensure that women's rights and gender equality are not left out of
the
Millennium Summit review (MS+5) in September by contributing to the
development of gender-sensitive amendments for the Summit's outcome
document Email NGO Working Group on Women Peace and Security
(ngowgcoordinator@...)
- Contact your UNDP office to inquire after the Pacific report on the
implementation of the MDGS and or your national planning office about
the
status of your national report.
- Contact your partner NGOs/CBOs and produce a civil society
response -
each reporting on how THEY are turning the goals into practical
action!

And How do the Millennium Development Goals fair in the context of
human
security ?
Based on the report of the Secretary General's High Level Panel on
Threats,
Challenges and Change ''A more secure world: Our shared
responsibility''
there are six clusters of threat with which the world must be
concerned
about now and in the decades ahead. These include - economic and
social
threats, inter-state conflict, internal conflict, nuclear,
radiological,
chemical and biological weapons; terrorism and transnational organised
crime: ''In describing how to meet the challenge of prevention, we
begin
with development because it is the indispensable foundation for a
collective security system that takes prevention seriously. It serves
multiple functions. It helps combat poverty, infectious disease and
environmental degradation that kills millions and threaten human
security.
It is vital in helping States prevent or reverse the erosion of state
capacity, which is crucial for meeting almost every class of threat.
And it
is part of a long term strategy for preventing civil war, and for
addressing
the environments in which both terrorism and organised crime
flourish'',
says the report.

The report further highlights that since adoption of the MDGs, when
the
international community committed itself to dramatically reducing
poverty
by 2015, ''Little has been done to addres the gender aspects of the
MDGs…all States must recommit themselves to the goals of eradicating
poverty, achieving sustained economic growth and promoting sustainable
development.''

---------------------
RESOURCE NET is brought to you by The Association for Women's Rights
in
Development (AWID). Announcements posted on this discussion list do
not
necessarily reflect the opinion of AWID, but are meant to provoke
thought,
generate solutions and inspire action.
-
You are free to replicate AWID's information in other formats, and
use it
in your advocacy, provided you give credit to the Association.
-
AWID is an international membership organization committed to gender
equality and a just and sustainable development process. AWID
facilitates
an open exchange among researchers, practitioners, policymakers and
others
in order to develop effective and transformative approaches for
improving
the lives of women and girls worldwide.


The Association for Women's Rights in Development
215 Spadina Avenue, Suite 150
Toronto, ON M5T 2C7
CANADA
Tel: 416-594-3773
Fax: 416-594-0330
Email: awid@...
Web: http://www.awid.org
------------------------------------------------------------------


[metro]

church backs women bishops

the church of england voted to move toward ordaining women bishops.
all three houses ofthe synod - the church's parliament - in the
city of york voted to "remove legal obstacles" in church law to
women bishops, a process church of england officials say could
take about four years to complete.

reuters
------------------------------------------------------------------

malibu may curb filming

malibu's picturesque coast may be home to many movie stars but
residents are calling "cut!" to the number of films and videos
shot there.

malibu city council has given initial approval to regulations
that would ban late night and early morning filming and limit
companies to 16 days at one location.

------------------------

w network cuts sex show

the w network has terminated sex counsellor sue johanson's weekly
sex show, reports cbc.ca.  the canadian network, which focuses on
women's issues, did not give a reason for the cancellation of the
sunday night sex show.  the popular therapist and former nurse
will continue to tape the u.s. equivalent of her show, which has
run on the oxygen network since 2002.  johanson's show began on
toronto radio in 1984.  her acerbic wit and direct advice about
sex made it a sunday staple for many [probably male] listeners.

metro toronto news services

------------------------------------------------------------------

canada

senate pressured on same-sex vote

religion joins forces vs. bill

canada's top catholic clergyman says mp's who support same-sex
marriage should be stripped of their parish leadership roles,
but not excommunicated.

cardinal marc ouellette backed a decision to bar ndp mp joe
comartin from leading church activities, but insisted it's best
to keep him and the 158 mp's who favour c-38 inside the fold
where they can be lobbied by parishioners to change their views
and oppose same-sex marriage.

"you do not lose your right to belong to a community because you
do not vote in the right way," ouellet said.  "we are a community
of siners and we are all sinners in one or the other way.  so we
have to be welcoming for all of our members and help them to be
more coherent and not exclude them."

ouellet said those mp's who backed bill c-38 should go to
confession before taking communion.

ouellet fell short of supporting the sanctioning of ndp mp
charlie angus, who was refused communion after voting in favour
of legalization.

"i think there should be dialogue but not necessarily public
punishments," he said.

------------

justice for women

-photo courtesy of law society of upper canada

law society of upper canada ceo malcolm heins drapes the
doctoral hood upon the shoulders of professor elizabeth sheehy,
ll.d., who was awarded an honorary degree of doctor of laws
at its ottawa call to the bar ceremony, to recognize her
extensive work in creating access to justice for women.

- sun media

24hrs.ca
-------------------------------------------------------------------

amnesty international
women's rights news
see legal news at
http://ca.groups.yahoo.com/group/aicap-aifap/messages

==================================================================

Catholics cope with priest shortage
'Constant juggling act': Ghanaian imports, retired clerics filling gaps at
Christmas

Francine Dubé
National Post


Tuesday, December 24, 2002



The shortage of priests in Canada has become so acute that some churches are
cutting the number of Christmas masses being celebrated this year and retired
priests are being pressed into service.

Father Benoît St-Onge has been responsible for three churches in the Montreal
suburbs of Rosemère, Lorraine and Bois de Filion since August, when a fellow
priest left the fold.

Since then, Father St-Onge has met his obligations with the help of a
74-year-old retired Jesuit, but he has had to reduce the number of Christmas
masses at the three churches this year from 11 to nine.

"For sure that we can't do with two priests 11 masses, that would not be human,"
says Fr. St-Onge, who will lead five masses today and tonight.

The shortage of priests has also meant a reduction in services offered to
Catholics. Daily masses are no longer offered at any of the three churches,
though each one holds at least one weekday mass.

There are fewer than 10,000 priests in Canada today, down from 15,000 in 1970.
The number of seminarians has dropped from 2,645 to 550. The situation is so
dire that priests are postponing retirement and the death of a priest can sound
the death knell of a parish.

In the Northern Ontario town of Cobalt, there will be a Christmas Eve mass, but
Christmas Day mass has been cancelled.

In September, Father John Lemire, 33, of Our Mother of Perpetual Help in New
Liskeard, about 20 kilometres from Cobalt, became one of a growing number of
priests who have had to take on two or more parishes.

He has also had to cut the number of weekday masses at the Cobalt church from
five to one.

"There's only so many places I can be in at one time," he says.

"It is a constant juggling act trying to maintain a balance between the two
places."

About a dozen people used to attend the Christmas Day Mass in Cobalt, in
addition to the Mass on Christmas Eve. Fr. Lemire says if the Cobalt church
still had a priest, there would be a Christmas Day Mass.

Catholic residents of Mackenzie, B.C., have been without a priest for about six
years, according to Father Rodolfo Manaloto, of Christ Our Saviour Parish in
Prince George. Fr. Manaloto is one of two priests from Prince George who make
the 90-minute drive to Mackenzie once a month to celebrate Mass there.

Twice a month, the Sunday service in Mackenzie is led by a layperson.
Worshippers take communion, but wafers that were consecrated by a priest at a
previous service are used.

This Christmas, Mass in Mackenzie will be led by a semi-retired priest. There
will be one service only, instead of the two that are typically held in a parish
-- one on Christmas Eve and one on Christmas Day.

"We're just glad we have the one," says Sister Germaine Rosenberger, an Ursuline
nun from Saskatchewan who acts as pastoral life director for the parish.

There will be no priest in the parish to celebrate Mass on New Year's Eve or New
Year's Day.

In central Newfoundland, the Catholic Church will be able to meet its
obligations, but barely. Bishop Martin Currie will leave his cathedral in Grand
Falls this afternoon to drive 140 kilometres to a neighbouring parish to conduct
a Mass, then drive back to Grand Falls in time to prepare for Mass there at 11
p.m.

The central Newfoundland diocese has 18 priests serving 30 far-flung parishes --
on a weekend, some of the priests travel as much as 500 kilometres.

Four of the priests have been brought in from Ghana, but importing priests is
not a permanent solution, says Bishop Currie. The Ghanaian priests will have to
return to their country one day -- their bishop has permitted them only a
two-year sojourn in Canada.

Meanwhile, Bishop Currie's diocese has graduated only one seminarian in 13 years
-- last May.

"I have no one studying for the priesthood right now. What the solution to the
problem is, I don't know," Bishop Currie says.

On the west coast of the island, a priest from the cathedral in Corner Brook
will travel to Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish in Benoit's Cove to celebrate
Christmas Mass with Catholics who have been without a resident priest for three
years.

"Last Christmas they had a priest who was studying up in Ottawa and he just
happened to be down here visiting some friends for Christmas and he filled in
down there, so they were lucky," says Father Bernard Buckle, of Sacred Heart
Parish in Corner Brook.

Father Pat Lafleur of Nativity of Our Lord in Timmins, Ont., says that with the
death this month of Father Les Costello, Catholics who had booked marriage
ceremonies at St. Alphonsus Church for next summer have had to reschedule with
other priests, and in some cases have had to pick new wedding dates.

A priest has come out of retirement to work part-time at the parish until
January, but no one has yet been found to take over duties full-time.

"We don't know what we're going to do. We don't know if we're going to take that
parish and split it among the other priests, or if we're going to say, 'I'm
sorry we just can't manage this parish anymore.' That's the kind of thing we're
facing," Fr. Lafleur says.

fdube@...

© Copyright  2002 National Post

STONE FINDS NEW CAREER AS MAIL-ORDER MINISTER



SHARON STONE is turning her hand at being a mail-order minister after performing
her first official wedding over the weekend (20-21NOV04).

The BASIC INSTINCT actress, 46, presided over the union of restauranteur MICHAEL
BOURSEAU and sometime stylist BRENDA SWANSON at her Coldwater Canyon home in
California - with JACK NICHOLSON and ROBERT WAGNER serving as witnesses.

Bourseau tells website PAGESIX.COM, "No one's going to believe it when I hang my
wedding certificate up on the wall."

23/11/2004 17:43

Jan. 7, 2003. 01:00 AM


Standards urged for justices of the peace
Top judge calls for formal appointments Attorney-general agrees to
discussion


TRACEY TYLER
LEGAL AFFAIRS REPORTER

Qualifications could soon matter more than connections when it comes
to being appointed a justice of the peace.

The judge in charge of one of Ontario's busiest courts says it's time
to consider a formal process for appointing justices of the peace and
spelling out qualifications.

There are currently 311 justices of the peace in Ontario, who make
decisions on everything from whether police should be allowed into
your home to conduct a search or if an accused person should be
granted bail.

However, the vast majority — about 95 per cent — come to the job with
no formal legal training. They are sometimes perceived as political
hacks enjoying the perks of patronage.

The current crop includes several former MPPs and mayors, ex-school
trustees and a former car salesman. JPs are appointed by the attorney
general.

At a news conference yesterday to mark the annual opening of the
province's courts, Chief Justice Brian Lennox of the Ontario Court of
Justice said his proposal for introducing standards into the process
of appointing justices of the peace is not intended as a criticism of
JPs now presiding in Ontario.

They do "a good job" of tackling an important and wide-ranging issues
affecting everything from people's liberty to privacy interests,
Lennox said.

It's simply the next logical step in the "evolution" of the justice
of the peace bench, which is naturally becoming better qualified as
more candidates compete for the job, he suggested to reporters at
Osgoode Hall in Toronto.

Lennox drew a comparison to provincial court judges, who, until 1968,
were mainly laypersons with no formal legal training.

"In this process of evolution of the justice of the peace bench, it
has now become evident that the issues of qualifications and process
of appointment need to be addressed," he said.

Attorney-General David Young has agreed to discuss the issue, he
added. Yesterday, Lennox declined to say what the appropriate
qualifications for a justice of the peace might be or whether the
appointment process should include a screening committee similar to
the one for judges.

He also stopped short of saying whether he believes JPs should hold a
law degree.

But the Criminal Lawyers Association, which has been pushing for a
more open appointment process, including some minimum standards for
JPs, doesn't see that as an unreasonable request.

"In terms of qualifications, what's wrong with requiring that someone
who is making decisions on legal principles and applying the law have
a legal education?" said Toronto criminal lawyer Bob Richardson, who
heads the association's subcommittee on JPs.

Last summer, two justices of the peace were publicly criticized for
imposing publication bans that were later overturned by Superior
Court judges.

JPs salaries are listed as between $57,000 and $78,000 a year. For
reasons that are not clear, some have earned more than $100,000.


Toronto Star

              Mail this story to a friend      Printer friendly
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Search 'Ontario Marriage Act'
http://www.google.ca

interfaith

in 1996, the government of ontario granted the hac
permission to perform legally recognized marriages.
plans are being made to offer humanist weddings and
funeral ceremonies throughout canada. the first
funeral service conducted by an hac celebrant was
held in march 1995, the first hac wedding ceremony
was held in august 1996, and in june 1998, hac
performed its first naming and undoctrination
ceremony.

http://canada.humanists.net


A Humanist Officiant is licensed by the province of Ontario for the purpose of
performing marriages. He or she is required to be a member of the Humanist
Association of Canada, provide five references (three of which must come from
Humanists), and pass a course developed and offered by the Ceremonies' Committee
of the board of HAC. Collectively, our officiants have performed many hundreds
of ceremonies.
He or she pays an annual licensing fee, and is fully responsible for all costs
incurred by providing the service (ex. advertizing, office supplies,
correspondance, etc.). There is no salary nor pay from the HAC for this work,
and the officiant is welcome to keep the honoraria offered by clients.
The officiants have no legal relationship with the local association (in our
case, the Humanist Association of Toronto).

Same-Sex Marriage Bringing Chills in Canada
Catholic Church Intensifies Its Opposition

OTTAWA, JULY 16, 2005 (Zenit.org).- The approval of legislation
allowing marriage by same-sex couples in Canada has been strongly
criticized by the country's bishops. On June 28 the lower house of
Parliament, the Commons, passed the bill, which is now before the
Senate. This non-elected chamber is controlled by a majority of
members appointed by the ruling Liberal Party, and approval of the
law is expected shortly.

In a statement released on the same day the Commons voted in favor of
the bill Archbishop Brendan O'Brien, president of the bishops'
conference, expressed regret for the "unfortunate step toward
eliminating civil and social recognition and appreciation for the
unique importance of the committed relationship of a man and a woman
in marriage."

He insisted that by allowing same-sex couples to marry the government
is placing at risk "the future of marriage as a fundamental social
institution, together with the importance that society accords the
irreplaceable role of a husband and wife in conceiving and raising
children."

Archbishop O'Brien also noted that there is a "dangerous
deterioration" of communal values in Canada, with high rates of
marriage breakdown and abortion, and a declining number of births.

Politicians warned

Following the vote in Parliament there is also renewed controversy
over the issue of support by some Catholic politicians for same-sex
marriage.

The Ottawa Citizen newspaper on July 6 reported that Charles Angus, a
member of Parliament for Timmins-James Bay, has been denied the
possibility of receiving Communion by his parish priest. Father John
Lernire had warned Angus some months ago that this would happen if he
continued to support the same-sex marriage bill, the article said.
The priest's decision was supported by Archbishop Paul Marchand of
Timmins.

Another Catholic parliamentarian, Joe Comartin, a member for Windsor-
Tecumseh, has been barred from teaching marriage classes in his local
parish, the National Post reported July 9. The article quoted Sylvain
Salvas, director of communications for the bishops' conference, who
said there are no national guidelines on how each diocese should deal
with politicians.

But Salvas observed: "We have made our national position on the issue
quite clear. The conference has intervened almost 30 times before the
Supreme Court and the Senate opposing same-sex marriage."

Bishop Ronald Fabbro of the London Diocese, in which the parish is
located, distributed a letter to parishioners explaining the decision.

The Vatican has made clear that Catholic politicians should not vote
for same-sex marriage. On July 31, 2003, the Congregation for the
Doctrine of the Faith published a statement entitled "Considerations
Regarding Proposals to Give Legal Recognition to Unions Between
Homosexual Persons."

All Catholics, the document stated, "are obliged to oppose the legal
recognition of homosexual unions" (No. 10). It added: "Catholic
politicians are obliged to do so in a particular way." Regarding
legislative proposals on the matter, "the Catholic lawmaker has a
moral duty to express his opposition clearly and publicly and to vote
against it. To vote in favor of a law so harmful to the common good
is gravely immoral."

Witness to truth

The Vatican document also asked that if legislation recognizing same-
sex marriages is approved, "the Catholic politician must oppose it in
the ways that are possible for him and make his opposition known; it
is his duty to witness to the truth."

All Catholics, in fact, are asked to oppose such laws, once in
place. "One must refrain from any kind of formal cooperation in the
enactment or application of such gravely unjust laws and, as far as
possible, from material cooperation on the level of their
application. In this area, everyone can exercise the right to
conscientious objection" (No. 5).

Another question in play is if the ruling Liberal Party will suffer a
backlash from Catholics over its push for same-sex marriages. A
commentary by Jeffrey Simpson in Wednesday's issue of the Globe and
Mail newspaper pondered the phenomenon of Catholic support for the
ruling Liberal Party.

Simpson noted that in elections since 1965 Catholics outside Quebec
have preferred Liberals in Ontario and Atlantic Canada by an average
of 18 points over other parties. In Ontario, Catholics make up 30% of
the electorate, and 40% in the Atlantic provinces. "Without the big
lead among Catholics, the Liberal lead would evaporate in both
regions -- and, with it, the party's grip on power," commented
Simpson.

The Senate Standing Committee on Legal and Constitutional Affairs has
been hearing evidence on the bill to allow same-sex couples to marry
in past days. On Wednesday Cardinal Marc Ouellet, archbishop of
Quebec and primate of the Church in Canada, and Hélène Aubé, a lawyer
and mother from Gatineau, presented a brief outlining the Church's
opposition to the proposed law.

The Church's submission noted: "Neither the state nor religions
invented marriage nor determined its natural components. They merely
institutionalized a reality that existed well before them, thereby
recognizing that the inherent characteristics of this reality -- the
stability of the couple, as well as the procreation and education of
children -- would assure the common good of society."

Equality?

The decision to give legal recognition to same-sex couples is, the
brief said, based on a false understanding of what equality between
persons means and on the question of human dignity and minority
rights.

The brief also explained that marriage is more than just a
relationship between two consenting adults, aimed at mutual
fulfillment. "It possesses another constituent element, namely, the
procreative potential of the man and woman who are making the
commitment."

And concerning the question of children: "It must also be added that
with regard to education of children, the same values cannot
reasonably be attributed to both types of union. The principal right
of children is to be born of an act of love and to live in complete
communion with a father and mother."

Given this situation, discrimination is not suffered by homosexuals
who cannot marry each other; rather, same-sex marriage would be
unjust and discriminatory toward heterosexual couples. The brief
contends, "The state must accord special treatment to a man and woman
who marry, not because of the exclusivity, dependence, duration or
sexual nature of their union, but because of its vital function of
procreation and its function of socialization that encourages
complementarity between man and woman for the greater good of their
children."

The submission explained that promoting same-sex marriage on the
grounds of "equal rights" is based on a misunderstanding of what
human dignity means. "The equality and dignity of persons do not
depend on race, religion, sex, sexual orientation or marital status,"
it said. "Their dignity and equality are based on the simple fact
that they are members of the human race. To respect their dignity,
neither the state nor society is obliged to legally accept
their 'lifestyle' that has no reason to be publicly recognized as a
social value."

The submission also expressed fears over what will happen regarding
Catholic opposition to same-sex marriage. While the bill affirms that
freedom of religion is protected and that those who perform marriages
can refuse to marry same-sex couples, much will depend on how willing
the provinces are to guarantee this right.

In recent years, opposition to same-sex marriage has been described
as homophobic. "Once the state imposes a new standard affirming that
homosexual sexual behavior is a social good, those who oppose it for
religious motives or motives of conscience will be considered as
bigots, anti-gay and homophobes, and then risk prosecution." The
stage seems set for further controversy.

----------------------------------------------------------------------
----------
ZENIT is an International News Agency.
==================================================================

From: Sally Eberhardt <eberhardt@...>
Subject: 17 July - Media on World Day for International
Justice 2005

Dear all,

This year the seventh anniversary of the historic 17
July 1998
adoption of the Rome Statute of the International
Criminal Court was
once again celebrated across the world with special
events and
activities that received international media attention.
Widely
recognized as "World Day for International Justice", 17
July
continues to serve as a day to promote universal
ratification of the
ICC treaty and support for a fair, effective and
independent ICC.

Below is a digest of just a few of the press releases,
statements
and press articles generated by this year's World Day
for
International Justice.


Amnesty International - International Justice Day
2005
statement

Posted at
http://www.amnestyusa.org/international_justice/ijday.html

International Justice Day 2005: End Impunity for the
Worst Crimes of
Violence Against Women by Building Support for the
International
Criminal Court

For the first time in history, serious crimes of
violence against
women – including rape, sexual slavery, forced
prostitution, and
trafficking – have been recognized as crimes against
humanity and
war crimes.

This groundbreaking legal development is thanks to the
International
Criminal Court (ICC) – the world's first permanent
court able
to hold individuals criminally responsible for
genocide, crimes
against humanity, and war crimes.

The ICC can play a unique role in combating violence
against women.
The ICC has adopted rules and procedures to ensure that
women
survivors are not discriminated against or traumatized
in court. For
example, ICC judges and staff are required to reflect a
fair balance
of genders and to have expertise in crimes of sexual
violence.
Victims will be provided with counseling and other
support, and may
be entitled to reparations so that they can rebuild
their lives.

The ICC is designed to act as a catalyst for national
justice
systems, providing an incentive for domestic l
prosecutors to
undertake their own investigations, and serving as
model for reform
in domestic laws and procedures. Since the ICC came
into being in
2002, nearly half of the world's governments have
ratified its
statute. The US government is the only government in
the world that
is actively opposed to the Court.

July 17 is International Justice Day, commemorating the
day on which
the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court
was adopted by
the international community in 1998. Each year, human
rights
activists around the world use this day to host events
and
activities to promote international justice, and
specifically
support for the ICC.

This year, Amnesty International is raising awareness
about the ICC
as a groundbreaking advancement in fighting impunity
for violence
against women. Join Amnesty International members and
supporters
around the world in taking action to ensure that
perpetrators of the
worst crimes of violence against women are held
criminally
responsible for their acts, and that the victims of
such crimes
obtain full reparations. Included in this guide are
possible action
ideas and reference resources.

Take Action on July 17, International Justice Day
In light of the US government's hostile position toward
the ICC,
actions/events that focus on raising awareness in your
community and
reaching out to potential allies will help build the
foundation for
the advocacy that will be need over the long-term in
order to affect
real change in the US government's position. The
particular needs
and opportunities of your group should inform the
actions your group
decides to take.

Background on the ICC and its potential to fight
violence against
women

Thanks in large part to the efforts of women's
organizations from
around the world, the International Criminal Court
includes many
elements that will help to combat impunity for the
worst crimes of
violence against women and can serve as the model for
gender-
sensitive reform of national laws and procedures.


Arab Center for the Independence of Judiciary and
Legal
Profession (ACIJLP)

July 17, 2005 – International Justice Day

Arab Center for the Independence of Judiciary and Legal
Profession
(ACIJLP) calls on the Egyptian government not to renew
bilateral
treaty with the US on the ICC

On the 17th July 2005 the world will celebrate the 7th
anniversary
of the international community's agreeing on the
founding statute
of
the International Criminal Court (ICC) during the 1998
Rome
Conference. The statute entered into force at the start
of July 2002
in the shadow of US opposition to an international
mechanism for the
examination of war crimes, crimes against humanity,
crimes of
aggression and crimes of genocide. The US has expressed
this
opposition in several ways, the most dangerous of which
is its
ratification of bilateral judicial cooperation treaties
with a large
number of countries with the aim of stripping the ICC's
founding
statute of effect.

The Egyptian government signed a judicial cooperation
treaty on the
ICC with the US in March 2003. This treaty is renewable
every two
years. The Arab Center for the Independence of the
Judiciary and the
Legal Profession (ACIJLP) urges the Egyptian government
now to renew
the treaty, following the example of Jordan which - in
support of
international criminal justice - bluntly refused to
ratify the US
treaty on the 14th July 2005.

In the context of this position taken by Jordan ACIJLP
urges Arab
governments and parliaments to adopt a similar stance
and refuse to
cooperate with US policy towards the ICC. Signing such
treaties will
entrench a policy of US double standards – a policy the
effects
of
which are suffered by many countries, especially those
in the Arab
region, their governments and the people. These
treaties are at odds
with the spirit of international criminal justice and
the philosophy
underlying the establishment of a permanent criminal
court.

On the occasion of the commemoration of the world day
for criminal
justice, ACIJLP, in its capacity as coordinator of the
Coalition of
Arab Non Governmental Organizations for the ICC, urges
Coalition
member organizations to lobby their governments to
ratify the ICC
founding statute and not renew the treaties ratified by
the American
government concerning the ICC, following the Jordanian
example.


For more information on the World Day of International
Justice
please consult the CICC's website at
http://www.iccnow.org/pressroom/factsheets/FS-CICC-July17th.pdf .

Best regards,
Sally

----------------------------------------------------

SENATE PASSES SAME-SEX LEGISLATION
Canada has become the fourth country to officially
sanction same-sex
marriage.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/19/samesex050719.html

BUSH NOMINATES SUPREME COURT CANDIDATE
President George W. Bush has confirmed that his first
nominee for a
seat on the Supreme Court will be a conservative judge
from Washington.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/19/scotus050719.html

STUDY CONCLUDES CIVILIAN CASUALTIES IN IRAQ OVER 25,000
A new study says more than 25,000 Iraqi civilians have
died since the
war began more than two years ago.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/19/iraqbodycount050719.html

TORONTO GIVES MISS UNIVERSE COLD SHOULDER
The city of Toronto, which years ago prevented the
Barenaked Ladies
from playing at City Hall because of the group's name,
has now barred
Miss Universe from opening a festival over concerns
about sexual
stereotyping.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/19/glebova050719.html

STRIKE VOTE AT CBC 87 PER CENT
The CBC's largest union has voted overwhelmingly in
favour of a strike
if its negotiators can't get a deal with the
corporation.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/19/cmg050719.html

3 BRITISH SOLDIERS CHARGED WITH WAR CRIMES IN IRAQ
Three British soldiers have been charged with war
crimes for the
alleged abuse of detainees in Iraq, the government says.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/19/britain-war-crimes-050719.html

HURRICANE TO MAKE SECOND LANDFALL
Hurricane Emily is gathering strength over the Gulf of
Mexico and is
expected to make landfall again late Tuesday.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/19/Emily-Mexico-Texas.html

THOUSANDS IN CHINA FLEE TYPHOON
Nearly one million people have been evacuated as
Typhoon Haitang heads
for mainland China after battering Taiwan.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/19/haitang050719.html

Copyright 2005 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation
-----------------------------------------------------

[daily dose]

business owners

one in every 11 north american women owns her own business.

source: http://www.quintcareers.com

-------------------------------------------------------------

[metro]

caffeine is a mild psychoactive substance - it stimulates the
central nervous system and improves alertness.  it also
boosts the analgesic effect of aspirin and other pain
relievers, which is why it's added to some of these drugs.

-------------------------------------

according to a study, coffee may reduce the risk of
parkinson's disease.  men who drank no coffee were more
likely to develop the disease than those who drank one
to four cups a day.

source: http://www.wellnessletter.com

-------------------------------------------------------------

sizemore skips court, faces jail

tom sizemore failed to attend a court hearing held to
determine whether he violated the terms of his probation
order so he could check into a live-in rehabilitation
clinc, imdb.com reports.

the actor allegedly refused to provide urine tests and
attend drug counselling sessions with his probation officer,
and could face up to three years in prison if found guilty.
the los angeles superior court hearing has been postponed
until july 22, and sizemore faces arrest should he fail
to appear.

metro toronto news services

-----------------------------------------------------

[canadian women detained in u.s. prison]

inmate family mail
dated: july 10 - 2005

to whom it may concern

i would like to get some information on your association.
i was told you assist foreigners who are incarcerated in
american prison.  my daughter was denied her transfer,
can she appeal.  i am her mother living alone with brain
tumor and i would really like to have my daughter closer
to me.  i would like to be able to assist her before i
get too sick or it's too late.

please let me know, if you can do something for us.

i would really appreciate it.

m. benjamin
2028 st. timothee
mont.qc. h2l 3p6
------------------------------------------------------------

[update from michele thiesen]

dated: 7-1-05

i'm sending you my affidavit of facts with all documents
attached...i'm gonna try to compose something about myself
to add to the affidavit starting with the year i moved to
the states in 1962, however in the psychological evaluation
report there is quite a bit of information about me,
especially on the second page under "clinical interview"...
anyway, my counsellor called me in to his office and asked
me if i wanted to transfer to my country of birth, that was
in 1994, august i think...i entered the u.s. in 1962 with
my parents on my mom's passport in may i believe.  we
entered through detroit...and was deported in 1993...and
here i am since 1994...did not know the victims, never
communicated with the victims...there are a few people
who want to do more than just sign a petition...they would
like to write some thing for me to my credit...i just
received a letter from...my friend in nova scotia...call her
anytime...i'm gonna go for now...please write back and tell
me what else i have to do as soon as you can. okay.

always

michele thiesen w-26931
d516-18-04l
ccwf
po box 1508
chowchilla, calif. 93610-1508
usa
------------------------------

(enclosure)

letter from board of prison terms
state of california - correctional agency
1515 k street, 6th floor
sacramento, ca 95814
(916)445-4072

dated: april 1, 2005

to: michele karen thiesen
     central california women's facility

dear ms. thiesen:

i have reviewed your application for transfer to canada to
serve the remainder of your california prison commitment
in accordance with the provisions of the treaty between
canada and the united states, and california government code
section 12012.1.

in evaluating your request, i considered individual case
factors such as the magnitude of the commitment offense.
i also considered other individual case factors such as
your social and criminal history, and institutional adjustment.

according to california department of corrections (cdc)
records, you do not have gang affiliation. your institutional
adjustment has been less than positive, receiving three
disciplinary actions during your current incarceration.
you stated in your application for transfer that you are a
citizen of canada who first entered the united states in
1962.  you also illegally entered the united states in 1974,
after being deported.  your prior criminal history in
california includes your conviction for burglary, first
degree, penal code (pc) section 459 with three prior
serious felony, pc 667(a) convictions. you were sentenced
under the "three strikes" law.

additional factors considered in my review included that on
july 21, 1995, you were sentenced to a 43 years to life
prison term by orange county superior court.  cdc received
you on may 23, 1994.  your current minimum eligible 'parole'
date is march 20, 2035.  you were deported from the united
states to canada in 1993, but illegally returned to the
united states approximately four months later.  you
currently have an immigration hold.  your performance under
'parole supervision' on a previous cdc commitment was poor,
and you have a lengthy criminal record with numerous aliases.

as the governor's designee under government code section
12012.1, i cannot approve your request for transfer to
canada based on the foregoing facts.  this decision is final.
no appeals or requests for review will be accepted regarding
the decision.  if you dispute facts contained in this letter,
address your concerns to chief of investigations, david
mcauley, at the board of prison terms.

sincerely,

margarita e. perez
chairwoman

cc: c&pr - ccwf
     richard preston, iptu - usdoj
---------------------------------

(enclosure)

affidavit of facts

this is my affidavit signifying true facts according to my
own knowledge and actual documents i have in my possession:

. item 1.)  to the contrary of the letter from the board
of prison terms dated april 1, 2005, i have received only
two cdc 115 disciplinaries and four dcd 128 counseling
chronos within an 11-year span.  the first cdc 115 was in
1994. the second cdc 115 was in 2003.  the cdc 128's, which
are not disciplinary actions, but rather counseling chronos,
were in 1994, 1996, 1999, and 2002; see attached copies.

. item 2.)  i did not re-enter the u.s. in 1974 as they
state in paragraph three, as i was only 14-years old and
had no ["prior criminal history"] at the time. i believe
the year the board of prison terms letter is referencing
is 1993 as correctly stated in paragraph four.

. item 3.)  the b.p.t. letter stated that my institutional
adjustment has been less than positive; see attached documents
affirming the opposite.  attached also, is my psychological
evaluation for the b.p.t. written by senior psychologist
susan anderson, ph.d., lic.#psy14949, dated june 30, 1998
[page 2 & 4] stating to the contrary, under the headings of
"prison adjustment" and "conclusions and recommendations".
dr. anderson states, "the subject has adjusted well to her
incarceration..."

the foregoing information is in fact true to the best of my
knowledge, and the documents herein.

signed: michele thiesen on july 1, 2005.
=============================================================

BOMB-RESISTANT DESKS CONSIDERED FOR CANADA'S EMBASSIES
Ottawa is considering installing blast-resistant desk
in Canadian
embassies around the world, a Calgary-based
manufacturer says.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/24/desk050724.html

P.E.I. AT A LOSS FOR WORDS OVER SAME-SEX MARRIAGE
It may be the law of the land across Canada – but
same-sex couples
still can't get married in Prince Edward Island.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/22/PEI-same-sex-050722.html

U.S. MILITARY WANTS TO ACCEPT OLDER RECRUITS
The United States is looking at a plan to jumpstart its
fading army
recruitment drive by increasing the age limit for
people enlisting from
35 to 42.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/22/recruits050722.html

HUNGER STRIKE CONFIRMED AT GUANTANAMO BAY
At least 52 prisoners are taking part in a hunger
strike at the U.S.
prison camp at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba, the U.S. military
has confirmed.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/22/Guantanamo-Bay-protest-050722.\
html

U.S. SCALES BACK DAYLIGHT TIME EXTENSION PLAN
The U.S. Congress has scaled back a plan to extend
daylight time,
opting for a total of one month extra instead of the
two originally
proposed.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/22/daylight050722.html

Polanski wins suit against Vanity Fair

Acclaimed filmmaker Roman Polanski has won his libel
suit against Conde Nast over a Vanity Fair article that
accused him of propositioning a woman while on the way
to his wife's funeral.

http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/07/22/Arts/polanski050722.html

Former 'Little House' star steps down as union head

Actor Melissa Gilbert has announced she will step down
from her post as president of the U.S. Screen Actors
Guild this fall, citing leadership problems at the
performers union.

http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/07/22/Arts/gilbertSAG050722.html

IN BRIEF: Composer David Foster and his wife are
splitting; more

Today's quick arts-news hits

http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/07/22/Arts/ArtsBriefs_050722.html

VATICAN DENOUNCES LEGALIZATION OF SAME-SEX MARRIAGE IN
CANADA
The Vatican newspaper has condemned Canada for
legalizing same-sex
marriage, a day after the Liberals' Civil Marriage Act
became law.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/21/vatican-marriage050721.html

ONE-THIRD OF MCGILL MEDICAL GRADS FAIL QUEBEC EXAMS
McGill University is encouraging medical students to
retake provincial
licensing exams after 36 per cent of its new family
medicine graduates
failed the tests this year.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/science/national/2005/07/21/McGill-failures050721.html

NO 'SPECIFIC' THREAT TO CANADA, MCLELLAN SAYS
The federal government is assuring Canadians there is
no "specific"
threat to their country's security, in the wake of a
series of
explosions in London on Thursday.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/21/Canada-security-050721.html

CRIME RATE DROPPING IN CANADA, STUDY FINDS
Canada's crime rate has dropped 12 per cent from a
decade ago,
according to a new report, with Ontario recording the
lowest rate in
the country.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/21/crimestats050721.html

NEW U.S. SHEEP BRANDING RULE CALLED CRUEL
Some sheep producers say a new requirement that sheep
must be branded
with hot irons before they can be shipped south of the
border is cruel.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/21/sheep-producers-050721.html

PARISH TO REBUILD AFTER FIRE AT HISTORIC N.B. CHURCH
A historic New Brunswick church destroyed after a
lightning strike last
month will be rebuilt, its pastor says – but it won't
look the same.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/21/church-rebuilding-050721.html

ONTARIANS ASKED TO E-MAIL OPINIONS ON DAYLIGHT TIME
Ontario residents will be able to e-mail their opinions
to the
government on whether the province should add two more
months of
daylight time each year to stay in sync with the United
States.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/21/daylight-time050721.html

LATEST BLASTS DESIGNED TO SCARE: BRITISH PM
British Prime Minister Tony Blair said Thursday's new
round of bombings
on London's transit system are designed to scare, and
called on people
to continue with "business as normal."
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/21/blair-050721.html

NYC SUBWAY RIDERS TO FACE RANDOM SEARCHES
Passengers carrying backpacks, bags or packages onto
New York City's
subway trains will face random searches starting as
early as Thursday
night, the city's mayor said.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/21/new-york-subway050721.html

CHINA CALLS FOR CONSTRUCTIVE ATMOSPHERE DURING NORTH
KOREA TALKS
China has called on all parties in next week's
six-nation talks on
North Korea's nuclear weapons programs to be
constructive and flexible
to enable the negotiations to succeed.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/21/nkorea050721.html

U.S. JUDGE RESERVES DECISION ON EXTRADITION OF ACCUSED
KILLER
New DNA evidence in connection with the slayings of an
elderly New
Brunswick couple was revealed Thursday during the
extradition hearing
of their accused killer.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/21/despres050721.html

CHINA WON'T USE NUCLEAR WEAPONS FIRST: OFFICIAL
China said Thursday it will not be the first party to
use nuclear
weapons in any kind of conflict with the United States
involving
Taiwan.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/21/China-Taiwan-050721.html

Copyright 2005 Canadian Broadcasting Corporation.

------------------------------------------------------------------

[briefly]

home care

health minister george smitherman announced $112.7 million in new
funding for home care and community support services.  the
ontorio government estimates the added funding will help an extra
54,000 citizens.  the ontorio community support association says
in a news release that "much work" is still needed.

-24 hours news services

http://24hrs.ca
-------------------------------------------------------------------

[daily dose]

it had to happen:

it's barely been on the air a couple of weeks, but the princes of
malibu, the celebreality show produced by the e! network, has
apparently broken up the marriage of music producer david foster
to wife linda, whose spoiled sons are the titular princes of the
show.  the new york post reported that foster was unhappy about
how he came off on the small screen, and tht he was never
enthusiastic about the project, which his wife had pushed as a
showcase for her sons.  the amazing thing is that this doesn't
happen more often.

http://www.dose.ca
-------------------------------------------------------------------

[metro]

the word "fail" should be banned from use in british classrooms
and replaced with the phrase "deferred success" to avoid
demoralizing pupils, a group of teachers has proposed.

source: reuters

http://www.metropoint.com
http://www.metronews.ca

--------------------------

[now weekly]

wednesday, july 27

women and men unglued

doc follows the lives and thoughts of several urban gen-xers
who question traditional notions of gender, commitment and
courtship.  fyi: this one's for real.
10 pm on tvo

http://www.nowtoronto.com

---------------------------------------------------------------


[medical update]

the diabetes-alzheimer link

diabetes mellitus has been linked to an increased risk of
developing alzheimer disease (ad), according to a new study.
the findings, from the rush alzheimer's disease center's
religious orders study, add to a developing body of research
examining a possible link between diabetes and cognitive decline.

more than 800 catholic nuns, priests, and brothers participating
in the study were tracked for an average of 5.5 years. over the
study period, 151 of the participants had a clinical diagnosis
of ad, including 31 who had diabetes.  the researchers found a
65 per cent increase in the risk of developing ad among those
with diabetes compared with people who did not have diabetes.

source: national institute of health

================================================================

PAPERS PULL 'DOONESBURY' OVER POTTY PUT-DOWN
Some newspapers in the United States have pulled the
comic strip
Doonesbury objecting to two instances of potty mouth.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/07/26/Arts/Doonesbury_050726.html

CATHOLIC WOMEN UNOFFICIALLY ORDAINED
Nine women are referring to themselves as ordained
priests and deacons
in the Roman Catholic Church, risking excommunication
after a religious
ceremony on a boat in the St. Lawrence River.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/canada/national/2005/07/26/womenpriests0726.html

POLICE IDENTIFY BOMBER IN EGYPT ATTACK
Investigators in Egypt have identified one of the
people they believe
was responsible for last weekend's bombings at a Red
Sea resort.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/26/Egypt-attacks-050726.html

INFAMOUS RUSSIAN SPAMMER MURDERED
A notorious Russian spammer was found dead in his
Moscow apartment
Sunday after being beaten about the head, according to
the Interfax
news service.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/world/national/2005/07/26/spannerkilled0726.html


HEALTH CANADA INVESTIGATES REPORTS OF BLINDNESS IN
VIAGRA USERS
Men who take drugs for erectile dysfunction should see
a doctor
immediately if they experience sudden vision loss or
problems, Health
Canada warned Tuesday.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/science/national/2005/07/26/Viagra_blind050726.html

WINING, DINING BEST COURTSHIP STRATEGY: STUDY
Wining and dining a woman is the best way to win her
hand, according to
a mathematical model that defines what makes an
effective gift during
courtship.
FULL STORY:
http://www.cbc.ca/story/science/national/2005/07/26/courtship-model050726.html

-------------------------------------------------------

AWID Resource Net
Jobs -

Consultant, Violence Against Women (VAW) Indicators / The Special
Rapporteur on VAW (OHCHR)/ Geneva, Switzerland / Deadline: August 21,
2005.

DESCRIPTION:

The Special Rapporteur on violence against women, its causes and
consequences seeks to engage a consultant, preferably to be based in
Geneva, to carry out the tasks as indicated below.

The mandate from the 2003 resolution of the Commission on Human
Rights to recommend proposals for indicators on violence against
women is an important first step towards developing the indices
suggested by the Special Rapporteur. Informal consultations with
women's human rights activists reveals that there is a great need for
reliable indicators on violence against women in order to establish
systematic data collection methods and to develop indices to measure
and monitor the incidence of violence against women. Certain work has
already been done on human rights indicators and on indicators on
violence against women, at the national, regional and international
levels. In order to embark on this project of developing
recommendations on potential indicators, the consultant would:

-  Review and analyze existing studies, surveys and reports which
relate to indicators on violence against women for mapping out the
indicators used to measure prevalence, response and accountability
for violence against women and identifying the remaining gaps.

-  Carry out consultations with people, institutions and agencies
developing indicators on violence against women. Consultations should
be wide and could take varying forms, such as an online forum,
questionnaires, and targeted email and phone contact. Consultation
would be sought with: Member States, UN agencies, other
intergovernmental bodies, NGOs, academic institutions, human rights
activists, etc.

-  Analyze existing work on human rights indicators and assess the
degree to which this work could be applied to indicators on violence
against women - The consultant would serve as focal point on these
issues, working closely with staff at OHCHR who are working on human
rights indicators.

OUTPUT:

The work of the consultant will reveal possible areas for action for
the Special Rapporteur in developing indicators. The initial output
of the consultant would be a technical report including the results
of the abovementioned tasks. It should identify types of indicators
that are useful in addressing violence against women, explore the
challenges posed by indicators, and suggest areas for future
research. The final output should result in a set of proposals for
the Special Rapporteur to consider in deciding how best to fulfill
her mandate to propose indicators and would serve as a basis for her
report to the Commission on Human Rights in 2007.

QUALIFICATIONS:

-  Experience working with data and statistics and developing
indicators related to human rights;
-  Experience working in the field of violence against women is
preferable;
-  Demonstrated ability to conduct research and synthesize inputs
through consultation process;
-  Ability to work in a team and independently;
-  Fluency in English.

TO APPLY:

Please send a completed P-11 form (available at
http://www.ohchr.org/english/about/vacancies/index.htm) and a cover
letter explaining your qualifications for the consultancy to:
(vawindicators@...) (applications made by email are strongly
encouraged)

by fax to +41 22 917 9006

or by post to:
VAW Indicators
Special Procedures Branch
Office of the High Commissioner for Human Rights
United Nations Office at Geneva
1211 Geneva 10, Switzerland

On all correspondence, please include the following subject line:
Consultancy Application - VAW Indicators - YOUR NAME

DEADLINE: AUGUST 21, 2005.

SEE FULL DESCRIPTION AT:
http://www.siyanda.org/forumdocs/si20050721025728.doc

---------------------
RESOURCE NET is brought to you by The Association for Women's Rights
in
Development (AWID). Announcements posted on this discussion list do
not
necessarily reflect the opinion of AWID, but are meant to provoke
thought,
generate solutions and inspire action.
-
You are free to replicate AWID's information in other formats, and
use it
in your advocacy, provided you give credit to the Association.
-
AWID is an international membership organization committed to gender
equality and a just and sustainable development process. AWID
facilitates
an open exchange among researchers, practitioners, policymakers and
others
in order to develop effective and transformative approaches for
improving
the lives of women and girls worldwide.
-
The Association for Women's Rights in Development
215 Spadina Avenue, Suite 150
Toronto, ON M5T 2C7
CANADA
Tel: 416-594-3773
Fax: 416-594-0330
Email: awid@...
Web: http://www.awid.org
------------------------------------------------------


Help Stop Violence Against Women
From: Amnesty Online

We wanted you to be one of the first to hear about our
new grassroots campaign to reauthorize the Violence
Against Women Act. We hope that you will get involved
in this critical effort!

- The Amnesty International USA Web Staff

- - - - - - - - - - - -

When you go home at night, do you feel safe? We hope so.

For many women, their home is not a place of safety. It
is a place of fear and violence. More than 700 women
each day are abused or sexually assaulted by their
partner - and four are murdered.

We're Erica, Dan, and Christina and we're working with
Amnesty International USA to stop the violence. And
we'd like you to join us. Simply take just one minute
and click here to help:
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/ctt.asp?u=494029&l=13702

Here's what we're doing - and why:

Ten years ago, the U.S. took a giant step forward by
creating the Violence Against Women Act, which provides
desperately needed shelter, counseling, medical, and
justice services for the 700 women and children who are
affected by domestic violence every single day in this
country.

Today, the Violence Against Women Act is up for
reauthorization by Congress. If our legislators don't
reauthorize the Act - and there's a good chance that it
could be cut - funding for domestic violence shelters
is at risk, children who witness domestic violence are
at even greater risk and we may stop the progress that
we've made to address this endemic.

The three of us work closely with victims of violence,
we know how important the reauthorization of VAWA is.
We know it impacts everything from shelters to
education to hotlines and so much more. So, we've
launched our campaign to make it happen: 700women.org.
700 women today. 700 women tomorrow. And 700 women
every single day that we have a chance to help.

Please click below to join the campaign.  It only takes
a minute to take one simple action to stop the
violence.
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/ctt.asp?u=494029&l=13702

And then, tell seven friends to help. Click here:
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/ctt.asp?u=494029&l=13703

Thank you so much,
Erica, Dan, and Christina

P.S. And if you're just interested in learning more...
visit the site! Meet us, see more about why we're doing
this and more.
Click here:
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/ctt.asp?u=494029&l=13702

Tell Congress that 700 women is 700 too many. Sign the
petition to reauthorize the Violence Against Women Act.
http://takeaction.amnestyusa.org/ctt.asp?u=494029&l=13702

+++++++++++++++++++++++

Do not reply to this message. Messages sent to this
email address are not read.

======================================================

[daily dose]

headlines

same-sex marriage the law of the land
http://www.dose.ca/samesex

ordained women defy church

toronto
negative-option billing on the way out
as of july 30...the new legislation also means consumers will have
the right to receive...within 30 days after...
-joel mcconvey/dose

http://www.dose.ca
------------------------------------------------------------------

[metro headlines]

gay marriage legal, but fight is not over
nurses to ok diet benefit
fonda to speak out on war

torstar news service
http://www.metropoint.com
http://www.metronews.ca

------------------------

my life so far by jane fonda
http://www.amazon.ca/exec/obidos/ASIN/0375507108/internation088-20
------------------------------------------------------------------


[dfait]

pettigrew issues travel warning

same-sex newlyweds are likely aware of most of the information
contained in a travelwarning issued by canada's foreign affairs
minister, says the alberta director of a gay lobby group.

foreign affairs minsiter pierre pettigrew said in a statement
sunday that canada's recently enacted same-sex marriage law
doesn't guarantee homosexuality will be tolerated - or even
legal - elsewhere.

"we cannot take for granted that rights that are recognized
in canada will be accepted abroad," pettigrew said.

the federal consular affairs website cautions travellers that
homosexuality remains a criminal offence in some nations.

- the canadian press

http://24hrs.ca
=================================================================

STONE FINDS NEW CAREER AS MAIL-ORDER MINISTER



SHARON STONE is turning her hand at being a mail-order minister after performing
her first official wedding over the weekend (20-21NOV04).

The BASIC INSTINCT actress, 46, presided over the union of restauranteur MICHAEL
BOURSEAU and sometime stylist BRENDA SWANSON at her Coldwater Canyon home in
California - with JACK NICHOLSON and ROBERT WAGNER serving as witnesses.

Bourseau tells website PAGESIX.COM, "No one's going to believe it when I hang my
wedding certificate up on the wall."

23/11/2004 17:43

Jan. 7, 2003. 01:00 AM


Standards urged for justices of the peace
Top judge calls for formal appointments Attorney-general agrees to
discussion


TRACEY TYLER
LEGAL AFFAIRS REPORTER

Qualifications could soon matter more than connections when it comes
to being appointed a justice of the peace.

The judge in charge of one of Ontario's busiest courts says it's time
to consider a formal process for appointing justices of the peace and
spelling out qualifications.

There are currently 311 justices of the peace in Ontario, who make
decisions on everything from whether police should be allowed into
your home to conduct a search or if an accused person should be
granted bail.

However, the vast majority — about 95 per cent — come to the job with
no formal legal training. They are sometimes perceived as political
hacks enjoying the perks of patronage.

The current crop includes several former MPPs and mayors, ex-school
trustees and a former car salesman. JPs are appointed by the attorney
general.

At a news conference yesterday to mark the annual opening of the
province's courts, Chief Justice Brian Lennox of the Ontario Court of
Justice said his proposal for introducing standards into the process
of appointing justices of the peace is not intended as a criticism of
JPs now presiding in Ontario.

They do "a good job" of tackling an important and wide-ranging issues
affecting everything from people's liberty to privacy interests,
Lennox said.

It's simply the next logical step in the "evolution" of the justice
of the peace bench, which is naturally becoming better qualified as
more candidates compete for the job, he suggested to reporters at
Osgoode Hall in Toronto.

Lennox drew a comparison to provincial court judges, who, until 1968,
were mainly laypersons with no formal legal training.

"In this process of evolution of the justice of the peace bench, it
has now become evident that the issues of qualifications and process
of appointment need to be addressed," he said.

Attorney-General David Young has agreed to discuss the issue, he
added. Yesterday, Lennox declined to say what the appropriate
qualifications for a justice of the peace might be or whether the
appointment process should include a screening committee similar to
the one for judges.

He also stopped short of saying whether he believes JPs should hold a
law degree.

But the Criminal Lawyers Association, which has been pushing for a
more open appointment process, including some minimum standards for
JPs, doesn't see that as an unreasonable request.

"In terms of qualifications, what's wrong with requiring that someone
who is making decisions on legal principles and applying the law have
a legal education?" said Toronto criminal lawyer Bob Richardson, who
heads the association's subcommittee on JPs.

Last summer, two justices of the peace were publicly criticized for
imposing publication bans that were later overturned by Superior
Court judges.

JPs salaries are listed as between $57,000 and $78,000 a year. For
reasons that are not clear, some have earned more than $100,000.


Toronto Star

              Mail this story to a friend      Printer friendly
version

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Search 'Ontario Marriage Act'
http://www.google.ca

interfaith

in 1996, the government of ontario granted the hac
permission to perform legally recognized marriages.
plans are being made to offer humanist weddings and
funeral ceremonies throughout canada. the first
funeral service conducted by an hac celebrant was
held in march 1995, the first hac wedding ceremony
was held in august 1996, and in june 1998, hac
performed its first naming and undoctrination
ceremony.

http://canada.humanists.net


A Humanist Officiant is licensed by the province of Ontario for the purpose of
performing marriages. He or she is required to be a member of the Humanist
Association of Canada, provide five references (three of which must come from
Humanists), and pass a course developed and offered by the Ceremonies' Committee
of the board of HAC. Collectively, our officiants have performed many hundreds
of ceremonies.
He or she pays an annual licensing fee, and is fully responsible for all costs
incurred by providing the service (ex. advertizing, office supplies,
correspondance, etc.). There is no salary nor pay from the HAC for this work,
and the officiant is welcome to keep the honoraria offered by clients.
The officiants have no legal relationship with the local association (in our
case, the Humanist Association of Toronto).

Catholics cope with priest shortage
'Constant juggling act': Ghanaian imports, retired clerics filling gaps at
Christmas

Francine Dubé
National Post


Tuesday, December 24, 2002



The shortage of priests in Canada has become so acute that some churches are
cutting the number of Christmas masses being celebrated this year and retired
priests are being pressed into service.

Father Benoît St-Onge has been responsible for three churches in the Montreal
suburbs of Rosemère, Lorraine and Bois de Filion since August, when a fellow
priest left the fold.

Since then, Father St-Onge has met his obligations with the help of a
74-year-old retired Jesuit, but he has had to reduce the number of Christmas
masses at the three churches this year from 11 to nine.

"For sure that we can't do with two priests 11 masses, that would not be human,"
says Fr. St-Onge, who will lead five masses today and tonight.

The shortage of priests has also meant a reduction in services offered to
Catholics. Daily masses are no longer offered at any of the three churches,
though each one holds at least one weekday mass.

There are fewer than 10,000 priests in Canada today, down from 15,000 in 1970.
The number of seminarians has dropped from 2,645 to 550. The situation is so
dire that priests are postponing retirement and the death of a priest can sound
the death knell of a parish.

In the Northern Ontario town of Cobalt, there will be a Christmas Eve mass, but
Christmas Day mass has been cancelled.

In September, Father John Lemire, 33, of Our Mother of Perpetual Help in New
Liskeard, about 20 kilometres from Cobalt, became one of a growing number of
priests who have had to take on two or more parishes.

He has also had to cut the number of weekday masses at the Cobalt church from
five to one.

"There's only so many places I can be in at one time," he says.

"It is a constant juggling act trying to maintain a balance between the two
places."

About a dozen people used to attend the Christmas Day Mass in Cobalt, in
addition to the Mass on Christmas Eve. Fr. Lemire says if the Cobalt church
still had a priest, there would be a Christmas Day Mass.

Catholic residents of Mackenzie, B.C., have been without a priest for about six
years, according to Father Rodolfo Manaloto, of Christ Our Saviour Parish in
Prince George. Fr. Manaloto is one of two priests from Prince George who make
the 90-minute drive to Mackenzie once a month to celebrate Mass there.

Twice a month, the Sunday service in Mackenzie is led by a layperson.
Worshippers take communion, but wafers that were consecrated by a priest at a
previous service are used.

This Christmas, Mass in Mackenzie will be led by a semi-retired priest. There
will be one service only, instead of the two that are typically held in a parish
-- one on Christmas Eve and one on Christmas Day.

"We're just glad we have the one," says Sister Germaine Rosenberger, an Ursuline
nun from Saskatchewan who acts as pastoral life director for the parish.

There will be no priest in the parish to celebrate Mass on New Year's Eve or New
Year's Day.

In central Newfoundland, the Catholic Church will be able to meet its
obligations, but barely. Bishop Martin Currie will leave his cathedral in Grand
Falls this afternoon to drive 140 kilometres to a neighbouring parish to conduct
a Mass, then drive back to Grand Falls in time to prepare for Mass there at 11
p.m.

The central Newfoundland diocese has 18 priests serving 30 far-flung parishes --
on a weekend, some of the priests travel as much as 500 kilometres.

Four of the priests have been brought in from Ghana, but importing priests is
not a permanent solution, says Bishop Currie. The Ghanaian priests will have to
return to their country one day -- their bishop has permitted them only a
two-year sojourn in Canada.

Meanwhile, Bishop Currie's diocese has graduated only one seminarian in 13 years
-- last May.

"I have no one studying for the priesthood right now. What the solution to the
problem is, I don't know," Bishop Currie says.

On the west coast of the island, a priest from the cathedral in Corner Brook
will travel to Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish in Benoit's Cove to celebrate
Christmas Mass with Catholics who have been without a resident priest for three
years.

"Last Christmas they had a priest who was studying up in Ottawa and he just
happened to be down here visiting some friends for Christmas and he filled in
down there, so they were lucky," says Father Bernard Buckle, of Sacred Heart
Parish in Corner Brook.

Father Pat Lafleur of Nativity of Our Lord in Timmins, Ont., says that with the
death this month of Father Les Costello, Catholics who had booked marriage
ceremonies at St. Alphonsus Church for next summer have had to reschedule with
other priests, and in some cases have had to pick new wedding dates.

A priest has come out of retirement to work part-time at the parish until
January, but no one has yet been found to take over duties full-time.

"We don't know what we're going to do. We don't know if we're going to take that
parish and split it among the other priests, or if we're going to say, 'I'm
sorry we just can't manage this parish anymore.' That's the kind of thing we're
facing," Fr. Lafleur says.

fdube@...

© Copyright  2002 National Post

ignored yearly cost of living rent increases since 2001

medical transportation cut with children's services piracy
of senior disability files (not in with ohip)

mandatory two year audits with temporary family services
detectives on single long term disability

phone and website takeovers leading to citizen's bureau
office which is overthrowing marriages, divorces, birth
certificates, etc. in ontorio

welfare fraud entrapment scams on permanently disabled
odsp recipients

subsidized building takeovers with youth services
creating eviction threats to frail elderly long term
residents; preschool programs for single adult women

[if link is broken, please cut and paste into browser:]

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who's telling our story?

ottawa waved maple leaf over u.s. films
david novek

for years, canada's cultural mandarins have argued that ottawa
must support the canadian film industry so we can tell our own
stories and recognize ourselves onscreen.

telefilm canada executive director,wayne clarkson, in a speech
this year, talked about the effect 'nobody waved goodbye' had
on him as a teenager in toronto. "here was a movie on the big
screen about my country, set in my neighbourhood; teenagers coming
of age -- my fears and aspirations."  he quoted several pundits
to underline the "galvanizing effect watching films about
ourselves can have on our shared experience as canadians," but
admitted that "creating the myths that shape and distinguish us
from the world's other tribes, communicating the stories that
define our identity isn't an easy task because of our proximity
to america."

at the cannes film festival, three months later, however, telefilm
canada extolled the virtues of three flicks, two of them in
competition, that told decidedly u.s. stories.  atom egoyan's
'where the truth lies' is a canadian/british co-production based
on a novalby u.s./british novelist/playwriter rupert holmes. it
tells the story of "the biggest comedy duo in america," whose
careers come to an abrupt end when the naked body of a beautiful
blonde is found in the bathtub of their new jersey hotel suite.
'a history of violence', by david cronenberg, is a u.s. film shot
in toronto, which is made to look like small-town middle america.
it delves, the hollywood reporter said, "into the nature of
violence and makes the discomfiting suggestion it can be a good
thing."

meanwhile, the third, stuart samuel's feature documentary 'midnight
movies: from the margin to the mainstream' is an affectionate look
at six counterculture films of the 1970s whose raucous midnight
screenings changed the way we watched movies and influenced many
of today's mainstream directors: 'the rocky horror picture show',
'pink flamingos', 'eraserhead', 'el topo', 'night of the living
dead', and 'the harder they come'.

personally, i think canadian filmmakers can tell any story they
want to, as long as their productions create work for the talented
actors and technicians who want to live and make movies in this
country.  what i object to is the hypocrisy of the cultural elite
who want a maple leaf or beaver in virtually every frame of a
movie to ensure its canadian pedigree, but who are so desperate
for english-language filmmakers to savour the box office successes
of their quebecois counterparts that they conveniently forgot the
"tell our stories" mantra when it came to this year's cannes
selections.

david novek is a canadian member of the academy of motion picture
arts and sciences.

august 2005

http://www.movieentertainment.ca
=================================================================

From: "Esti Tambay" <tambay@...>
Subject: Vacancies at the International Criminal Court

Dear All,

Please note that the CICC is not involved in the
recruitment process of the
International Criminal Court and will not take a
position on individual
candidates. Applications should be sent to the ICC
directly:

Email: applications@...
ICC
PO Box 19519
2500 CM The Hague, Netherlands
Fax: 31 70 515 8553

Warm Regards,
Esti T. Tambay
Program and Communications Assistant
Coalition for the International Criminal Court

************************************************************
VACANCIES AT THE INTERNATIONAL CRIMINAL COURT

The ICC is currently advertising for a number of
translator positions. These
position have open deadlines. Links to these positions
can be found at
http://www.icc-cpi.int/recruitment/opportunities/vacancies.html

Associate Legal Officer (P-2)
Chambers
Vacancy Announcement No. 05-LEG-073-PR
Deadline for Applications 14.08.2005
Post number - to be determined
http://www.icc-cpi.int/jobs/vacancies/417.html

Legal Officer (P-3)
Jurisdiction, Complementarity and Cooperation Division
Vacancy Announcement No. 05-LEG-077-PO
Deadline for Applications 15.08.2005
Post number ICC2005-2230-E-P-3-9311
http://www.icc-cpi.int/jobs/vacancies/420.html

Associate Legal Officer (P-2)
The ICC particularly encourages female candidates from
African, Asian, Latin
American and Caribbean countries to apply.
Presidency
Vacancy Announcement No. 05-LEG-074-PR
Deadline for Applications 28.08.2005
Post number - to be determined
http://www.icc-cpi.int/jobs/vacancies/418.html

--------------------------------------------------------

China steps up TV censorship

In a new attempt to reassert control over popular
culture, China has barred new foreign television
channels and plans to step up censorship of imported
programs.

http://www.cbc.ca/story/arts/national/2005/08/05/Arts/chinacensors050805.html

----------------------------------------------------------


Resource Net

Women at the UN General Assembly Interactive Hearings: A participant’s
perspective.

An interview with Lydia Alpizar from AWID, who attended the UNGA
Interactive Hearings at the end of June 2005 and discusses here the
implications for women’s advocacy as well as giving insights into the
efficacy of the process.

By Rochelle Jones


----------------------------------------------------

Women at the UN General Assembly Interactive Hearings: A participant’s
perspective.

An interview with Lydia Alpizar from AWID, who attended the UNGA
Interactive Hearings in June 2005 and discusses here the implications
for
women’s advocacy as well as giving insights into the efficacy of the
process.

By Rochelle Jones.

AWID: Over 200 civil society, non-government and private sector
organisations took part in the UNGA interactive hearings, along with
some
1,000 observers. Tell us about the hearings from a participant's
perspective. Were they really a ''milestone in the relationship
between
Member States and civil society'' as described by the General Assembly
President Jean Ping?

Lydia: I think the Civil Society Hearings, in preparation for the
World
Summit of next
September, were positive steps towards advancing Civil Society
participation and engagement with the General Assembly of the UN.  I
think
it was a good experience, as it was participatory and very diverse
groups
got a chance to present their views and proposals on different issues
that
will be discussed at the World Summit.  So, I think in the current
context,
we should welcome any attempt by the UN to create new mechanisms for
civil
society's participation.

Having said so, I think the whole process of the World Summit
(previously
known as
Millennium Summit + 5), represents a step backwards with regards to
civil
society's participation in the UN System.  During the nineties in
particular, new forms of participation and engagement were defined and
approved by different instances within the UN that allowed a more
direct
engagement and contribution by civil society representatives in UN
processes.  One very clear example was the Fourth World Conference on
Women
and other summits and conferences of the nineties.  The Beijing
Conference
was a process were women from all over the world were able to make
contributions and have a clear impact in the agreements made at that
conference. Particularly, participation of NGOs and other civil
society
representatives within bodies of the UN Economic and Social Council
and its
human rights machinery, has been an important step forward in making
the UN
more responsive to people.

But the whole Millennium Summit process, starting from the Summit
itself
five years ago, has been one of the most closed to civil society's
participation, with little transparency and clear decision-making
mechanisms.  The decision by the General Assembly of not allowing
civil
society representatives to have access as observers to the World
Summit,
next September, is a clear step backward, as it will prevent us from
having
access to government delegations, doing direct lobbying and having a
strong
presence at the summit (even in a more informal basis).  In this
sense, the
Civil Society Hearings were the only clear space defined for civil
society
to engage in this process with governments, but it is not clear how
the
contributions and proposals put forward by the hearing's participants
will
be taken into account or influence the decision-making and contents
of the
Outcome Document of the Summit being currently negotiated.

So, I must say many of us came out of the hearings with mixed
feelings.  It
was a positive step, but should not replace other already existing
mechanisms for civil society participation and engagement in other UN
bodies.  If the UN reforms to better respond to the current
challenges of
the world today, it has to expand civil society participation, as
NGOs and
other groups, in particular women's organizations, have been key
partners
to the UN in implementing and advancing important agendas during the
last
decades.

AWID: The basis of discussion with Member States was the reform
proposals
from the Secretary-General to be considered in preparation for the
upcoming
five-year review of the Millennium Summit. What are the cluster
themes, and
how effective do you think this division is for women's advocacy?

Lydia: There has been an intense and elaborate process in preparation
for
the Summit, within the last few years.  The Secretary General
appointed
several high-level panels and expert task forces to work on key
documents
that assisted him in putting forward proposals and ideas for the World
Summit.  There were three initiatives that are worth mentioning here:
First, the Panel of Eminent Persons on Civil Society and UN
Relationships,
known as the Cardoso Panel, that put forward ideas on how to improve
civil
society's participation and engagement with the UN (and received
strong
criticism from different NGOs when released);  the second initiative
was
the High Level Panel on Threats, Challenges and Change that produced a
report called ''A more secure world: our shared responsibility'',
released
in December 2004; and the third initiative was the Millennium Project
lead
by Jeffrey Sachs which worked through different thematic task forces
(in
correspondence with the 8 Millennium Development Goals agreed in the
Summit
in 2000), which produced a very comprehensive report with suggestions
on how
to achieve the MDGs, called ''Investing in development: a practical
plan to
achieve the MDGs''.

Based on all these inputs and some others, the Secretary General
released a
document that has played a key role in the road towards the Summit,
called
''In larger freedom: towards security, development and human rights
for
all'', released last March.  In the document, he focuses on four main
areas:  development (freedom from want), security and peace (freedom
from
fear), human rights (freedom to live in dignity) and UN reform
(strengthening the UN).

The chair of the World Summit will be the Presidency of the UN
Assembly,
currently being held by the Gabon Ambassador to the UN, Mr. Jean
Ping. He
has been in charge of putting together the Draft Outcome Document
that will
be agreed upon at the World Summit.  The draft produced by Mr. Ping
basically followed the same structure of the Secretary General’s
document
''In larger freedom'', which means that the key topics it addresses
are:
development, security and peace, human rights and UN reform.

I must say that there are some issues that are carrying more weight
than
others among member states of the UN in relationship to the Summit.
In
particular, the whole question of the reform of the Security Council
is one
important issue on the table, where there is lots of interest by
particular
countries that want to secure a permanent seat in the SC (such as
India,
Brazil, South Africa, Japan and Germany for example), and of course,
the
permanent members that are not willing to give up any power within
the SC
(for example, their veto power).  So, sadly, instead of this key
discussion
on how to make the SC more democratic, more transparent, how to make
it
really effective in dealing with conflicts and preventing humanitarian
catastrophes, the debate has been centered mostly on how many and who
should get permanent seats.

Another debate that has taken quite a bit of space has been around the
creation of a Human Rights Council, as a subsidiary body of the
General
Assembly. Again, a lot of discussion has been placed on how many
members
and the membership itself, but not as much on how to have an
effective UN
body that will advance the full respect and protection of human
rights for
all.

As women participating in the Civil Society Hearings, we were
critical of
the Draft Outcome Document, but in a position of proposition.  Even
though
the document expresses the interconnectedness of the four clusters,
we do
not like the clusterization of issues, as it creates artificial
boundaries
among them, which at the end are counterproductive.  For example,
having
human rights as a separate cluster to security and development creates
complicated separations and even hierarchies between civil and
political
rights and economic and social rights.

Nevertheless, as women we were able to strongly voice our concerns and
proposals, and together with other colleagues from civil society
organizations, the message of the centrality of gender equality and
women's
human rights to the whole discussion and decisions that will take
place at
the World Summit, was loudly presented in every single cluster.

The strong and coordinated presence that women's organizations had
during
the hearings was key to achieve this.  Thanks to the support provided
by
our colleagues from organizations based in NYC or with
representatives in
NYC (such as MADRE, DAWN, IWHC, CWGL, WEDO, NGO Working Group on
Women,
Peace and Security, the Feminist Task Force of G-CAP, the G-CAP UN
Liaison,
FHI, and others) and contributions by women's groups from the
different
regions in preparation for the hearings (for example REPEM), women's
participation was really successful.

AWID: You were a part of the GCAP Feminist Task Force strategy meeting
convened prior to the hearings. Which were some of the key agreements
and
recommendations at this meeting with regards to the hearings on the
different clusters?

Lydia: The G-CAP Feminist Task Force strategy meeting was a key space
to
prepare our participation as feminists during the hearings.  We
analysed
the context where the preparatory process and the Summit itself are
taking
place.  We also shared proposals that some women in different regions
had
been working on, regarding the different clusters.  For example, the
women
from Africa who had recently met and prepared a common document
analysing
the Secretary General's Report ''In larger freedom''; or other
documents of
analysis of the same report prepared by organizations such as Madre,
WEDO,
the Global Center, DAWN, and others.

Then, we divided into four groups, one per cluster (as the hearings
were
organized according to the four clusters), depending on which cluster
we
would be speaking or being interactive participants.  Speakers had 5
minutes to present and interactive participants only had 2 minutes.
So
each group put together key issues and proposals that we wanted to put
forward and highlight during our interventions in the hearings.  Some
of
the key points raised among others per cluster, were:

DEVELOPMENT
·The need to incorporate a human rights approach to all of this
section,-
as they are imperative to achieve development and particularly, the
MDGs.
The concept of development in this process needs to be challenged as
development is being used as a basis for opening markets and further
exploiting Southern countries (in short - get rid of the market-based
approach which is exploitative).
·The issue of public/private partnerships needs to be addressed in
terms of
how the public sector is weakened and the private sector strengthened,
effectively undermining civil society.

SECURITY AND PEACE
·This cluster should be reformulated from a human rights approach.
·Women's participation and women's community groups are key actors and
aspects of peace building and peacekeeping.
·Consideration of violence against women (VAW) and sexual/reproductive
rights is very important on this cluster and the others, and they are
not
mentioned.
·It is important that governments commit to end the large and small
arms
trades.
·Without justice for women, there is no peace. There needs to be an
end to
impunity, and as part of this it is key to address VAW and access to
justice.

HUMAN RIGHTS
·Women's human rights are not adequately included and are key to all
decision-making processes.
·Special mechanisms and procedures (such as the Special Rapporteurs)
should
be strengthened and not put into question by the reform process.
·Participation of civil society organizations, particularly women's
organizations, should be kept and strengthened, such as the
mechanisms that
exist within the Commission of Human Rights and other bodies.
·Whatever decisions are made about strengthening the current
Commission on
Human Rights or creating a new Human Rights Council (as subsidiary
body of
the GA), women stressed the need to ensure that its members be
countries
that have ratified all major human rights conventions, are up to date
in
their reporting to HR bodies, and are willing to be periodically
reviewed
on their HR performance.

UN REFORM
·Strengthening the ECOSOC: More relevant and substantive, and to
interface
with IMF, World Bank and WTO.
·Role of civil society/NGOs/women's groups: These groups do not have
adequate access to the GA and Security Council. They need the right to
speak, have written statements, etc.
·Human rights machinery needs to be strengthened in terms of treaty
bodies,
OHCHR. The discussion needs to be more about substance than what it
is named
(commission vs. council)
·Gender architecture- not enough has been done. Women's agencies are
under
funded, understaffed and do not have enough access to having their
voices
heard.
·Security council: it is undemocratic, needs to be reformed in
methods of
work, procedures, and relations within UN and with on-the-ground
groups.


AWID: What further action is being taken to ensure that these
messages are
given the weight they deserve?

Lydia: Right after the hearings, WEDO, DAWN and the Global Center
organized
a feminist strategy session for the World Summit.  We met for about
three
days to do an evaluation of the hearings, a deeper analysis of the
process
so far, of the Draft Outcome Document and the negotiation process, and
discussed some proposals for strategies that we could do as feminists
in
the process towards the Summit and during the Summit itself.

One of the agreements was that we need a strong document with a
feminist
position in relationship to the World Summit.  A document that will
present
our visions, positions and key proposals for the World Summit, which
could
be endorsed and used by women's organizations from all the regions,
as a
common platform.  A Drafting Committee of the document was formed at
this
strategy session, and is currently working on drafting such a
document.
The document will be translated into French and Spanish, and will be
opened
for endorsements by the middle of August.

As there will not be any real spaces to participate as civil society
organizations at the Summit in September (only two civil society
representative and one from the private sector will be allowed to
speak to
the GA at the Summit), the idea is mostly that women use the juncture
of
the Summit to raise some key issues and strengthen their own specific
national or local processes.  So, some of the ideas suggested were
that as
feminist movements we could use the momentum created by the Summit as
a
political space to present our visions and proposals to advance gender
equality and women's rights, to the media and to other actors.

Also, women's organizations from most of the regions have continued
lobbying their governments and the UN to include some good language
in the
proposed Outcome Document of the World Summit.  There have been two
versions of the draft document, and there should be a new version
that will
be released on Friday, August 5.

----------------------------------------------------

“THE ECONOMICS OF FAILURE”

Recently, Christian Aid commissioned an econometrics expert to model
what
might have happened if trade liberalisation had not taken place in 32
countries from Africa, Asia and Latin America. Their report “The
economics
of failure”* provides a good platform from which to bolster efforts
against
the trade liberalisation mantra:

“Whole countries would be much richer today if they had not been
forced to
open markets”

Income loss was the key indicator used in the research, with income
loss
estimations derived from import and export data from the World Bank,
IMF UN
and academic studies. Their general conclusions suggest that “imports
tend
to rise faster than exports following trade liberalisation [which]
results
in quantifiable losses in income for some of the poorest countries in
the
world”.

According to the report, sub-Saharan Africa has lost US$272 billion
over
the past 20 years, which would have been enough to wipe out their
debt and
pay for every child to be sent to school and vaccinated. These
devastating
losses have been a direct result of conditions attached to foreign
aid,
loans and debt relief, which have been imposed upon countries.

The impact of trade liberalisation on import and export flows is
widely
known – with countries buying more than they are able to sell,
worsening
their balance of trade, and decreasing demand for local products. This
report however, provides a staggering glimpse into the actual fiscal
losses
that countries have incurred. These kinds of statistics make it
harder to
justify trade liberalisation, particularly if it is tied to debt
relief.

IT’S ALL IN THE NUMBERS:

The report outlines several examples of how trade liberalisation has
cost
countries valuable money, and cost people their livelihoods.
Agricultural
sectors and poor farming families are always the hardest hit:

In Senegal, tomato production used to provide rural households with a
good
living. But after liberalisation, the prices farmers received for
their
tomatoes halved, and tomato production fell from 73,000 tonnes in
1990 to
just 20,000 tonnes in 1997. In Kenya, cotton production fell from
70,000
bales a year in the mid 1980s to less than 20,000 bales in the mid
90s.

Unfortunately, manufacturing industries have not stepped in to take
the
burden of unemployment from the agricultural sector:

In Zambia, employment in formal-sector manufacturing fell by 40
percent in
just five years following trade liberalisation. In Ghana, employment
in
manufacturing fell from 78,700 in 1987 to 28,000 in 1993 following
trade
liberalisation. In Malawi, many firms manufacturing consumer goods
like
soap and cooking oils went out of business, and the poultry industry
collapsed due to cheap imports.

When Uganda liberalised trade in 1991, its GDP was almost US$6
billion.
According to the model, if they hadn’t liberalised, their GDP in 2000
would
have been over US$735 million higher, which is what Uganda spent on
health
and education combined in that year.

WHAT’S TO BE DONE?

The report stresses that countries that cut themselves off from trade
altogether do not successfully reduce poverty. Moderate levels of
trade
protection with the freedom to raise tariffs if necessary were
suggested as
a better strategy. In short, the report implores for the drive toward
further liberalisation to stop, and for G8 countries in particular to
stop
forcing countries to liberalise trade as a condition of aid and debt
relief. Furthermore Christian Aid supports proposals in the WTO for
special
treatment allowing countries of the South to say no to agreements
that are
not in their interests. If technical advice is to be offered to
countries
from bilateral donors or multilateral institutions, it must include
advice
on the possible benefits of raising trade barriers, rather than simply
focusing on the possible benefits of liberalising.

Notes:

*  Christian Aid’ briefing paper is based on a more comprehensive
paper by
Egor Kraev, “Estimating Demand Side Effects of Trade Liberalisation
on GDP
of Developing Countries” May 2005. Available on request from
cmelamed@....

All statistics and quotes are from the briefing paper, which can be
downloaded from Christian Aid’ website: www.christian-aid.org.uk

-----------------------------------------------------------------

RESOURCE NET
The Association for Women's Rights in
Development (AWID). Announcements do not
necessarily reflect the opinion of AWID,
but are meant to provoke thought,
generate solutions and inspire action.
-
You are free to replicate AWID's information in other formats, and
use it
in your advocacy, provided you give credit to the Association.
-
AWID is an international membership organization committed to gender
equality and a just and sustainable development process. AWID
facilitates
an open exchange among researchers, practitioners, policymakers and
others
in order to develop effective and transformative approaches for
improving
the lives of women and girls worldwide.

The Association for Women's Rights in Development
215 Spadina Avenue, Suite 150
Toronto, ON M5T 2C7
CANADA
Tel: 416-594-3773
Fax: 416-594-0330
Email: awid@...
Web: http://www.awid.org

------------------------------------------------------------------

The High Court's Changing Landscape
The National Law Journal

After 11 remarkably unaltered years together, the
Rehnquist Court has entered its own season of change.
The retirement of Justice Sandra Day O'Connor -- who
has cast the deciding vote in so many of the Court's
closest cases -- will break up one of the
longest-running shows in Supreme Court history. And the
show ended with a fascinating finale. "There were lots
of cases raising fun and sexy issues," said Texas
Solicitor General Ted Cruz, who argued some of those
cases. "The term rocked and rolled."
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1123146315408

--------------------------------------------------------

Man Sentenced to Death for Killing Wife Who Nagged Him
to Cuddle After Sex
The Associated Press

A Florida man who said he was angry with his wife
because she nagged him to cuddle after sex while he
wanted to watch sports on television was sentenced to
death Wednesday for killing her with a claw hammer.
"The defendant struck his wife approximately 70
individual blows after spending a happy interlude with
her," the judge said. "Her desire to cuddle after sex
does not justify the ... response of the defendant."
Christopher Offord initially confessed to a bartender
at a sports bar before being arrested.
http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1123146316369

---------------------------------------------------------

O.COM: CYBERSEX ADDICTION
Each day, hundreds of thousands of individuals access
the Internet to make sexual contact with each other
without ever having met eye-to-eye or having said a
simple hello. The Internet has actually removed touch
and human contact from sex.

Cybersex addicts are messengers with a message for all
of us about technology's ability to accelerate our
alienation from each other. The story of real people
whose virtual worlds become more compelling, more
"real," than the outside world.

Visit the web feature to read more shocking facts about
sex on the internet and find out where to get help.
http://www.cbc.ca/passionateeye/ocom/index.html
AIRING Monday August 8 at 10pm ET/PT on CBC Newsworld

---------------------

PASSIONATE EYE MONDAY
(Monday August 8 at 10pm ET/PT on CBC Newsworld)
O.COM: CYBERSEX ADDICTION
see above
Directed by: Melanie Wood
http://www.cbc.ca/passionateeye/ocom/index.html

----------------------------------------------------------------
----------------------------------------------------------------
Call for Information: Gender Commentary on the Standard Minimum Rules
for the Treatment of Women Prisoners / For more information, contact:
Megan Bastick, Programme Assistant
Human Rights and Refugees
Quaker United Nations Office (QUNO)
13, Avenue du Mervelet, 1209
Geneva, Switzerland Tel:
+ 41 22 748 48 03;
Fax: + 41 22 748 48 19
Email: quno2@...
Website: http://www.quno.org

The Quaker United Nations Office has prepared a gender commentary on
the
Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners. This commentary
identifies a number of the key problems for women prisoners and
highlights
how the United Nations Standard Minimum Rules for the Treatment of
Prisoners, the key reference in management of prison systems, apply to
these problems. It also identifies other human rights instruments and
standards that apply to women's imprisonment and examines what
measures
these human rights standards require.

This analysis, ''Women in Prison: A commentary on the Standard Minimum
Rules for the Treatment of Prisoners'' is designed to assist
legislators,
prison administrators, United Nations bodies and human rights
advocates to
recognise the particular needs of women prisoners, and to use a human
rights approach in meeting those needs. The commentary highlights the
impact of imprisonment upon children, children living in prisons with
their
mothers, juvenile girls in prisons, and the need to consider child
rights
when sentencing mothers. The Quaker United Nations Office has
prepared the
commentary as a discussion draft to encourage input. They would be
grateful
for comments and feedback on this draft commentary - such as further
ideas
about the needs of girl prisoners and prisoners' children, and further
examples of regional and national good practice, standards and case
law.

To read the draft, visit:
http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=5966

To read the study ''Babies and Small Children Residing in Prisons'',
visit:
http://www.crin.org/resources/infoDetail.asp?ID=5454&flag=report

Cross-posted from:
''Child Rights Information Network
28 July 2005 CRINMAIL 699
http://www.crin.org

----------------------------------------------------------------

[letter from jeanette harvey for canadian susan hey, texas]

dated july 29, 2005

dear all,

once again, i allowed susan hey to read your letter. when she was
done she again sent her regards and also asked that i send you
the enclosed article that appeared in our prison newspaper
because of your interest in such matters. article is enclosed.

because of the attempted suicide, susan is no longer allowed to
participate in the girl scout program. the ladies would like to
get her back but it will take some time. susan however seems to
be holding up much better since the hospital gave her the proper
medication and she is taking it. she hasn't heard from her
children but she continues to write them.

i will be eligible for parole in 2008.  i have taken some college
courses after completing my ged.  the vocation i plan to take
offers 32 hours of college hours but i don't want to take it
until the last two years because the computers are always being
updated. the technology is always changing. i am not totally
uninformed because we had a computer/pc in our home and in our
business when i was incarcerated. my disciplinary record is pretty
good. in twelve years i've had one major and two minor cases all
for non-dangerous contraband and minimum punishment. am involved
as a peer educator teaching peer health and have been for three
years. at the current time i am a unit artist, a job i've had
since '98.  my health is o.k.  my biggest problem being arthritis
and weight. have been gradually losing the excess weight so that
i will be at my best when i talk to parole. also been walking
and feeling better for it. genes have played a positive part in
my life. i have all my teeth and people guess my age in the middle
40s. my age is 58 on sunday and i still have mostly black hair
with white at the temples.

i did get a letter from rueben mac in may. there have been so
many problems for others with regards to letters i have not felt
comfortable with writing back. so please tell him i said hello
and will be thinking about him.

the idea of sending you pictures of my art sounds wonderful.
i have been however trying to decide just how to do that.  i have
pictures of some of my art but none is on the market. some of my
friends make a copy/picture when it hangs on their wall.
usually people want to see the actual work that is for sale.
what do you think? could i send sample pictures and ask that
they write to commission a painting? all i can paint with is
watercolors on illustration boards as we no longer have a craft
shop. please let me know what you think and offer suggestions.
thank you for the offer to help and perhaps we can work something
out through your newsletter.

yes, i have children. my oldest daughter is of the country club
genre and considers my situation as one to be ignored. she has
not made contact in these 12 years. when the craft shop was
opened, i sent gifts to the grandchildren and she sent me the
colors of their rooms so everything would match. this was through
her younger sister. my youngest daughter is an unwed mother
caring for my 10 year old granddaughter with no help from a dead
beat dad. she visits about three times a year. daughters are
35 & 37. my son is 22 and my father-in-law terminated my parental
rights eleven years ago when i had this life sentence. he had
more money to fight with than i did. i get news from time to time
about him but he doesn't even contact his half sisters. the girls
were 13 & 15 when he was born and have a different father.
my son was a computer science major at the university of texas
and has now inherited a decent chunk of change from his dad's
estate. he will also be the sole beneficiary of his two paternal
grandparents that are each quite comfortable in their own right.
i try not to dwell on allthe loss in my life.

guess i will close for now.

your friend,

jeanette/jet harvey
658737
hilltop unit, dorm d-1
1500 state school rd.
gatesville, tx 76598-2996
usa
---------------------------

(enclosure)

international prison transfer requests
submitted by kim vernon, director
state counsel for offenders

recent testimony provided by the british consulate-general
in houston to the senate committee on criminal justice in
austin identified certain obligations placed upon the state
of texas by the international prison transfer treaty.
as a result, if you are a foreign national and would like
to serve the remainder of your sentence at a prison in your
native country, state counsel for offenders (scfo) will
assist you with an international prison transfer request.

to qualify for an international transfer prison request:

(1) you may have more than six months remaining on your
     sentence
(2) you cannot have a case on direct appeal or have a pending
     writ of habeas corpus
(3) you must be a citizen of a country that participates in
     an international transfer treaty. your country's government
     and the state of texas must approve the transfer before it
     can take palce.

to get started, write scfo - immigration section and request a
transfer to your country. if your country participates in an
international transfer treaty program, scfo will send you a
letter and a one-page application to fill out and return to us.
when scfo receives your completed application, it will be sent
to the office of the gov. of texas and your country's texas
consulate.

if you are transferred to your native country, your original
sentence will remain the same.  you will keep any credit for
jail time and good time that you earned while in prison in texas.
your native country's parole rules will determine when you will
be released from prison.

you may send your request via truck mail (free) or via first class
mail (requires $.37 postage) to:

truck mail:
   state counsel for offenders -
     immigraiton section
   2503 lake road - huntsville

lst class mail:
   state counsel for offendrs -
     immigration section
       p.o. box 4005
    huntsville, tx 77324-4005
    usa
=================================================================

Catholics cope with priest shortage
'Constant juggling act': Ghanaian imports, retired clerics filling gaps at
Christmas

Francine Dubé
National Post


Tuesday, December 24, 2002



The shortage of priests in Canada has become so acute that some churches are
cutting the number of Christmas masses being celebrated this year and retired
priests are being pressed into service.

Father Benoît St-Onge has been responsible for three churches in the Montreal
suburbs of Rosemère, Lorraine and Bois de Filion since August, when a fellow
priest left the fold.

Since then, Father St-Onge has met his obligations with the help of a
74-year-old retired Jesuit, but he has had to reduce the number of Christmas
masses at the three churches this year from 11 to nine.

"For sure that we can't do with two priests 11 masses, that would not be human,"
says Fr. St-Onge, who will lead five masses today and tonight.

The shortage of priests has also meant a reduction in services offered to
Catholics. Daily masses are no longer offered at any of the three churches,
though each one holds at least one weekday mass.

There are fewer than 10,000 priests in Canada today, down from 15,000 in 1970.
The number of seminarians has dropped from 2,645 to 550. The situation is so
dire that priests are postponing retirement and the death of a priest can sound
the death knell of a parish.

In the Northern Ontario town of Cobalt, there will be a Christmas Eve mass, but
Christmas Day mass has been cancelled.

In September, Father John Lemire, 33, of Our Mother of Perpetual Help in New
Liskeard, about 20 kilometres from Cobalt, became one of a growing number of
priests who have had to take on two or more parishes.

He has also had to cut the number of weekday masses at the Cobalt church from
five to one.

"There's only so many places I can be in at one time," he says.

"It is a constant juggling act trying to maintain a balance between the two
places."

About a dozen people used to attend the Christmas Day Mass in Cobalt, in
addition to the Mass on Christmas Eve. Fr. Lemire says if the Cobalt church
still had a priest, there would be a Christmas Day Mass.

Catholic residents of Mackenzie, B.C., have been without a priest for about six
years, according to Father Rodolfo Manaloto, of Christ Our Saviour Parish in
Prince George. Fr. Manaloto is one of two priests from Prince George who make
the 90-minute drive to Mackenzie once a month to celebrate Mass there.

Twice a month, the Sunday service in Mackenzie is led by a layperson.
Worshippers take communion, but wafers that were consecrated by a priest at a
previous service are used.

This Christmas, Mass in Mackenzie will be led by a semi-retired priest. There
will be one service only, instead of the two that are typically held in a parish
-- one on Christmas Eve and one on Christmas Day.

"We're just glad we have the one," says Sister Germaine Rosenberger, an Ursuline
nun from Saskatchewan who acts as pastoral life director for the parish.

There will be no priest in the parish to celebrate Mass on New Year's Eve or New
Year's Day.

In central Newfoundland, the Catholic Church will be able to meet its
obligations, but barely. Bishop Martin Currie will leave his cathedral in Grand
Falls this afternoon to drive 140 kilometres to a neighbouring parish to conduct
a Mass, then drive back to Grand Falls in time to prepare for Mass there at 11
p.m.

The central Newfoundland diocese has 18 priests serving 30 far-flung parishes --
on a weekend, some of the priests travel as much as 500 kilometres.

Four of the priests have been brought in from Ghana, but importing priests is
not a permanent solution, says Bishop Currie. The Ghanaian priests will have to
return to their country one day -- their bishop has permitted them only a
two-year sojourn in Canada.

Meanwhile, Bishop Currie's diocese has graduated only one seminarian in 13 years
-- last May.

"I have no one studying for the priesthood right now. What the solution to the
problem is, I don't know," Bishop Currie says.

On the west coast of the island, a priest from the cathedral in Corner Brook
will travel to Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish in Benoit's Cove to celebrate
Christmas Mass with Catholics who have been without a resident priest for three
years.

"Last Christmas they had a priest who was studying up in Ottawa and he just
happened to be down here visiting some friends for Christmas and he filled in
down there, so they were lucky," says Father Bernard Buckle, of Sacred Heart
Parish in Corner Brook.

Father Pat Lafleur of Nativity of Our Lord in Timmins, Ont., says that with the
death this month of Father Les Costello, Catholics who had booked marriage
ceremonies at St. Alphonsus Church for next summer have had to reschedule with
other priests, and in some cases have had to pick new wedding dates.

A priest has come out of retirement to work part-time at the parish until
January, but no one has yet been found to take over duties full-time.

"We don't know what we're going to do. We don't know if we're going to take that
parish and split it among the other priests, or if we're going to say, 'I'm
sorry we just can't manage this parish anymore.' That's the kind of thing we're
facing," Fr. Lafleur says.

fdube@...

© Copyright  2002 National Post

interfaith

in 1996, the government of ontario granted the hac
permission to perform legally recognized marriages.
plans are being made to offer humanist weddings and
funeral ceremonies throughout canada. the first
funeral service conducted by an hac celebrant was
held in march 1995, the first hac wedding ceremony
was held in august 1996, and in june 1998, hac
performed its first naming and undoctrination
ceremony.

http://canada.humanists.net


A Humanist Officiant is licensed by the province of Ontario for the purpose of
performing marriages. He or she is required to be a member of the Humanist
Association of Canada, provide five references (three of which must come from
Humanists), and pass a course developed and offered by the Ceremonies' Committee
of the board of HAC. Collectively, our officiants have performed many hundreds
of ceremonies.
He or she pays an annual licensing fee, and is fully responsible for all costs
incurred by providing the service (ex. advertizing, office supplies,
correspondance, etc.). There is no salary nor pay from the HAC for this work,
and the officiant is welcome to keep the honoraria offered by clients.
The officiants have no legal relationship with the local association (in our
case, the Humanist Association of Toronto).

Jan. 7, 2003. 01:00 AM


Standards urged for justices of the peace
Top judge calls for formal appointments Attorney-general agrees to
discussion


TRACEY TYLER
LEGAL AFFAIRS REPORTER

Qualifications could soon matter more than connections when it comes
to being appointed a justice of the peace.

The judge in charge of one of Ontario's busiest courts says it's time
to consider a formal process for appointing justices of the peace and
spelling out qualifications.

There are currently 311 justices of the peace in Ontario, who make
decisions on everything from whether police should be allowed into
your home to conduct a search or if an accused person should be
granted bail.

However, the vast majority — about 95 per cent — come to the job with
no formal legal training. They are sometimes perceived as political
hacks enjoying the perks of patronage.

The current crop includes several former MPPs and mayors, ex-school
trustees and a former car salesman. JPs are appointed by the attorney
general.

At a news conference yesterday to mark the annual opening of the
province's courts, Chief Justice Brian Lennox of the Ontario Court of
Justice said his proposal for introducing standards into the process
of appointing justices of the peace is not intended as a criticism of
JPs now presiding in Ontario.

They do "a good job" of tackling an important and wide-ranging issues
affecting everything from people's liberty to privacy interests,
Lennox said.

It's simply the next logical step in the "evolution" of the justice
of the peace bench, which is naturally becoming better qualified as
more candidates compete for the job, he suggested to reporters at
Osgoode Hall in Toronto.

Lennox drew a comparison to provincial court judges, who, until 1968,
were mainly laypersons with no formal legal training.

"In this process of evolution of the justice of the peace bench, it
has now become evident that the issues of qualifications and process
of appointment need to be addressed," he said.

Attorney-General David Young has agreed to discuss the issue, he
added. Yesterday, Lennox declined to say what the appropriate
qualifications for a justice of the peace might be or whether the
appointment process should include a screening committee similar to
the one for judges.

He also stopped short of saying whether he believes JPs should hold a
law degree.

But the Criminal Lawyers Association, which has been pushing for a
more open appointment process, including some minimum standards for
JPs, doesn't see that as an unreasonable request.

"In terms of qualifications, what's wrong with requiring that someone
who is making decisions on legal principles and applying the law have
a legal education?" said Toronto criminal lawyer Bob Richardson, who
heads the association's subcommittee on JPs.

Last summer, two justices of the peace were publicly criticized for
imposing publication bans that were later overturned by Superior
Court judges.

JPs salaries are listed as between $57,000 and $78,000 a year. For
reasons that are not clear, some have earned more than $100,000.


Toronto Star

              Mail this story to a friend      Printer friendly
version

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

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here:

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Search 'Ontario Marriage Act'
http://www.google.ca

STONE FINDS NEW CAREER AS MAIL-ORDER MINISTER



SHARON STONE is turning her hand at being a mail-order minister after performing
her first official wedding over the weekend (20-21NOV04).

The BASIC INSTINCT actress, 46, presided over the union of restauranteur MICHAEL
BOURSEAU and sometime stylist BRENDA SWANSON at her Coldwater Canyon home in
California - with JACK NICHOLSON and ROBERT WAGNER serving as witnesses.

Bourseau tells website PAGESIX.COM, "No one's going to believe it when I hang my
wedding certificate up on the wall."

23/11/2004 17:43

From:   "UN News Service"

----------------------------------------------------------------------

KEY ARTICLES IN DRAFT DISABILITY TREATY APPROVED AT UN
MEETING
New York, Aug 12 2005

Marking another step forward for persons with
disabilities, the United Nations panel negotiating an
international treaty codifying their rights has wrapped
up its sixth session having agreed on draft articles on
such issues as education and children's disabilities,
as well as accessibility and personal mobility.

The rights to health and rehabilitation, the right to
work, social security and adequate standards of living,
as well as participation in political, public and
cultural life and in recreation, leisure and sport,
were among the other articles negotiated during the
current session of the Ad Hoc Committee on a
Comprehensive and Integral Convention to Promote and
Protect the Rights and Dignity of Persons with
Disabilities, which has been meeting at UN Headquarters
in New York since 1 August.

Briefing the press on the work of the session, the
Chairman of the Committee, Don MacKay of New Zealand,
spotlighted the importance of the draft instrument not
only for some 600 million people worldwide with
disabilities, but also for the UN, which had an
opportunity to show, once again, that it could come up
with a convention that would have a direct impact on
people's lives.

In its present state, the draft convention contained
about 25 articles, he said. What the authors of the
draft convention tried to do was to strengthen the
rights of people with disabilities and to set out a
more detailed code for their implementation. "For
example, persons with disabilities had freedom of
movement, but that right was not of much use to people
confined in wheelchairs if no accommodations were made
for accessibility," he said.

The convention also sought "a paradigm shift" away from
the tendency to segregate people with disabilities and
towards social inclusion. "People with disabilities
actually perform, live and contribute much better if
they are included in the community – be it by way of
inclusive education, inclusive health, participation in
political life, or measures to improve accessibility,"
he said.

Mr. MacKay also stressed the active involvement of
civic groups in the Committee's work. Some 400 civil
society representatives had registered for the meeting
– the largest number ever, he added. This has given the
drafting process "a very unusual flavour." The
participants had been very focused on the issues and
there had been genuine interaction on the text and
proposals, he said, adding: "This was not one of the
United Nations meetings where people are sitting there
reading prepared statements at each other."

The last two weeks had "gone pretty well" for the
negotiations on the draft instrument, he said. The
Committee had conducted "a detailed read-through" of
the draft and identified the areas of differences and
convergence.
________________

For more details go to UN News Centre at
http://www.un.org/news

==========================================================

From:   "Andrea Bible" <abible@...>
To:   <news@...>
Subject:   [FBW-News] Governor denied parole for Flozelle Woodmore

----------------------------------------------------------------------
----------

Dear Friends:

I am sad and angry as I write this message, but I want
to let you know that
Governor Schwarzenegger has denied parole to Flozelle
Woodmore for the
fourth time.

The Governor reversed the parole board's decision to
grant Flozelle parole
despite the fact that hundreds of people throughout
California -- including
the victim's family, Flozelle's sentencing judge, and
the entire 31 members
Legislative Women's Caucus -- sent support letters
calling for Flozelle's
release.

And although Flozelle has remained discipline-free for
the last 13 years of
her incarceration, has emerged as a leader among women
at the Central
California Women's Facility through her work in a
variety of the programs at
the prison, and has received many favorable evaluations
by prison
psychologists indicating that she poses a low risk for
future violence, the
Governor claims that Flozelle continues to pose an
"unreasonable risk of
danger to society" if paroled.

Our hearts go out to Flozelle and her family (who have
led the fight for
Flozelle's freedom).  Free Battered Women is planning a
media campaign to
bring attention to the Governor's recent decisions to
overturn parole for
people who have been found suitable multiple times by
the parole board.

Thank you to each of you who took action to support
Flozelle's release.
Despite the Governor's decision, I truly believe that
your support for
Flozelle and other incarcerated survivors does make a
difference.  Let us
remain committed to the struggle for freedom for
Flozelle and other
survivors despite the many barriers that the system
continues to put in
place.

In solidarity,

Andrea Bible
Free Battered Women
More about Flozelle:
Flozelle Woodmore was 13 years old when she began
dating her boyfriend.
Pregnant at age 15, Flozelle's teenage years were
marked by her boyfriend's
abuse, violence, and stalking, which caused her to live
in constant fear.
Flozelle believed there was no escape to safety for
herself and her child –
indeed, as a minor in the 1980s, she was not eligible
for a civil
restraining order and faced many other systemic
barriers to the protection
she desperately sought.

Expert testimony on intimate partner battering was
never admitted in
Flozelle's court proceedings, even though the sexual,
physical, and
psychological abuse she endured was critical in
explaining many of the
decisions she made during the incident which led to her
incarceration.
Young and unfamiliar with the legal process, Flozelle
pled guilty to her
first and only offense. She has been separated from her
children ever since.

While in prison, Flozelle has demonstrated that she
poses no threat to
society.  Obtaining her GED degree, completing numerous
vocational programs
and serving as President of AA are just a few of her
accomplishments.  She
is a leader among women inside prison, offering
encouragement and support to
many other survivors of abuse.  Upon her release,
Flozelle plans to work as
a battered women's advocate to inspire positive change
in the lives of
teenage girls who are being abused.

----------
Andrea Bible
Coordinator - Free Battered Women
Interim Coordinator - Habeas Project
1540 Market Street, Suite 490
San Francisco, CA 94102
tel: 415.255.7036 ext. 309
mobile: 415.867.0535
fax: 415.552.3150
andrea@...
http://www.freebatteredwomen.org
http://www.habeasproject.org
-----------------------------------------------------------------

[daily dose]

homolka plays the victim
lawyers say restrictions violate her rights

karla homolka's new freedom is being cramped by the "exorbitant"
judicial restrictions imposed before she was released from custody
in june, her lawyers charge.

a document filed with a quebec superior court by homolka's lawyers
says her release conditions, which were issued in a special order
by a judge in late june, are unfair and an attempt to punish her
beyond her 12-year sentence.

the lawyers will get their chance to argue on sept.22.  they say
that quebec judge jean beaulieu set "exorbitant conditions" that
are "essentially punitive".

"an analysis of the conditions imposed by the judge show they are
essentially measures of control and surveillance, work generally
reserved for a police investigation and not for the protection of
society," said the document.

beulieu set the conditions by using section 810.2 of the criminal
code, but homolka's lawyers say it is inappropriate "notably
because it is based on the belief of future behaviur."  they say
the judge ignored evidence that homolka would not be a danger in
the future.

at the time,beaulieu also refused to hear arguments that the
restrictions violated the deal homolka struck with prosecutors
to provide evidence against her ex-husband paul bernardo.

as one part of the restrictions, homolka -- who is now going by
the last name teale -- must report to police monthly, stay away
from children under 16 and not work with violent criminals.
she must also tell police when she changes her name or wants to
leave the country and is restricted from contacting the families
of her victims or bernardo.

during her prison stay, homolka struck up at least two relation-
ships with fellow prisoners, one a violent offender accused of
killing his girlfriend.

homolka's lawyers, christian desrosiers and sylvie bordelais,
told associated press the restrictions violate homolka's
constitutional rights.

- christie tucker/dose

http://www.dose.ca/karla

-------------------------

go > toronto

activity

never a bridesmaid

if mariah carey can wear her wedding dress from her disastrous
marriage to tommy mottola in her "we belong together" video,
then you can certainly find a way to put your dress to good use.
the canadian opera company is looking for women willing to
donate wedding dresses for its 2006 production of
"gotterdammerung".  style, shape and size don't matter.

canadian opera company
227 front st.e.
416-363-6671
9 a.m. to 5 p.m.
------------------------------------------------------------------

[metro]

new gg's spouse a separatist?

a group of hardline quebec sovereignists has unearthed evidence
it says suggests that jean-daniel lafond, the filmmaker husband
of michaelle jean, the next governor general, shares their cause.

"so, a sovereign quebec? an independent quebec?" lafond wrote,
in a 1993 introduction to "la maniere negre", his documentary on
militant martinique poet aime cesaire.  "yes and i applaud with
two hands and promise to be at all the st-jean baptiste day
parades."

the separatists also claim that jean, who appeared in the film,
shares her husband's views. but her comments, which appear
without context on the website of magazine le quebecois, are
more ambiguous than the smoking gun the hardliners claim they
are.

torstar news service

http://www.metronews.ca
http://www.metropoint.com
-----------------------------------------------------------------

[canadian press]

f-word finds acceptance

the newest edition of the canadian press caps and spelling
handbook, just released, contains a familiar vulgarity.

after years on the fringe, cp is recognizing the f word for
publication.

"(it) was creeping into our news stories on a fairly regular
basis," said patti tasko, editor of caps and spelling.

cp's advice? avoid it. but ifit must be used in print, spell
it out. no f and three asterisks. and no f word.

- the canadian press

http://24hrs.ca


[and don't let the u.s. senate catch wind of it]

------------------------------------------------------------------

interfaith

in 1996, the government of ontario granted the hac
permission to perform legally recognized marriages.
plans are being made to offer humanist weddings and
funeral ceremonies throughout canada. the first
funeral service conducted by an hac celebrant was
held in march 1995, the first hac wedding ceremony
was held in august 1996, and in june 1998, hac
performed its first naming and undoctrination
ceremony.

http://canada.humanists.net


A Humanist Officiant is licensed by the province of Ontario for the purpose of
performing marriages. He or she is required to be a member of the Humanist
Association of Canada, provide five references (three of which must come from
Humanists), and pass a course developed and offered by the Ceremonies' Committee
of the board of HAC. Collectively, our officiants have performed many hundreds
of ceremonies.
He or she pays an annual licensing fee, and is fully responsible for all costs
incurred by providing the service (ex. advertizing, office supplies,
correspondance, etc.). There is no salary nor pay from the HAC for this work,
and the officiant is welcome to keep the honoraria offered by clients.
The officiants have no legal relationship with the local association (in our
case, the Humanist Association of Toronto).

Jan. 7, 2003. 01:00 AM


Standards urged for justices of the peace
Top judge calls for formal appointments Attorney-general agrees to
discussion


TRACEY TYLER
LEGAL AFFAIRS REPORTER

Qualifications could soon matter more than connections when it comes
to being appointed a justice of the peace.

The judge in charge of one of Ontario's busiest courts says it's time
to consider a formal process for appointing justices of the peace and
spelling out qualifications.

There are currently 311 justices of the peace in Ontario, who make
decisions on everything from whether police should be allowed into
your home to conduct a search or if an accused person should be
granted bail.

However, the vast majority — about 95 per cent — come to the job with
no formal legal training. They are sometimes perceived as political
hacks enjoying the perks of patronage.

The current crop includes several former MPPs and mayors, ex-school
trustees and a former car salesman. JPs are appointed by the attorney
general.

At a news conference yesterday to mark the annual opening of the
province's courts, Chief Justice Brian Lennox of the Ontario Court of
Justice said his proposal for introducing standards into the process
of appointing justices of the peace is not intended as a criticism of
JPs now presiding in Ontario.

They do "a good job" of tackling an important and wide-ranging issues
affecting everything from people's liberty to privacy interests,
Lennox said.

It's simply the next logical step in the "evolution" of the justice
of the peace bench, which is naturally becoming better qualified as
more candidates compete for the job, he suggested to reporters at
Osgoode Hall in Toronto.

Lennox drew a comparison to provincial court judges, who, until 1968,
were mainly laypersons with no formal legal training.

"In this process of evolution of the justice of the peace bench, it
has now become evident that the issues of qualifications and process
of appointment need to be addressed," he said.

Attorney-General David Young has agreed to discuss the issue, he
added. Yesterday, Lennox declined to say what the appropriate
qualifications for a justice of the peace might be or whether the
appointment process should include a screening committee similar to
the one for judges.

He also stopped short of saying whether he believes JPs should hold a
law degree.

But the Criminal Lawyers Association, which has been pushing for a
more open appointment process, including some minimum standards for
JPs, doesn't see that as an unreasonable request.

"In terms of qualifications, what's wrong with requiring that someone
who is making decisions on legal principles and applying the law have
a legal education?" said Toronto criminal lawyer Bob Richardson, who
heads the association's subcommittee on JPs.

Last summer, two justices of the peace were publicly criticized for
imposing publication bans that were later overturned by Superior
Court judges.

JPs salaries are listed as between $57,000 and $78,000 a year. For
reasons that are not clear, some have earned more than $100,000.


Toronto Star

              Mail this story to a friend      Printer friendly
version

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

A change was detected.

To be directed to the page, click (or double-click)
here:

[if link below is broken, cut and paste into browser:]
http://www.ChangeDetection.com/page.html?p=6&id=3vg2zbp76bqxf



Search 'Ontario Marriage Act'
http://www.google.ca

STONE FINDS NEW CAREER AS MAIL-ORDER MINISTER



SHARON STONE is turning her hand at being a mail-order minister after performing
her first official wedding over the weekend (20-21NOV04).

The BASIC INSTINCT actress, 46, presided over the union of restauranteur MICHAEL
BOURSEAU and sometime stylist BRENDA SWANSON at her Coldwater Canyon home in
California - with JACK NICHOLSON and ROBERT WAGNER serving as witnesses.

Bourseau tells website PAGESIX.COM, "No one's going to believe it when I hang my
wedding certificate up on the wall."

23/11/2004 17:43

Catholics cope with priest shortage
'Constant juggling act': Ghanaian imports, retired clerics filling gaps at
Christmas

Francine Dubé
National Post


Tuesday, December 24, 2002



The shortage of priests in Canada has become so acute that some churches are
cutting the number of Christmas masses being celebrated this year and retired
priests are being pressed into service.

Father Benoît St-Onge has been responsible for three churches in the Montreal
suburbs of Rosemère, Lorraine and Bois de Filion since August, when a fellow
priest left the fold.

Since then, Father St-Onge has met his obligations with the help of a
74-year-old retired Jesuit, but he has had to reduce the number of Christmas
masses at the three churches this year from 11 to nine.

"For sure that we can't do with two priests 11 masses, that would not be human,"
says Fr. St-Onge, who will lead five masses today and tonight.

The shortage of priests has also meant a reduction in services offered to
Catholics. Daily masses are no longer offered at any of the three churches,
though each one holds at least one weekday mass.

There are fewer than 10,000 priests in Canada today, down from 15,000 in 1970.
The number of seminarians has dropped from 2,645 to 550. The situation is so
dire that priests are postponing retirement and the death of a priest can sound
the death knell of a parish.

In the Northern Ontario town of Cobalt, there will be a Christmas Eve mass, but
Christmas Day mass has been cancelled.

In September, Father John Lemire, 33, of Our Mother of Perpetual Help in New
Liskeard, about 20 kilometres from Cobalt, became one of a growing number of
priests who have had to take on two or more parishes.

He has also had to cut the number of weekday masses at the Cobalt church from
five to one.

"There's only so many places I can be in at one time," he says.

"It is a constant juggling act trying to maintain a balance between the two
places."

About a dozen people used to attend the Christmas Day Mass in Cobalt, in
addition to the Mass on Christmas Eve. Fr. Lemire says if the Cobalt church
still had a priest, there would be a Christmas Day Mass.

Catholic residents of Mackenzie, B.C., have been without a priest for about six
years, according to Father Rodolfo Manaloto, of Christ Our Saviour Parish in
Prince George. Fr. Manaloto is one of two priests from Prince George who make
the 90-minute drive to Mackenzie once a month to celebrate Mass there.

Twice a month, the Sunday service in Mackenzie is led by a layperson.
Worshippers take communion, but wafers that were consecrated by a priest at a
previous service are used.

This Christmas, Mass in Mackenzie will be led by a semi-retired priest. There
will be one service only, instead of the two that are typically held in a parish
-- one on Christmas Eve and one on Christmas Day.

"We're just glad we have the one," says Sister Germaine Rosenberger, an Ursuline
nun from Saskatchewan who acts as pastoral life director for the parish.

There will be no priest in the parish to celebrate Mass on New Year's Eve or New
Year's Day.

In central Newfoundland, the Catholic Church will be able to meet its
obligations, but barely. Bishop Martin Currie will leave his cathedral in Grand
Falls this afternoon to drive 140 kilometres to a neighbouring parish to conduct
a Mass, then drive back to Grand Falls in time to prepare for Mass there at 11
p.m.

The central Newfoundland diocese has 18 priests serving 30 far-flung parishes --
on a weekend, some of the priests travel as much as 500 kilometres.

Four of the priests have been brought in from Ghana, but importing priests is
not a permanent solution, says Bishop Currie. The Ghanaian priests will have to
return to their country one day -- their bishop has permitted them only a
two-year sojourn in Canada.

Meanwhile, Bishop Currie's diocese has graduated only one seminarian in 13 years
-- last May.

"I have no one studying for the priesthood right now. What the solution to the
problem is, I don't know," Bishop Currie says.

On the west coast of the island, a priest from the cathedral in Corner Brook
will travel to Our Lady Star of the Sea Parish in Benoit's Cove to celebrate
Christmas Mass with Catholics who have been without a resident priest for three
years.

"Last Christmas they had a priest who was studying up in Ottawa and he just
happened to be down here visiting some friends for Christmas and he filled in
down there, so they were lucky," says Father Bernard Buckle, of Sacred Heart
Parish in Corner Brook.

Father Pat Lafleur of Nativity of Our Lord in Timmins, Ont., says that with the
death this month of Father Les Costello, Catholics who had booked marriage
ceremonies at St. Alphonsus Church for next summer have had to reschedule with
other priests, and in some cases have had to pick new wedding dates.

A priest has come out of retirement to work part-time at the parish until
January, but no one has yet been found to take over duties full-time.

"We don't know what we're going to do. We don't know if we're going to take that
parish and split it among the other priests, or if we're going to say, 'I'm
sorry we just can't manage this parish anymore.' That's the kind of thing we're
facing," Fr. Lafleur says.

fdube@...

© Copyright  2002 National Post

legal mail
dated july 31/05

dear dr g:

i wrote your organization on june 7, 2005, in response
to your letter to me, regarding proceeding with my case
for an international prisoner transfer to canada.
i also sent you my only copy of the denial and
reconsideration letter from florida, and asked that you
send me the copy back, and enclosed a couple of
canadian stamps, to ensure that i received the copy back.
it is now july 3lst, and i have not heard back from you.
i sure do hope that you received that letter from me.

could you please write me back, asap to let me know if
you received my last letter, which included the copy of
the denial from florida.

i was finally credited the 44 days i was held in canada,
awaiting extradition from florida, so my early release
date is august/07.  i wrote tallahassee last week,
informing them of the new release date, in hopes that
they might change my reconsideration date to reflect
the 44 days.

i am very anxious to hear from you.

sincerely

michelle goebert
y22562
d-1201u
broward correctional institution
20421 sheridan street
ft.lauderdale, fl.33332
usa

p.s. this was returned to me on aug.19th.  i believe
i addressed the envelope incorrectly.  please write
me asap.

thank you
michelle goebert
=====================================================