life More time to dine without the line P. 9
music Rockin’ prof brings the heat in concert series P. 17
sports Which Bees scored As? P. 19
Volume 29 Issue 20
Films that don’t fall short P. 13
opinions
ConU bookstore not kind to Kindle P. 21
Meet your ASFA presidential candidates
Photo by Navneet Pall and Arndell LeBlanc
theconcordian Tuesday, Feb. 7, 2012
arts
T
he Arts and Science Federation of Associations’ (ASFA) nomination period for its upcoming general election is over, and all candidates running for executive positions were announced on Sunday. Polling will be taking place between Feb. 15 and 17. As the campaign period begins, The Concordian sat down with presidential candidates Caroline Bourbonnière and Charles Brenchley for an inside look at their newly-launched platforms.
Full story on P. 3
lawsuit
Canadian Federation of Students demanding $1.8M Lawsuit between Concordia Student Union and CFS heats up Marilla Steuter-Martin Co-news editor
A
s legal proceedings continue between the Canadian Federation of Students and the Concordia Student Union, the stakes appear to have gone up. The CFS is claiming that they are now owed $1.8 million in unpaid membership fees. Despite the vote which took place in 2009 at Concordia to discontinue the CSU’s membership in the CFS, the national organization has not recognized the results and still considers the university a member. The CSU has since refused to pay any further membership fees, which continue to rack up. In 2011, the CSU became the eighth student union in three years to try and sue its way out of the CFS. CSU President Lex Gill helped file the initial petition for the vote and said this has been a
chronic pattern with the CFS in recent years. “Historically, the CFS has used mechanisms of ‘unpaid fees’ to prevent members from leaving the organization,” she said. “There is something wrong with an organization that won’t let its members leave without court intervention.” Despite the overwhelming majority of Concordia undergraduates who voted to leave the CFS, the organization’s bylaws state that a vote can’t be held until all fees are paid. Since the lawsuit, the CFS has produced a document which Gill calls “highly suspicious,” claiming acknowledgement of debt from former CSU President Keyana Kashfi. They claim that Kashfi signed a statement prior to the vote confirming that the CSU owes the CFS over $1 million. Gill explained the CFS is demanding unpaid fees dating back to the ‘90s before the Engineering or JSMB faculties were part of the CSU. She went
on to say that they are seeking payments which were made to the office of CFS Quebec, a separate legal entity from CFS’ national office. “[The CFS’s] calculations are illogical,” she said. “I am completely firm in my conviction that we do not owe the CFS $1.8 million and never have.” The CSU, as well as Concordia’s Graduate Students’ Association, are both in the midst of legal proceedings with the CFS, and Gill doesn’t expect to be done anytime soon. “This process takes years,” she said. The CSU is seeking $100,000 in damages from the CFS, citing its actions as being in violation of the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms. “The CFS refuses to recognize the democratic will of students,” Gill said. Despite repeated attempts, the CFS never returned phone calls for comment.
Expect shuttle bus delays P. 4 theconcordian.com