family parents: Even after they all fled to Batman, a city in southeastern Turkey, in 2013, they still lived in the same building, according to Toronto Star. Now, for the first time, their family unit would be pulled apart. His whole family parents, elder brother, three sisters and their spouses and children had always lived together in Damascus. Although his wife, two children and parents all arrived in Toronto with him in February 2016, the majority of the Darwish clan 19 adults and children are still languishing in Turkey, except for one sister and her family who were resettled to Brussels in November. There was a lot of crying when we left Batman, said Darwish, a skilled trades worker who came here as a resettled Syrian refugee sponsored by the Canadian government. Darwish's brother and his wife and children have been waiting since November 2016 for their application to come to Canada to be approved. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

deportation tens: Trump ended the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program last year but delayed its end for six months to allow Congress to act, according to Metro News. The Obama-era program protects from deportation tens of thousands of young immigrants brought to the U.S. as children. President Donald Trump is blasting Democrats for doing nothing to protect people brought to the U.S. as children and living here illegally. Trump is demanding funding for a border wall and an end to family based immigration programs as part of an agreement on DACA. But Democrats and a few Republicans have suggested they may not vote for government funding that doesn't include DACA protections. President Donald Trump says A.G. Sulzberger's ascension as publisher of The New York Times gives the newspaper a last chance to fulfil its founder's vision of impartiality. Trump tweeted that DACA activists and Hispanics will go hard against Dems, will start falling in love with Republicans and their President! We are about RESULTS. 10 15 a.m. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

enforcement organizations: The new watchdog, the Canada Law Enforcement Review Commission, would scrutinize both the border agency and the RCMP, given the frequent overlap between the two enforcement organizations, according to Metro News. The June 2017 report by former Privy Council Office chief Mel Cappe, now a professor at the University of Toronto, was obtained by The Canadian Press through the Access to Information Act. The report, prepared for Public Safety Canada, also recommends the proposed body be able to look into trends and any systemic problems at the border services agency. Scott Bardsley, a spokesman for Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, would not comment directly on Cappe's recommendations, but said the government is working on legislation to create an appropriate mechanism to review CBSA officer conduct and handle complaints. The border agency's thousands of employees manage the flow of about 100 million travellers as well as some 16 million commercial shipments entering Canada annually. The government is committed to ensuring that our border services are world class and worthy of the trust of Canadians. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

huma abedin: Trump's latest tweets pressed familiar arguments for the president, who is set to begin his first full year in office with the victory of tax legislation but the Russia investigation still hanging over his administration, according to CTV. Crooked Hillary Clinton's top aid, Huma Abedin, has been accused of disregarding basic security protocols. He also claimed that U.S. sanctions on North Korea were having a big impact and that he was responsible for preventing commercial aviation deaths in 2017. She put Classified Passwords into the hands of foreign agents, Trump tweeted in an apparent reference to a report by the conservative Daily Caller. As he remains shadowed by the special counsel's Russia investigation, Trump has seized on recent revelations of anti-Trump behaviour by some FBI officials, including some who once worked on special counsel Robert Mueller's probe of Russian meddling in the 2016 presidential election, to claim bias against him. Remember sailors pictures on submarine Jail! Deep State Justice Dept must finally act Also on Comey & others, he added. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

ice storms: The new watchdog, the Canada Law Enforcement Review Commission, would scrutinize both the border agency and the RCMP, given the frequent overlap between the two enforcement organizations, according to The Chronicle Herald. POWER RESTORATION CONTINUES IN B.C. About 800 customers were still without power early Tuesday as crews worked to restore electricity after ice storms swept through British Columbia's Fraser Valley. It also recommends the proposed body be able to look into trends and any systemic problems at the border agency. For some residents, Monday was their fourth day without electricity, after freezing rain left thick layers of ice in the hardest hit areas of Abbotsford, Mission and Chilliwack. EAST COAST BRACES FOR ANOTHER STORM Canada's east coast appears to be in the crosshairs of another storm. BC Hydro spokeswoman Tanya Fish says 450 field workers have been working around the clock and have restored power for more than 159,000 customers since the storms hit Thursday and Friday. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

morning show: The idea is to make it a little bit easier to provide settlement services for immigrants and refugees.'- Justin Campbell The association is setting up satellite offices in Corner Brook, Grand Falls-Windsor, Labrador City and Happy Valley-Goose Bay, using funding from both the federal and provincial governments, according to CBC. The idea is to make it a little bit easier to provide settlement services for immigrants and refugees, no matter where they live in the province, the association's Justin Campbell told the St. John's. John's Morning Show. John's. The Association for New Canadian has offices on Military Road in St. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

income bar: No matter how one slices this, whether it's on the basis of ... being below an income bar, or taking into account lower cost of living, anglophones still fall below the lower income lines more often than francophones do in Quebec, Jedwab told CBC News. if undefined typeof b in The study examines poverty based on several factors, including age, unemployment, ethnicity and region, according to CBC. It found that across all regions of Quebec, anglophones are more likely than francophones to be living below the poverty line. The findings, compiled from 2016 census data by demographer Jack Jedwab, president of the Association for Canadian Studies, fly in the face of a longstanding perception that Quebec anglophones are mostly well off. When it comes to age, only francophones aged 65 or older are more likely to be living below the poverty line than anglophones in the same age group. Allophones have it the hardest' Overall, Quebecers whose first language is neither English nor French are the most likely to be living in poverty. In this study, anglophones are defined as those whose first official spoken language is English, which includes a number of immigrants and people from various ethnic communities, Jedwab said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

mac arthur: Monday, according to CBC. MacArthur deleted a tweet posted Monday from Myanmar, as that country continues to struggle through a humanitarian crisis created by the persecution of its Muslim minority population. Peter Mac Arthur, who serves as Canada's ambassador to Indonesia, praised the country's beaches in a posting that was published just before 10 a.m. Twitter First day of 2018 unfolded on a Myanmar beach where the great surf is pleasingly turquoise coloured, warm, clean and clear perfect for snorkelling to visit with nature and the fish, Mac Arthur tweeted, along with three photos of empty beaches. The posting is a stark contrast to the images of hundreds of thousands of Rohingya Muslims seen fleeing the country, as its government is accused of waging an ethnic cleansing campaign. MacArthur was on a private visit to Myanmar, also known as Burma, where his wife Karen serves as Canada's ambassador to the country. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

syrian community: Blood drive organizer Sam Nammoura, from the Syrian Refugee Support Group, said that giving blood is considered a big honour in Syrian culture, according to CTV. If people are really committed they say, I will do this with my blood,' he said. Scroll down or click here to vote in our poll of the day Yo Rasso, who arrived in Canada about 18 months ago, said he decided to roll up his sleeves to say thank you Canada for help ing me and my children. This is an opportunity for them to show their appreciation and gratitude to the country. We are very grateful for the Syrian community and the newcomers, Delrosario added. Jhoanna Delrosario of Canadian Blood Services said she suggested New Year's Day for the blood drive because the New Year's holiday and January in general are a slow time for donations. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

toronto kitchen: Even after they all fled to Batman, a city in southeastern Turkey, in 2013, they still lived in the same building, according to Metro News. Now, for the first time, their family unit would be pulled apart. function set Cookie related path / ; Related Toronto kitchen staffed by Syrian refugee women at risk of closing Syrian refugees facing challenges three years after settlement Tailor made Syrian refugee and Nova Scotia yoga teacher pair up on pants line Although his wife, two children and parents all arrived in Toronto with him in February 2016, the majority of the Darwish clan 19 adults and children are still languishing in Turkey, except for one sister and her family who were resettled to Brussels in November. His whole family parents, elder brother, three sisters and their spouses and children had always lived together in Damascus. Darwish's brother and his wife and children have been waiting since November 2016 for their application to come to Canada to be approved. We felt we would never see them again. There was a lot of crying when we left Batman, said Darwish, a skilled trades worker who came here as a resettled Syrian refugee sponsored by the Canadian government. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

june report: The June 2017 report by former Privy Council Office chief Mel Cappe, now a professor at the University of Toronto, was obtained by The Canadian Press through the Access to Information Act, according to National Observer. Scott Bardsley, a spokesman for Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, would not comment directly on Cappe's recommendations, but said the government is working on legislation to create an appropriate mechanism to review CBSA officer conduct and handle complaints. The new watchdog, the Canada Law Enforcement Review Commission, would scrutinize both the border agency and the RCMP, given the frequent overlap between the two enforcement organizations. The government is committed to ensuring that our border services are world class and worthy of the trust of Canadians. They collect, analyze and distribute information concerning people and goods at border points, air terminals and seaports. The border agency's thousands of employees manage the flow of about 100 million travellers as well as some 16 million commercial shipments entering Canada annually. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

list champion: Thousands across the country participated in exercises such as snow shoveling, sailing and even pillow fighting! Sheila Wells of Northern B.C. was named a play list champion and documented the entire experience on her Twitter account Swel Sheila, according to Vancouver Courier. We asked her to share more about the challenge below. In celebration of our great nation's big 1-5-0 last year, ParticipACTION challenged us to get more active by taking part in their 150 Play List the ultimate list of activities that define us as Canadians. Rachel Johnstonarticle continues below Trending Stories Vancouver bus tracking map allows you to track movement in real time Memory loss Clark Drive plaza sits forgotten and neglected Online tool tracks empty homes across Metro Vancouver Michelle Obama is coming to Vancouver Feb. 15Tell us a little bit about yourself and your life in Prince Rupert. We have magnificent views of the mountains and Pacific Ocean and it is very easy to be outdoors exploring and taking in the beauty. Prince Rupert is small, coastal, somewhat isolated town in the North West corner of British Columbia. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

business owners: That reduction had been promised for some time but was brought forward as the Liberal government struggled to deal with a backlash against other proposed changes, including a plan to make it harder for small business owners to sprinkle income among family members, according to CBC. Those changes also take effect on Jan. 1, although the first time business owners will have to account for them is when they file their 2018 taxes in 2019. One welcome change for Canadian small businesses is a drop in their tax rate to 10 per cent from 10.5. At the federal level, there will be a slight increase in EI premiums, but the Canadian Taxpayers Federation estimates it will add only about 6 in new costs for the average worker and 13 per employee for the average employer. Free prescriptions for Ontario youth What's going to cost more, less, in B.C. For those who want to bring elderly parents and grandparents to Canada, 2018 brings the return of the sponsorship program that had been closed down to deal with backlogs. The government's new inflation-adjusted escalator to the excise tax on beer, wine and spirits also comes into effect this year, although taxes won't actually rise until April 1. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

enforcement organizations: The new watchdog, the Canada Law Enforcement Review Commission, would scrutinize both the border agency and the RCMP, given the frequent overlap between the two enforcement organizations, according to The Chronicle Herald. The June 2017 report by former Privy Council Office chief Mel Cappe, now a professor at the University of Toronto, was obtained by The Canadian Press through the Access to Information Act. The report, prepared for Public Safety Canada, also recommends the proposed body be able to look into trends and any systemic problems at the border services agency. Scott Bardsley, a spokesman for Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale, would not comment directly on Cappe's recommendations, but said the government is working on legislation to create an appropriate mechanism to review CBSA officer conduct and handle complaints. The border agency's thousands of employees manage the flow of about 100 million travellers as well as some 16 million commercial shipments entering Canada annually. The government is committed to ensuring that our border services are world class and worthy of the trust of Canadians. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

francis: Peter's Basilica and later greeted some 40,000 people in St, according to CBC. Peter's Square. Francis offered his reflections on paring down non-essentials as he celebrated New Year's Day Mass Monday in St. His advice included setting aside a moment of silence daily to be with God. At the beginning of the year, we too, as Christians on our pilgrim way, feel the need to set out anew from the centre, to leave behind the burdens of the past and to start over from the things that really matter, he said. Doing so would help keep our freedom from being corroded by the banality of consumerism, the blare of commercials, the stream of empty words and the overpowering waves of empty chatter and loud shouting, Francis said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

mel cappe: The new watchdog, the Canada Law Enforcement Review Commission, would also be able to initiate its own studies of trends and systemic problems, according to Toronto Star. The proposed body would review both the CBSA and the RCMP, replacing the existing complaints commission for the Mounties, given the frequent overlap between the two enforcement agencies. The report, prepared for Public Safety Canada, says the body would fill a gap by independently scrutinizing public complaints about border officer behaviour. The Canadian Press used the Access to Information Act to obtain the June 2017 report by former Privy Council Office chief Mel Cappe, now a professor at the University of Toronto. Read more about Canada Border Services Agency Do you want to help shapethe Toronto Star's future Join our team of readers who are passionate about journalism and share your views. Article Continued Below A spokesperson for Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale says the government is working on legislation to create an appropriate mechanism to review CBSA officer conduct and handle complaints. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

palm beach: Before his departure for the capital, he fired angry tweets at Iran and Pakistan, slamming Islamabad for lies & deceit and saying the country had played U.S. leaders for fools, a reference to frustrations that Pakistan isn't doing enough to control militants, according to The Chronicle Herald. Pakistani Foreign Minister Khawaja Asif tweeted that his government was preparing a response that will let the world know the truth. Trump started his second year in Washington after a lengthy sojourn at his private club in Palm Beach, Florida, capped by a New Year's Eve bash. Meantime, North Korean leader Kim Jong Un said Monday the United States should be aware that his country's nuclear forces are now a reality, not a future threat. The president is hoping for more legislative achievements after his pre-Christmas success on taxes. To that, Trump only said We'll see. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

sydney: Sydney Seaplanes CEO Aaron Shaw described Morgan as an extremely experienced pilot with more than 10,000 hours of flight time, including about 9,000 hours of seaplane time, according to Metro News. He said Morgan worked for Sydney Seaplanes on two occasions, the first from 2011 to 2014, after which he went to fly seaplanes in the Maldives before rejoining the company in May 2017. Tour company Sydney Seaplanes said Gareth Morgan was piloting the plane that crashed Sunday afternoon and a spokesman for the company said Morgan also held Australia citizenship. On a personal level, he was deeply respected and liked by me and all of the team here as a man and as a pilot, Shaw said in a statement. We are devastated by his loss. He flew my family and I to Palm Beach just before Christmas. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

turkish leader: Visiting heads of state usually don't criticize their hosts during state visits, but Erdogan is a politician who speaks his mind, according to The Chronicle Herald. The Turkish leader jettisoned diplomatic niceties during meetings that were supposed to cement ties between the rivals, and his confrontational stance stunned his Greek hosts. But there are other contentious issues between Athens and Ankara, dating back decades, and something that Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan was very explicit about during his two-day visit to Greece in December. What had been billed a groundbreaking visit to Greece, the first by a Turkish president in 65 years, turned into a verbal condemnation of some Greek policies, particularly in relation to its treatment of its Turkish Muslim minority in Thrace, the Balkan region near the Turkish border. Denying Muslims this right is a violation of the 1923 Treaty of Lausanne, he declared, referring to the agreement which created the modern Turkish Republic. Muslims, Erdogan asserted on Dec. 7, should be able to elect their own religious leaders, rather than have them appointed by the Greek state. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

yahya rasso: What the Canadian people did and what Canada did for them, saved their lives and offered them a better opportunity, according to CTV. Wafa Anomar was one of the 65 refugees who donated blood on Monday. This is the first opportunity for them to show their appreciation and their gratitude to the country, said Sam Nammoura of the Calgary Immigrant Support Society. I'm so happy to see a lot of people who came to help other people, said Anomar of the turnout. All Canadians helped me and my children, said Yahya Rasso. It's a small help but it's good. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

census numbers: Census numbers from 2016 reveal Montreal is by far the country's most trilingual city, according to National Observer. The data were specially ordered by Montreal International, a business association, and provided Friday to The Canadian Press. The reality on the ground in Montreal, however, is that customers to the city's stores and restaurants would likely be just as comfortable with an Hola, Ciao, Namaste, Salaam or Marhaba. Statistics Canada's figures indicate more than 21 per cent of Montrealers can speak at least three languages, compared with 11 per cent of Torontonians and 10 per cent of people in Vancouver. Ironically, it's Quebec's language law and immigration policies that encourage trilingualism, said Jack Jedwab, head of the Association for Canadian Studies, who helped obtain the data. Nearly 850,000 Montrealers know at least three languages and more than 40 per cent of the city's immigrants are trilingual. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

paris agreement: But, in a fundamental and glaringly crude way, Trump is a lens through which to view our world over the last year, according to National Observer. He embodies the rise of the political and social right. Here are five of the most important global stories, in my view, to cross our news streams and how they were related ; 1 The year of Trump He is everywhere, and in the 24-hour news cycle, he has become boringly predictable. He zealously flirts with dictators. He pulled the US out of the COP-21 Paris Agreement, believes climate change to be a Chinese-concocted hoax, and promotes coal. He is unabashedly xenophobic and enthusiastically foments anger among his base against foreigners, just as he repeatedly attempts to seal off America's borders. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

saskatchewan years: To talk about a prairie populist from Saskatchewan 40 years ago, that wasn't a negative connotation, that was someone who was fighting for the people and against some of the big icons of central Canada whether it was banks or railways or the other parties, Scheer says, according to National Observer. In this political cycle, populism in some circles has a negative connotation. Populism hasn't always been a dirty word in Canada, Conservative leader Andrew Scheer points out. For Scheer, that connotation is one he finds himself fighting against, as opponents routinely seek to paint Conservatives as one step away from the hard right base of the populist movement that put Trump in office. The left will argue the government is always best placed to respond to any given issue, and if people don't agree, they don't care about the subject, he says. In 2018, he'll seek to counter that narrative by presenting a new approach. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

november republicans: Though official candidate filing doesn't start until mid-February, the Democrats are quickly approaching the number of House and Senate seats they contested in 2016 and hope to strongly contest each seat in November, according to Metro News. Republicans used a similar full-court candidate strategy in 2010 to seize control of both chambers for the first time in 140 years. Eager to reassert their longtime influence on North Carolina politics, the Democrats already have already fielded an unusually large pool of candidates for 100 seats in the 170-member bicameral legislature. They've held veto-proof majorities since 2013, allowing them to impose a right-leaning agenda including broad tax cuts, abortion restrictions and taxpayer-funded grants for children to attend private schools. While Democrats regained a bully pulpit when Gov. They also passed the state's bathroom bill, later partially repealed. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

alias grace: Another great Canadian book character, Anne of Green Gables, has had plenty of onscreen and onstage life in her time, but this year she has had a decidedly feminist portrayal much sassier and darker than the character has ever been interpreted before, according to Toronto Star. And this time around she's simply called Anne. Who would have thought 20- and 30-year-old books would grab the imaginations of TV watchers around the world as much as Margaret Atwood's The Handmaid's Tale and Alias Grace have, for example Clearly, her razor-sharp observations about authoritarian societies in terms of the first, and anti-immigrant sentiment among other issues in the latter have struck a chord. And coming to the big screen in April is an adaptation of Richard Wagamese's 2012 novel Indian Horse, which some of us know from school reading lists. Here are our suggestions Article Continued Below Roughing It in the Bush Can't you imagine Susanna Moodie and Roughing It in the Bush getting the TV treatment but, as with Anne, acknowledging the darker bent of our story While Moodie talks about the struggle to bring some sort of order to her rough life, there should also be an emphasis on the Indigenous narrative that was going on at the same time, better reflecting the totality of this nation's experience. There are plenty of other books out there books still being taught in our high schools and universities that are ripe for adaptation to the big screen. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

bangladesh-myanmar border: The contrast could not be more striking with what is happening with the Rohingya at the Bangladesh-Myanmar border, according to The Chronicle Herald. Consider the facts an exodus more than 600,000 official refugees, an estimate that does not include countless families who have fled under the radar and have not been captured by official statistics. Many Canadians were busy with the purchases of gifts and the preparations of delicious meals and had heartwarming family reunions during this Christmas week. All these refugees have escaped into Bangladesh from the hell of ethnic cleansing in Myanmar where they used to live. Most fled with nothing but their clothes and had to risk their lives to cross the river between the two countries. Many have had family members raped and killed by soldiers in the Myanmar army and their houses burnt to the ground. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.