The Asian Star April 13 2019

www.theasianstar.com

Vol 19 - Issue 11

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Gas prices hit 169.9 cents in Metro Vancouver

MLAs get bigger pay increases than others

Gas prices hit record levels in Metro Vancouver on Friday, believed to be due, in part, to this week’s increase to the provincial carbon tax. The highest reported price for regular Friday was 169.9 cents per litre in White Rock, where gas is full-service — a full six cents above last year’s high of 163.9. Other self-serve gas stations in the region were selling gas for one cent less. B.C.’s carbon tax went up from $35 to $40 per tonne this month, adding an additional 1.1 cents to the per-litre price of gas — a price already inflated because two of the four refineries in Washington state that supply the province have been shut down, leading to a cinched supply. “We’re not the only ones starting to see record prices,� said gas analyst Dan McTeague, citing sky-high prices in California. “We are in new territory and I suspect, for most people, the pain at the Continued on page 6

rovincial politicians are getting larger pay raises this year than nurses, social workers and hundreds of thousands of public servants who signed new contracts with a government that argued it didn’t have the money to pay them higher salaries. MLA salaries increased 2.7 per cent on April 1, to $111,025. Meanwhile, more than 200,000 public-sector employees will only see a wage increase of two per cent this year, as part of new collective agreements signed with an NDP government that insisted it was unaffordable to pay them more.

MLAs are exempt from wage guidelines that apply to other public-sector workers. Instead, their annual pay increase is indexed to inflation. That increase amounts to an extra $2,919 this year. The news did not go over well with representatives of other public-sector workers, most notably the B.C. Teachers’ Federation, which is still in bargaining talks. “I don’t begrudge people from getting a wage increase, but when the bosses are getting an increase that isn’t being offered to the workers, that’s a real problem,� said president Glen Hansman. “If it comes to a general wage increase, if that’s what the rate of inflation is, then workers in the public and private sector shouldn’t be made to feel ashamed for asking for similar things.� The government, however, has declared it unaffordable to Continued on page 6

Canadians responsible for hundreds of terrorism deaths A suicide bomber from Calgary strikes near Baghdad. A Windsor man masterminds the torture and killing of foreigners at a Dhaka bakery. Two London, Ont., gunmen take hostages at a gas plant in the Algerian desert.

Canadian terrorists have killed and injured more than 300 in other countries since 2012, according to figures compiled by Global News that document the victims of so-called extremist travellers. Fatal attacks in Algeria, Bangladesh, Bulgaria, Iraq, Russia, Somalia and Syria were attributed to Canadians during that time. An attack in Michigan resulted in no deaths but seriously injured a police officer.

Citizens of 19 countries were killed in attacks involving Canadian perpetrators, including locals and British, Colombian, French, Indian, Israeli, Italian, Filipino, Japanese, Malaysian, Norwegian, Romanian and U.S. nationals.

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Mystery surrounds motive in latest Surrey killing

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Tel:604-591-5423

he man gunned down in a Newton townhouse complex in the 13900 block of 72 Avenue on Tuesday night does not fit the usual profile. Police have identified 30-year-old Amrendra Vijay Kumar (pictured) as the victim and confirmed he was not known to police or connected to gangs but also say it was not a random event. His friend, Rick Sahota, says Kumar came to Canada seven years ago to continue his education. He lived with Sahota’s family who says they are devastated by the loss. Sahota says his friend was “a stand-up person� who they last saw on the weekend. He says Kumar met with friends on Tuesday for lunch but had picked up a shift at Hollyburn Family Services. He would have been coming home at the time of the shooting. ‘Man of the community’ Sahota and Parm Sidhu say their friend was like

family and everyone who knew him is in shock. They say no one can believe that a man with such heart came to such a violent end. “Ame was a man of the community. He did not just say the words he lived it,� said Sahota. Kumar who called himself Ame was well known in the community for promoting health like Movember fundraising for prostate and testicular cancer. He volunteered at Shakti Society — a nonprofit society in Surrey that helps empower underprivileged families and youth. Sonia Andhi runs the society and says when she heard the news she was “absolutely shocked� and that “it hit too close to home.� The avid hiker was also known to go to the temples to talk about cancer Continued on page 7

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M Trudeau is Trudeau defends tougher stand on border crossers as refugee advocates express defending his Third Country Agreement. Roughly 40,000 government’s new tougher line on asylum refugee hearing by an independent tribunal. asylum seekers have entered Canada in this seekers as the Liberals’ immigration They would instead be referred to an fashion over the past two years. The deal message shifts further away from the immigration officer for faster processing, even allows Canadian officials to immediately send calls for openness that defined his party’s though the proposed new system is raising asylum seekers back to the United States − but 2015 campaign.

Refugee advocates human-rights concerns. The new provisions only if they arrive at official border points. who previously supported the Liberal may run up against a Supreme Court ruling Canada and the U.S. are working behind the government’s record are outraged and from 1985 that laid the foundations of refugee scenes to update the agreement and address are preparing legal challenges over new law in Canada. That ruling, in a case known the loophole. Border Security Minister Bill immigration measures contained in this as Singh, said refugee claimants are entitled Blair told The Globe in March that one option week’s omnibus budget bill. The measures to an oral hearing where issues of credibility for updating the agreement would be to allow would potentially prevent asylum seekers are at stake. Individuals are choosing to enter Canadian officials to take asylum seekers who enter Canada on foot at unauthorized Canada at points other than official border who cross at an unauthorized crossing to crossings because of a loophole in the Safe crossings from having access to a full the nearest official border point where they

In Vancouver, a new anti-money laundering law will impact Trump’s company Thanks to new legislation coming out of the Canadian province of British Columbia, set to become law next year, we might soon learn the identities of people using shell companies to buy units in one of President Donald Trump’s most lucrative — and controversial — foreign real estate projects.

The legislation would create a registry of real names behind anonymous shell companies and trusts — both of which are commonly used in money-laundering, and both of which have turned Vancouver into a global haven for dirty money. Since its inception in 2017, the $360 million, 616-foot-tall Trump International Hotel and Tower in Vancouver

has been dogged by controversy, especially as it pertains to worries about foreigners investing in the building in order to try to influence presidential decision-making. In 2018 U.S. counterintelligence officials began investigating the building, according to CNN, looking into the financing of the building’s construction and sales. These concerns mirror similar questions surrounding Trump’s buildings in places like Panama and Azerbaijan. Those projects featured red-flag signs that indicate money laundering — specifically buyers using anonymous shell companies to hide their identities.

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could then be refused entry.

It is not immediately clear if that proposal is connected to the legal changes in the budget bill. The Liberal government’s new stand on refugees is in sharp contrast to the welcoming message that featured prominently during the 2015 election campaign, which coincided with the humanitarian crisis that flowed from the Syrian civil war. Mr. Trudeau promised during that campaign to resettle 25,000 refugees from Syria, outdoing thenConservative leader Stephen Harper’s pledge to resettle 10,000.

Kenney vows to personally strangle every BC resident UCP leader Jason Kenney says that he’s willing to personally murder all 5 million residents of British Columbia with his bare hands if the BC provincial government does not approve the Trans Mountain pipeline.

Kenney made his homicidal intentions known while at an election campaign stop in Calgary. “If our neighbours to the west continue to be barrier in the pipeline construction process, I will have to do what’s only fair; kill them,” said Kenney to his supporters who applauded his bold murder plan. “This goes beyond the hollow promises of Rachel Notley’s cut-off-their-arms policy.

Albertans want real action and they want a

leader who can get his hands dirty and knows how to bury a body or two.” The former federal cabinet minister said that there’s nothing that will stop him from choking the life out of any British Columbian who crosses his province’s economy; whether that be the oilsands or cheering for the wrong hockey team. “Jobs in our province are much more important than red-tape government regulations that say it’s wrong to suffocate someone until they’re dead,” added Kenney.

In response, BC Premier John Horgan said he will defend its residents from Jason Kenney by weaponizing the province’s LNG pipeline hypocrisy.

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OPINION

By Vincent Geloso Senior Fellow The Fraser Institute

Saturday, April 13, 2019

SNC-Lavalin reminds us that big government invites big scandals

If we want fewer scandals, we must scale back government to limit the temptation to indulge in scandalous behaviour The SNC-Lavalin scandal, which continues to dominate headlines across Canada, has many moving parts. It’s hard to disentangle everything so as to assign blame. But the situation provides an important lesson that seemingly many have forgot: big government invites big scandals.

Political power can be misused for personal gain. It can be wielded in ways that favour a party’s electoral prospects or personally enrich government officials. The greater the powers, the scale and the scope of governments, the greater the temptation to misuse power.

In that regard, there’s a rich economic and political literature that ties size and scope to corruption and political opportunism. Most

of it relies on the Fraser Institute’s Economic Freedom of the World index, which captures the two main mechanisms that allow for the misuse of power.

The first mechanism hinges on the fact that government restricts economic activity via regulation. When this happens, there’s an incentive for corrupt officials to ‘grease the wheels.’ The idea is that, because of regulations, firm owners will pay to speed up the process (permit approvals, for example).

The index can test the relationship between corruption and regulation. One paper, using a large international sample, found that some regulations tend to increase corruption – especially those related to restrictions on property rights. Other studies have confirmed this idea, noting corruption involving restrictions against importing foreign goods.

The second mechanism relies on government spending. Political actors can direct spending towards privileged parties

that have corrupted them. For example, government contracts going to party friends or favoured firms. For this, there’s some empirical evidence.

However, scandals from this mechanism, unlike regulatory mechanisms, are found in electoral machinations. As governments can decide where to allocate spending and to whom, political actors have an incentive to use that power in ways that favour their reelection (or even their personal wealth). Here, the economic history literature is rife with examples.

For example, during the Great Depression in the United States, the poorest states hit the hardest by the crisis received very little of the public spending meant to alleviate the crisis. These states, largely in the south, were already solidly in the column of states that would vote for the president’s re-election. As a result, dollars spent there would yield little electoral rewards. Most of the spending went to electorally important states. Another study, using the same historical episodes, noted that the same thing happened at the congressional level, whereby those with political clout were able to redirect spending their way.

Finally, there’s a recent Canadian example to corroborate this point. When the last federal government enacted a stimulus package, a disproportionate share of the spending went to electoral districts crucial to the acquisition of a majority position in Parliament.

This wide body of research suggests that if we want fewer scandals, we ought to find ways to scale back government to limit the temptation to indulge in scandalous behaviour.

If anything positive comes out of the SNCLavalin scandal, perhaps it will be a reminder of this important fact.

Vincent Geloso is a senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and visiting professor of economics at Bates College who earned his PhD from the London School of Economics.

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MLAs get bigger pay increases than others anything more than a two-per-cent annual increase to unionized health care workers, social workers, corrections staff, Indigenous services employees and other civil servants who have negotiated new three-year deals.

Finance Minister Carole James has said the balanced budget can only be maintained under what is called the “sustainable services negotiating mandate.�

Her ministry has described it as about “balancing the need for fair and reasonable wage increases with outcomes that are affordable and managed within the fiscal plan.� Every one-per-cent increase for public-sector employees costs government approximately $304 million a year. James on Wednesday defended the discrepancy between pay for MLAs and those for publicsector unions. “You are talking about one year versus three years,� James said in an interview. “You also have to look at the supports for the programs and services that are there. If I look at the amount of dollars and resources that we put into public services, if I look at the support we put into child care, into education into the areas of work, we’re not only improving the wages we’re improving the working conditions and the supports for the people who work in the system. “So you have to look at the whole picture.�

Will the changes help you get a better price on your favourite concert tickets? They also delve into the politics around B.C.’s money-

laundering scandal, parties flip-flopping over gas taxes and criticism of the carbon tax, and the Speaker’s attempt to clean up heckling at the legislature. The contracts already signed with unions like the B.C. Government and Services Employees’ Union contain “metoo� clauses that allow their wages to increase if another union negotiates a richer deal. But the me-too clauses are not linked to MLA salaries.

The BCTF has been arguing for higher wages to help recruit much-needed teachers from other provinces.

In the past, the union has tabled proposals that included cost of living indexes without success, said Hansman. “Between the MLAs’ inflation-indexed wages and then the incredible benefits and pension plan they have for them, I’m wondering if they themselves are kind of looking at that disconnect,� said Hansman. “I think they that they are. “We’re living in the very same communities, our homes are side by side, and these folks knock on our doors and ask for our support during election times, and these are the kinds of things that need to be examined.�

MLAs chose to link their pay to automatic cost-of-inflation increases after a disagreement over a 29-per-cent raise and pension improvement in 2007 that pitted the NDP and Liberals against each other and led to accusations of political motivations.

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Saturday, April 13, 2019

Gas prices hit 169.9 cents

From page 1

Mystery surrounds motive in latest Surrey killing

in Metro Vancouver pumps will continue.” Werner Antweiler, a business professor at the University of British Columbia, said the additional taxes and higher prices could have locals searching for alternatives to gas-powered vehicles. Endure the pain at the pump or shun gas altogether?

B.C. commuters react to rising gas prices

“People will eventually start buying more fuel-efficient vehicles as a result of high fuel taxes — whether it’s a carbon tax or any other fuel tax,” he said earlier this week.

Another 1.5 cent per litre price increase is expected on Canada Day, when TransLink’s regional fuel tax rises from 17 cents to 18.5 cents per litre.

Canadians responsible for hundreds of terrorism deaths From page 1 The majority of killings were claimed by the so-called Islamic State, while others were the work of Al Qaeda affiliates and Hezbollah, but attacks by Al Qaeda-aligned groups were more deadly.

The figures are an attempt to tally overseas terrorism casualties attributed to Canadians from the time that numbers of extremist travellers began to spike in 2012 until the territorial defeat of ISIS last month. A total of 127 victims reportedly died in the attacks, and 195 were injured. Fifty-five attackers also died.

Four of the attacks killed more than a dozen victims and were worse than any mass murder in Canada since the 1985 Air Indian bombings by Sikh extremists.

Injuries included stab wounds, burns and cuts caused by flying glass. “While Canadians are right to think that terrorism generally happens less in our country, we also need to keep in mind that we export a lot of terrorism in different forms all over the world,” said Toronto-based terrorism researcher Prof. Amarnath Amarasingam.

Canadians have long been active in foreign terrorist groups, but their numbers increased sharply following the start of the Syrian conflict. In 2013 alone, overseas attacks in which Canadians played key roles killed 90 and wounded 98. A February 2014 RCMP document noted the “growing” participation of Canadians in foreign conflicts and acts of terrorism and called preventing “high-risk individuals” from leaving the country a “challenging but important task.” The government subsequently ramped up efforts against extremist travellers — placing them on the no-fly list, arresting them at airports, seizing their passports and having them intercepted as they transited through Turkey. But some were still able to find their way to foreign terrorist groups. “Unless there is some legitimate reason to prevent people

from traveling to conflict zones, the rights of mobility contained in Section 6 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms apply,” the RCMP wrote in “Foreign Fighters: Preventing the Security Threat in Canada and Abroad.”

cancer prevention and the importance of early screening. ‘Loss of a good soul’CBC spoke with other friends who did not want to be publicly identified for fear of retaliation. They say they are “deeply saddened by the loss of a good soul.” He had recently graduated from the Westcoast College of Massage Therapy and was waiting to hear how he had done on his board exams. Kumar’s LinkedIn profile lists him as attending the Zhengzhou University in China from 2006 to 2011. It states he graduated with a bachelor’s degree in medicine and surgery.

He then attended Fairleigh Dickinson University in Vancouver where it states he obtained a master’s degree in health care administration. Fairleigh Dickinson University is a private school in downtown Vancouver that bills itself as offering “ students one of the few opportunities to earn an American college

degree while studying in Canada.”

His past work history includes security supervisor, community and residential care worker and most recently, social support worker.

Hollyburn Family Services, which works with special needs children and youth, confirmed Kumar was a casual employee, clinical director

Chris Burt said in a statement.

“While we have no knowledge of the circumstances of his passing, we convey our condolences to his family.”

Amrendra Kumar and his new wife on their wedding day in January. The couple was married in India. Kumar was married in India this January. His new bride is still there.

IHIT says a vehicle sped from the scene after the shooting. Forty minutes later near 164 Street and 92 Avenue, a car was located on fire.

It is believed to be linked to the killing.

Police appealing for information Police are appealing for anyone who was in the area or has dashcam video from the area on Tuesday night to come forward.. You can contact the Surrey RCMP at 604-599-0502 or Crime Stoppers to stay anonymous. The file number is 2019-050485.

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Saturday, April 13, 2019

None of the RCMP officers in B.C. dedicated to fighting money laundering are investigating those types of crimes, says a new report to the provincial government.

An interim review of money laundering, released Monday by retired RCMP officer Peter German, said a team of Mounties funded by Ottawa to deal with money laundering is more than three-quarters unstaffed, with the remaining police officers focused on other matters.

The revelation sparked a fresh round of blame and accusations by the B.C. and federal governments, which mostly pinned the problems on previous governing parties.

Of 25 funded positions in the RCMP E Division money-laundering team, 11 are filled, according to German’s report. Only

RCMP’s money-laundering unit not focused on that job: report five of the 11 are working as investigators, with the rest on training or absent for other reasons.

The five remaining officers are busy referring cases to B.C.’s civil forfeiture office, which seeks to seize property, vehicles and other proceeds of crime, said German.

Eby said that’s unacceptable and likely one of the reasons why B.C. has had so few money-laundering prosecutions by federal prosecutors.

“It’s a startling piece of information and it’s an obviously troubling piece of information,” said Eby. The RCMP staffing problems come despite repeated meetings between Eby and Canada’s minister of organized crime

reduction, Bill Blair, in which Blair publicly stated Ottawa’s desire to crack down on money laundering. Blair was not available for an interview, but in a statement said he’ll continue to collaborate with Eby and German and blamed the problems on the previous federal Conservative government of Stephen Harper. “The previous government’s cuts of over $500 million from the RCMP’s budget denied them the necessary tools and resources needed to combat organized crime,” Blair said. “The cuts to the RCMP led to the end of their Integrated Proceeds of Crime Unit’s investigation alongside British Columbia’s gaming policy and enforcement branch, which could have helped prevent

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future instances of money laundering.”

German pointed to the RCMP’s decision in 2013 to restructure and focus manpower away from specialized units, like financial crime, and into anti-terrorism. He also noted that federal austerity, the rising cost of investigations, attrition from the RCMP and a lack of specialized officers have contributed to the current staffing problems.

Assistant Commissioner Kevin Hackett, the RCMP officer in charge of criminal cases in B.C., said money-laundering is not being ignored and officers in several other units are investigating cases. He said in a statement that the RCMP are involved in eight moneylaundering investigations in B.C. right now.

Hackett said such cases are extremely complex and expensive, and recruiting the right people can be difficult. B.C. Liberal critic Mike Morris, a former solicitor general and RCMP inspector, said Eby knew last spring during budget estimates that the financial RCMP squad lacked the proper manpower.

B.C. can at any point create its own police team to combat an issue if it feels strongly, added Morris. “If they feel that money laundering is such a major problem in British Columbia, then put the resources into it and knock it down,” he said. Eby said he’s waiting for new money announced in last month’s federal budget — $70 million nationally over five years. Given the scale of this province’s crisis, Eby said a majority of that funding should flow to B.C. immediately.

Although B.C. has an RCMP policing contract, the decisions on how to fund and organize specialized financial crime units are federally controlled. “In terms of the loss of specialization, it can be said that what took only the stroke of a pen to abolish will take many years to redevelop,” wrote German.

“Some critics, including former members of the RCMP, simply do not feel that the force’s current structural and staffing model will allow for a revitalization of financial crime investigations.”

Ottawa and B.C. do have some officers working on money laundering through the Joint Illegal Gaming Investigation Team, though that 27-person team also has three vacancies. Eby said the team is dedicated entirely to money laundering inside casinos, which is one small piece of the criminal activity occurring in B.C. Eby and German were unable to say why the five remaining RCMP officers in the money-laundering team were focused on civil forfeiture. However, civil forfeiture does not require conviction of criminal activity, and has long been considered an easier way for governments to target the proceeds of crime rather than building a complicated criminal case and taking it to court.

“What stands out is we were asleep at the wheel nationally on money laundering and white collar crime as a national issue with very little resourcing towards it for a long time and the results have let themselves be known in Vancouver,” said James Cohen, executive director of the Canadian chapter of Transparency International.

The information released on Monday was part of a report by German into money laundering within the real estate, luxury automobile and horse racing sectors. Eby said the full report is being reviewed before its release.

German’s first report, released in June 2018, investigated more than a decade of rampant money laundering inside B.C.’s casinos. Eby blamed the previous Liberal government for failing to crack down on illegal activities

Saturday, April 13, 2019

BC Liberals try to make political hay out of Maple Ridge homeless battle While the debate between the provincial government and the City of Maple Ridge over an incoming modular housing complex continues to escalate, a different group has seen a political opportunity.

“The people of Maple Ridge do not want this imposed on them,” said B.C. Liberal MLA Jas Johal, as his party brought up the issue for the first time in question period at the legislature on Thursday. “Will the premier listen to the people of Maple Ridge and put together a proper program that includes real access to services?”

In a bid to alleviate conflicts over a homeless camp in Maple Ridge, Housing MInister Selena Robinson last month

announced the province will be constructing 51 temporary modular homes on land it owns in the city. Robinson has consistently argued that her government’s model for replacing homeless camps in municipalities with nearby modular housing does not need to be modified for Maple Ridge, and repeated as much in response to questions from the B.C. Liberals. “There are 1,000 people around this province who, before, did not have a home. They lived in a tent.

And they now have a home,” Robinson said.

Later on Thursday, Premier John Horgan continued his government’s defence of its decisions in Maple Ridge, which are in opposition to the wishes of Mayor Mike Morden and most councillors —

West Vancouver district sues 3 men for allegedly cutting down trees to boost home value West Vancouver has filed a lawsuit after four trees were cut down in a park near Horseshoe Bay. Three men are being sued for allegedly chopping down the trees in Larson Bay Park, on the Howe Sound waterfront, to increase the property value of a nearby home.

The district is seeking more than $35,000 from the men. According to court documents, the owner of a nearby home, Nancy Moffat, passed away and two of the accused became executors of her estate.

Take-backsies? Businessman sues to get $500K gift back from independent school The trees were cut down in July 2018 and the house was sold for $2.85 million about six

months later. Peter Moffatt, David Moffat and Caceres Lopez are accused of damaging three red cedars, one bigleaf maple and a blackthorn shrub to clear a pathway to the home to improve its value.

The district alleges the trees were alive and healthy and are part of a coastal Douglas fir ecosystem that is considered at risk in B.C. Class action lawsuit over $30M Ponzi scheme certified in B.C. court Peter and David Moffat have replied to the lawsuit in a court document. “We performed maintenance work on a neglected portion of Larson Bay Park,” the document read. “We disagree any damages were caused.” The case has yet to be heard in court.

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LOCAL / NATIONAL

Saturday, April 13, 2019

South Asian neurosurgeon pleads guilty to 2nd-degree murder of his physician wife Mohammed Shamji has admitted to killing his physician wife, Dr. Elana Fric, in December 2016. The world-renowned neurosurgeon was dressed in a pinstripe suit as he appeared for a pretrial hearing in Ontario Superior Court on Monday morning. Shamji pleaded guilty to second-degree murder as two of the couple’s three children and Fric’s parents sat in court. It was the first time the kids, now 11 and 14, have seen their father since his arrest.

“Justice will never befall us,” an emotional Ana Fric, Elana’s mother, told reporters outside the downtown Toronto courthouse.

“The only justice we will ever have is if she will come back — and she will never come back.”

Shamji has been in custody at a GTA detention centre since his arrest nearly 2½ years ago. Jury selection in his case was scheduled to begin this week.

Shamji was initially charged with first-

died from strangulation and degree murder and committing blunt-force trauma. Shamji, an indignity to human remains her husband of 12 years, in the death of his wife, a was arrested at a coffee shop Scarborough-based family in Mississauga, west of the physician and mother of the city, the following day. couple’s three children. SecondAccording to a two-page degree murder carries an agreed statement of facts automatic life sentence with no parole eligibility for 10 years.

Mohammed Shamji & Dr Elana read in court Monday, the Shamji will next appear in the Fric were married for 12 years before couple got into an argument downtown Toronto courthouse Shamji killed her and disposed her at the family home on Nov. body in a suitcase in 30, 2016 — the same night on May 8 for his sentencing Vaughan, Ontario. she was reported missing. hearing.

Family, friends, Dr. Elana Fric colleagues and others affected

by Shamji’s actions will have the opportunity remembered as a ‘beacon of light’ at Windsor, to file victim impact statements before he is Ont. funeral. Leaving relationship is ‘most sentenced. Murder happened at home while dangerous time’ for domestic violence children were asleep. Fric’s body was found victims, experts say. in a suitcase near an underpass in Vaughan, Ont., north of Toronto, on Dec. 1, 2016. She

Their three children — then age 3, 8 and 11 — were asleep at the time. But the eldest daughter awoke to the sound of her mother screaming and a clamour of banging coming from her parents’ room.

“Mohammed struck Elana multiple times, causing her significant blunt-force injuries all over her body, including a broken neck and broken ribs,” court documents read. “He then choked her to death.” When their daughter went to her parents’ room to investigate the noises, the document said, Shamji ordered her back to bed. He then packed Fric’s body into a suitcase. Shamji and Fric were married for 12 years before he killed her and disposed of her body in a suitcase in Vaughan, Ont. (Twitter) Shamji put the suitcase in his vehicle and drove about 35 kilometres north of the city.

BC Hydro report says newer high-rise buildings use twice as much electricity as highrises built in the 1980s even though the newer buildings are marketed as energy efficient. The Crown corporation’s report released Friday says luxurious amenities like pools, hot tubs, fitness centres, saunas, and even bowling alleys are contributing to the dramatic increase in buildings’ energy footprint. Spokesperson Tanya Fish says, when it comes to electricity, condo dwellers don’t realize how much those perks cost.

Fish said there’s a disconnect between what dwellers think they are consuming and what their building is actually consuming. “They’re not seeing the cost of the extra amenities on

their monthly BC Hydro bill,” she said. Instead those costs are covered by strata fees. BC Hydro overbilling drives out Burnaby condo residents In addition to having more amenities, newer buildings tend to be bigger, include more units than older ones, and steadily consume electricity throughout the day.

BC Hydro says while 50 per cent of energy use from buildings comes from individual units, common building operations are responsible for the other half.

“Oftentimes everything’s running 24 hours a day, 365 days a year,” says Fish. “Lights in hallways and lobbies are always on, elevators are always running.

Luxury condo buildings guzzle electricity, says BC Hydro report

LOCAL

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Man suffers life-threatening injuries after explosion & fire at Surrey pub A 36-year-old man is in hospital with lifethreatening injuries after an explosion ignited a fire at a pub in the Fleetwood area of Surrey, B.C., early Thursday.

First responders were called to the fire at Jack’s Public House, near 152 Street and 91 Avenue, just before 3 a.m. PT. The fire burned for hours and the building is considered to be a total loss.

In a statement on Thursday morning, RCMP said witnesses reported seeing someone run out of the building after an explosion and away from the area, but police weren’t able to find them despite a search.

However, one man was taken to hospital with injuries consistent with being caught in a fire after paramedics were called to a home in Guildford about an hour later.

Firefighters have deemed an explosion and fire that erupted at a Surrey, B.C. pub early Thursday morning as suspicious.

Witnesses said they heard the blast go off at Jack’s Public House on 152 Street at around 3 a.m. Flames tore through the building within minutes,andtookfirecrewshourstoknockdown.

After the blaze was contained, Surrey RCMP revealed the incident is considered suspicious.

“Witnesses reported seeing an individual run out of the building after the explosion and leave

the area,” the detachment said in a news release.

“Surrey Fire Department has now deemed the explosion and fire as s u s p i c i o u s .”

A police dog was brought to search the scene, but couldn’t find a suspect. Surrey RCMP said a man has since been discovered with lifethreatening injuries “consistent from a fire.”

Paramedics found the 36-year-old after being called to a home in Guildford and transported him to hospital.

Mounties and Surrey firefighters are continuing to investigate how the fire started, and have asked any potential witnesses who haven’t spoken with investigators to come forward. They are particularly looking for anyone with dash cam video.

There’s a fire hall just across the street from Jack’s Public House, and crews managed to respond to the fire quickly, though Battalion Chief Brian Carmichael said they had no choice but to mount a defensive attack because of how quickly the flames had spread.

“Once the fire breached the roof the concern was collapse,” Carmichael told CTV News. “We didn’t want firefighters inside.”

The roof did eventually collapse, and there was extensive damage to the pub.

11

Porn actress Stormy Daniels who dated Donald Trump plans ‘meet-and-greet’ at Kamloops nightclub Stormy Daniels, arguably the most famous pornographic actress in the world right now, is coming to Kamloops.

The actress, originally famous for her work in the adult film industry, became a household name in 2018 after escaping a non-disclosure agreement that precluded her from speaking about a 2006 affair with U.S. President Donald Trump, who was then a reality TV star expecting a child with wife Melania. News of the affair, as well as an attempt by Trump and several associates to keep Daniels quiet with a US$130,000 payment during the 2016 U.S. election, has become one of the major scandals of a presidency steeped in scandal, which is some feat.

Daniels, whose real name is Stephanie Clifford, capitalized on her newfound notoriety last October by releasing Full Disclosure, a tellall memoir in which she revealed lurid details about the sexual encounter that Trump tried to keep under wraps. She has since resisted all attempts by the president and his supporters to silence her, and is currently on tour promoting the book.

To date, Daniels has only visited American cities. But on June 2 she will take her Make America Horny Again strip-club tour to Kamloops nightclub The Duchess, for what her website describes as a “meet-andgreet” event. It’s the only Canadian stop that the exotic dancer has planned thus far.

Islamic State claims fighter killed in airstrike was electronics store worker from Alberta An Islamic State-linked media outlet has published a fond eulogy for an ISIL fighter who appears to be a previously unknown Canadian who traveled from Alberta to the so-called caliphate where he died in a coalition airstrike.

The man, who adopted Al-Kanadi as part of his nom de guerre to mark his Canadian roots, worked at an electronics store in the province before his radicalization, the notice says.

The Arabic language death notice, often referred to as a “martyrdom notice,” was published online Wednesday by the AlMuhajireen Foundation, according to the MiddleEastMediaResearchInstitute(MEMRI), which monitors terrorist communications.

His name is rendered as Abu Abd Al-Aziz Al-Kanadi. Communiqués from the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant use fighters’ kunya — a nom de guerre or nickname — rather than their actual birth names. Al-Kanadi means “the Canadian” in Arabic and several ISIL fighters from Canada have used it as part of their kunya.

There are only a few details of his life in Canada in the eulogy, according to a translation by MEMRI. The notice says he was born into a Pakistani family in Alberta and raised as a Muslim.

“He received a proper Islamic upbringing,” the notice says.

It claims he worked in an electronics store, which a relative owned, and that his “journey to jihad” began with a pilgrimage to Saudi Arabia.

There, the notice says, he witnessed huge crowds of fellow Muslims who seemed oblivious to the grievances being committed against Muslims in “Palestine, Iraq, and Syria.” In response, he began searching for a true Muslim country.

He started reading widely, including books and studies written by clerics and scholars, whom he had never encountered before, the notice said. His search also brought him to jihadi figures like Osama bin Laden and Abu Mus’ab Al-Zarqawi, a violent jihadist militant who helped found ISIL.

In 2014, when the fighters gained ground in Iraq and Syria, they declared the founding of a caliphate, an Islamic state, with Abu Bakr alBaghdadi, as caliph. Amid its grand ambitions, ISIL, also known as ISIS, demanded that all Muslims “pledge allegiance” and gather together.

Abu Abd Al-Aziz Al-Kanadi, the notice says, heeded that call.

Along with other men — who are not identified, nor revealed as fellow Canadians or not — immigrated to ISIL territory through Turkey.

That’s a really long time to remain alive Once there, he was assigned to the ISIL media unit because of his linguist abilities; he was fluent in French, English and Urdu. He also had experience with media equipment, - Is the police complaint process efficient, effective and accessible? the notice says, presumably a reference to electronic gear he - Are there aspects of the police complaint process that could sold at the Alberta store. be improved?

“There is a lot we don’t know about him,” - What changes to the Police Act - Part 11 (Misconduct, Complaints, said Elliot Zweig, deputy Investigations, Discipline and Proceedings), if any, should be made? director of MEMRI. “He’s not somebody who was previously known to us or seen written about in ISIL materials or Canadian.

The notice gives only his province, not his city or town.

“It’d be nice to know his legal name, his age, his city, when he was killed.”

Special Committee to Review the

Police Complaint Process Share Your Views

Provide your written, audio or video submission by 5 p.m. June 28, 2019

www.leg.bc.ca/cmt/pcp or call 1.877.428.8337

12

LOCAL / NATIONAL

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Sweet! Nanaimo bar goes postal with announcement of new stamp The Nanaimo bar’s prominent place in Canadian confectionery is getting a sweet boost thanks to the announcement by Canada Post that it will be featured on a stamp.

The grahamy,-coconutty-custardychocolate-no-bake treat is one of five Canadian desserts featured in a new Sweet Canada stamp set scheduled for release on April 17.

Also getting the Canada Post stamp of approval is Saskatoon berry pie, butter tarts, tarte au sucre (sugar pie) and blueberry grunt.

Nanaimo Mayor Leonard Krog said the bar — and the city — are worthy of the honour.

Besides the Nanaimo bar, the new stamp set also features Saskatoon berry pie butter tarts, tarte au sucre (sugar pie) and blueberry grunt. (Canada Post) “Nanaimo is a happening town and now one of the great products of Nanaimo is being recognized appropriately for its contribution

to Canada as a great place to live,” he said.

Nanaimo restaurateur George Kulai agrees. He make a signature version of the bar at his Smokin’ George’s BBQ Restaurant that uses pretzels, maple syrup, cayenne pepper, sea salt and bacon.

Delta School District has released its draft budget for the 2019-2020 school year, one that includes no reductions from the current level of service.

The district is proposing an operating budget of $160.853 million for 20192020, which includes a surplus of $63,000.

Delta is anticipating a small increase in enrollment — 10 full-time enrolled (FTE) students — bringing the total forecast to 15,407 FTE students for the upcoming year.

“We are pleased to be able to put forward a draft balanced budget where no

reductions have to be made. This is welcome news for all our students, staff and Delta families,” Delta School District secretary treasurer Nicola Christ said in press release.

In the release, the district highlighted several recent provincial funding announcements as contributing to the projected $63,000 surplus.

An increase in FTE per-pupil funding of $45 raises the total rate for students in kindergarten through Grade 12, including in continuing education and alternate schools, to $7,468 per student.

Significant piece of Coast Salish art stolen in Nanaimo “It’s a piece of Canadiana,” he said, “and a wonderful honour for anyone who’s ever made Nanaimo bars here in Nanaimo and contributed to the legend.”

According to the Canadian Encylopedia, the Nanaimo bar was named Canada’s favourite confection in 2006, beating out the likes of Coffee Crisp, Beaver Tails and Laura Secord chocolate.

Canada Post says the stamps are “fun shaped,” and come on a recipe card background.

A booklet of 10 permanent domestic Sweet Canada stamps goes for $9.

Top earners in Surrey school district revealed Surrey School District’s top five earners have been revealed in an annual compensation disclosure report.

The totals provided are for the 2017/2018 fiscal year, which ended June 30, 2018.

Superintendent Jordan Tinney was the district’s top earner, who received a $258,993 salary, $8,857 in benefits and $35,662 in pension contributions.

Tinney also received $43,038 in “other compensation,” including $21,365 in vacation payout and $21,673 as a vehicle/transportation allowance.

All told, Tinney’s total compensation for the year was $346,550, up from $334,833 in the prior fiscal year (2016-17) and $298,468 in 2015-16, meaning his compensation has risen $48,082 over that time.

The district reports that “due to the size of the district, the need to visit schools and other district worksites, the requirement to transport out of district individuals, and the need to be available at any time, the Board provides a leased vehicle to the Superintendent, SecretaryTreasurer and Deputy Superintendent.”

“Recognizing the personal use that may be realized, these three individuals reimburse the district one-third of the vehicle leased costs,” the district adds in its report.

Coming in second was Deputy Superintendent Rick Ryan whose total compensation was $248,486 (up from $240,821 in the prior fiscal year). The 201718 figure includes $187,896 in salary, $7,022 in benefits, $25,874 in pension contributions, $11,327 in vacation payout and $16,367 for a vehicle/transportation allowance.

Secretary-Treasurer Greg Frank was the third highest earner, receiving $231,401 in total compensation, including $187,372 in salary, $8,505 in benefits, $18,493 in pension contributions and $17,031 in “other compensation,” which was a vehicle/transportation allowance.

Next, was Assistant Superintendent Christy Northway, whose total compensation in 2017-18 was $206,340, including $157,166 in salary, $8,510 in benefits, $21,643 in pension contributions, $13,021 in vacation payout and $6,000 for a vehicle/transportation allowance.

No cuts in proposed Delta School District budget As well, “new funding to inclusive education, Indigenous education and English language learners (ELL) will bring service expansions to better address student needs,” according to the release, which specified this funding, though included in the overall operating budget, exists as separate and allocated funding to be used towards these specific areas.

FTE per-pupil funding for special needs students increased $3,600 for Level 1, $800 for Level 2 and $450 for Level 3, bringing those rates to $43,400, $20,200 and $10,250, respectively.

Meanwhile, FTE ELL funding increased $75 to $1,495 per student, and Indigenous education funding increased $220 to $1,450 per student.

Funding for adults seeking to complete their secondary school education increased by $77 to $4,773 per FTE student.

On top of that, next year’s budget got a boost thanks to assurance from the province that there would be adequate funding for the difference between the new Employee Health Tax and the legislated MSP reduction.

LOCAL

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Surrey mayor insists public was consulted on policing – during election campaign Surrey Mayor Doug McCallum insisting the public was consulted on his policing plan – and he says it was done during his election campaign.

This, as criticism mounts over the way he is developing his transition plan from RCMP to a municipal police force.

“We’ve been very clear, and we ran the campaign for literally three months and did a huge amount of public consulting,” McCallum said.

“In fact, we’re probably elected, certainly I’m elected, because I said to the public if they elected me that I was going to change to our own police department on the first day that we had a council meeting. And we did that. We consider that, probably, consulting because we were very clear in the public that if you elect us, we’re going to change our police force from RCMP. So we’ve had that part of the public consulting.”

The mayor said the plan is “on track” to be finished and sent to the provincial government by the end of the month. Once that’s been done, McCallum said he intends to release the document to the public but said some “operational techniques” may be kept private.

After that, he said the city would embark on public engagement by way of meetings in every town centre, as well as a website.

Mayor McCallum said that consultation would “ask questions like, ‘What in your neighbourhood would you want the police to be addressing to keep your community safe?’”

But Safe Surrey Coalition Councillor Jack Hundial argued this doesn’t equate to proper consultation. Hundial wants the public to have a say prior to McCallum’s plan being finalized.

“We do consultation on a wide variety of projects smaller than this,” Hundial said. “TransLink is out doing consultation on transit, currently. Even a land use application has a public hearing component.”

While the councillor acknowledged McCallum was given “some clear indicators from the public” simply by being elected, Hundial said “from that time to now we still need to listen to the community.”

“Part of good governance is hearing the community throughout the process,” he added.

“The public expects politicians to listen to them.”

Lone Surrey First Councillor Linda Annis also urged McCallum to “put the facts to the people before we take it to Victoria.”

“The reason why I wanted to do that is I think the residents of Surrey need to know how much it’s going to cost and what it’s going to look like and to make an informed decision if that’s the way they want to go,” Annis said.

NDP MP asks public safety minister to trigger RCMP probe into coerced sterilization An NDP MP has written to Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale urging him to use “all legitimate tools” to have the RCMP open an investigation into coerced sterilization allegations that have come from mostly Indigenous women across the country.

About 100 allegations of coerced sterilization have surfaced across the Prairies and in Ontario and Quebec since 2017, when a lawsuit was filed in Saskatchewan.

Don Davies, NDP MP for Vancouver Kingsway, handed the letter to Goodale on Thursday after question period.

“I ... request that you use all legitimate tools at your disposal to ensure that the RCMP opens an investigation into all allegations of forced or coerced sterilization within its jurisdiction in Canada and lay appropriate charges against those responsible for committing them,” wrote Davies in the letter.

In a statement, Goodale’s office said coerced sterilization was “a serious violation of human rights.”

However, the statement sidestepped Davies’ request saying that the RCMP is one of 300 police forces across Canada and can’t investigate crimes outside of its jurisdiction.

“We encourage anyone with specific criminalallegationstoreportthemtothepolice of jurisdiction,” said the statement. “There is no time limit to report an assault to police.”

The minister’s office said it recognized that “survivors may feel barriers to reporting to police” and that it would “welcome Mr. Davies’ collaboration to help explore any barriers so they can be broken down.”

NDP MP Don Davies wrote a letter urging Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale to trigger an RCMP probe into allegations of coerced sterilization.

(Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press) Davies said in an interview that Ottawa was ignoring its international obligations as a party to the UN Convention Against Torture which requires governments to proactively investigate violations of human rights.

13

Metro Vancouver mayors call on federal parties to establish transit fund Six months before the federal election, Metro Vancouver’s mayors are calling on all parties to commit to setting up a permanent transportation fund that would see the region receive an estimated $375 million each year.

On Tuesday, the Mayors’ Council on Regional Transportation — which represents 21 municipalities, an electoral area and Tsawwassen First Nation — released its Cure Congestion campaign, which includes the proposed congestion relief fund.

The idea, mayors say, is to have a consistent, predictable source of direct funding for transit projects in municipalities across the country, instead of project-based funding. The funds — $3.4 billion annually — would be allocated based on ridership.

In its 2017 budget, the feds committed $20 billion to transit system improvements across the country over 11 years, through bilateral agreements with provinces and

territories. Metro Vancouver received just over $2 billion for its 10-year plan.

“This campaign is about more than just money. We need Ottawa to change the way that they partner with communities on transportation infrastructure,” said Vancouver Mayor Kennedy Stewart. “Having federal parties commit to a congestion relief fund will make sure we can accelerate our major transportation projects and deliver the next long-range plan.”

The Mayors’ Council is joining communities across the country and the Federation of Canadian Municipalities in asking for the fund. Langley Township Mayor Jack Froese said the concept of a permanent transit fund is not new.

“Canada is lagging behind other developed countries that have a national transit strategy with a steady stream of federal funding for major cities,” Froese said.

Fleeing man arrested after jumping in unmarked police car with B.C. Mountie inside Kamloops RCMP had an easy day Wednesday after the suspect in a bank fraud case jumped into an off-duty police car.

According to Cpl. Jodi Shelke, police were at a bank on Notre Dame Drive at 3 p.m. Wednesday after a man allegedly impersonated a customer to get money transferred into his own accounts.

The suspect ran out of the bank and hid outside, avoiding marked police cars.

An off-duty police officer was driving in the

area and training his police dog when he heard about the bank fraud chase on the radio .

The Mountie saw the suspect and beckoned him into his car. As the the man climb into the unmarked car, the cop told the suspect he was under arrest. The man tried to jump out of the car but was stopped by the sound of a police dog barking at him from the back of the car.

Police arrested the suspect, who was a 51-year-old Calgary man previously known to RCMP.

14

LOCAL

Saturday, April 13, 2019

‘Serious breaches’ by Vancouver police doom high-profile fentanyl trafficking case Two men accused of masterminding an extensive drug trafficking operation have had all charges against them dropped after a judge found Vancouver police had violated their rights on multiple occasions.

Dennis Alexander Halstead and Jason James Heyman were charged after a highprofile seven-month investigation, but the case against them fell apart in February, when a B.C. Supreme Court judge excluded the bulk of the evidence against them.

After a series of hearings that began last fall, Justice James Williams found there were several Charter violations by investigators.

“I do not make this decision without careful thought. As a result of this court’s ruling, these criminal charges will not be adjudicated on their merits. That is regrettable; society deserves a better outcome,” Williams wrote in a ruling posted online Tuesday.

The judge noted that the charges against the two men concerned a large-scale drug ring involving substantial amounts of fentanyl, heroin, cocaine and guns — items that inflict “horrific damage” on the community.

But, he went on, “where the police commit serious breaches in their investigational activities, considerable harm is done if the courts send the message that such transgressions count for little, or that they can simply be overlooked.”

The court registry confirmed that all charges against the two men have been dismissed.

A VPD spokesperson declined to comment.

Halstead and Heyman were both arrested in 2015 as a result of an investigation nicknamed Project Trooper, and later charged with multiple offences including possession for the purposes of trafficking and illegal firearms possession.

Six people would eventually be charged, but Halstead was the principal target of the investigation, and Heyman was believed to be his business partner, according to court documents.

The other four were said to be lower-level dealers.

The men were accused of running a criminal organization that supplied deadly substances to impoverished residents of the Downtown Eastside and distributed drugs throughout B.C. and Alberta.

At a 2015 news conference, investigators said they had seized $1.8 million in drugs, including 20.5 kilograms of cocaine, 1.6 kilograms of heroin, 12.2 kilograms of methamphetamine, 23,000 fentanyl pills and 228 kilograms of the painkiller phenacetin.

Twelve guns, a crossbow and eight vehicles — including four with hidden compartments — were also taken during searches.

Halstead and Heyman were scheduled to go to trial this February.

Former premier proposes $9.4B 4-track rapid transit line in Metro Vancouver Both Vancouver city council and the Metro Vancouver Mayors’ Council have voted to endorse a rapid transit extension to the University of British Columbia.

Combined with the planned Broadway subway project that will bring rapid transit from the VCC-Clark station to Arbutus Street, the cost is expected to run roughly $7 billion.

But for Mike Harcourt, that’s not enough.

The former B.C. premier and Vancouver mayor wants people to think even bigger when it comes to planning the next few decades of public transportation.

“It’s one of the great cities of the world, and the people of Vancouver deserve

the best transportation system we can get,” said Harcourt on Wednesday.

His pitch — which has been in the works for about four years, and has been publicly floated before — is to build a rapid transit line all the way from Lougheed Mall in Burnaby to the University of British Columbia. The majority of the quadruple track line would be tunnelled.

“We just need to up our game,” said Harcourt. “[The current plan] is not ambitious enough, and it’s not in keeping with the way we have done things — boldly and long term — here in the Greater Vancouver area.”

BC commuters react to rising gas prices

Analysts have been warning British Columbians about the impending spike in gas prices, but that doesn’t make the adjustment any easier.

With gas prices spiking, some commuters are feeling the pain at the pump, while others have turned away from gas altogether.

“I put in 50 bucks [of gas] about every other day,” said Rob Thomasson, who drives a Mazda.

Pricey at the pump: Gas prices on the rise in Metro Vancouver Thomasson lives in Chilliwack and commutes daily to his tech job in Burnaby, roughly an hour-and-ahalf drive each direction.

Taking public transportation would double his commute time and, in the past, he’s tried unsuccessfully to carpool.

Prices at the pump are expected to creep up to $168.9 by the end of the week.

“Right now, my wife and I just budget those gas prices and do the best we can,” Thomasson said.Prices don’t look like they’ll be dropping anytime soon, either.

B.C. premier to consider ‘relief ’ from record-high gas prices On Thursday, according to GasBuddy, some gas stations in Vancouver were charging $1.65.9 a litre — compared

to last year’s historic high of $1.63.9.

Prices at the pump in Vancouver are expected to creep up to $168.9 by the end of the week.

Some British Columbians are feeling the pinch less than others, though, since switching to hybrid or fully electric vehicles.

Jeff Kendrew, who lives on Vancouver Island, said watching gas prices rise pushed him toward electric vehicles.

He owns two now: a Tesla Model 3 and a Nissan Leaf.

“For me, I like tech-savvy things,” he said, describing his motivations for going electric.

“Environment came second and, once I got the Leaf, I learned that it is incredibly inexpensive to operate.”

Jeff Kendrew, who owns two electric vehicles, standing beside his Tesla. He said it was the technology that originally drew him to electric — and then he saw the gas savings. (Sean Armitage, who lives in Squamish and commutes all over B.C. for work, also turned away from gas — but says it doesn’t have to come with the hefty price tag.

Armitage is on to his third Toyota Prius, after years of spending about $70 a day driving his work truck or van.

Gas prices approach record levels after carbon tax increase

Smuggler’s Inn owner charged with, uh, smuggling The owner and manager of a bed and breakfast on the Canadian-American border is facing charges relating to smuggling people into Canada.

The owner and manager of a small American bed and breakfast called the Smuggler’s Inn has been charged by the Canadian government for uh… allegedly smuggling people over the border.

According to the Surrey Now-Leader, Robert Boule, an American man, is

currently in Canadian custody, facing 21 charges that relate to helping people cross the border into Canada. Boule’s Smuggler’s Inn is located in in Blaine, Washington, and sits mere feet from the Canadian border.

The charges stem from incidents that allegedly happened over the last year and, as CTV reported, it’s unknown if the seven people he’s alleged to have helped cross the border are still in Canada.

French school board granted leave to appeal by Supreme Court over Charter complaint B.C.’s French school board has been granted leave to appeal to the Supreme Court of Canada over its claim the provincial government has chronically underfunded French language schools.

The motion is part of a long-running lawsuit brought by the Conseil Scolaire Francophone de la Colombie-Britannique alleging the province infringed on the minority language education rights guaranteed in Section 23 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom by insufficiently funding transportation, early childhood education and facilities.

The French board was partially successful in a 2016 B.C. Supreme Court decision and was awarded $6 million for school bus services, after the judge found the province failed to adequately fund the transportation program for a period of 10 years.

In that case, the judge grappled with the question of what the Charter requires when there are barely enough students in a community to justify offering minority language education.

An appeal filed by the French board was dismissed. A cross appeal filed by the province was allowed, setting aside the damages to fund the transportation program.

LOCAL

Saturday, April 13, 2019

15

More than 10,300 Canadians lost their lives to opioids in less than 3 years Saskatchewan’s chief medical More than 10,300 Canadians died as a result of an apparent health officer and co-chair of the Dr. Theresa Tam, Canada’s chief public span involving the potent painkilling drug. opioid-related overdose between special advisory committee on the epidemic Public Health says the crisis continues health officer, said the newly released January 2016 and September 2018, of opioid overdoses, said in a release. to affect the entire country, but certain figures serve as a “stark reminder� of Public Health Agency of Canada says.

Elsewhere on Tuesday, U.S. health regions, including B.C., Alberta and the importance of maintaining and “During the first nine months of officials warned doctors not to abruptly Ontario, have been hit harder than others. ramping up efforts to stop the epidemic.

2018, 3,286 Canadians lost their lives to The latest data “reaffirm that all Canadians stop prescribing opioid painkillers 10 people die from illicit drug overdoses apparent opioid-related overdoses,� the to patients who are taking them for every day in Canada, study suggests are being affected, directly or indirectly, agency said in a release on Wednesday. chronic pain ailments, such as backaches.

How the way we talk about addiction by this epidemic,� Dr. Saqib Shahab, For perspective, the town of Banff, Alta., can make it harder for people to recover had a population of nearly 7,600 in 2016.

Apparent opioid-related deaths are New data released by the agency shows counted through data provided by the more than 3,200 Canadians died after provinces and territories from offices apparent opioid-related overdoses between of chief coroners or medical examiners.

January and September last year alone.

Opioids can be hard to disentangle The data also indicate that fentanyl and from other factors in a death, including other fentanyl-related substances continue different drugs and underlying illnesses, to be a “major driver� of Canada’s opioid so the numbers take a long time to crisis, with 73 per cent of accidental apparent crunch and come with qualifiers. opioid-related deaths in the nine-month CRA wins appeal against BC couple who alleged ‘malicious’ tax evasion probe he British Columbia Court of Appeal has set aside a $1.7-million damage award to a Vancouver Island couple who a lower court had said were ruined through the “malicious� actions of the Canada Revenue Agency.

Tony and Helen Samaroo were operating a restaurant, night club and motel in Nanaimo in 2008 when they were charged with 21 counts of tax evasion for allegedly skimming $1.7 million from their businesses.

They were acquitted of all charges in provincial court in 2010 in what the judge hearing the case agreed amounted to the Crown using “voodoo accounting� to support its case, and the couple then sued for malicious prosecution.

A B.C. Supreme Court judge ruled last year that the Samaroos were the victims of an “egregious� prosecution based on an unfounded theory and suspicion about the alleged tax evasion.

But in a decision released Tuesday on behalf of the three-judge panel, Justice David Harris says the trial judge was wrong to base his analysis on the idea that tax evasion can’t be proven without also proving exactly how it was done.

As a result, Harris says the judge dismissed some relevant evidence as “mere hypothesis,� instead of recognizing there was a reasonable and probable cause to launch a case.

Woman shot in North Vancouver dies in hospital Single mother Ngoc Mai (Anita) Nguyen was on life support, but her injuries were considered ‘not survivable’ 32-year-old woman shot in North Vancouver last week has died, police have confirmed.

The Integrated H o m i c i d e Investigation Team said that Ngoc Mai (Anita) Nguyen succumbed to her injuries on Thursday.

Nguyen was left in grave condition after she was shot on the morning of April 2 in the 1100 block of Lonsdale Avenue.

She was kept on life support but her injuries were considered “not survivable.�

North Vancouver shooting victim with ‘non-survivable injuries’ identified Nguyen, a single mother, has a three-year-old daughter.

She worked for a food preparation company close to where the shooting happened.

There has yet to be an arrest in the case and police are appealing for anyone with information to come forward.

IHIT released a picture of Nguyen’s car today.

Nguyen was driving this Volkswagen Passat just before being shot in North Vancouver on April 2. (IHIT)

They are asking anyone who may have seen anything between 9 am and noon to call IHIT with information.

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16

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Former Burns Lake mayor Luke Strimbold expected to plead guilty to sex charges The former mayor of Burns Lake, B.C., who faces a slew of sex charges involving minors, is expected to enter guilty pleas next month.

Luke Strimbold is facing 29 charges, including sexual assault, sexual interference and invitation to sexual touching involving six male teens, all of whom were under the age of 16 at the time.

B.C. Prosecution Service spokesperson Dan McLaughlin confirmed Strimbold is expected in court in Smithers on May 6 to enter the pleas, though McLaughlin would not say to which charges or on how many of the charges Strimbold would plead guilty.

At least 15 of the charges relate to offences alleged to have happened while

Strimbold was in office, according to court documents. He resigned in September 2016.

A publication ban prohibits identifying the names of the alleged victims in any reports.

Luke Strimbold, former Burns Lake mayor, charged with 24 sex-related counts; 3 alleged victims under 16 A special prosecutor took control of the case in March 2018 because of Strimbold’s status as a former mayor and his links to the B.C. Liberal Party.

None of the allegations have been proven in court.

Greater Victoria’s sewage treatment system could be at least $10M over budget Construction of Victoria’s longawaited sewage treatment system is on time, but may not be on budget.

The team behind the $765 million project is forecasting it could cost at least $10 million more than expected.

In a report to the board overseeing construction, the project team says a hot constructionmarketonVancouverIslandhas pushed up the price of materials and labour.

Completing the project as planned could cost $30 million more than the original budget, but those cost overruns could be reduced to $10 million by dropping some aspects, the report said. ‘Too many unknowns’ prompt call to switch sewage-sludge plans “Frankly, given the climate of construction in our region over the last few years, I would be very surprised if we had not heard something like this come forward,� said Barb Desjardins, the mayor of Esquimalt and chair of a regional committee overseeing construction.

Contracts that have been awarded so

far for installing the conveyance pipes have cost more than expected, whittling down contingency funds, the report said.

A pipe is installed along Dallas Road for the new sewage treatment system for the Capital Regional District. (Capital Regional District) To keep the total cost in check, the project team is recommending eliminating three of the four remaining conveyance components.

The report notes they may no longer be necessary for the success of the project.

Despite potential cost overruns, Desjardins said she is pleased with how closely expenses are being watched. “Everything that we receive from the project board to date shows that they are being very conscious of the public purse strings,� Desjardins said.

Grants from the provincial and federal governments are covering $459 million of the project cost, but any additional budget requirements would fall to local taxpayers, unless more grants are found.

Man found guilty of driving while on phone, despite dead battery A man in British Columbia has been found guilty of driving while on his phone, despite the phone’s dead battery and proper storage in a cubby hole.

On Oct. 12, 2018, Patrick Henry Grzelak was driving home from work in Surrey, B.C., when he was ticketed for using his cellphone because he had earbuds in both his ears.

The phone’s battery was dead and the phone itself was stored in a cubby hole on the front dashboard, according to the decision in B.C. provincial court, released on Monday.

Justice Brent Adair ruled that even though Grzelak was not holding the device, the earbuds should be considered part of the phone when plugged in. “In my view, by plugging the earbud wire into the iPhone, the defendant had enlarged the device, such that it included not only the iPhone (proper) but also attached speaker or earbuds,� Adair wrote. “Since the earbuds were part of the

electronic device and since the ear buds were in the defendants ears, it necessarily follows that the defendant was holding the device (or part of the device) in a position in which it could be used.�

Adair also cited a case from 2015 in which the court rejected the notion that a driver holding a phone with a dead battery should not be considered for a ticket. “Simply holding the device in a position in which it may be used constitutes the offence, even if it is temporarily inoperative,� she wrote.

In British Columbia, electronic devices must only be used while driving in a handsfree manner and the device must be affixed to the car. A violation of the law carries a fine of $368 and four demerit points. Fines can increase to $2,000 for repeat offenders.

A message to Grzelak was not immediately returned.

Kelowna is the ‘rattiest’ city in the BC Interior The third annual list of British Columbia’s top 20 “rattiest� cities has been released and Kelowna is in the top 10 once again.

On the bright side, Kelowna fell one spot on the list from sixth to seventh this year, but that also leaves it as the rattiest city in the B.C. Interior. Orkin Canada, a pest control company, unveiled its annual list on Thursday, which finds Vancouver in the top spot once again. Victoria, Burnaby, Richmond, Surrey and Langley round out the top six before Kelowna appears on the list at seven. The list takes into account all rodent treatments performed by Orkin Canada between Jan. 1, 2018 and Dec. 31, 2018. If you’re like most not a fan of rats, a few steps you can take to try and avoid SVOOJOH JOUP B SPEFOU PO ZPVS QSPQFSUZ t

Seal cracks or holes in your foundation and install weather stripping around windows and doors. t ,FFQ TISVCCFSZ BU MFBTU B NFUSF BXBZ from exterior walls of your home. t (FU SJE PG NPJTUVSF TPVSDFT TVDI BT clogged gutters. t #F EJMJHFOU JO LFFQJOH HBSCBHF BOE PME food away from your house.

Here’s the entire top 20, so you know which cities to avoid this summer: Vancouver, Victoria, Burnaby Richmond Surrey, Langley, Kelowna, Duncan, Abbotsford Coquitlam Delta Nanaimo Sidney, Kamloops, New Westminster Port Alberni, Maple Ridge, Port Moody Port Coquitlam, Terrace.

RCMP seek patient missing from Coquitlam psychiatric facility RCMP are asking for the public’s help to find a patient who did not return to the forensic psychiatric hospital in Coquitlam, B.C., this week.

Christopher Askey, 50, is now considered to be unlawfully at large. A release said he was reported missing from the hospital on Colony Farm Road just before 10 p.m. PT on Wednesday after failing to return on a day pass.

RCMP said Askey “may behave in a way that presents a risk to themselves or the public.� Anyone who sees him is asked not to approach him and phone 911.

Askey is described as white with black hair, brown eyes and a light beard.

RCMP said he is six feet tall and weighs 181 pounds, and has a heavy build.

The statement said he was last seen wearing a black jacket, grey sweatpants, a black shirt, white shoes and a dark toque.

Anyone with information on Askey’s whereabouts should call Coquitlam RCMP at 604-945-1550 and quote file number 2019-10714.

Shah Rukh Khan pays tribute to his ‘Fauji’ director colonel Raj Kapoor Bollywood superstar Shah Rukh Khan says he is used to being mollycoddled on the sets due to the late Colonel Raj Kapoor, who directed his 1988 TV series “Fauji.”

In a heartwarming tribute to the director, who died at the age of 87 in New Delhi earlier this week, Shah Rukh tweeted on Apr. 12: “He loved me so much.

Encouraged me. And today if I am used to being mollycoddled on sets, it is because of this man who made a ‘Fauji’ out of a boy, like his own. Will miss you Sir...always.

May you find

peace in your new mission.” Filmmaker Shekhar Kapur chimed in: “Yes, I remember well the day the ‘Colonel’ brought you to my house during ‘Fauji’. ‘Watch this young man,’ he said. And he was so right. What a wonderful compassionate man.” SRK then said: “And he was so jovial. Somehow

in the midst of all stresses, he had a way that could make you smile away your troubles. One of those people you assumed will never leave your side because he was so full of life.”

Kapoor passed away on Apr. 10 night due to age-related issues, Ritambhara, one of his daughters. He retired from the army after he became a disciple of Osho and moved to Mumbai to work in films. He produced many serials and acted in fulllength and ad films. Just a few years ago, he published a novel “When Shiva Smiles.”

In Samar Khan’s book titled “SRK - 25 Years of a Life,” Kapoor had penned an essay.

He had shared his thoughts on being known as “the man who made ‘Fauji’ and therefore, by default, made Shah Rukh Khan.” “I’ve been an actor, I’ve fought three wars, but all that anybody seems to remember is that I launched Shah Rukh 20 years ago.

18

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Deepika’s ‘Chhapaak’ shoot

D

604-566-3111

7233 - Fraser St., Vancouver, BC

eepika Padukone started shooting for her upcoming film, Chhapaak, in which she plays an acid-attack survivor. We hear that post the shoot, at the end of the day, the actress makes sure that she unwinds by watching one episode of the TV series, The Marvelous Mrs Maisel, a comedy-drama. Says a source, “Deepika’s role is very demanding and getting into the skin of the character takes a toll when you live the fierce journey of the survivor. So, to relax and divert her mind, she watches the series. It has now become a routine for her.” Padukone was born on 5 January 1986 in Copenhagen, Denmark to Konkani-speaking parents.

Her father, Prakash Padukone, a former badminton player, and her mother, Ujjala, is travel agent. Her younger sister, Anisha, a golfer.

Her paternal grandfather, Ramesh, was a secretary of the Mysore Badminton Association.

The family relocated to Bangalore, India when Padukone was a year old.[6] She was educated at Bangalore’s Sophia High School and completed her pre-university education at Mount Carmel College.

She subsequently enrolled at the Indira Gandhi National Open University for a Bachelor of Arts degree in sociology but later quit it due to scheduling conflicts with her modelling career. Padukone has admitted to being socially awkward as a child and did not

have many friends. The focus of her life was badminton, which she played competitively from a young age. Describing her daily routine in a 2012 interview, Padukone said, “I would wake up at five in the morning, go for physical training, go to school, again go for playing badminton, finish my homework, and go to sleep.”

P a d u k o n e continued to pursue a career in badminton throughout her school years and played the sport in national level championships. She also played baseball in a few state level tournaments.

While concentrating on her education and sporting career, Padukone also worked as a child model, first appearing in a couple of advertising campaigns at the age of eight.

In the tenth grade, she changed focus and decided to become a fashion model. She later explained, “I realised that I was playing the game only because it ran in the family. So, I asked my father if I could give up the game and he wasn’t upset at all.” In 2004, she began a fulltime career as a model under the tutelage of Prasad Bidapa.

Early in her career, Padukone gained recognition with a television commercial for the soap Liril and modelled for various other brands and products.

Saturday, April 13, 2019

HOROSCOPE

Salman prefers Mouni Roy over Sunny Leone for Dabangg 3 Even as Salman Khan began filming Dabangg 3 in Madhya Pradesh, speculation is rife about who will bag the special dance number in the cop action drama. While the first Dabangg had Malaika Arora dancing to Munni Badnaam, the sequel had Kareena Kapoor Khan swaying to Fevicol Se. Our source tells us that Mouni Roy is likely to win hearts with the dance number in the third Dabangg outing. “Initially, Arbaaz and director Prabhudheva felt Sunny Leone would be an apt choice for the pulsating number in Dabangg 3,� says our source, adding,

“However, Salman wasn’t too keen on the idea. He feels Mouni would be a better candidate for this racy track. She’s gorgeous and has nimble feet to pull off this special song in which Bhai himself will also feature.�

However, things are yet to be finalised and our informer maintains they haven’t considered another actress. “So, in all probability, it will be Mouni in the special dance number,� concludes the source.

19

Bollywood

Aries

March 21 - April 20 As the radiant sun in your sign angles toward cautious Saturn and powerful Pluto, the desire to steer clear of responsibilities and onerous tasks that need doing could reach a peak this week.

You may feel pressure from certain quarters to get a move on, yet despite knowing the urgency involved, a part of you could be resisting doing

situation, you might need to do push through such feelings and do it anyway because things aren’t likely to get any easier.

Taurus

April 21 - May 20 Tuesday brings a romantic quality into the picture, which could see you enjoying a special date with a loved one or connecting with someone you’ve admired for some time.

The days ahead also include more edgy transits, enabling you to see how certain beliefs have been holding you back for some while. The sun in an awkward angle to sobering Saturn and powerful Pluto later in the week could gift you with insights that enable you embrace empowering ideals and beliefs.

Gemini

May 20 - June 21 A focus on the topmost sector of your chart

others and perhaps publicize a charity event or other similar opportunity.

At the same time, you could experience some awkward social situations as the sun in

Saturn and radical Pluto. Certain people may not understand why you’re so secretive and could feel put out that you won’t discuss a key situation with them.

Cancer

June 22 - July 23

While you may dream of faraway places and opportunities to kick back and enjoy a pleasant vacation, this week you might need to knuckle down and tackle key responsibilities. This shouldn’t prevent you from booking a trip, however. It will give you something to look forward to. With the sun angling toward teacher planet Saturn and passionate Pluto in your sector of relating,

progress - at least it could seem that way.

Leo

June 24 - August 23 Adventurous Jupiter goes into reverse in your sector of leisure and self-expression, which could be an opportunity to learn more about yourself. What do you really love to do?

Discovering what brings out your playful side and what recharges you most could help you get better acquainted with your inner child.

When you do, the rewards could be truly heartfelt.

Virgo There seems to be a certain sweetness about a relationship, especially around Tuesday, when

This might be an opportunity to spend quality time with the one you love or go on a date with a new love interest. You want to see change in your life, and yet you resist doing whatever is necessary to make it happen. With the sun in your sector of transformation angling toward cautious Saturn and intensive Pluto, a side of you may prefer sticking with the status quo to embracing the new.

Libra

Sept. 24 - Oct 22

at a developing bond, which could occur at work or in another everyday setting. While this isn’t enough in itself to kick-start a relationship, it could plant a seed.

An awkward tie between the sun, sobering Saturn, and potent Pluto could coincide !

matters. Perhaps your partner or new lover is at loggerheads with family members, which could be a cause of arguments

Scorpio

Oct 23 - Nov 22 A romantic date might have an extra-special quality on Tuesday with a lovely lineup in your

" date or spoken for and hoping to rekindle your bond, you could have a very memorable time.

You could get bogged down in overthinking, though, even though a task should be relatively straightforward. Exercise can help resolve this, especially if you make it a daily habit.

Sagitarius Nov 23 - Dec 22

# $

journey through Gemini and your partnership zone, it could act as a catalyst for all kinds of conversations. It might also stir up ideas, bring up new information, and inspire you to be more socially active. At the same time, generous Jupiter turns retrograde in your sign on Wednesday, which could mean that certain opportunities take longer to come to fruition. The phase could last until August.

Capricorn Dec 23 - Jan 20

You may be ready to change your habits and sharpen up your exercise or diet

$ %

through your lifestyle zone. New information

new ways of getting results, whether at work or on your wellness journey. At the same time, you could experience a clash with family members if

& '

to let go of control in a certain situation.

Aquarius

Jan 21 - Feb 19 $

goals and plans, you may be unconsciously holding yourself back. You could be sabotaging your plans without even realizing it. This week, with the illuminating sun angling toward prudent Saturn and radical Pluto, you could have an insight that allows you to see what’s going on. This revelation could begin a journey that inspires you to heal this issue.

If you need help from a therapist or life coach, get it.

Pisces

Feb 20 - March 20 A delightful tie between sultry Venus and nebulous Neptune on Tuesday is perfect for a romantic evening out or spending time with someone you care about. You may understand each other without having to say much at all, and this could be a very intimate experience.

When it comes to money, you may feel you need to compete with others in your social circle who seem to have it all.

20

Press release

Saturday, April 13, 2019

MLA Ravi Kahlon welcomes $175,000 BC gov’t funding for upgrade Delta park North Delta MLA Ravi Kahlon is celebrating $175,000 in funding from the province for facility upgrades at Delview Park. This investment is the result of a year and a half of advocacy on Kahlon’s part.

“People in my community have told me that they want to see a new cricket field, covered benches, batting cage and washroom at Delview Park, and it’s great to see the support of the province on this,” said Kahlon. “The investment our government is making in recreation facilities in North Delta today will have an impact on people in our community for years to come.”

“The city is grateful for this funding from the province towards new amenities at Delview Park and appreciates MLA Kahlon’s support,” said Delta Mayor George V. Harvie. “This investment complements our Delta Families First initiative as these upgrades will greatly

enhance recreation and social opportunities at Delview Park.

The strong working relationship and collaboration between the province and

city of Delta is delivering new projects and opportunities for the benefit of the community. Kahlon said that cricket teams will finally have a local pitch to call home and seniors will have a comfortable

location to socialize. From the funding, $100,000 is going towards a shelter for seniors and a renovation to the pickleball courts. $75,000 is being allocated towards cricket facilities.

ISS of BC selected to improve settlement services for newcomers across Canada

Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada (IRCC) works with many partners in the delivery of services to newcomers to Canada, and supports their integration into Canadian communities. IRCC is actively working to improve these settlement services through the Service Delivery Improvements funding stream and will be providing funding of almost $2.6 million to the Immigrant Services Society of British Columbia (ISSofBC). ISSofBC will be delivering important services for three projects: Digital Literacy Training: The objective of this one-year project is to understand the needs of newcomers who require both language and digital literacy training, and provide them with digital skills to fully participate in language training and to use technology in their daily

lives. SPARK and IGNITE: This represents a unique partnership with Settlement Services International of Australia to provide an entrepreneurship program to immigrants and refugees. SPARK is a business-based incubation program aimed at newcomers. The goal is to help newcomers determine if self-employment is right for them and to assist them in refining their business ideas and concepts.

IGNITE is an entrepreneurship program that enables newcomers with viable business ideas to launch their businesses in B.C. through training and knowledge transfer. GAR Settlement Research: This is a multilingual, multi-method research project which aims to better understand the

settlement, social integration and labour market outcomes of Government-Assisted Refugees (GARs), ages 14 years and older, who arrived in B.C. from January 2007 to December 2016. The project will be guided by a multi-stakeholder advisory committee, comprised of government representatives, service providers, stakeholders, researchers and former refugees. IRCC’s Service Delivery Improvement Fund is a dedicated funding stream of over $30 million per year, devoted to service delivery improvement, innovation and experimentation to continue to find better ways to deliver services to newcomers, meet the needs of newcomer clients and support the

integration process. Quotes “I’m proud that the Government of Canada is working with organizations like the ISS of BC to provide highquality settlement services for newcomers across the country. Finding new and better ways to help newcomers succeed in their journey benefits all Canadians, by strengthening our labour force and the economy.” – The Honourable Ahmed Hussen, Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship “Thanks to the Service Delivery Improvement fund, projects such as these undertaken by the ISSofBC will improve IRCC’s understanding of the needs of entrepreneurial newcomers and support their successful integration into Canadian communities.” – The Honourable Harjit Sajjan, Minister of National Defence.

Saturday, April 13, 2019

21

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Saturday, April 13, 2019

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23

Press release

BC Liberals call for immediate action to curb youth vape use Todd Stone, MLA for Kamloops-South Thompson introduced the Vulnerable Adolescents Protection from E-cigarettes (VAPE) Act 2019 in the Legislature.

“Vaping and e-cigarette use is quickly becoming an epidemic among the youth of British Columbia,” said Stone. “Recent Canadian estimates suggest that a third of students in grades 10 through 12 are vaping, outpacing tobacco use at an alarming rate. By enticing youth with sugary flavouring, tobacco companies are lining their pocketbooks as a generation of kids succumb to nicotine addiction. It is baffling and simply dangerous that more is not happening immediately to quell this.

Government needs to act on this now.”

This bill contains amendments to the Tobacco and Vapour Products Control Act in an effort to better keep these addictive products out of the hands of our children. These amendments include banning the sale of flavoured vapour products, limiting the supply and accessibility of e-cigarette products through stricter retail controls, restricting the sale of products to adult-only tobacco stores, vape stores and approved pharmacies, and enacting tougher penalties for non-compliance.

“Alongside these amendments I am also calling on government to provide the resources needed in every middle and

high school across B.C. to implement evidencebased vaping awareness, prevention and support programs,” added Stone.

“Addiction is not something lost on British Columbians,” said North Vancouver-Seymour MLA Jane Thornthwaite. “Addiction can ruin lives and destroy futures. Every year vaping creates more addicts, and studies show that adolescent e-cigarette use correlates to cigarette use later in life. Parents are calling for immediate action from government to address this growing epidemic. There needs to be a concerted effort to intervene,

real change.”

“The fruity flavours, slick packaging, and ease of use are appealing factors for young people to try vaping, but they mask serious health risks under their kid-friendly cover,” said Kelowna-Lake Country MLA Norm Letnick. “Though touted as a ‘safer alternative’ to smoking, e-cigarettes are still laden with toxins like formaldehyde and contain highly-addictive nicotine. We know that this can be very damaging to a developing adolescent brain. Government needs to act now before more teens get hooked on vaping, more lives are damaged by addiction, and more strain is put on our health care system.” This bill continues work done by the previous government to limit youth access to vaping products.

take real steps, set real controls and create

In 2016, the former B.C. Liberal

24

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Vol. 10 No. 11

Saturday - April 13, 2019

Tel: 604-591-5423

E-mail: ads@theasianstar.com

Vancouver detached home prices drop by $170,000, and the industry is blaming government Vancouver’s closely-watched housing market clocked another weak month in March, with sales falling to their lowest level since 1986. Only 1,727 homes changed hands in Greater Vancouver in March, down 31.4 per cent from the same month a year earlier, the Real Estate Board of Greater Vancouver said Tuesday.

Prices for all housing types are falling.

The benchmark price of a detached home clocked in at $1.437 million, down 10.5 per cent, or about $170,000, in a year.

Condo prices are down 5.9 per cent in a year, to $656,900.

The industry’s growing frustration with government policies on housing was evident in the REBGV’s latest report. “Housing demand today isn’t aligning with our growing economy and low unemployment rates. The market trends we’re seeing are largely policy induced,� REBGV president

From page 3

the federal mortgage stress test, which reduced the maximum amount a borrower can take out on a mortgage by about 20 per cent, as well as by rising mortgage rates over the past year-and-a-half. “What policymakers are failing to recognize is that demand-side measures don’t eliminate demand, they sideline potential home buyers in the short term,� Smith said. “That demand is ultimately satisfied down the line because shelter needs don’t go away. Using public policy to delay local demand in the housing

Ashley Smith said. “For three years, governments at all levels have imposed new taxes and borrowing requirements on to the housing market.�

British Columbia’s provincial government introduced a foreign buyers’ tax in mid2016, in response to rapidly growing house prices. It was bumped up to 20 per cent, from 15 per cent, last year.

The city has also seen the introduction of a vacant home tax.

The region’s market has also been hit by

market just feeds disruptive cycles that have been so well-documented in our region.�

However, many experts say easing the recent rules on the housing market, such as eliminating the foreign buyers tax or the mortgage stress test, would just cause prices to start rising again, and household debt levels to climb.

In its recently released budget, the federal government announced a number of measures to help homebuyers, including a First-Time Homebuyer Incentive. Under this plan, the government-run Canada Mortgage and Housing Corp. (CMHC) contributes up to 10 per cent of the price of a new house, or five per cent of the price of an existing home, to qualifying first-time buyers.

CMHC would recoup its money when the home is sold. The measure is meant to reduce monthly mortgage payments.

March home sales slump to 33-year low in Metro Vancouver: report

with March 2018. Nearly 4,950 residential properties hit the market in March 2019 — an increase of around 11 per cent from the same month last year.

Seniors face eviction from East Vancouver apartment over $41 rent increase Bentall Centre, Vancouver’s largest office complex, selling for secret price The benchmark price

for a detached home in Vancouver declined to a little more than $1.4 million, down from $1.5 million in March 2018. For condos, the benchmark price dropped nearly six per cent

to $656,900. Townhomes were listed for a standard price of $783,600, also down six per cent from the same month last year.

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Saturday, April 13, 2019

Over 11% of Vancouver condos have a non-resident owner, says new CMHC report

#106 - 7565 132 St. Surrey, BC 604.572.3005

Over 11 percent of Vancouver condos have at least one non-resident as an owner, a number that jumps to more than 19 per cent when it comes to newer built condos.

The information is contained in a Canada Mortgage and Housing Corporation housing market insight report which also found that non-residents — defined as someone who

doesn’t have their principal residence in Canada — tend to own more expensive properties than residents, especially in Vancouver.

Some of the other findings: 7.2 per cent of all Vancouver properties have at least one non-resident owner.

Non-resident ownership is highest in

26

Saturday, April 13, 2019

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Cleaning company wanted workers for clean up job in Coquitlam For more details please call 604-902-2858

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DREAM CARPET

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LOCAL / NATIONAL

Saturday, April 13, 2019

BC ready if Alberta attempts to turn off the fuel taps, says David Eby B.C. Attorney General David Eby says B.C. will react with an immediate injunction if Jason Kenney, who is vying to become the next premier of Alberta, attempts to follow through on his threat to “turn off the taps” and prevent Alberta oil and gas from flowing to B.C. “If it’s necessary, we’ll be in the courts to defend the interests of British Columbians, and we can be in court right away to do that,” said Eby. The Alberta threat is retaliation for the B.C. government’s attempt to block construction

of the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project.

Kenney, the front-runner in the the April 16 Alberta provincial election, announced yesterday at a rally in Medicine Hat that he would immediately enact the fuel-limiting legislation known as Bill 12, if elected.

Kenneysaysifpremier,he’denactturn-offthe-taps legislation at first cabinet meeting “We’ll turn it into a real law, indicating to the New Democrats in Victoria that if they block our energy, we are prepared to use that,” he said. “And with gas prices in Vancouver today pushing $1.70 a litre,

BC man awarded damages from Aboriginal non-profit A judge has awarded $30,000 in damages to a B.C. man who was fired from his position with a Vancouver Aboriginal health organization “because he was not an Indigenous Canadian.”

Horacio Valle Torres was stunned last summer when he was terminated without notice or adequate explanation from his job as program manager of a Downtown Eastside centre providing services to Aboriginal families.

Alleged exlover’s claim muddles multimilliondollar battle over Vegas marriage

According to a B.C. Supreme Court judgment released Tuesday, Valle Torres felt the reason the Vancouver Native Health Society (VNHS) gave him for his firing was “not true” and that it created the impression with his colleagues “that he had done something seriously wrong.”

“It was only during the trial that the plaintiff learned the true reason for his termination,” wrote Justice Catherine Murray.

“The plaintiff was actually terminated because he was not an Indigenous Canadian.”

In addition to the award for aggravated damages, Murray also ordered the VNHS to pay Valle Torres two years’ salary and accrued vacation pay of $41,681.51. The money will be adjusted to account for amounts he received on termination. Torres had no comment.

The judge declined to award punitive damages, which are ordered in cases where deterrence and denunciation is warranted.

The Vancouver Native Health Society operates a centre which provides services to Aboriginal families on Vancouver’s Downtown Eastside.

BC farmers ripping out raspberries as industry faces high costs, cheap competition Peter Thind used to have 140 acres of raspberries on his Abbotsford, B.C., farm.

But he’s now scaled back to 20 acres, ripping out the crop to plant blueberries instead.

“It’s not profitable anymore,” he says.

“Raspberrywasn’tpayingustopaythemortgage.”

Growers say high costs of labour, land and upplies have made it difficult for local farmers to compete with cheaper imports of the berry from countries like Mexico, Chile and Serbia.

James Bergen, chair of the Raspberry Industry Development Council, says many farmers, like Thind, are turning to other crops instead.

“The B.C. industry is in a significant decline,” he says.

B.C. raspberry production was at its peak in the late 1980s and early 1990s, when 42 million pounds per year were picked. But production has dropped dramatically, falling to less than 17 million pounds last year.

The number of growers has declined too — from 500 at the raspberry industry’s peak to just 90 now.

Peter Thind has been growing raspberries in Abbotsford since 1974. (Tina Lovgreen/CBC) Thind’s grandson Kyle is taking over the family farming business and believes it will look very different in the future.

Vancouver to reconsider segregating its buildings with ‘poor doors’ City staff are looking for an outside opinion on whether it’s appropriate for developers to create so-called “poor doors” — separate entrances for residents of a building’s social-housing units.

The doors typically lead to a separate part of the building with fewer or lower-quality amenities and cheaper finishings. The City of Vancouver says the practice can help non-profit housing operators save money; it can be cheaper for operators to create their own bare-bones amenities for their tenants rather than chip in to maintain a common swimming pool, concierge or games room.

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Fort St. John left with $600K budget shortfall after hundreds of property values were reassessed Successfully appealing a property assessment can save the owner money — but when too many people do it, the city can take a hit.

In Fort St. John, B.C., more than 170 property owners appealed their assessments this year.

An unexpected drop in property values, and the lower taxes derived from that, caught the city off guard and left council scrambling to balance the budget.

“In January, we received a $38 million assessed value against commercial businesses and then [B.C. Assessment] essentially reversed most of that three months later,” said David Joy, general manager of corporate services with the city.

“That had a profound effect on our budget.”

To appeal or not to appeal? Expert advice for dealing with your new property assessment The northeastern B.C. city is

now facing a shortfall of more than $600,000 after the unexpected change.

Overall, commercial property values in Fort St. John dropped by 1.9 per cent this year compared to the original assessed value.

The city also saw a smaller drop in assessments for residential values and major industry, but the main issue came from commercial properties — which fall under a higher tax bracket.

“I will be asking B.C. Assessment about their original assessed values that they’ve provided to us in January,” Joy said.

“We didn’t question it at the time because we had 20 additional commercial businesses come on during 2018, plus some natural progression.”

He wants an explanation for why the value of properties changed so significantly in just a few months and questioned the assumptions made in the original assessments.

‘Senior’ lawyer agrees to represent accused in Edmonton attack A “senior” lawyer has been lined up to meet with the man accused in the Sept. 30, 2017, Edmonton attack, weeks after he parted ways with his previous legal counsel.

Abdulahi Hasan Sharif appeared in the prisoner dock of an Edmonton courtroom Tuesday. In 2017, he was charged with a series of offences including five counts of attempted murder following a series of vehicle attacks on a police officer and pedestrians.

Last month, Sharif suddenly parted ways with his highprofile lawyer three weeks into a pretrial proceeding. Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Paul Belzil instructed him to find a new lawyer through Legal Aid during a hearing March 28. However, Sharif had not done so by Tuesday’s court appearance.

Doug Ingersoll, assistant general counsel for Legal Aid Alberta, was on hand Tuesday to try to sort out the situation.

Legal Aid is a publicly-funded service that supplies lawyers for accused people who cannot afford legal representation.

Ingersoll gave Sharif the option of selecting from a list of senior lawyers available to represent him, or of having one appointed to meet with him.

That lawyer, who was not identified in court, has already been selected and is available to

take the case, Ingersoll said. Sharif picked that option, and Belzil asked that the lawyer meet with the accused by next Thursday.

Ingersoll spoke in short sentences so an interpreter, seated next to Sharif in the prisoner dock, could translate the proceedings into Somali.

The new lawyer will have a tall task going through what Justice Paul Belzil called a “voluminous” amount of evidence disclosure from police.

Belzil stressed, however, that the lawyer would have sufficient time to review the material. “We’re not trying to jam anyone here,” he said.

A U-Haul box truck tipped over during a police chase westbound on Jasper Avenue on Saturday, Sept.

30, 2017. Michael Mukai / Supplied The judge also threw out nine additional days in June that had been scheduled for a voir dire — a type of trial within a trial on the admissibility of evidence. Evidence in those proceedings is covered by a publication ban.

Whoever Abdulahi Hasan Sharif chooses will be his fourth lawyer.

He was initially represented by Karanpal Aujla, who was his counsel during his fitness to stand trial and not criminally responsible assessments.

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Bill C-69 given a rough welcome at Senate committee hearing in Calgary A proposed federal bill that aims to change the way Ottawa assesses major energy projects was given a rough ride in Calgary on Tuesday.

Representatives of Canada’s biggest oil and gas companies took turns demanding major changes to Bill C-69 before a Senate committee on a cross-Canada series of hearings that started in Vancouver on Monday.

Meanwhile, hundreds of people rallied outside the downtown hotel where the hearing was taking place, chanting “Kill that Bill” and waving signs — a scene that is becoming typical whenever federal politicians come to Calgary.

“Bill C-69 as currently written is unworkable,” Steve Laut, executive vicechairman of oilsands producer Canadian Natural Resources Ltd., told the senators.

“However, with common sense amendments, we can make this bill workable and create a large number of well-paying jobs for Canadians,

unleash Canadian ingenuity, support investment in a low-carbon energy mix and make Canada a world leader on climate change.”

The testimony senators have been gathering will likely result in amendment recommendations by May 9 when the energy committee is scheduled to give its report to the Senate, said chairwoman Rosa Galvez in an interview.

She added she thinks it’s possible for the bill to be sent back to the House of Commons by June, giving enough time to be passed into law before it shuts down ahead of the expected October federal election.

Bill C-69 would repeal the Canadian Environmental Assessment Act and retire the National Energy Board, leaving the Impact Assessment Agency of Canada and the Canadian Energy Regulator as authorities responsible for assessments

Police watchdog investigating after man dies following arrest in Sechelt B.C.’s police watchdog is investigating after a man died following his arrest by RCMP in Sechelt, B.C. Mounties were called to a bank in the 5500 block of Sunshine Coast Highway just before 4 p.m. PT for a report that a man was trying to make a fraudulent transaction, according to a police statement.

The man was identified and detained, but broke free and ran from police while being escorted to a car. RCMP Sgt. Janelle Shoihet said officers chased him into a “thick” blackberry brush

area, where he was arrested again.

“While officers were attempting to get the man out of the brush, he complained of breathing problems. He collapsed and became unresponsive,” Shoihet said.

The statement said officers “began lifesaving measures” and paramedics also responded, but the man couldn’t be revived and was pronounced dead in hospital at 5:20 p.m.

The Independent Investigations Office of B.C. is now investigating whether police actions — or inactions — are linked to the man’s death.

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Calgary father facing new international kidnapping charge while allegations of domestic violence surface The Calgary father accused of abducting his daughter and hiding her with his family in Iraq has a history of physical abuse, according to his ex-wife, and will be facing a new, more serious charge which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.

Ali Al Aazawi, 38, is charged with parental child abduction.

Lawyers involved say a charge of international kidnapping will be laid in the next day or so.

CBC News has obtained court documents showing an emergency protection order against Al Aazawi was granted after his ex-wife, Zanaib Mahdi, alleged physical and psychological abuse in 2012.

Al Aazawi appeared in Calgary court briefly on Thursday so defence lawyer Tonii Roulston and prosecutor Ryan Persad could

schedule a bail hearing for next week. Persad says he will oppose Al Aazawi’s release.

The accused appeared on closedcircuit television in a blue Calgary Remand Centre-issued jumpsuit and spoke through an Arabic interpreter.

Calgary father charged with abduction after returning from Iraq alone, without daughter In June 2018, Al Aazawi brought his 11-yearold daughter, Zahraa Al Aazawi, to Egypt, according to police. There was an agreement in place between the girl’s parents that the father would return to Calgary with her on Sept. 5, 2018.

He never returned with the girl.

Ten months after he left the country, Al Aazawi returned to Canada without his daughter, flying to Toronto alone on April 4.

Saturday, April 13, 2019

40% of Canadians live ‘house poor’: RBC poll Nearly one in four Canadians identify as “house poor,” meaning they spend more than 30 per cent of their income on home ownership.

This is according to the annual RBC Home Ownership Poll, released Monday.

The cost of home ownership includes mortgage payments, property taxes, maintenance and utilities.

Two in five Canadians say that being house poor is a reality, while just less than half who answered the survey say it’s worth the sacrifice to own a home.

Meanwhile, over half responded said they would not put themselves into the position of being house poor, and 92 per cent who those who took the survey said that mental stress is a potential impact of being house poor.

“While many Canadians tell us that house poor may be a reality, it doesn’t have to be,” said Nicole Wells, RBC’s vice-president of home equity financing, in a statement.

“It may require more effort or time upfront, but being more prepared in the home-buying journey can help bring it all together.”

Still, according to the poll, twothirds of Canadians said it makes more sense to buy than to rent.

And for the first time in half a decade, Canadians are seeing a balanced market, with nearly as many sellers in the real estate market as buyers.

The home ownership poll reported 36 per cent of respondents seeing a buyers’ market, and 34 per cent seeing a sellers’ market.

Non-traditional buyers, like those who buy a house alone, is a rising trend, bumping from 29 per cent in 2017, to 32 per cent in 2018. Traditional buyers, like those who purchase a home with a partner or family member, have declined from 49 per cent in 2017 to 42 per cent last year.

In B.C., more than two-thirds of respondents said they believe prices will drop, and are prepared to wait as long as two years to make the purchase.

“Let’s face it, the white picket fence or pride of your name on the deed is a rite of passage and doing it responsibly means there’s still money for the extras in life,” said Wells.

Affordability and safe neighbourhoods, at 21 and 20 per cent respectively, topped the list of what Canadians consider as “must haves” when buying a home.

Conversely, being close to a major highway, and dining and entertainment, were the most readily-sacrificed factors on the list.

The home ownership poll was conducted by Ipsos, and surveyed 2,223 Canadians over the age of 18 between Jan. 9 and 21, and Feb. 14 and 15, 2019.

RBC said the poll is accurate to within 2.5 per cent, 19 times out of 20.

Immigration Minister vows to crack down on consultants and protect ‘vulnerable’ newcomers Canada’s Immigration Minister is promising new, tougher legislation to crack down on unscrupulous immigration consultants by giving the industry watchdog that oversees them more power to investigate and punish offenders.

“This can’t go on,” Ahmed Hussen said in an interview with The Globe and Mail. He would not give specific details, but indicated changes are imminent. “There is no question more needs to be done to protect vulnerable newcomers. ... I strongly believe it is the right time to take action.”

The minister’s pledge comes after a Globe investigation that exposed how several international recruiters and immigration consultants – who sometimes fill both those roles – stand accused of exploiting some 2,600 foreign workers and students here and abroad.

Ottawa had already promised to spend

$51.9-million over five years to try to beef up oversight and enforcement of consultants who are licensed by an industry selfregulator. Mr. Hussen now says he wants that money to be spent on improving the watchdog.

“We will be taking further steps to enforce the rules, provide more oversight and provide more recourse and mechanisms to ... deal with this,” Mr. Hussen said, adding he saw many cases of exploitation like those revealed by The Globe, when he worked as an immigration lawyer. “It’s real. It affects a lot of people.”

Mr. Hussen stopped short, however, of promising to end self-regulation, which is what a parliamentary committee recommended two years ago.

Investigation: Foreign workers are falling prey to a sprawling web of labour trafficking in Canada

Liberals move to stem surge in asylum seekers — but new measure will stop just fraction of claimants The Liberal government is taking steps to stop so-called asylum shopping, but the new provision may turn away only a fraction of the total number of migrants entering Canada outside of legal border crossing points.

Included in the budget implementation bill is a proposed change that would make refugees ineligible to make a claim if they have already done so in another country that the federal government considers “safe” for migrants and that shares intelligence with Canada. Those so-called Five Eyes security partner countries are the U.K., Australia, New Zealand and the United States.

About 40,000 people have crossed into Canada from the U.S. outside regular border points over the last two years. Since April 2017, only 3,150 people claiming asylum in Canada had applied previously for asylum in the U.S., according to statistics provided by the government.

Of those 3,150 migrants, 76 per cent had crossed into Canada outside regular border points.

Some refugee advocates have questioned the constitutionality of the proposed change, since it would limit the legal right of an asylum seeker to a full hearing. They also say a significant change like this should have been subjected to a full public debate, instead of being buried in a budget bill.

PM Trudeau defended the move, insisting that Canadians must maintain confidence in the immigration system and maintaining that every asylum seeker will be treated fairly.

“We need to recognize that there are larger numbers than before because of global instability in terms of refugees,” he said Wednesday. “That’s why we’re putting more resources in and we’re also ensuring that the system is fair for everyone.

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Albertans prepare to elect a gov’t in a climate of deep anxiety Rose Klatt came to Olds, Alta., from the Philippines to fulfil a dream to open her own cafe. Her restaurant, with its bright green walls and authentic Filipino cuisine, quickly became a popular spot to catch up on local events.

But the bell above her door rarely rings these days. The severe economic downturn in the province is dragging down her small community, she said, and nobody seems to have the money to eat out. A year after taking ownership of the cafe in this town an hour’s drive north of Calgary, Klatt said, she’s barely making enough to stay open. “There’s not so much excitement anymore because of the economy,” she said, adding she can see her dream “going down the hole.”

She’s not the only one. There’s a lingering unease in Alberta as provincial election day approaches.

Many voters remain unconvinced that any of the people running to be premier, or the four main parties they represent, can turn things around. Alberta NDP Leader Rachel Notley makes a campaign stop at a daycare in Calgary on Tuesday. Albertans cast their ballots on April 16. The campaign is winding down now, with the governing New Democrats under Rachel Notley running a distant second in most polls against the United Conservative Party under former federal cabinet minister Jason Kenney.

The province’s economy is still limping after years of economic setbacks. Alberta’s oilpatch — the biggest industry in the province — is selling its product below the world price, while the pipeline projects that were supposed to open up new markets have hit one regulatory wall after another. A sharp drop in the world price of oil in 2014 led to layoffs and the collapse of some companies in Alberta’s energy sector. Months of delays to the Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project have ramped up the sense of uncertainty in the oilpatch while prolonging a transportation bottleneck between the oilsands and refineries.

This is a “polarizing” election centred on the economy, said Lori Williams, a political science professor at Mount Royal University in Calgary. And as the people of Olds know too well, the troubles of the oilpatch are never confined to it.

“This is Alberta, this is what we run off of,” said Amber Supernant, another small business owner in Olds. She knows the turmoil the oil sector is facing firsthand; her father, an energy sector worker, was left jobless for years as the economy soured. Job losses have been staggering. Alberta lost almost 17,000 jobs in December alone.

The national unemployment rate is 5.8 per cent right now, while Alberta’s is slowly recovering at 6.4 per cent, down from seven per cent a few months ago.

Tories slam federal government’s decision to give Loblaws $12M for new refrigerators Conservative environment critic Ed Fast is slamming the federal government’s decision to give $12 million to help Loblaws stores make their refrigerators and freezers more energy-efficient. Fast says he is curious how many ordinary Canadians could just walk into the prime minister’s office and ask him to buy them a new fridge.

Environment Minister Catherine McKenna announced the funds for Loblaws at a Loblaws Superstore in her Ottawa riding Monday, to cover one-quarter of the costs of retrofitting the refrigeration systems in 370 of the company’s supermarkets over the next three years. She says the greenhouse-

gas emissions reduced through the project will cut Loblaws’ overall emissions by nearly a fourth and be the equivalent of taking 50,000 cars off the road.

The funds come from a $450-million national challenge run by the government inviting companies to apply for money, with the winning bids selected based on which projects are expected to achieve the deepest emissions cuts. A spokeswoman for McKenna says small businesses can apply to a separate fund for help to cut their emissions and an announcement is coming soon on the carbon-tax rebates promised for them.

‘Life means life’: protesters demand change on 10th anniversary of Tori Stafford’s death Led by Rodney Stafford on the 10th anniversary of his daughter’s abduction and murder, a few dozen victims of crime and their supporters came to Parliament Hill, calling for stricter treatment for offenders and better treatment for victims. In driving freezing rain, victims shared painful personal experiences one by one, as well as their frustrations with the justice system. “Why is it when I was abducted, why is it when I was raped or tortured, I got nothing, but this individual that did this to me has gotten a roof over his head, he gets three square meals a day, he gets his own education?

Why is it that I gotta suffer?” asked Zachary Miller, a victim of notorious pedophile Peter Whitmore. “We will forever we broken inside due to her being taken from us,” said John Taggart. He told the crowd his 31-year-old daughter Autumn was raped and murdered by a stranger who scaled three balconies to reach her bedroom in 2018. “So we’re asking that families not be made to endure being victimized again and again by this system,” said Taggart. The group assembled on Parliament Hill Monday is broadly pushing for more rights for victims. On the 10th anniversary of Tori Stafford’s death, protesters on Parliament Hill call for changes to the justice system.

On the 10th anniversary of Tori Stafford’s death, protesters on Parliament Hill call for changes to the justice system. “Our voices are not being heard,” said Maureen Basnicki, whose huband, Ken, was killed in the Sept. 11th, 2001 attacks. “The tools to be reintegrated into society shouldn’t just go to the perpetrated.

We’re focused on the perpetrators, what about the victims?” “Basically, you get the run around,” said Rodney Stafford of his treatment as a victim of crime. Tori Stafford was eight years old when she was abducted after school in Woodstock, Ontario on April 8, 2009, and then brutally raped and murdered. “You get told, ‘Here’s a little bit of counselling, you’ll do better for yourself. You gotta keep moving forward, though, keep your chin up.’ But you’re struggling day to day to make it through, ends meet, when the people who took your child is on the inside, getting an education, getting their meals.” “Listening to victims and hearing what their experiences were and particularly taking those experiences and seeing how we can improve the system [are important]. So I’m willing to listen to hear what they have to say,” Lametti told reporters before Question Period on Monday. “I’m happy they participate in the system and I obviously have the utmost empathy for what they’ve gone through.”

Budget 2019

33

34

INDIA

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Rahul Gandhi challenges Narendra Modi for open debate on corruption Congress President Rahul Gandhi on Thursday made it clear that he doesnâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t attach much importance to Prime Minister Narendra Modiâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s threats of putting Congress leaders behind bars if voted to power for the next five years.

Replying to questions about allegations of

corruption brought against the Congress, Rahul Gandhi said: â&#x20AC;&#x153;I am perfectly happy if Modi wants to take any action against me.â&#x20AC;?

He added that Modi should instead answer a few questions and reiterated his dare for a debate on the Rafale deal.

US, France & UK give â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;ultimatumâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; to China to lift hold on Masood Azhar: Report The US, France and the UK have asked China to lift its hold by 23 April on a resolution banning Jaish-e-Mohammed chief Maulana Masood Azhar by the United Nations, a news report said Friday. China had on 14 March stalled a proposal co-sponsored by France, UK and the US to ban Azhar, who group claimed responsibility for the 14 February suicide attack on an Indian paramilitary convoy in Kashmirâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Pulwama region killing 40 personnel â&#x20AC;&#x201D; igniting tensions between India and Pakistan.

Following Chinaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s objection in March, the US had circulated a resolution among the UN Security Council (UNSC) members on banning Azhar by the UNSC.

A report in the Times of India on Friday said France, US and the UK had given an ultimatum to China to lift its hold by 23 April on the proposal to ban Azhar under the UNâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s 1267 committee that sanctions terrorist groups like Al-Qaeda and the Islamic States besides their affiliates. If China did not lift its hold by then, the US would formally introduce its resolution on banning Azhar at the UNSC bypassing the 1267 sanctions committee, the report said.

Mint could not immediately verify the report with two people familiar with the developments separately saying that negotiations were taking place at the UN â&#x20AC;&#x153;with a lot of intense discussionsâ&#x20AC;? but since India was not a member of the UNSC or the 1267 sanctions committee.

Electoral bonds stay, top court asks parties to submit funding details Electoral bonds, which have become controversial as they enable big anonymous donations to political parties, will not be stopped in the middle of the national election that started on Thursday. In an interim order, Supreme Court asked all parties contesting the polls to furnish details of funds received through bonds in a sealed cover to the Election Commission by May 30. The details would be in the election bodyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s â&#x20AC;&#x153;safe custodyâ&#x20AC;?, the top court ruled, putting off its decision on bonds. Here is point cheat sheet on this big TUPSZ t *O UIF HPWFSONFOU QSPQPTFE the bonds as a transparent way for political funding. A petition by the Association of Democratic Reforms asks for the system to be stopped or for the donors to be disclosed for the sake of transparency in the poll process. t 1SJNF .JOJTUFS /BSFOESB .PEJ T #+1 IBT received most of the funds flowing through the bonds, according to a court filing by the Election Commission. â&#x20AC;&#x153;We have considered the matter. We examined the stand by the

Election Commission. For the present, it needs hearing and it canâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;t be concluded in a short span of time. The court has to ensure interim arrangement and should not tilt in favour of any party,â&#x20AC;? said a three-judge bench headed by Chief Justice Ranjan Gogoi. t Ä&#x2021;F DPVSU BMTP EJSFDUFE UIF Ä&#x2022;OBODF ministry to reduce the window of the purchase of electoral bonds from 10 days to five in April-May, the period during which staggered national elections are being held. t 0O Ä&#x2021;VSTEBZ UIF 4VQSFNF $PVSU IBE said if the identity of donors buying electoral funds was not known, the governmentâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s efforts to check black money in polls would be futile. t Ä&#x2021;F HPWFSONFOU WFIFNFOUMZ EFGFOEFE the scheme, saying that its purpose was to eliminate the use of black or untaxed money in elections. The court, it said, cannot interfere with the system at this stage and should examine it only after the elections.

â&#x20AC;&#x2DC;Worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s smallest womanâ&#x20AC;&#x2122; with height of 24 inches aspires to be an actress She may be small in size, but this is one lady who is living a full-sized life. This Indian lady has been recognized by the Guinness World Records as the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s smallest woman. Having garnered much media attention so far, she now aspires to become a Bollywood actress. At just 62.8 cm (approx. 2 feet) in height, Jyoti Amge is the same height as an average 3-month-old baby. This young lady is no infant, however.

Now, at the age of 25, she is old enough to have children of her own. Amge, who weighs a mere 11 pounds (approx. 5 kg) was previously recognized for being the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s smallest teenager until she turned 18 in

2011â&#x20AC;&#x201D;when she was formally recognized by Guinness World Records as being the worldâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s smallest woman. She is not expected to grow any bigger than her current height due to a growth abnormality called achondroplasia. Amgeâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s dream was to become an actressâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;possibly in Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s own Bollywood, or Hollywood in America. She once said, â&#x20AC;&#x153;There is a Bollywood actor, Salman Khan, and Iâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;d like to act alongside himâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;whatever the film.â&#x20AC;? In the past few years, she has been walking towards that dreamâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;being featured on Indian television, as well as in a documentary titled Body Shock: Two Foot Tall Teen.

With just 1,400 diplomats, Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s foreign influence is severely limited The insufficient strength of Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s diplomatic corps has always been a recurring topic of discussion in media and policy circles. A shortage of diplomats not only hinders the realisation of foreign policy goals, but also affects Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s global outreach. This is why the BJPâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s election manifesto promises to â&#x20AC;&#x153;increase the strength of the diplomatic and allied cadres to keep pace with our increasing global engagementâ&#x20AC;? would be welcome.

What do the numbers tell? Generally, the Indian Foreign Serviceâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s (IFS) A cadre is considered the core diplomatic corps of India.

According to the MEA, Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s diplomatic strength as on November 2017 is a mere 941.

But over the past few years, the government has been trying to artificially beef up this

number. In 2016, during a briefing to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on External Affairs, former Foreign Secretary S. Jaishankar had a clever take on Indiaâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s understaffed diplomatic corps. He told the committee India had 2,700 diplomaticrank officers, and argued that compared to China (4,500), Japan (5,700), Korea (1,250), and Italy (910), its diplomatic strength was neither good nor bad. When asked to break down the figure of 2,700, Jaishankar told the committee it included 912 IFS (A) officers, 252 Grade 1 IFS (B) officers, 33 of the Interpreters Cadre, 24 of the Legal and Treaties Cadre, 635 attaches, 540 diplomatic officers from sectorial staff, and 310 diplomatic officers for other ministries.

South Asian couple charged with spying in Germany A South Asian couple in Germany charged with spying on Sikhs and Kashmiris. The suspects only named as 50-year-old Manmohan S. and his wife Kanwal Jit K., 51, in keeping with German privacy rules for defendants.

An Indian married couple accused of spying on Germanyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Sikh community and Kashmir movement have been charged with espionage, German prosecutors announced on Tuesday.

They named the suspects only as 50-yearold Manmohan S. and his wife Kanwal Jit K.,

51, in keeping with German privacy rules for defendants. â&#x20AC;&#x153;Manmohan S. agreed by January 2015 at the latest to provide information about Germanyâ&#x20AC;&#x2122;s Sikh community and Kashmir movement and their relatives to an employee of the Indian foreign intelligence service Research & Analysis Wing,â&#x20AC;? they said in a statement. His wife joined him in monthly meetings with the Indian intelligence officer between July and December 2017, and in total the couple were paid 7,200 euros ($8,100) for their work.

PUNJAB

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Be fair, Sukhbir tells officials Shiromani Akali Dal chief Sukhbir Singh Badal today warned the civil and police officials to act impartially or face action.

“After returning to power in the state, I will spend first two months to form special investigation teams to probe false cases slapped during the Congress regime. I appeal to all the officers to stop slapping false cases. Just imagine what will be the consequences if a fake case under the NDPS Act is slapped on you or your family. I will set an example to stop this practice,” said Sukhbir, while addressing a rally at Doda village for SAD candidate from the Faridkot parliamentary constituency Gulzar Singh Ranike.

“Amarinder has done the biggest blasphemy by taking pledge of Gutka Sahib and not fulfilling any promise. It is the time to take revenge from him. I guarantee you, if the SAD wins all the 13 seats Amarinder will not

Security up ahead of massacre centenary Preparations are in full swing to commemorate the centenary of the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Heavy police force has been deployed for the security arrangements. Huge pandals have been erected for the visitors coming to the holy city for paying tributes to those who attained martyrdom in the massacre. Thousands of people from across Punjab and a number of organisations have prepared plans to pay homage to the martyrs on April 13. Being Baisakhi on the day, a huge number of devotees is expected to pay obeisance at the Golden Temple also. This has posed a great challenge for the police force.

Vice-President Venkaiah Naidu, AICC president Rahul Gandhi, Punjab Governor VP Badnore and CM Capt Amarinder Singh are among the dignitaries who would be visiting the Jallianwala Bagh on April 13. On the eve of the event, being organised by the Central government at the Jallianwala Bagh, a candle march, led by Capt Amarinder Singh, would be held. In view of the huge gatherings and VVIPs visiting the memorial on Saturday, the police have urged the people to reach there in a “controlled” manner. “Elaborate security arrangements are being made considering the visits of the Vice-President, Punjab Chief

Ex-SSP given bail, but will stay in jail District and Sessions Court on Thursday granted bail to former Moga SSP Charanjit Singh Sharma in an attempt to murder case.

Languishing in Patiala Central Jail for over 70 days, Sharma has been granted bail in the Kotkapura police firing case in which he was nominated as an accused last month. He has been given bail subject to furnishing a bond of Rs 50,000.

Sharma will, however, continue to be lodged in the jail as he has been denied bail by the Punjab and Haryana High Court in Behbal Kalan police firing case in which two persons were killed.

In Kotkapura case, Sharma is facing attempt-to-murder charge, but in Behbal Kalan case, he has been booked for murder.

remain the Chief Minister,” he said.

He thanked Prime Minister Narendra Modi for taking decision to open the Kartarpur corridor, set up SIT to investigate anti-Sikh riots and punish Sajjan Kumar, two MLAs, and 10 councillors.

Taking a dig at his estranged cousin-cum-Finance Minister Manpreet Singh Badal, Sukhbir said Manpreet should not use word ‘Badal’ with his name. “The word ‘Badal’ is given to all of us by Badal saheb (Parkash Singh Badal) for their sacrifices, works and fight against the Congress.

Manpreet, however, now touches the feet of Gandhis, and shakes hand with them. Thus he should not use ‘Badal’ with his name,” said Sukhbir. He counted the development and pro-poor works done during the SAD-BJP regime and compared them with those of

35

British PM stops short of formal apology on Jallianwala Bagh massacre British Prime Minister Theresa May on Wednesday described the Jallianwala Bagh massacre in Amritsar as a “shameful scar” on British Indian history, but stopped short of a formal apology sought by a cross-section of Parliament in previous debates.

In a statement, marking the 100th anniversary of the massacre, at the start of her weekly Prime Minister’s Questions in the House of Commons, she reiterated the “regret” already expressed by the British Government.

The massacre took place in Jallianwala Bagh on April 13, 1919, when the British Indian Army troops, under the command of Col Reginald Dyer, fired at a crowd holding a pro-Independence demonstration. According to British records, 379 persons were killed and 1,200 injured. “We deeply regret what happened and the suffering caused. I am pleased that today the UK-India relationship

is one of collaboration, partnership, prosperity and security. Indian diaspora makes an enormous contribution to British society and I am sure the whole House wishes to see the UK’s relationship with India continue to flourish,” she said.

In response, Opposition Labour Party Leader Jeremy Corbyn demanded that those who lost their lives in the massacre deserve a “full, clear and unequivocal apology for what took place”.

May’s statement comes a day after British MPs at Westminster Hall of the Parliament complex debated the issue of a formal apology for the massacre to mark its centenary this Saturday. Foreign Office Minister Mark Field had told MPs that he had been “compelled” by the arguments to raise the issue of going further than the “deepest regret” expressed over the killings during the British Raj.

36

INDIA

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Pentagon not aware of Pak F-16 count The United States defence department on Friday said it was “not aware” of any investigation that was conducted to ascertain if Pakistan had lost an F-16 in a dogfight with Indian fighter jets on February 27, contrary to a report by a news publication that had gone on to say, citing unidentified defence officials, the count revealed none was missing.

Foreign Policy magazine reported Thursday that US defence personnel conducted recently a physical count of Pakistan’s F-16s and found all intact, none missing. It attributed the finding to two unidentified senior US defence officials and said the count was conducted at the invitation of Pakistan.. A US defence department spokesman told Hindustan Times in a statement that they, the department, “weren’t aware of any investigation like

that”, that was said to have been conducted, according to unidentified defence officials cited in the FP report, and referred this reporter to the Department of State.

The state department distanced itself from the news report saying in response to a direct request to confirm or deny it, “As a matter of policy, the Department does not publicly comment on details of governmentto-government agreements on enduse monitoring of US-origin defence articles.” And it went on to reiterate its stated policy on Pakistan: “It is important to note that since January 2018, the United States government has suspended security assistance to Pakistan.” US government’s position appears to be in line with India, which in the backdrop of the attack, has reaffirmed its account of the downing of the Pakistani F-16, citing “electronic signature” as evidence.

BJP earned more than Rs 1,000 cr in 2017-18 The ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has earned more than ₹1,000 crore in 201718 and is all set to be the maximum gainer of political funding in the last financial year, according to its annual returns submitted to the Election Commission (EC). While the BJP has emerged as the richest party ahead of the 2019 Lok Sabha elections, four other national parties have gained financially in the year ending March 2018. Mayawati’s Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) has enhanced its corpus to ₹717 crore from ₹ 681 crore. Mamata Banerjee’s Trinamool Congress has a kitty of ₹291 crore, up from ₹262 crore in 2016-17.

The two communist parties, too, have managed to enhance their corpus, even as they are reduced to being marginal forces in national politics. The income of the Communist Party of India (Marxist) for

2017-18 stood at ₹104 crore, about 10% of the BJP’s annual income, and that of the Communist Party of India at ₹1.5 crore.

The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) are yet to submit their annual returns to the EC, though rules mandate that all recognized, registered parties must do so.

The BJP has also got the lion’s share from the electoral bonds notified by the Government of India on January 2 this year -- Rs 210 crore. In other words, it has bagged 95% of the Rs 222 crore worth of bonds issued by public sector banks. BJP spokesperson Gopal Agarwal said the party’s large collection was the outcome of its efforts to make its financial dealings transparent. “The party has made efforts to make every transaction transparent and it reflects in the audited reports that are submitted to the Election Commission.

India’s economic growth ‘too much’ driven by domestic demand: World Bank India’s economic growth in recent years has been “too much” driven by domestic demand and its exports were about one third of its potential, a World Bank official said, asserting that the next government needs to focus on export-led growth. Praising attempts to liberalize markets within India, Hans Timmer, World Bank Chief Economist for the South Asia Region said “that is what is needed to become more competitive.” “At the same time you’ve also seen in the last couple of years that the current account deficit widened - an indication that increasingly growth came from the nontradable sector -- from the domestic sector, and that makes it difficult to export more, Timmer told PTI in an interview. The polling for first phase of seven-phase parliamentary polls in the

country is scheduled to take place on April 11, with the last phase on May 19 and the results will be announced on May 23.

In the last five years, he said, India’s overall growth was “too much” driven by domestic demand, which resulted in double digit growth of imports, and four to five per cent growth in exports. “In more recent months, that turned around somewhat. But the broader picture was that that’s a minus, he said. The pluses were that we have seen the GST trying to create more flexibility within the country, so that it’s easier to trade between states. That’s what you need if you want to trade also with foreign countries, he said. Responding to a question, the World bank official said the focus of the next government should be on reducing the stimulus of domestic demand.

Saturday, April 13, 2019

37

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SOUTH ASIA

Saturday, April 13, 2019

Bulldozing mosques: the latest tactic in China’s war against Uighur culture

This is probably how Pakistan is explaining that its F-16 fighter jet inventory is intact A recent article in Foreign Policy magazine has claimed that a US count under the enduser licence agreement has found that none of the Pakistan Air Force’s (PAF) F-16 fighter aircraft are missing. However, this is not unexpected, given that the US may not accept that one of its cutting-edge F-16s was brought down by a vintage Russian MiG-21 Bison of the Indian Air Force. India has also maintained that it has enough evidence to confirm that an F-16 was indeed shot down.

But there is another aspect to the story that has not been highlighted: Pakistan’s own manipulation of the F-16 inventory.

ThePrint tries to throw some light on this.

In February 2014, Pakistan had signed a deal with Jordan to purchase 13 F-16 aircraft, of which 12 were ‘A’ models and one was the ‘B’ model. When the first batch

Ten years ago, I started researching Islam among the Uighurs. I spent my summers travelling around the Xinjiang region in western China.

I took long bus journeys through the desert to Kashgar, Yarkand and Kucha, slept on brick beds in family homes in remote villages, stopped off at Sufi shrines, and visited many, many mosques. My husband was working with me, and we dragged our kids along for the ride. The kids were quite small and not at all interested in our boring interviews with imams, and I bribed them with treats. I have a lot of photos of them sitting in the dust outside mosques, faces smeared with ice-cream, playing on their iPads. Xinjiang crackdown must continue, top China leader says It was an incredible

of aircraft from Jordan was delivered to the PAF at Mushaf Air Base in Sargodha on 27 April 2014, a photograph of the ceremony was released to the press. The picture showed five F-16 aircraft, but the models were not as per the inventory quoted by the Director General of Inter-Services Public Relations, the Pakistani military’s publicity wing and the entire Pakistani media. In fact, there were three F-16 As and two F-16 Bs. The difference between the A and B variants is that the A is a single-seater while the B is a twin-seater. The F-16 A has a bubble canopy which reduces the RCS (radar cross section) by 15 per cent overall. The F-16 B has a canopy with bracing which increases the RCS. The picture of 27 April 2014 at Sargodha shows clearly visible elongated canopy and braces on two F-16 aircraft parked behind the dignitaries.

Malaysia former first lady hit with fresh corruption charge The wife of Malaysia’s former Prime Minister Najib Razak was hit Wednesday with a new corruption charge over a solar energy contract.

Rosmah Mansor pleaded not guilty to accepting a 5 million ringgit ($1.22 million) bribe through her aide from a manager at Jepak Holdings as a kickback for helping secure a contract from the Education Ministry. She has also been charged with laundering illegal proceeds and tax evasion in a massive graft scandal that led to Najib’s electoral loss last May. The Education Ministry awarded the 1.25 billion ringgit contract to supply and install solar energy panels in 369 schools in

What makes Nepal a silent but brilliant economy?

eastern Sarawak state on Borneo to Jepak without open tender.

Najib, his former deputy and several high-ranking former officials have already been charged with corruption after the election ushered in the first change of power since Malaysia’s independence from Britain in 1957.

Najib, whose first trial began last week after months of delay, has accused the new government of seeking political vengeance.

But Prime Minister Mahathir Mohamad has said the court cases were based on the rule of law and that those accused will be given fair trials.

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time for mosque building in Xinjiang. After the Cultural Revolution, Uighur and Kazakh Muslims began to reconnect with their faith. They resumed the traditional practices of pilgrimage and festivals at the shrines that lie deep in the Taklamakan desert. They began to learn about Islam in the wider world; people who could afford it travelled to Mecca for the hajj, and they began to rebuild their mosques.

As local communities grew richer they invested in bigger and more beautiful mosques; people crowded into them for Friday prayers, and they served as living symbols of community identity and pride. I was reminded of all this by an image posted on Twitter last week.

Nepal is always seen from the lens of the lesser self. Just like the ideas of colonialism deemed the white as the superior and the coloured as inferior or more popularly, the “other,” Nepal, too, has faced similar unequal treatment. One of the least developed economies in the world has the potential to overturn its economic fortunes only if its strengths are recognized in the right manner. It has seen the tides and the raging waves in the form of an earthquake, in 2015 that literally shook the nation and also political instability that has been synonymous with the country since a very long time. However, it is now time to put an end to all the misconceptions and pre-

conceived notions one may have pertaining to the country and perceive the true aspect of reality. Nepal’s location between the world’s two most powerful economies, India and China, can help all three benefit if the cards are played right. Nepal’s position as an adjoining neighbour between India and China can help in political, business and economic advancement. Nepal having the influence of communism along with China can influence trade and provide ease of trade in transacting goods between India and China. Ease of trade is an important tool for all three countries to benefit economically and Nepal might just play the biggest role in the deal.

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Saturday, April 13, 2019

PAKISTAN

Saturday, April 13, 2019

41

Better chance of peace talks with India if Modi wins - PM Khan Prime Minister Imran Khan said he thinks there may be a better chance of peace talks with India if Prime Minister Narendra Modi wins the 2019 Lok Sabha polls due to begin on Thursday. Imran Khan said that if the next Indian government were led by the opposition Congress party, it might be too scared to seek a settlement with Pakistan over Kashmir, fearing a backlash from the right. “Perhaps if the BJP - a right-wing party - wins, some kind of settlement in Kashmir could be reached,”

Imran Khan told a small group of foreign journalists in an interview. “I never thought I would see what is happening in India right now,” said the former international cricket star. “Muslim-ness is being attacked.” Imran Khan said Indian Muslims he knew who many years ago had been happy about their situation in India were now very worried by extreme Hindu

FIJI 4000 members expected at TISI National Sangam Convention Around 4,000 members are expected at the opening ceremony of the TISI Sangam National Convention at Churchill Park next Friday. A former Fiji resident, Raghwa Gopal who is originally from Nausori and now a top entrepreneur in Canada will be the Chief Guest at the event. Gopal is the President and CEO of Innovate BC, a government agency in Canada which funds entrepreneurial support programs and focuses on the support of technology startups and entrepreneurs through programs, sponsorship, and competitions that facilitate

technology commercialization.

The theme for this year’s TISI Sangam National Convention is preserving culture and values in strengthening education.

TISI’s Secretary General, Damend Gounder says education has been and continues to be the core function of TISI contributing significantly to the promotion of knowledge and values. He says it is important that they support and promote efforts being made for values-based educational system regardless of religious beliefs.

Four men charged with abduction and rape remanded in custody Four men including an assistant head teacher of a Primary School who have been charged with abduction and rape have been further remanded in custody by the Labasa Magistrates Court. Three of the accused are alleged to have abducted and raped two students during a drinking party on the 15th of March in a house in Taveuni. The two students are in Years 12 and 13.

The day after, the fourth accused who is an assistant head master is alleged to have abducted and raped the Year 12 student and gave her $10. Police say the information of the alleged incident was reported through Crime Stoppers and was investigated by Taveuni Police.

They will reappear in court on the 26th of this month.

Driving under the influence charge against UN diplomat withdrawn The Office of the Director of Public Prosecutions has withdrawn a charge against a United Nations diplomat under the Land Transport Act. In a statement the DPP’s Office says Tim Westbury was charged with the offence of driving whilst under the influence of alcohol contrary to section 103 of the Land Transport Act as a result of being stopped by police during a routine check in June last year.

He is the Deputy Head and Senior Sustainable Development Officer for the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific

(ESCAP) and has been based in Suva since 2011.The statement says the charge was withdrawn following confirmation that Tim Westbury had been accredited diplomatic status in Fiji as a result of his employment with the United Nations.

Fiji’s Diplomatic Privileges and Immunities Act gives effect to the Vienna Convention on Diplomatic Relations and states that no diplomat “shall be liable to any form of arrest or detention” and “a diplomatic agent shall enjoy immunity from the criminal jurisdiction”.

nationalism. He said Modi, like Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, was electioneering based on “fear and nationalist feeling”.

The BJP’s pledge this week to propose stripping decades-old special rights from the people of Jammu and Kashmir, which prevent outsiders from buying property in the state, was a major concern, though it could also be electioneering, Imran Khan said.

Imran Khan did appear to offer India an olive branch, saying that Islamabad was determined to dismantle all Pakistan-based militias in the country, and that the government had full support from Pakistan’s powerful army for the programme. Those to be dismantled include

groups involved in Kashmir.

Imran Khan said Kashmir was a political struggle and there was no military solution, adding that Kashmiris suffered if armed militants from Pakistan came across the border, leading to Indian army crackdowns.

Relations between Pakistan and India, which have fought three wars since gaining independence from Britain in 1947, two over Kashmir, reached a crisis point in February after a suicide bombing killed 40 Indian paramilitary police in Kashmir.

Islamabad denied responsibility for the Feb. 14 attack, which was claimed by Pakistanbased militant group Jaish-e-Mohammed, but the bombing prompted India to carry out a cross border air strike against what it said was a militant training camp in Pakistan. Pakistan responded with air strikes of its own.

Accountability Bureau submits reply in Zardari’s bail plea National Accountability Bureau (NAB) Friday submitted its reply to Islamabad High Court (IHC) and prayed the bench to turn down the interim bail plea of former president Asif Zardari in fake accounts case.

NAB said the petitioner was not entitled to obtain relief from the IHC as his hands were not cleanThe former president had misguided the court, it said.

The NAB reply said all investigations related

to fake accounts scam were being done in compliance of the Supreme Court order and notices were issued to the accused persons as per law.It further said the NAB could summon anyone during the process of investigation on any issue.

It may be mentioned here that a divisional bench of the IHC had already extended prearrest bail of Zardari and his sister Faryal Talpur till April 29, and directed the NAB to submit its reply.

21 killed, 50 injured in bomb blast at vegetable market in Quetta At least 21 people were killed and 50 others injured in a suicide bombing at a crowded market in Pakistan’s restive Balochistan province on Friday, in an attack believed to be targeting the Shiite Hazara ethnic minority community.

Prime Minister Imran Khan condemned the attack and ordered an inquiry.

The explosion at around 7:35 am took place in the busy wholesale market area of Hazarganj in Quetta where Hazaras and other traders come daily to buy fruits and vegetables to later sell at their shops in other parts of the city.

Deputy Inspector General (DIG) Abdul Razzaq Cheema said that the blast, which occurred when the vegetable and fruit sacks were being loaded onto trucks by the traders, targeted the Hazara ethnic community.

However, Home Minister Ziaullah Langove, in a press conference, said that the blast was not targeting “a specific community”.

“Our guess is that no specific community was targeted. Marri Baloch and Frontier Corps (FC) personnel were among those killed as

well. The numbers of the Hazara community were just greater,” Langove said.

He also described the blast as a suicide attack. Officials said that 21 people have been killed and 50 others injured in the blast.

An Edhi welfare trust rescue official at the scene of the blast said he had counted around 21 bodies being taken to hospitals.

At least eight of those killed in the bomb blast are from the Hazara community, Cheema said. The security forces fear the death toll may rise, Buildings located nearby were also damaged in the blast, police said.

No group has claimed responsibility for the attack. Cheema said that due to the blast, security has been provided to shopkeepers and traders at the market.

“Traders who come from other parts of the city to buy fruits and vegetables at the market are escorted by police and Frontier Corp personnel,” the officer said. Cheema said around 70 traders had come to the market in different vehicles and were escorted by the FC and Police.

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NRI

Saturday, April 13, 2019 NRIs sent over $148 Billion to their home countries in 2017

Teachers in our public schools join with you in celebrating Vaisakhi.

Happy Vaisakhi 2019 A message from the Surrey Teachers’ Association

A significant share of immigrants all over the world send part of their paycheck back to help their families in their home countries. When all of those payments are added together, the amount of money on the move every year is enormous and it competes with international aid as one of the biggest financial inflows to developing countries. According to recently published Pew Research Center data based on figures from the World Bank, it is estimated that the collective sum of remittance payments in 2017 came to $625 billion, a 7% increase from 2016 when the total was estimated at $586 billion.

In the United States alone, it is estimated that

more than $148 billion was sent to individuals in other countries in 2017. Back in 2004, a study found that over 60% of the 16.5 million Latin American-born adults living in the country at that time sent money home on a regular basis.

Pew’s analysis of the latest World Bank figures found that Mexico was the top destination country for U.S. remittance payments by far with over $30 billion sent home. China was a very distant second with $16.14 billion while India had the third-highest volume at $11.7 billion. The cashflow wasn’t just limited to developing countries, however, with South Korea and Germany coming in at number 11 and 12 on the list with $2.83 and $2.80 billion respectively in 2017.

Will NRIs get inked? More than 70,000 on the rolls this time, Only 8 voted in 2014 Besides running high-pitched campaigns in India, major political parties have also been sharpening their political messaging to woo the NRI community which forms a major chunk of the electorate. Data, however, shows that the voting percentage of this bloc remains quite dismal. As per the Election Commission data, of 13,039 registered overseas voters, only eight Non-Resident Indians, or 0.06%, voted in 2014 general elections. Of these eight, four were from Gujarat, one from Rajasthan, one from West Bengal and two from Chandigarh.

The total number of NRI voters registered in 2014 included 12,234 men (93.80%) and 804 or just 6.10% women. Only one ‘Other’ gender voter made it to the list.

Five years later, the number of NRIs registered to vote has zoomed to 71,735, according to the latest EC data. This includes 66,866 or 93.21% men and 4,849 or 6.75% women, while 20 identify with ‘Other’ gender.

However, this number still paints a very

grim picture of the interest among NRIs in Indian elections. Of the more than 1.30 crore NRIs, less than 1% have registered as voters as per the latest electoral roll. This number, surprisingly, also shows that most of these registrations are concentrated in only one state. Out of the total 71,735 registered overseas voters in 2019, Kerala accounts for 66,584 voters or a whopping 92.8%. But this is not a first for Kerala. The state has led in terms of NRI voter registration right since 2012. Out of the 10,002 NRI voters who registered in 2012, 9,838 were in Kerala.

All the other states and Union Territories together accounted for only 164 voters. In other words, more than 98% of the NRIs who registered themselves as voters in India in 2012 had done so in Kerala. As per the latest EC data, Andhra Pradesh (2,511) and Telangana (1,127) are the only two other states where more than 1,000 NRIs registered as voters.

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www.theasianstar.com Vol 19 Issue 11 Saturday, April 13, 2019

Vaisakhi Special

Tel: 604-591-5423

The Significance of Khalsa

T

he collective body of allinitiated Sikhs represented by the five beloved-ones and can be called the Guru Panth, the embodiment of the Guru and the final temporal Guru/leader of the Sikhs. The word Khalsa translates to “Sovereign/Free”. Another interpretation is that of being “Pure/Genuine.” The Khalsa was inaugurated on March 30, 1699, by Guru Gobind Singh, the tenth Sikh Guru. From then on the temporal leadership of the Sikhs was passed on to the Khalsa with the bestowed title of “Guru Panth” and spiritual leadership was passed on to the Guru Granth Sahib with the Khalsa being responsible for all executive, military and civil authority in the Sikh society. The Khalsa is also called the nation of the Sikhs.

The Sikhs of the Khalsa can be identified with the given Five Ks and titles ofSingh

and Kaur, granted after the disciple has been baptized into the order of the Khalsa. The tenth Sikh Guru, Guru Gobind Singh at an event that coincided with the Vaisakhi day (of the new lunar month Baisakh Samvat 1756) created the Khalsa in the year 1699 A.D at Kesgarh, in Anandpur Sahib ordained that every Sikh becomes Amritdhari “Having taken Amrit]” and follow the Five Ks; which are not merely symbols but display commitment to the philosophy of Guru Nanak Dev like a uniform of an organization.

A Sikh male at being initiated into the Khalsa is titled Singh meaning “Lion” and

a female is entitled Kaur meaning “Princess”. From then on they are commonly referred to as Amritdhari (having taken Amrit). The Khalsa is considered the pinnacle of Sikhism. The Khalsa is expected to perform no ritual and to believe in no superstition of any kind but only believe in

one God who is the Master and the Protector of all, the only Creator and Destroyer.

The usual interpretation of the Khalsa is made as “Pure” as in the following statement: (“pure/devoted”) word khālisa[h] is the recognition of every Sikh that follows the discipline and text from the Guru Granth Sahib.

There is also another word from Arabic which is pronounced as “Khalsa” and is adapted in Punjabi / English / Hindi and many other languages. So, there are two different words in Arabic: (Khalsa) and (Khalisa) Furthermore, there is a word in Persian meaning “pure” and pronounced as “Khalis”. A reader of Urdu can testify the “Khalis” in the Persian script and language as described below.

“Khalsa” is also used for a property which belongs to the emperor directly. The official language in the Mughal era was Per-

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Lakh Lakh Vadhaiyan!

Happy Vaisakhi!

B.C. B C Liberal Leader Andrew Wilk Wilkinson on

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