getty images: Omar Khadr looks out the window of his home on May 9, 2015, two days after being freed after having spent nearly half of his life in custody, according to Huffington Post Canada. Photo Michelle Shephard/Toronto Star via Getty Images Internationally, Canada is portraying itself as an open country, accepting refugees from war ravaged countries like Syria. The Canadian government has been funding cultural initiatives here and there to promote the diverse communities living together and to bring the multicultural aspect of Canada. A sort of the antithesis of the American policies recently announced by U.S. President Trump to ban refugees. A sharp contrast with the previous prime minister, Stephen Harper, who defunded the Ministry of Status of Women and dehumanized Muslim women by fomenting the niqab debate. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau describes himself as a feminist, taking selfies with young Muslim girls in hijab. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

government officials: At the time, they were told passing the courses would help them obtain a selection certificate which is required to obtain permanent residency, according to CTV. Chalk said the courses could cost up to 30,000. David Chalk said newcomers to Quebec had availed themselves of a program introduced in 2009 in which they took the classes at schools belonging to the English Montreal and Lester B. Pearson school boards. According to Chalk, eight months ago many of those who had passed the courses began receiving letters and phone calls from government officials informing them there had been issues with their documents. Rather, they were given French tests. Chalk said when they met with Quebec immigration officials, the documents were never mentioned. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

harper: The event marks the end of nearly four years of effort, first by the previous Conservative government and then by the current Liberal one, to recognize Yousafzai's achievements in promoting the rights of girls and women to go to school, according to Metro News. The idea to commemorate her work in that way began as a discussion among senior political advisers to former prime minister Stephen Harper early in 2013 and eventually became a promise in that fall's throne speech. The Pakistani education activist who miraculously survived a Taliban assassination attempt will address Parliament as she becomes the sixth person to be awarded the distinction of being an honorary Canadian. Yousafzai was to receive the honour from Harper at a Toronto-area high school on Oct. 22, 2014.. However, that morning, a gunman stormed Parliament Hill after taking the life of Cpl. Nathan Cirillo at the National War Memorial, resulting in a security lockdown that forced an indefinite postponement. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

health status: I have not received any training on the completion of the form, according to Hamilton Spectator. This assessment is cursory in nature and should not be construed as an accurate representation of the subject's risk or mental health status. I am not a medical or mental health professional, one Canada Border Services Agency officer wrote on a risk assessment form in 2015. The form the officer admitted he or she was untrained and ill-equipped to complete had real consequences for Kyon Ferril, the immigration detainee in question, as it meant he would continue to serve his indefinite detention in a maximum-security jail rather than a less-restrictive facility. The form determines in what kind of facility a detainee will be placed by classifying them as high, medium or low risk. The Toronto Star's review of documents related to other detainees found erratic use of the form known as a National Risk Assessment for Detention, or NRAD. It is to be filled out when an immigration detainee is first incarcerated and, according to policy, should be reassessed every 60 days. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

motor vehicles: Copies of emails requested and recently obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union show that investigators with the state Department of Motor Vehicles co-ordinated with federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials last year to identify noncitizens, according to The Chronicle Herald. Many of the emails show department investigators sent information to ICE on migrants they suspect gave false information on their applications for driver identification cards. The Vermont motor vehicle department gave federal officials information on immigrants living in the country illegally, documents show, giving life to longstanding fears that programs providing such immigrants with documentation could be used against them. The state's card program was created in 2013 to provide immigrants living in the country illegally with a way to drive. The man had applied for a driver ID card, and state officials forwarded his information to federal immigration officials, who started deportation proceedings. The ACLU asked for the records to ensure the motor vehicle department was complying with a settlement agreement reached last year in a discrimination case brought by a Jordanian man. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

nations reserves: The population here in Cape Breton County the southeast corner of the island peaked 55 years ago in 1961 and has been declining ever since, Gillis told a municipal council meeting Tuesday, according to The Chronicle Herald. In the Cape Breton Regional Municipality that's the county, outside the First Nations reserves the population declined by 3,100 people to 94,000 people. The Cape Breton community planner says that a dwindling population, as shown by the latest Statistics Canada numbers, makes predicting what the island will look like in five years and where towns should put their money a grim task. That's a 3.2 per cent decrease in five years. There are fewer of us living in the core, and more living farther away from the core. The county's two First Nations increased from about 4,400 people by 216 people or five per cent, comparable to the national rate, Gillis said. !function e,t,s,i var Off the reserves, the CBRM is experiencing the doughnut effect, Gillis said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

records requests: It comes as President Donald Trump seeks to expand detention capacity in a drive to deport more people, according to CTV. The numbers obtained by the group don't provide details on individual cases or a full accounting of how the complaints were addressed, but they suggest complaints are common. Community Initiatives for Visiting Immigrants in Confinement is the latest group in recent years to document allegations of abuse at immigration detention centres, based on information obtained from public records requests. Homeland Security inspector general's office disclosed that it received 1,016 complaints from detainees reporting sexual abuse or assault from May 2014 to July 2016. The inspector general received more than 33,000 allegations of a broader range of abuses from January 2010 to July 2016, including 702 for coerced sexual contact, 714 for physical or sexual abuse and 589 for sexual harassment, according to the group. More than 90 per cent involved Immigration and Customs Enforcement, an agency within Homeland Security that has more than 30,000 beds at detention facilities nationwide. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

refugee claimant: Anne-Marie Jackson / Toronto Star Ebrahim Toure, a 45-year-old failed refugee claimant, was designated high risk due to criminality in the U.S., which the Star found consists of a 12-year-old conviction for selling pirated CDs and DVDs and a 1,000 fine for reckless conduct, according to Toronto Star. He has spent more than four years awaiting deportation at a maximum-security jail in Lindsay, Ont. They are often detained in provincial jails, where they wear orange jumpsuits and are subjected to routine strip searches. Anne-Marie Jackson/ Toronto Star / Toronto Star Immigration detainee Kyon Ferril would continue to serve his indefinite detention in a maximum-security jail based on information the border services officer admits here he or she was ill-equipped to provide. Very important decisions on people's basic liberty and security interests are being made in one of the most deficient administrative processes I've ever seen, says Toronto lawyer Jared Will. Ferril was released last year on strict bail conditions. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

security: A judge has remanded him in custody for a month while investigations continue, according to Globe and Mail. Swedish security services have said Akilov had figured in intelligence reports but they had not viewed him as a militant threat. Akilov has confessed to committing a terrorist crime, his lawyer said on Tuesday. Sweden's state migration agency declined to comment on the Uzbekistan security source's remarks. Report Typo/Error (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

standup-comedy show: Founded back in 2004, the touring standup-comedy show that prides itself on and builds itself around its culturally diverse roster was the brainchild of Markham-born comedian Neil Bansil, according to Toronto Star. During that time, there were very few shows on mainstream comedy clubs that represented the diversity that Toronto had, recalled Bansil, who relocated to Atlanta in 2006. Courtesy Shark Party Media By Jackie Hong Staff Reporter Wed., April 12, 2017 The Most Races Show on Earth! say it out loud is coming to Toronto. It's not a bunch of comedians telling race-related jokes for an hour. The Star got a sample of jokes from the comedians that will be featured during the show's two-night run, Wednesday and Thursday, at Adelaide Hall. It's more about the opportunity to bring people together . . . Comedy is just the vehicle that brings them together. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

students risk: The students are graduates of the Programme d'exp rience qu b coise PEQ a vocational and French-language study program run by the province's school boards, according to CBC. Lester B. Pearson School Board insider raised concerns about international department in 2011 It is aimed at giving foreign students access to a Quebec selection certificate, an immigration document that is the first step toward permanent residency. But now hundreds of foreign students risk having their residency applications rejected after having spent thousands of dollars on government-approved French courses. From now on, a foreign student who obtains his diploma here will get offered a selection certificate to immigrate to Quebec, said then premier Jean Charest in March 2009 when the program was first announced. Many are having their applications for selection certificates turned down after the test. But students who have graduated from the program are being called in for interviews by Quebec's Ministry of Immigration, Diversity and Inclusiveness MIDI to evaluate their French. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

tag: There was ... a racist attack against one of the Syrian families here, according to Huffington Post Canada. A guy came along and was hurling racial insults at them, and just spitting on them, things like that, he said. TAG START player CA Play In Place Autoplay owner AOL Canada for AOL Canada function commercial video var TAG END date 4/12/17 Mohammad Al Jokhadar said a friend came up with the idea as a way to respond positively to the harassment of a Syrian refugee family in Halifax. We're just maintaining the equilibrium in society, right So if somebody throws a little bit of negativity, you give them a little bit of positivity to counteract the effect. One of the members of the Syrian Thanksgiving Group of Nova Scotia, Suha Mersal, said they wanted to thank the Canadian government for bringing them here, and hope to give something back. Members of the Syrian Thanksgiving Group of Nova Scotia cook Middle Eastern food and then donate it to shelters. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

tuesday afternoon: They faced plenty of problems stemming from poor communication, confusion about their health coverage and a lack of translation services, she found, according to CBC. We have to advocate for them and that requires addressing these needs that there might be services for, but they're not connected with.'- Rhianna Charchuk, master's student at the U of A's School of Public Health Arriving in Canada as a refugee is a really difficult and complicated process, said Charchuk, presenting the findings of a study involving 16 Syrian refugee families at the Edmonton Mennonite Centre for Newcomers on Tuesday afternoon. Part of our legacy' Photography project gives Edmonton refugees new family portraits Syrian refugees in Edmonton feel helpless as war escalates Rhianna Charchuk, a master's student at the U of A's School of Public Health, wrote her thesis on the barriers faced by privately sponsored Syrian refugees seeking medical and dental care in Edmonton. As Canadians taking them in, we have to advocate for them and that requires addressing these needs that there might be services for, but they're not connected with. Doctors there have expertise in refugees' unique health-care needs and are trained to deliver culturally appropriate care. The Mosaic Primary Care Network in Calgary helps refugees in that city navigate the health-care system. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

well-recognized activists: But I have learned that even a child's voice can be heard across the world, according to Huffington Post Canada. TAG START player CA Play In Place Autoplay for AOL Canada function commercial video var TAG END date 4/12/17 Yousafzai, who was born in Pakistan, has become one of the most well-recognized activists in the world following an assassination attempt by the Taliban in 2012. I want to tell the children of Canada that when I was little, I used to wait to be an adult to lead, she said in an address to the Canadian Parliament. The group was trying to silence her outspoken support of girls' education, a theme she has continued to speak out on with every opportunity that arises, including after Wednesday's honorary citizenship ceremony in Ottawa. When women are educated, there are more jobs for everyone. If all girls went to school for 12 years, low- and middle-income countries would add 92 billion per year to their economies, she stated. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

yousafzai: But it was during an eloquent, touching and thoughtful speech to a joint session of Parliament that the 19-year-old Yousafzai known to all and sundry these days simply as Malala very nearly brought down the house, according to Hamilton Spectator. She took the podium to the first of several sustained, thunderous ovations, acknowledging the fact that her initial trip to Canada in 2014 was essentially cancelled by a gunman's rampage through the very building where she now stood. Yousafzai received the honour during a long-awaited and anticipated ceremony on Parliament Hill alongside Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, before an audience of dignitaries, MPs, cabinet ministers and diplomats. The man who attacked Parliament Hill called himself a Muslim but he did not share my faith. He did not share our Islam a religion of learning, compassion and mercy, she said. He did not share the faith of one and a half billion Muslims, living in peace around the world. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

discrimination case: Many of the emails show department investigators sent information to ICE on migrants they suspect gave false information on their applications for driver identification cards, according to Brandon Sun. The state's card program was created in 2013 to provide immigrants living in the country illegally with a way to drive. Copies of emails requested and recently obtained by the American Civil Liberties Union show that investigators with the state Department of Motor Vehicles co-ordinated with federal Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials last year to identify noncitizens. The ACLU asked for the records to ensure the motor vehicle department was complying with a settlement agreement reached last year in a discrimination case brought by a Jordanian man. He was briefly jailed and released after posting bail; he was ultimately not deported. The man had applied for a driver ID card, and state officials forwarded his information to federal immigration officials, who started deportation proceedings. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

nobel winner: I know where I stand, Yousafzai said during a moving speech to a joint session of Parliament that was punctuated frequently by thunderous standing ovations, according to Brandon Sun. Related Items ArticlesA Quick Sketch of Nobel winner and honorary Canadian Malala Yousafzai Text of Malala Yousafzai's speech Wednesday to a joint session of Parliament If you stand with me, I ask you to seize every opportunity for girls' education over the next year. Yousafzai used her newfound membership in the Canadian family and towering presence on Parliament Hill to apply a little friendly pressure, calling on the country to go beyond honorifics and take a global lead in ensuring more girls can go to school. The 19-year-old called on Canada to make girls' education the centrepiece of its work as host of the G7 next year something that would bring full circle the process of how the Pakistani activist became Canada's sixth honorary citizen. Malala is an international symbol of perseverance for not only girls and women but for all of us, she embodies what it means to be Canadian, Harper said in a statement Wednesday. The accolade was originally to be conferred by former Conservative prime minister Stephen Harper, whose inner circle thought honouring Yousafzai would be a logical offshoot of their government's focus on women and girls' health when Canada last led the G7. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

saddlebrook resort: Pliskova and Vondrousova are newcomers while Siniakova and Allertova have played Fed Cup doubles once before, according to Brandon Sun. Karolina Pliskova, Barbora Strycova and Lucie Safarova, who helped the Czechs win five of the past six Fed Cup titles, are not available. An inexperienced team of Katerina Siniakova, Kristyna Pliskova, Denisa Allertova and Marketa Vondrousova has been selected for the April 22-23 series on an outdoor clay court at Saddlebrook Resort in Florida. The Czechs will also miss Petra Kvitova because of injuries she suffered during a knife attack in December. The winner advances to the Fed Cup final on Nov. 11-12. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

climate change: The 2017-2027 foreign policy program includes money to support government offices around the world and to create more diplomatic missions, according to Globe and Mail. Quebec also plans to use the money to transform its current international offices into delegations, Couillard said. Couillard added that climate change will also be one of the government's top international policy priorities. Report Typo/Error (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

asian man: Many responded with outrage over perceived ethnic bias against the passenger and some called for a boycott of the U.S.-based airline, according to Huffington Post Canada. Rubbish!'' writer Su Danqing posted on Weibo. Video of the violent incident posted on China's popular Twitter-like microblogging service Weibo had been viewed more than 210 million times by late Tuesday. When they were treating this Asian man, they never thought of human rights, otherwise they wouldn't have done it that way.'' Damn it! This airline must be boycotted!'' said a posting from Liu Bing, a telecommunications company worker. Photo Xaume Olleros/Bloomberg via Getty Images United does considerable business with Chinese passengers and a consumer boycott could cause serious pain. State-run media fueled the anger with reports that noted the unidentified victim was an Asian passenger.'' A United Airlines Boeing 747 on the tarmac at Hong Kong International Airport, Nov. 15, 2015. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

bill clinton: Nixon devastated Laos, Cambodia and of course Vietnam 3 million dead . Both Bushes bombed Iraq, according to Rabble. Famously Bill Clinton bombed a medicine factory in Sudan to distract attention from the Monica Lewinsky affair. Harry Truman is the prime example, nuclear bombing Japan and razing North Korea. Obama sent U.S. bombers to Libya. His global leadership has met with approval from NATO states, Canada included, and Western media. Donald Trump has just attacked Syria. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

canada: Because, make no mistake the Conservatives' leadership race has dramatically set back their party, perhaps for years to come, according to Huffington Post Canada. Among other things, it has revealed the once-great Conservative Party of Canada to be nasty, brutish and short-sighted. Surveying the wreckage that now litters the Conservative landscape, it's a timely question, too. It has transformed a modern, broad-based political party into a posse of xenophobic, paranoid Duck Dynasty types -- rubes who look like they'd rather jail an immigrant than attend a banquet with one. Photo Jacques Boissinot/CP By selecting a winner, the Conservative Party of Canada has rendered itself a loser, and wholly undeserving of power. Leadership candidates participate in the Conservative Party French language leadership debate, Tuesday, January 17, 2017 in Quebec City. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

car crash: She told E! News It was hard to move on without him, according to Hamilton Spectator. He is the essence of why we were excited to come on-board because he kept that childhood excitement about that realm and following through in what we were doing. The 40-year-old actor - who played Brian O'Connor in the 'Fast and Furious' franchise - died in a car crash in 2014 and co-star Michelle Rodriguez admitted moving on without him has been a struggle. He's a big part of the family, but at the end of the day, we have a big responsibility, and it's a global one so we gotta keep on trucking. I think that's a big reason why we went dark on this one and why it's not all fun and games... But at the end of the day, the big picture of it all is that this has become a global monster that's kind of letting in the 99-per cent through the backdoor into Hollywood that never really created anything for them in the action-movie realm. It was not easy to film without him. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

characters bellamy: He says he felt strong the show should be cast in a way that accurately represented the characters, according to Toronto Star. Bellamy says he resigned after being informed a white actor would play Bloody Mary, a Tonkinese woman from what is now northern Vietnam. Mark Bellamy says the production includes themes of racial intolerance and the lead characters' struggle with bringing Polynesians into their lives. He says he made several suggestions for actors he believed had a more appropriate ethnic background for the character, but whose singing abilities didn't quite satisfy the Calgary Opera. Oscar Hammerstein created this piece of theatre to have this discussion about racism, he didn't create it to showcase voices of sopranos and mezzo-sopranos necessarily, Bellamy says.A designer and a performer also quit in reaction to the casting decision, and Bellamy says other colleagues won't sign contracts to be part of the production. Article Continued Below Bellamy says he understood why that's the opera's focus, but that's not what the musical is about. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

contact authorities: The Associated Press By JAVIER C. HERN NDEZThe Associated PressCAO LIThe New York Times Tues., April 11, 2017 BEIJING A day after the forced removal of a passenger from a United Airlines flight provoked a social media furor in the United States, a similar outcry followed in China, after state-run news outlets here described the man as being of Chinese descent, according to Toronto Star. The man's name has not been released, but another passenger on the flight Sunday said he had complained of being singled out because he was Chinese. The airline insisted the flight was over-booked and that it had no choice but to contact authorities when the man refused to leave. By Tuesday evening, the hashtag United forcibly removes passenger from plane was the most popular topic on Weibo, China's equivalent of Twitter, garnering more than 270 million views and more than 150,000 comments. Read more United Airlines CEO calls passenger removal truly horrific' as backlash grows Article Continued Below United Airlines abuse underlines need for passenger bill of rights Editorial react-text 160 A video showing three security officials dragging a passenger from a United Airlines flight at Chicago's O'Hare International Airport was viewed more than 190 million times in China. /react-text VIDEO SCREENGRAB The outrage was furious and sustained, with internet users calling on United to apologize for its treatment of the man, who was dragged from his seat by security officers after refusing to be bumped from an overbooked flight from Chicago to Louisville, Kentucky. Many Chinese social media users accused United of racism, while others called for a boycott. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

farzat: She was particularly traumatized when she saw pictures how people tore apart their family home in the small city of Homs, located in western Syria, according to CBC. Windsor's low-cost housing attracts refugees to Windsor Windsor Syrians rally to denounce war crimes Everything was destroyed, I remember my toys were all scattered on the floor and dirty and even pictures were burned, Farzat said. The soft-spoken 13-year-old vividly remembers hearing bomb blasts. Her family arrived in Windsor in November 2014 as refugees. I'm not really good with speaking so drawing is my way of expressing myself, Farzat explains. While her parents say Farzat suffered from depression, they say they've noticed an improvement recently and credit her artwork. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.