countries report: After Switzerland, Canada, Germany, the U.K. and Japan round out the top five spots -- all countries with progressive social and environmental policies, analysts note, according to CTV. Nordic countries like Sweden, Finland, Denmark and Norway are also heavily represented on the list and top other subcategories thanks to their famously progressive social policies Denmark, for instance, is named the best country for women, and for raising children, while Norway ranks the top country for citizenship. It's the second time the Swiss have topped U.S. News & World Report's Best Countries report, which looked at 80 countries for this year's ranking. The category of citizenship considers a country's record on human rights, gender equality and religious freedom. Y&R's BAV Group helped develop the model for the ranking. For the countries that rose to the top of this year's rankings, it is once again clear that military vigor and economic power are no longer the key determinants to a country's brand success, said David Sable, Y&R Global CEO in a statement. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

core: Nashville, Tennessee-based Core Civic had proposed locating a 100 million, 1,200-bed centre about 10 miles 16 kilometres east of South Bend, according to The Chronicle Herald. Elkhart County Commissioner Mike Yoder says Core Civic officials informed the three county commissioners Monday morning that they would withdraw their petition to rezone farmland for the centre. A private prison management company on Monday scrapped plans to build a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centre in northern Indiana following fierce local opposition, county commissioners said. Yoder said the company didn't give a reason why. I think Core Civic read the writing on the wall and saw it wasn't going to be a good fit for Elkhart County, Lucchese said. Commissioner Frank Lucchese confirmed the decision by the company previously known as Corrections Corp. of America. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

ethiopian border: The first peacekeepers are expected to arrive in the next few weeks, according to Metro News. This will be the first U.N. peacekeeper presence in Akobo since 2013, when the base of 43 troops was abandoned after armed men stormed the compound and killed three Indian peacekeepers. We've had several requests to be there in Akobo, U.N. mission chief David Shearer told The Associated Press, calling the gap in services there significant. Situated near the Ethiopian border, the bustling town is one of South Sudan's last opposition strongholds and has become a refuge for thousands of ethnic Nuer fleeing the fighting in Upper Nile and Jonglei states. The latest cease-fire, which took effect Dec. 24, was broken just hours later with both sides blaming each other for the violations. South Sudan's five-year civil war has killed tens of thousands and displaced millions amid warnings of ethnic violence. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

immigrant dreamers: The vote set the stage for hundreds of thousands of federal workers to return on Tuesday, cutting short what could have become a messy and costly impasse, according to Toronto Star. The House approved the measure shortly thereafter, and Trump later signed it behind closed doors at the White House. They relented in return for Republican assurances that the Senate will soon take up the plight of young immigrant dreamers and other contentious issues. But by relenting, the Democrats prompted a backlash from immigration activists and liberal base supporters who wanted them to fight longer and harder for legislation to protect from deportation the 700,000 or so younger immigrants who were brought to the country as children and now are here illegally. But there were deep divides in the Democratic caucus over strategy, as red-state lawmakers fighting for their survival broke with progressives looking to satisfy liberals' and immigrants' demands. Read more Why a U.S. government shutdown holds risks for Democratic senators facing re-election Article Continued Below U.S. government shutdown spoils Trump's first-year celebrations react-text 155 Senate Minority Leader Chuck Schumer at Capitol Hill on Monday. /react-text Drew Angerer / GETTY IMAGES U.S. Embassy in Israel will move to Jerusalem by 2019, Mike Pence says Democrats climbed onboard after two days of negotiations that ended with new assurances from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that the Senate would consider immigration proposals in the coming weeks. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

passion-fueled indies: Leading all nominees with 13 nods, including best picture, was The Shape of Water, by veteran Mexican filmmaker del Toro, whose Cold War-era fantasy is about a mute office cleaner Sally Hawkins who falls in love with an amphibious creature, according to Metro News. The film, shot in Toronto and Hamilton, came just shy of tying the record of 14 nominations shared by All About Eve, ''Titanic and La La Land. In nominations that spanned young and old, studio blockbusters and passion-fueled indies, the 90th annual Academy Awards on Tuesday gave many who have long been shunned by the movie business women directors, transgender filmmakers, minority actors, even Netflix something to cheer about. Toronto native J. Miles Dale shares in the best picture nomination for the film. Gerwig, the writer-director of the nuanced coming-of-age tale Lady Bird, became just the fifth woman nominated for best director, following Lina Wertmuller, Jane Campion, Sofia Coppola and Kathryn Bigelow, the sole woman to win, for The Hurt Locker. But the nominations also carried forward some of the ongoing reckoning of the Me Too movement that has been felt especially acutely in Hollywood, where male filmmakers outnumber women by a ratio of approximately 12-to-1. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

rights group: It also alleges that Motel 6 provided such information without requiring authorities to get a warrant or without having a reasonable suspicion that crimes were being committed, according to The Chronicle Herald. We are seeking to deter any law enforcement operation of this sort, said Thomas Saenz, president of the civil rights group. The lawsuit by the Mexican American Legal Defence and Educational Fund said Motel 6 had a corporate policy or practice of giving Immigration and Customs Enforcement agents information that guests provided at check-in. Motel 6 declined to comment on the lawsuit but said in a statement that it takes guests' privacy seriously. In a tweet at the time, Motel 6 said This was implemented at the local level without the knowledge of senior management. The national budget motel chain said in September that its Phoenix employees will no longer work with immigration authorities after the Phoenix New Times newspaper reported that workers were providing guests' names to agents who later arrested 20 people on immigration charges. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

phone conversation: In a city of accents, what's considered 'cute' versus 'foreign' reveals a hierarchy What can we tell from how someone speaks The next step would be a phone conversation before an in-person interview, according to CBC. Over the phone, however, Gupta said he sensed the initial enthusiasm begin to wane. Shortly after arriving in Toronto in 2014, he sent out resumes in droves and received several email responses back, including a few that were promising. Do you speak with an accent How do you feel about it How do others make you feel about it Share your experience at torontotips cbc.ca or call our Vox Box at 416-205-2595. You start talking and then the conversation sort of drops off. The only reason I can think of was after hearing me....so obviously he could figure out this person was not from here, he told CBC Toronto. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

politics: Every country's cuisine reflects that list and the journey its cooks took to your table, according to Toronto Star. American cooking reflects more journeys than most, its collective cuisine assembled almost entirely from the suitcases and memories of generations of immigrants. There's the sustenance and comfort of that food, but what's also built into the sauce or dropped into the pot is a sometimes invisible and highly complex ingredient list that can include tradition, community, history, geography, art, religion and politics. A new cookbook, published last month by Interlink Books, celebrates this multicultural recipe box, giving voice to the myriad chefs and their traditions as it puts their food on our menu and, more subtly, their politics on our plates. Collected and edited by Leyla Moushabeck, the book assembles over 70 recipes from first- and second-generation immigrant chefs from six continents. The title, The Immigrant Cookbook Recipes that Make America Great, is the least subtle thing about the cookbook, an obvious allusion to U.S. President Donald Trump's campaign slogan, and thus a pointed gastronomic counter to his administration's rhetoric and policies on immigration. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

trialable issues: Motor vehicle theft is punishable by up to 10 years in prison in Canada, according to CBC. Mr. Ahmed Aden Ali was deemed inadmissible to Canada because he had been earlier convicted of grand theft auto in the U.S. It's considered serious criminality under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, which classifies any crime with a maximum of at least 10 years in prison as serious. Ali, who had every hope to stay here, his pending criminal charges didn't even prevent Canada from removing him, said his defence lawyer, Amado Claros. They ended up staying or dropping those charges as a result of him actually being removed from Canada. ... From our perspective as defence, there are considerable trialable issues on the charges he was facing. The deportation was not because of those criminal charges. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

unity mosque: They were also active in the Church and Wellesley area, according to police at the time, according to Toronto Star. When news of their disappearance first emerged in 2012, El-Farouk Khaki, who founded the Unity Mosque, an LGBTQ prayer group, was very aware that the men weren't white. Skandaraj Navaratnam, 40, Majeed Kayhan, 58, and Abdulbasir Faizi, 42, were all middle-aged, of similar skin colour and immigration status. Police have made great attempts at reconciliation with the community, he said. Project Houston was formed in November 2012, nearly five years before the disappearance of two other men prompted police to set up another task force. But, it falls short by not recognizing that the queer community is not monolithic . . . Relationships need to be nurtured across. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

travel agency: Rating NNIn the mid-90s, Jan Lewan shortened from Lewandowski was a Grammy-nominated polka singer who hopped around in sparkly suits while rousing crowds of seniors with Polish folk tunes, according to NOW Magazine. A thick-accented immigrant to America, he also ran a souvenir shop selling trinkets and amber from Poland, ran a record label and a travel agency organizing European tours that promised meet-and-greets with the Pope. Now streaming on Netflix. The only thing that kept these businesses afloat was the millions pouring in from seniors convinced that Lewan's Polka Empire was a sound investment. His investors, who also seemed to dig polka music, wouldn't catch on that this was just one big and truly bizarre Ponzi scheme. He promised and often delivered 12 to 20 per cent interest. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

value village: Back when labour unions were fighting for a 10 minimum wage, there were townhall meetings held in low-income neighbourhoods across Toronto, according to NOW Magazine. On one of the panels, I sat beside a South Asian woman who had left an abusive relationship and was raising two children alone. Toronto, ON Ontario Premier Kathleen Wynne speaks to the media after the televised Ontario Leadership Election Debate held at the CBC studios in Toronto. I will always remember her words. But I can't raise my two kids on that money, so on Saturdays and Sundays I work at Value Village. I work at Wendy's, and started at minimum wage then 8 but now I have a position of responsibility and earn 9.26 an hour. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

affairs employees: It's not clear why Lukasz Niec, 43, was taken into custody last Tuesday, according to Metro News. Niec is a legal U.S. resident who works at Bronson Methodist Hospital in Kalamazoo. A Michigan doctor who came to the U.S. from Poland as a young child was in jail Monday, nearly a week after immigration agents arrested him at his home. He has two misdemeanour convictions from high school and an impaired driving conviction from 2008 that was later dismissed. An automatic response said the agency's public affairs employees aren't working because of the government shutdown. The Associated Press sent an email Monday seeking comment from Immigration and Customs Enforcement. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

cbc news: On Friday Demos got a one-paragraph email from an analyst with Immigration Refugees and Citizenship Canada telling her the news five days after CBC News published a story about her ordeal with the department, according to CBC. Government letter tells mom of 4 she's not Canadian'Lost Canadian' sues government for citizenship In a letter she received earlier this month, the registrar of citizenship told Demos the government had changed its records to reflect the fact she no longer held citizenship in addition to cancelling a citizenship certificate she held. I'm glad I get to stay, said Anneliese Demos, who hails from Paraguay and has lived in Canada since she was two-years-old. Demos is a so-called Lost Canadian due to a law that required second-generation Canadians who were born outside Canada to re-apply for citizenship before turning 28. Anneliese Demos came to Canada with her family at age two. Demos said she wasn't aware of the law. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

centre: Nashville, Tennessee-based Core Civic had proposed locating a 100 million, 1,200-bed centre about 10 miles 16 kilometres east of South Bend, according to Metro News. Elkhart County Commissioner Mike Yoder says Core Civic officials informed the three county commissioners Monday morning that they would withdraw their petition to rezone farmland for the centre . Yoder said the company didn't give a reason why. A private prison management company on Monday scrapped plans to build a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement detention centre in northern Indiana following fierce local opposition, county commissioners said. Commissioner Frank Lucchese confirmed the decision by the company previously known as Corrections Corp. of America. Core Civic had said its proposal was in response to an ICE request for information on possible facilities within 100 miles of Chicago.ICE detention centres have failed to win approval in at least four other communities in Indiana and Illinois over the past several years. I think Core Civic read the writing on the wall and saw it wasn't going to be a good fit for Elkhart County, Lucchese said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

government shutdowns: However, unlike previous government shutdowns in U.S. history that is, those that took place under the administrations of Presidents Carter, Reagan, Clinton, H.W. Bush and Obama President Trump's government shutdown had three characteristics that make it quite unique, according to Toronto Star. First, this was a self-induced government shutdown. On Saturday, the United States government was officially shut down. In effect, it was President Trump himself who suddenly decided to end DACA Deferral Action for Childhood Act upon its expiration in March, leaving the so-called Dreamers, their families, and the communities in which these young immigrants have been integrated in the limbo. Yet, negotiations ended when President Trump, using his self-promoted negotiation skills, managed to insult an entire continent, several countries, and various racial minorities in the U.S. Article Continued Below In truth, President Trump's unexpected changes-of-mind and continuous emotional outbursts are the root causes of today's government shutdown as the negotiating parties ended up losing trust in the President's word and the Democrats in the Senate using this government disruption as their last resource to force an immigration deal on DACA. It has become the norm; every crisis starts with Trump. This very action led Democrats and even some Republicans in Congress to propose a permanent legal protection for Dreamers in exchange for a more comprehensive immigration reform, which President Trump then conditioned upon his government receiving funding for his Wall. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

house official: A White House official said Monday evening that Trump then signed the bill, which was a product chiefly of negotiations among Senate leaders, according to CBC. Trump appears unyielding on Mexican wall, despite chief of staff's comments The House approved the funding bill by a vote of 266-150 just hours after it passed the Senate by a vote of 81-18. The fourth temporary funding bill since October easily passed the Senate and the House of Representatives. Trump's attempts to negotiate an end to the shutdown with Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer collapsed on Friday in recriminations and finger-pointing. I am pleased that Democrats in Congress have come to their senses, Trump said in a statement earlier on Friday. The Republican president took a new swipe at Democrats as he celebrated the Senate's pact. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

lexus: The prominent role in the Walt Disney Co. movie, the first major superhero film to feature a black actor in the lead role and a largely black cast, is no accident, says Cooper Ericksen, Lexus' vice-president of marketing, according to Toronto Star. To succeed in shifting toward a more sporty, high-performance image, Lexus needs to reach a new audience. The Toyota Motor Corp. brand is trying to use the excitement of that cameo to end a seven-year drought as U.S. luxury sales leader. Read More Nigerian comes to U.S., launches universe of African comic book superheroes Article Continued Below We are going after a younger customer, and just from a demographic standpoint, the younger you go, the more culturally diverse the population gets, Ericksen said in an interview after showing Black Panther-themed clips last week at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. As the U.S. shifts further away from a majority white country and baby boomers age and retire, companies are scrambling to position themselves with younger buyers who are increasingly non-white. The task to hit our sales plan really comes from bringing a lot of new customers into the brand. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

people home: The refugees began pouring across the border into Bangladesh in August, fleeing waves of attacks by Burma security forces and Buddhist mobs, according to Toronto Star. While the two countries have signed an agreement to begin sending people home in safety, security and dignity, the process has been chaotic and opaque, leaving international aid workers and many Rohingya afraid they would be coerced into going back to villages that they fled only months ago. There was no immediate confirmation from Burma. Abul Kalam, Bangladesh's refugee and repatriation commissioner, said a number of issues remain unresolved. It was not immediately clear when the process would start. Read more Article Continued Below Bangladesh, Burma aim to finish return of Rohingya refugees within two years Burma's military admits security forces, villagers killed Rohingya Muslims found in mass grave Burma couple risks lives for love amid Rohingya crisis react-empty 163 The main thing is that the process has to be voluntary, said Kalam, adding that paperwork for returning refugees had not yet been finalized and transit camps had yet to be built in Bangladesh. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

person: It's a bit of a shame that we're being led by a person that doesn't share those same ideals, according to Metro News. So it's unfortunate to hear those comments again but it's a narrative that we've gotten used to over the past year and unfortunately it's one that's grown far too popular. It's just another example of a person that time and time again shows that he's unfit, whether it be mentally, emotionally, just unable to kind of identify with a country that has moved on in so many ways, that has so many new ideas, so many forward ways of thinking, Altidore said when asked about Trump's comments on the opening day of Toronto's training camp. Trump, in a private meeting with legislators in January, reportedly challenged immigration from shithole'' African countries, disparaged Haiti and said the U.S. should welcome more immigration from countries like Norway. They came with no English and without a dollar to their name. Altidore said his parents, at 24 or 25, fled Haiti separately to escape the dictatorship of Papa Doc Francois Duvalier. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

project area: According to the notice, the U.S. Department of Homeland Security will replace the existing barriers with bollard walls to deter and prevent illegal crossings, according to CTV. Bollard walls are made up of sturdy, vertical posts that are spaced to provide visibility to the other side but are difficult to walk through There is presently a need to construct physical barriers and roads in the vicinity of the border of the United States to deter illegal crossings in the project area, Homeland Security Secretary Kirstjen Nielsen said in the notice. The notice published in the Federal Register said the area extends around 20 miles 32 kilometres west of the Santa Teresa Port of Entry. The targeted area is part of the U.S. Border Patrol's El Paso Sector that federal officials say remains an active route for human smuggling and drug trafficking. Santa Teresa, New Mexico -- a booming industrial border town -- is west of El Paso, Texas. In 2016, officials said the Border Patrol in the sector arrested more than 25,000 immigrant suspended of trying to enter the country illegally and seized around 67,000 pounds of marijuana. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

quebec solidaire: Leader Francois Legault is putting the emphasis on his team and presented a new slogan the team of change, according to CTV. Legault began the two-day meeting by telling MNAs and other that he hopes they are well-rested because there will not be any vacation until after October 1, the date of the vote. Adele this week to prepare for the spring session of the National Assembly -- but more importantly, to lay the groundwork for this year's provincial election. CAQ is doing well in polls and believes it could form next government; a new poll by Mainstreet Research shows the CAQ ahead with 32 per cent of the vote, the Liberal Party just behind that at 31 per cent, the PQ lagging behind at 18 per cent, and Quebec solidaire at 15 per cent. It's a challenge that another third party, the ADQ, faced a decade ago, when Quebecers decided that Mario Dumont did not have a strong enough team to become government. The party said it recognizes it needs to break the perception that Legault is a one-man show. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

red-state senators: Perhaps the most powerful Democrat in Washington, Schumer has so far succeeded in keeping his party unified in a bid to use the government funding fight to push for protections for some 700,000 young immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as children, according to The Chronicle Herald. But he has little margin for error in this first major test of his muscle and manoeuvring as leader. For immigration advocates, he's their best hope. The pragmatist is balancing the demands of a liberal base eager for a fight with President Donald Trump and the political realities of red-state senators anxious about their re-election prospects this fall. The question is, how do we get out of here in a way that reflects what the majority of the body wants to do, said Sen. Some of those senators met with Schumer Sunday morning and urged a compromise to end the shutdown. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

sandra antoun: Antoun, along with his wife and three children fled to Damascus where they would live for a year before packing up their few belongings and relocating to Lebanon, according to CBC. War destroyed everything Now, with the assistance of the Bedeque and Area Newcomers Relocation Committee, the family is settling into their new home, restarting their life in Canada. The family was forced to flee in 2012 from war-torn Zabadani, a city of 26,000 hit hard hard by the Syrian civil war. Before and after images of the Antouns' home in Syria. We were living a very good life in Syria, and a very happy life before the war. Submitted by Sandra Antoun There's no limit for your dreams ' Syrian family finds home in P.E.I. We had a long journey, a hard journey, Antoun said through his daughter Rosaline, who was taught English in school in Syria. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

senate: The measure needed 60 votes, and Democrats provided 33 of the 81 it got, according to The Chronicle Herald. Eighteen senators, including members of both parties, were opposed. Senate Republican leader McConnell's commitment to quickly tackle the issue of immigrant Dreamers was contingent on Democrats providing enough votes now for a stopgap spending measure lasting a little less than three weeks. Before the government can reopen the Senate must vote on final passage, the House must approve in turn, and President Donald Trump must sign the measure. Senate Democratic leader Chuck Schumer lent his backing to the agreement during a speech on the chamber's floor. Democrats climbed onboard after two days of negotiations that ended with new reassurances from Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell that the Senate would consider immigration proposals in the coming weeks. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

yazidi association: Hon, according to National Observer. Justin Trudeau, will you meet me Hadji Hesso, the association's president, said the organization hopes the federal government can bring more Yazidi refugees to Canada, noting there are children who have been freed after the defeat of ISIL in Iraq, but who have no one to help them. In a video posted to Facebook by the Yazidi Association of Manitoba, 13-year-old Emad Mishko Tamo holds up a sign thanking Canada for helping him, followed by another sign stating that he wants to share his story and be a voice for other Yazidi children still in captivity. ; There's a thousand other kids like me who are still held captive, one of Emad's signs states. A lot of these children are coming back but there's no parents, there's no family left. Emad was separated from his mother, Nofa Mihlo Zaghla, after the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant displaced thousands of members of the Kurdish-minority Yazidis in 2014, but he was freed last summer in the city of Mosul. They've all been killed or massacred and nobody knows where the rest of their families are, Hesso said. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.