Fotis Fatouros: Neighbourhood businesses will be affected by Imperial Oil s plan to downgrade its Dartmouth operation, although they re more concerned about the plight of refinery workers, according to The Chronicle Herald. I dont worry that much about myself. I m worried about the people who work there, he said in an interview Thursday and Fotis Fatouros, co-owner of Johns Lunch , said the refinery closure will have an impact on business because Imperial workers are among the eaterys regular customers. But the award-winning seafood diner has a loyal clientele that includes tourists and locals. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Antonio Guterres: The needs of these people are overwhelming; their anguish is unbearable, said Antonio Guterres, United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights, in a statement to mark World Refugee Day, according to The Star. Events were held in cities around the world. In Toronto , World Refugee Day organizers marched from City Hall to Dundas Square for a concert and poetry reading and People across the globe came together Thursday to reflect on the plight of war refugees, as families continue to flee hotbeds of violence in Syria, Afghanistan and beyond. In all the years I have worked on behalf of refugees, this is the most worrying I have ever witnessed, Guterres said from Jordan, where more than 500,000 Syrians displaced by civil war are registered as refugees. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Rita Chahal: The new head of Manitoba's largest refugee settlement agency, Welcome Place, knows what it's like to feel welcome. Rita Chahal hopes her experience in dealing with business and government can help Welcome Place with settlement issues. MIKE DEAL / Photo Store Fewer welcomed In 2012-13, Welcome Place helped 688 newcomers from 51 countries. In 2011-12, it welcomed 923 people. More than 45.2 million people were displaced at the end of 2012 compared with 42.5 million at the end of 2011. This includes 15.4 million refugees, 937,000 asylum-seekers and 28.8 million people forced to flee within the borders of their own countries. Poor nations were more welcoming than rich nations. Of the 10.5 million refugees under UNHCR's mandate, half are being hosted by countries that have a per capita GDP of less than US$5,000. Developing countries host 81 per cent of the world's refugees compared with 70 per cent a decade ago. Almost half are kids, more are alone. Children under 18 make up 46 per cent of all refugees. A record 21,300 asylum applications submitted during 2012 were from children who were unaccompanied or separated from their parents -- the highest number of kids with no parent that UNHCR has recorded. -- sources: Manitoba Interfaith Immigration Council, UN High Commissioner for Refugees (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Canadian Civil Liberties Association: Its at least the second time the board has given Police Chief Bill Blair an extension since first passing a motion more than a year ago that he report the statistics to the board every three months and address discriminatory practices, according to The Star. Critics of the practice, such as the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, say that a prompt review of the data is necessary for police accountability and transparency concerning street checks and racial profiling and An internal review of carding data which could shed light on whether the practice targets minorities has been delayed by the police board just a day after the citys auditor general said an independent review of the data could be more than a year away. The move means that any public accounting of police street checks called carding where officers document an individuals personal information, including race, is months away. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Immigrant Settlement and Integration Services: Canadas Syrian community must surely be disappointed with Ottawas muted response to the refugee crisis in Syria and in neighbouring Jordan and Lebanon, according to The Chronicle Herald. ISIS has already found three local Syrian families with relatives in the camps and hopes to find more and Ottawa told immigration sponsors across the country on Thursday that it will admit 100 of the more than 1.6 million people who have fled Syrias civil war, a number that seems underwhelming at best. Gerry Mills of Immigrant Settlement and Integration Services in Halifax said the 100 must come from refugee camps in Lebanon or Jordan. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

spiritual enlightenment: Sukhi Vaid pines for the days when going to the gurdwara the centre of religious and community life for Sikhs was about spiritual enlightenment. As far as hes concerned, the ones near his home in Brampton have devolved into spaces for political glad-handing and not much else, so he no longer attends. The Brampton Diaries: A five-part series, according to Globe and Mail. Interactive A window to Canada #039;s future: how Brampton became a city to watch This is part of a series on how the diverse and growing city of Brampton, Ont., provides lessons for Canada's future. Peel Region seen as key swing area in next federal election (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Immigration Minister Jason Kenney: Kenney made the resettlement of Iraqis a focus in 2009 and had initially set this year as the target date to resettle thousands fleeing persecution and violence in that country, according to Times Colonist. Kenney says around 16,000 Iraqis have now arrived and the entire group will be resettled by 2015 and CALGARY - Immigration Minister Jason Kenney says Canada's promise to resettle 20,000 Iraqi refugees will be met by 2015 two years later than originally planned. But the ongoing conflict in Syria forced the government to close its visa office in Damascus in 2012, which dramatically slowed down the Iraqi program. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Hockey Canada: Hockey Canada announced Thursday that the 2015 and 2017 championships will be co-hosted by Canadas two largest cities Toronto and Montreal, according to Globe and Mail. News conferences were held a few hours apart in both cities for the tournaments that organizers expect to set records for attendance and revenue. More Related to this Story They promise to be the biggest world junior hockey championships ever. We re taking this to a whole new level, Hockey Canada president Bob Nicholson said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

preliminary survey: BEIJING - China's factory activity weakened to a nine-month low in June as demand faltered, a preliminary survey showed, heightening the risk of a sharper second quarter slowdown and increasing the heat on the central bank to loosen policy. , according to Reuters. And as the economy shows signs of faltering, a squeeze in Chinese money markets over the past two weeks has sharply tightened monetary conditions, adding to the pressure on the People's Bank of China to take steps to ease policy. By Kevin Yao China's economy grew at its slowest pace for 13 years in 2012 and so far this year data has been weaker than expected, bringing warnings the country could miss its growth target of 7.5 percent for this year, though possibly not by much. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

refugee health cuts: Toronto rally urges Ottawa to reverse refugee health cuts, June 18, according to The Star. But there is nothing preventing those doctors and nurses from providing that care on a pro bono basis. I am appalled at the self-serving nature of these health workers they are demanding that the taxpayer provide a charity that they refuse to provide themselves and Re: Toronto rally urges Ottawa to reverse refugee health cuts, June 18 It is true that that refugees claimants valid or not may find themselves in need of aid, whether medical, legal or financial. In this case, the minister has not outlawed access to health care for all refugee claimants. Rather, the minister has exercised financial responsibility by choosing to allocate the limited resources of his department to those most in need. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.