Aung San Suu Kyi: She will join an elite group of foreign honorees who include South Africa's Nelson Mandela and Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi, according to Reuters. "She faced down evil and oppression and now speaks boldly for those who are silenced." OTTAWA - Pakistani teenage activist Malala Yousafzai, who was shot in the head by the Taliban for campaigning for girls' education, will be granted honorary Canadian citizenship, the Canadian government announced on Wednesday. "Canada recognizes the courageous and inspiring example set by Malala Yousafzai in risking her life promoting education for young women," the government said in a speech setting out its priorities for the next two years. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Chevrolet Impala Limited: The automaker said Thursday that projected demand for the Chevrolet Impala Limited and Chevrolet Equinox means the consolidated line will remain active until 2016. It had originally been slated to close next summer, according to Huffington Post. GM spokeswoman Adria MacKenzie said about 650 people work on the consolidated line, and there are "no anticipated changes to employment levels as a result of this scheduling action." TORONTO - Increased demand for two popular models has prompted General Motors of Canada to keep one of its assembly lines in Oshawa, Ont., open two years longer than planned. The Oshawa complex also has a flexible manufacturing line that builds the 2014 Chevrolet Impala, Chevrolet Camaro, Buick Regal and Cadillac XTS. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Malala Yousafzai: She will join an elite group of foreign honorees who include South Africa's Nelson Mandela and Myanmar's Aung San Suu Kyi. , according to Reuters. "She faced down evil and oppression and now speaks boldly for those who are silenced." OTTAWA - Pakistani teenage activist Malala Yousafzai, who was shot in the head by the Taliban for campaigning for girls' education, will be granted honorary Canadian citizenship, the Canadian government announced on Wednesday. "Canada recognizes the courageous and inspiring example set by Malala Yousafzai in risking her life promoting education for young women," the government said in a speech setting out its priorities for the next two years. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Osama bin Laden: In one instance, an email sent by the wife of an Osama bin Laden associate contained clues as to her husband's whereabouts and led to a CIA drone strike that killed him in Pakistan in October 2012, the Post reported in its online edition Wednesday night, according to Times Colonist. The documents make clear that the CIA-operated drone campaign relies heavily on the NSA's ability to vacuum up enormous quantities of email, phone calls and other fragments of signals intelligence, or SIGINT, the newspaper said and WASHINGTON - The National Security Agency has been extensively involved in the U.S. government's targeted killing program, collaborating closely with the CIA in the use of drone strikes against terrorists abroad, The Washington Post reported after a review of documents provided by former NSA systems analyst Edward Snowden. While citing documents provided by Snowden the American is hiding out in Russia after being granted asylum there the Post reported that it was withholding many details about the drone-strike missions at the request of U.S. intelligence officials. They cited potential damage to ongoing operations and national security for their request, the paper reported. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Ambassador Otto Jelinek: Ambassador Otto Jelinek says his government wants to re-establish visa-free status "in the earliest possible term.", according to CTV. Canada abolished visas for Czech citizens in 2007 but re-imposed them two years later because of concerns over an excessive number of asylum-seekers, most of them from the country's Roma, or Gypsies, claiming discrimination at home and PRAGUE, Czech Republic - Canada's ambassador to Prague says his country is planning to lift visa requirements for Czech nationals, a thorny issue that threatened a new free trade agreement between the European Union and Canada. Thursday's announcement came as Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper was expected in Brussels to conclude the deal with EU that the Czechs had threatened to block. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Human Rights Commission: The Human Rights Commission looked at the recent proposals outlined by Democratic Institutions Minister Bernard Drainville as he prepares the Charter of Quebec Values, and found they fly in the face of the Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms adopted by Quebec in 1975, according to CTV. The Commission said it does not normally speak on government proposals, but said in this case the proposed Charter of Quebec Values is so divisive, and so clearly in violation of current law, it felt it had no choice and Quebec's Human Rights Commission says many of the restrictions on religion the Parti Quebecois government is proposing in its Charter of Quebec Values would be a violation of fundamental human rights. "The government's proposals are cause for serious concern. They represent a clear break with the text of the Charter," said Human Rights Commission president Jacques Fremont. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

David Johnston: The measure was introduced in the Speech from the Throne, which Gov.-Gen. David Johnston read to a packed Senate chamber that included Members of Parliament, senators, lawmakers and other dignitaries, according to CTV. But the balanced-budget legislation was not among the measures hinted at in pre-speech interviews given by cabinet ministers and The federal government is vowing to introduce new legislation that would mandate a return to balanced budgets in times of economic crisis. As expected, the governments agenda for the next Parliamentary session included promises to help Canadian consumers with their bills, as well as law-and-order measures such as a crack-down on repeat offenders. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Czech citizens: Canada abolished visas for Czech citizens in 2007 but re-imposed them two years later due to concerns over an excessive number of asylum-seekers, most of them from the country's Roma claiming discrimination at home, according to Times Colonist. "We had a huge wave of unfounded refugee claims from the Czech Republic between 2007 and 2009. The good news is that our reformed refugee system has radically reduced the number of fake claims coming to Canada, for example, from the European Union," Kenney said at a Calgary event on Thursday and CALGARY - A move to lift visa requirements for Czech nationals is on the horizon, says the federal minister who oversaw the move in 2009. Jason Kenney, now minister of Social Development, Employment and Multiculturalism, was the minister of Citizenship and Immigration when the government made the move. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

Barbara Jackman: Barbara Jackman said Ottawa has repeatedly refused to provide disclosure in the case to support its allegations that Freeman, 64, has any terrorist links or that he was once connected to the now-defunct radical group, according to The Star. She made her comments before Justice Anne Mactavish, who is conducting a judicial review of Ottawas blocking of Freemans application to re-enter Canada and The federal government has acted in bad faith and refuses to provide information that it claims links former Toronto librarians assistant Douglas Gary Freeman to the Black Panther party, Freemans lawyer argued in federal court Wednesday. There has been a clear withholding of relevant evidence, Jackman said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

David Johnston: The Tory-blue booty was included in a lengthy speech from the throne Wednesday by Gov. Gen. David Johnston that spent almost as much time congratulating the Harper government on past achievements as laying out future priorities, according to Huffington Post. "Tell the prime minister you've got his back and help us seize Canada's moment," the Conservative party operations director, Fred Delorey, urged party followers in a mass email shortly after the late-afternoon speech concluded in the Senate chamber and OTTAWA - Mandatory balanced-budget legislation, interprovincial booze runs, public sector bashing and lifetime prison terms are among a grab bag of populist Conservative promises in a mid-mandate policy makeover. As such, the document marked both the belated return of Parliament and the unofficial start to a federal election campaign that is still two years away. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.