rohingya refugee: While nearly every other Rohingya refugee who crossed the border has sought protection in the immense camps a few miles deeper into Bangladesh, these people say they will go no farther, according to CTV. My ancestors' graves are there, said Abdul Naser, gesturing toward his village, less than 100 metres yards away. They arrived in a no man's land, one of the small, ill-defined areas that exist at the cloudiest edges of the borderlands, places that seem to be neither Myanmar nor Bangladesh. Sometimes, I walk close to the barbed wire fence and touch my land, and I cry in the dark. Myanmar deployed more soldiers to the border, some of whom began coming to within 10 metres yards of the refugees' homes. But a few weeks ago things changed. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

minority studies: People are falling between the cracks, according to CBC. An administration report going to the community and public services committee next week draws on research from the council, as well as from the Institute for Sexual Minority Studies and Services and the Women's Advocacy Voice of Edmonton. The needs are there, the gaps are there, said Susan Morrissey, the executive director of Edmonton Social Planning Council, one group that has researched what it's like to be lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer or two-spirited person in Edmonton. In some cases there's a lot of tension, Morrissey said Friday of the response from LGBTQ2 community. Susan Morrissey, executive director of Edmonton Social Planning Council, said the non-profit has identified several gaps in policies and services. We heard loud and clear from people it was really unacceptable and that changes should be made. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

navid sharifi: The two hail from Hamadan, Iran, according to CBC. They both got their PhDs from Concordia University Sharifi's PhD is in mechanical engineering while Goodarzi's doctorate is in computer science. Maybe we're singled out said Navid Sharifi, who moved to Montreal with his wife, Bahareh Goodarzi, in 2011. It's frustrating, a lot, because we do our best to integrate into society, said Goodarzi. Surprisingly, we love winter here because we love to ski, Goodarzi said. They work, they own homes, they pay taxes, but permanent residents can't vote for city council 21.9% of Canadians are immigrants, the highest share in 85 years Stats Can The two say they love everything about Montreal and want to solidify their future in Quebec. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

russian citizenship: Maybe they are not even Russians, but Ukrainians, Tatars or Jews, but with Russian citizenship, which should also be checked, he said, according to CTV. Putin responded brusquely when interviewer Megyn Kelly asked if he condoned the interference that was alleged in last month's U.S. indictment by special counsel Robert Mueller. In an interview with American broadcaster NBC News that aired Saturday, Putin also suggested that some of the 13 Russian nationals indicted by the United States may not be ethnically Russian. It's all the same to me. Putin said Russia has neither the tools nor the will to meddle in elections. To me it absolutely makes no difference because they do not represent the government, Putin answered, according to the Russian-language interview transcript posted Saturday by the Kremlin. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

syrian: With the help of instructional videos and a translator, Kevin Perry has started teaching the group of Syrian tradesmen roofing skills, according to CTV. The Syrian volunteers already have experience in a variety of trades and construction jobs in their native country, but since coming to the Maritimes, they've had to learn other techniques. As part of the pilot project, Habitat for Humanity is offering newcomers courses in Canadian building techniques, materials and even helping with language skills. The difference is that in Syria the work is mainly of concrete and cement, but here the buildings are made of wood, so that is a huge difference, says Syrian carpenter Mohamed Amzohbi. So we're actually getting free labour, so we're actually solving a problem for us at Habitat, and solving a challenge for them here to get better integrated in our community, says Perry. With a need for more affordable housing in Saint John, Habitat for Humanity plans to build housing units in the city with help from the volunteers. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

tension breaks: Um Omar's light green eyes are intense with concentration, according to National Observer. The moment of tension breaks when Raghda sees a camera pointed at her work station. The slap of thin rubber gloves echoes through the room as she and her co-worker Hasne Sheikh who goes by the name Um Omar sprinkle the dough evenly, making sure not to miss any spots. It gives me pride, Raghda said. She quickly whisks the metal bowls on the table out of view for the photo. Before, my kids never used to ask me for anything because I always had to ask my husband for money... But these days, my kids ask me for things, too. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

case i: But in this case I lucked out, according to Vancouver Courier. It was there I discovered the HSBC Canada Sevens at B.C. Place is a festival of fandom filled with colourful costumes and friendly supporters, all set to the soundtrack of one epic weekend of on-field action.article continues below Trending Stories Pubs cheer new B.C. liquor laws Vancouver police search for parolee convicted of hostage-taking, and a sex offender Downtown Eastside Free dental clinic offers help with a smile Motor vehicle accident sends seven to hospital, closes Grandview Highwayrelated Drone video catches rugby sevens stars at Capilano Suspension Bridge So here are five things newcomers to the HSBC Canada Sevens should know What is Sevens rugby The game is a shorter, faster version of traditional rugby. And no, Captain Obvious, just because a website is dedicated to a subject doesn't always means it's a great source. Instead of 15 players playing 40-minute halves, this fast-paced game includes seven players playing seven-minute halves. There will be blood. The result is non-stop action. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

chicago facility: While the woman was released Tuesday from a San Diego detention centre the girl remains in the facility 2,000 miles 3,200 kilometres away, according to Metro News. Immigrant advocates say the mother and daughter's case is emblematic of the approach taken by President Donald Trump's administration. The lawsuit follows action the ACLU took in the case of a Congolese woman and her 7-year-old daughter, who the group said was taken from her mother screaming and crying and placed in a Chicago facility. The lawsuit, filed in federal district court in San Diego, asks a judge to declare family separation unlawful and says hundreds of families have been split by immigration authorities. The ACLU says the woman was given a roughly 25-day sentence jail sentence for illegally entering the country and then placed in immigration detention facilities in West Texas, while her son was taken to a Chicago facility. The lawsuit also raises the case of a Brazilian woman who the ACLU says was separated from her 14-year-old son after they sought asylum in August. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

commission: Peters said the government-ordered Motherisk Commission made unilateral decisions and selective omissions and ignored Indigenous communities and families, contrary to its mandate, according to Toronto Star. Read more Motherisk Commission calls for sweeping changes to child protection system Article Continued Below Opinion Edward Keenan Motherisk reforms show struggling families don't need to be split up, they need our help The Commission, in our view, conducted its work in a manner that retrenched colonial policies and systems which serve little purpose but to remove First Nations children from First Nation families and communities, he wrote. In a letter to Attorney General Yasir Naqvi this week, the Alliance's deputy grand chief Gordon Peters blasted the recently concluded review as a secretive process that looked at only a fraction of the thousands of known child protection cases involving faulty drug and alcohol hair-testing from the Hospital for Sick Children's Motherisk lab. It is harsh criticism of the independent review which was supposed to ensure meaningful participation of Indigenous people from an organization that represents 20,000 First Nations citizens from seven communities in Ontario. react-empty 174 A lawyer for the commission said on Thursday that many efforts were made to meet with and inform Indigenous communities of the review and that those communities were invited to suggest cases for the commission to investigate. In an email, a spokesperson for the ministry of the attorney general said the province is confident that Commissioner Judith Beaman has fulfilled her mandate and done everything in her power to ensure public confidence in the child protection and criminal justice systems. Because of these consultations, the commission sought out cases where children were placed with family members, which is more common in Indigenous communities. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

county government: But if you want to know what country life is like, I can definitely help, according to Toronto Star. On a gorgeous balmy winter day, the county government along with the Newcomer Centre of Peel, a settlement agency was busing in new immigrants from Brampton, Mississauga and Toronto for a field trip and the region's annual job fair in Owen Sound, more than two hours' drive northwest of Toronto. How much does an average detached home cost What's the wait time for daycare Is there public transit Do you need a car to live in Grey And most important for the 30 passengers, what jobs are available and do they pay well I'm not a tour guide, said Rudolph, the county's outreach co-ordinator. Honestly, I never heard of Grey County, said Huntly Xiao, 32, who came to Canada from China in 2012 as a foreign student and became a permanent resident two years ago, when he graduated with a master's degree in environmental engineering from Concordia University. There are a lot of new graduates, a lot of new immigrants like me here. Article Continued Below I have worked at Tim Hortons for the past two years to survive. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

dave williams: Dave Williams and other state lawmakers met Thursday with advisers from the White House Domestic Policy Council, according to Metro News. The meeting came a day after the Trump administration announced it had filed a lawsuit challenging California laws that it says protect immigrants in the country illegally. Republican state Rep. Williams says he advocated for similar action against cities and officials for policies that protect such immigrants. President Donald Trump says his government is looking into Oakland Mayor Libby Schaaf after she warned the public about an impending immigration raid. The Colorado Springs lawmaker wants to make public officials liable for civil damages when immigrants here illegally commit crimes in sanctuary jurisdictions. 11 55 a.m. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

rohingya people: There was the warning this week from the United Nations human rights chief, Zeid Ra'ad al-Hussein, that Burma's military appears to have committed acts of genocide against the Rohingya people, according to Toronto Star. There was the warning last weekend in The New York Times from journalist Nicholas Kristof, who has just visited the country. But like the endless Syrian civil war, this is a deepening crisis of historic proportions to which much of the world now seems largely indifferent in spite of the warnings. I saw a genocide in slow motion, was the headline, as the military continues to kill its Rohingya by denying them health care and food. Article Continued Below In the past six months, more than 700,000 Rohingya Muslims have fled Buddhist-majority Burma also known as Myanmar for Bangladesh to avoid what the UN describes as a classic case of ethnic cleansing by the Burmese military including the burning of villages and raping of women. And there was the warning last month from Shirin Ebadi, Nobel Peace Prize winner in 2003, that Aung San Suu Kyi, also a Nobel laureate and Burma's discredited de facto leader, must be held personally responsible for genocide of Rohingyas under her watch. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

enforcement work: He said he agrees with much of the criticism from the left even though it caught him off guard and had expected most of the backlash to come from the right, according to The Chronicle Herald. Cantu told his detractors on Twitter To be clear during my years as a BP agent, I was complicit in perpetuating institutional violence and flawed, deadly policy. Now 32, he says he didn't expect his new memoir examining some of the agency's uglier aspects would spark protests by far-left groups denouncing him for the enforcement work and forcing him to cancel some talks promoting The Line Becomes a River Dispatches from the Border. My book is about acknowledging that, it's about thinking through the ways we normalize violence and dehumanize migrants as individuals and as a society. Writing the book was a way to come to terms with what I had participated in, a job that made me normalize a certain amount of violence, Cantu said. Cantu said he wrote the book to make sense of his time with the patrol. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

perla morales-luna: Attorney Andres Moreno II said Friday that his client, Perla Morales-Luna, was walking down a street in National City with her three daughters last week when agents dramatically pulled her away and drove her off, according to Metro News. Moreno says the single mother emphatically denies the Border Patrol's allegation that she was an organizer of a transnational smuggling network. The Latest on the Border Patrol's arrest of a woman near San Diego that was recorded on video all times local 12 46 p.m.A lawyer for a woman arrested on immigration violations in the San Diego area says he's shocked by video of Border Patrol agents tearing his client away from her crying children. Morales-Luna has not been charged with any smuggling crimes and the Border Patrol has offered no evidence of that. Her children, ages 17, 15 and 12, are staying with family in the San Diego area. 8 15 a.m. The attorney says Morales-Luna came to the U.S. from Mexico at age 15 and he will fight her deportation. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

state rep: Dave Williams said he advocated for holding individual cities and their policymakers personally liable during a meeting with the White House Domestic Policy Council, according to The Chronicle Herald. The Colorado Springs Republican says he hopes U.S. Attorney Jeff Sessions follows up on the California lawsuit this week with similar legal actions against municipalities. State Rep. These sanctuary communities and politicians are wilfully endangering the public, Williams said ahead of the meeting. Williams said he also called for more immigration agents in Colorado and that White House advisers were receptive to his suggestions. Cities like Denver and states like California are allowing criminal aliens to run loose, to kill, murder, maim or hurt our fellow Americans. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

syrian authorities: An era of flagrant contradictions, according to Rabble. An era of erosion of principles of justice. An era of deep polarization of views. My husband, Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen born and raised in Syria, faced a public trial in 2002 while he was the victim of extraordinary rendition initiated by U.S. authorities with the complicity of Canadian law enforcement as well as Jordanian and Syrian authorities, official and de facto allies of the U.S. war on terror. He was transported in the middle of the night to an airport where a private jet, known as a ghost plane, flew him to Amman, Jordan. When my husband was given a paper in his U.S. cell stating that he had been arrested because of his alleged association with Al-Qaeda, he didn't get a lawyer or day in court. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

conversions: Following the victory of India's right-wing BJP Prime Minister Modi's Bharatiya Janata Party in May 2014 Muslims, Christians, Sikhs, and Jains generally are fearful of what the future portends, warns a recent report from the U.S. Commission on International Religious Freedom, according to Toronto Star. Threats, hate crimes, social boycotts, desecrations of places of worship, assaults, and forced conversions led by radical Hindu nationalist movements have escalated dramatically. In an open letter to Trudeau ahead of his trip, Amnesty International listed several pressing human rights concerns that needed to be raised the continuing absence of justice for the 3,000 victims of the 1984 Sikh massacre; the criminalization of same-sex relationships, and the failure to criminalize marital rape; the use of indiscriminately firing pellet guns that have killed, injured, or blinded hundreds in Kashmir; the threatened expulsion of 40,000 Rohingya refugees fleeing genocide back to Burma; and the severe persecution of minorities. Read more Opinion How Justin Trudeau can recover from his stumbles in India Article Continued Below Opinion Tim Harper On the India fiasco, Trudeau is looking for blame in all the wrong places Opinion Why was Trudeau snubbed on his visit to India Since the election of the BJP, scores of Muslims have been beaten, hanged, burned, or hacked to death by mobs, while Modi most infamous for presiding over the coordinated slaughter of 2,000 Muslims in Gujarat in 2002, when he was the state's Chief Minister has barely uttered a word of condemnation. react-empty 162 More than 40,000 crimes against Dalits formerly untouchables rapes, home-burnings, murders were reported in 2016, according to the government's own statistics; anti-Dalit violence has skyrocketed over the last four years. Adivasi communities resisting the pillage of their lands and resources have been subjected to rape and extrajudicial killing by security forces. Thousands of Adivasis indigenous people have been violently displaced by mining companies in the building of India's vaunted economy, in some cases with the support of Canadian investors. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

infant daughter: A young man whose femur had torn through his skin in a motorcycle crash needed antibiotics for an infection, according to Toronto Star. An elderly retiree with a swollen foot arrived after taking a 20-hour bus ride from Caracas because doctors there told his family the only treatment they could offer was amputation without anesthesia or antibiotics. An 18-year-old woman rubbed her swollen belly after fleeing with her infant daughter when the wounds from her C-section began to ooze pus. If you want to sign, sign. Read more Venezuela's Nicolas Maduro threatens to ban opposition parties from future elections Article Continued Below Venezuela's creditor meeting is a bust as S&P declares country in default More than 500 killed over 2 years in Venezuelan government anti-crime campaign report As Venezuela's economic crisis worsens, rising numbers are fleeing in a burgeoning refugee crisis that is drawing alarm across Latin America. But we are not responsible for the life of your father, Teresa Tobar, 36, quoted the doctors in Venezuela as telling her when they handed over the papers to authorize her father's surgery. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

jewish-funded mission: Israel's Christian allies now fund about a third of all immigrants moving to the country, according to a tally by The Associated Press, according to The Chronicle Herald. The figures reflect the ever tightening relationship between Israel and its evangelical Christian allies, whom Israel has come to count on for everything from political support to tourism dollars. What was once a strictly Jewish-funded mission is increasingly being bankrolled by evangelical Christians. After 2000 years of oppression and persecution, today you have Christians who are helping Jews, said Rabbi Yechiel Eckstein, president of the International Fellowship of Christians and Jews, a group that raises money from evangelical Christians for Jewish causes. Israel has long depended on diaspora Jewish communities, especially in the United States, for donations and to lobby their local governments on its behalf. This is an amazing thing. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

nazar: An angry crowd gathered around Nazar's house around 8 p.m, according to CTV. Wednesday, throwing rocks and shouting, so the family turned off the lights so no one could see inside. In the small town of Pallekele, mobs ignored the curfew that was supposed to keep them off the streets and used gasoline bombs to burn four homes, said Mohamed Nazar. Then a large flame came and the house caught fire, Nazar said. Authorities eventually put out the fire, but much of his family's belongings were destroyed, he said. His father hid under a sofa as the flames took hold, but Nazar grabbed him and they ran out. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

jury trials: He said at this point in time, the team he has assembled is looking at the results of the 1991 Aboriginal Justice Inquiry of Manitoba, according to Rabble. The Aboriginal Justice Inquiry was called in response to two cases the killing of Helen Betty Osborne in 1971 and the killing of Island Lake Tribal Council executive director J.J. Harper in 1988. Maybe moving jury trials into the communities is our answer, as they do in Nunavut, as they do in the Northwest Territories. Peremptory challenges were used in the Osborne case, eliminating six Indigenous people from the jury panel. The inquiry recommended getting rid of peremptory challenges. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

manon monastesse: The first obstacle is even to get to the shelter, said Manon Monastesse, the head of Quebec's Federation of Women's Shelters, which counts 36 establishments across Quebec, according to CBC. We'll make sure we're heard' New Quebec feminist coalition wants improved access to justice A big step forward' Cree women's shelter opens in Waswanipi The Maison d'h bergement l'Aquarelle in Chibougamau one of the only resources available to women in northern Quebec fields calls from women as far away as Whapmagoostui, a Cree village on Hudson Bay accessible only by plane, and a three-hour flight away. Women's shelters across the province say despite recent investments by the provincial government to counter sexual abuse, when it comes to fighting domestic violence, there are still dire needs. I'm not in a position where I can pay for transport, said Marie- ve Guay, the executive director of the shelter whose catchment area covers more than half the province. The Pipiichaau Uchishtuun Women's Shelter in Waswanipi opened its doors in September 2017. Women sometimes turn to their band councils for help, Guay said, but others never make the trip. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

puerto rico: Pixar's box-office smash Coco, the biggest budget studio release to feature a largely Hispanic cast, won best animated feature and best song, according to CTV. Lin-Manuel Miranda reminded viewers of Puerto Rico, rebuilding from Hurricane Maria. Guillermo del Toro became the third Mexican-born filmmaker to win best director, and it was his lavish Cold War fantasy The Shape of Water that was crowned best picture. Lupita Nyong'o advocated for the Dreamers. And Chile's A Fantastic Woman won best foreign language film. Rita Moreno returned, resplendently, in the dress she wore to the Oscars in 1962. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

richmond hill: We are utterly disgusted at the long time it took to process the case, said Jaffer of Richmond Hill, a retired businessman who moved to Canada in the 1990s and is a Canadian citizen, according to Toronto Star. This is completely unfair and unacceptable. The agonizing wait for family reunification finally ended 11 years later, in January, when 80-year-old Nargis Anwar Jaffer died of pneumonia in a hospital back home with the sponsorship application still in process. The department said it could not comment on the case without the deceased person's consent due to privacy concerns.A native of Kenya, the elderly Jaffer moved to the United Kingdom to flee ethnic persecution against South Asians in East Africa. Article Continued Below Shabbir Jaffer, 60, said he submitted his mother's sponsorship application in September 2007, at a time when the Canadian government's immigration website stated the processing would take about 36 months. She had two sons; Jaffer later moved to Greater Toronto. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

time wednesday: An angry crowd gathered around Nazar's house around 8 p.m. local time Wednesday, throwing rocks and shouting, so the family turned off the lights so no one could see inside, according to CBC. Then a large flame came and the house caught fire, Nazar said. In the small town of Pallekele, mobs ignored the curfew that was supposed to keep them off the streets and used gasoline bombs to burn four homes, said Mohamed Nazar. His father hid under a sofa as the flames took hold, but Nazar grabbed him and they ran out. A man walks out of his damaged house after a clash between two communities in Digana. Authorities eventually put out the fire, but much of his family's belongings were destroyed, he said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

sense i: Sessions was defiant as he spoke to local law enforcement officials about the lawsuit, citing a series of California laws that he says are unconstitutional and violate common sense, according to CTV. I can't sit by idly while the lawful authority of federal officers are being blocked by legislative acts and politicians, he said, straying from his prepared remarks. Jerry Brown in a fiery exchange of words. Brown didn't hold back in his response, calling Sessions a liar and saying it was unprecedented for the attorney general to act more like Fox News than a law enforcement officer. What Jeff Sessions said is simply not true and I call upon him to apologize to the people of California for bringing the mendacity of Washington to California, the governor told reporters. He accused Sessions of going to war with California to appease President Donald Trump. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.