chinese characters: The focus will be on community events, civic news, education, dining, entertainment, and arts and culture, according to Vancouver Courier. Every Thursday, 2,500 copies will be delivered to racks at convenient locations throughout the community including the West Vancouver Memorial Library, Gleneagles Community Centre, Caulfeild Village Shopping Centre Safeway, North Shore Multicultural Society and Loblaws City Market at Park Royal North. Starting today July 5 you will see our familiar front page on the racks with our stories reproduced in simplified Chinese characters.article continues below Trending Stories Vancouver High on Life vloggers die in Shannon Falls tragedy'We ran for our lives' West 4th Avenue residents devastated by fire New social housing complex named after employee who died in hit-and-run Vancouver acting community rallies behind couple who lost everything in Kitsilano fire Once a week, our editor will curate a list of stories that have already run in the North Shore News and send them to Rise Media's professional translators to be written and for layout. According to the last census, nearly 5,000 West Vancouver residents speak Mandarin as their mother tongue 12.2 per cent of the population. Over the past decades we have seen a significant growth in immigration from mainland China. In North Vancouver, there are close to 3,000 Mandarin-speaking residents. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

government: It added, This mess was 100 per cent the result of the federal government, and the federal government should foot 100 per cent of the bills, according to Vancouver Courier. Source Office of the Premier of Ontario After what was reportedly a tense first meeting with the Ontario Premier, Prime Minister Trudeau came out alone to speak with media about his response to Ford's statement and their subsequent discussion. Ford's office released a statement July 5 that criticized the federal government for having encouraged illegal border-crossers to come into our country. article continues below Trending Stories Vancouver High on Life vloggers die in Shannon Falls tragedy'We ran for our lives' West 4th Avenue residents devastated by fire How to cut down on waste this Christmas Vancouver acting community rallies behind couple who lost everything in Kitsilano firerelated Montreal becomes hot spot for Chinese real estate shoppers, says Juwai report The statement said, This has resulted in a housing crisis and threats to the services that Ontario families depend on. I spent a little time explaining to Ford how the asylum-seeking system works and how our system is supposed to operate, Trudeau told media in Toronto. Read Related Topics ul var related Url var related Link Class relatedlink-processed ; if related Url && ! -1 var related UrlFrags related Url.split '/' ; related Url './' -1 ; related Link Class ul var related Url var related Link Class relatedlink-processed ; if related Url && ! -1 var related UrlFrags related Url.split '/' ; related Url './' -1 ; related Link Class ul var related Url var related Link Class relatedlink-processed ; if related Url && ! -1 var related UrlFrags related Url.split '/' ; related Url './' -1 ; related Link Class ul var related Url var related Link Class relatedlink-processed ; if related Url && ! -1 var related UrlFrags related Url.split '/' ; related Url './' -1 ; related Link Class ul 2018 Vancouver Courier Click here to take part in our readers survey At the same time, I agreed that it would be good for our officials to sit down and get clarity on how we can actually work together to ensure that we are holding true to our values but making sure that our immigration and refugee system is being applied in its integrity. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

wage increases: He jumped at the chance to attend graduate school at Texas A&M University, according to Vancouver Courier. In 2016, Zhao enlisted in the U.S. Army as part of a special recruitment program offering immigrants in the country legally a path to citizenship.article continues below Trending Stories'We ran for our lives' West 4th Avenue residents devastated by fire New social housing complex named after employee who died in hit-and-run Vancouver acting community rallies behind couple who lost everything in Kitsilano fire Minimum wage increases go into effect June 1 across B.C. The future, he said, was bright. He read the Bible his parents gave him, watched Hollywood movies and studied the ideals of democracy. Now, he is one of the dozens of immigrant recruits and reservists struggling with abrupt, often unexplained military discharges and cancelled contracts. It's just like you're dropped from heaven to hell, Zhao told The Associated Press on Friday. They traded being willing to risk their lives for the prospect of U.S. citizenship, a timeworn exchange that's drawn linguists, medical specialists and thousands of other immigrants to the military since the Revolutionary War. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

case amnesty: Legally, our case has become much more compelling with many of the things that are being introduced under the Trump administration, Dench said, according to Vancouver Courier. When you have the U.S. government taking measures such as 'zero tolerance' and such as the Sessions/presidential decision, something that legally constrains asylum, that's something the court will have to look very carefully at. The case has been snaking its way through Federal Court for the last year, but this week saw a flurry of new filings by three additional applicants in the case Amnesty International, the Canadian Council for Refugees and the Canadian Council of Churches, all of them longtime critics of the agreement.article continues below Trending Stories Vancouver High on Life vloggers die in Shannon Falls tragedy Vancouver acting community rallies behind couple who lost everything in Kitsilano fire HOLinspired Friends of Vancouver High on Life vloggers pay tribute Pair arrested for X-rated balloon prank in Vancouver air space Recent changes in U.S. refugee policy, including a ruling by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions saying domestic and gang violence are no longer grounds for asylum, make the argument for challenging the agreement even stronger, said Janet Dench, executive director of the Canadian Council for Refugees. While the case itself is based on the plight of a Salvadoran woman and her daughters, it encompasses a broader challenge of the Safe Third Country agreement, or STCA, arguing it violates certain provisions of Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The woman and her daughters faced the risks described when they sought entry to Canada as refugee claimants and were refused under the STCA. This same situation is also faced by a great number of other refugee claimants prevented from entering Canada by the STCA. Hundreds of pages of documents have been filed in Federal Court, including affidavits from refugee law experts, studies, reports and news clippings that detail the escalating risks faced by asylum seekers in the U.S. In her affidavit, the woman identified only as ABC says her family became a target of MS-13 after her husband helped El Salvador police identify a gang member who killed his brother in 1993. By returning refugee claimants to the U.S. and exposing them there to a serious risk of arbitrary, lengthy detention and refoulment deportation Canada violates their charter rights, the applicants argue in court documents. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

children: The main child detention centre in Brownsville is in an old Walmart, its vast interior space filled now not with products manufactured by low-wage workers in distant foreign factories, but with 1,400 children penned inside of chain-link cages with Mylar sheets for comfort, according to Rabble. Southwest Key, the nonprofit agency that runs this detention center, actually calls it Casa Padre, Father's House, a painful reminder to so many children separated from their fathers. This is the epicentre of President Donald Trump's self-created immigrant family separation crisis, with at least 2,047 children torn from their parents' arms and imprisoned. Detention of immigrant families has been happening for years and even accelerated under President Barack Obama. Sessions promised, If you are smuggling a child, then we will prosecute you and that child will be separated from you. But, on May 7, the cruel triumvirate of Trump, his famously anti-immigrant adviser Stephen Miller and Attorney General Jeff Sessions enacted by fiat the zero tolerance policy. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

immigration policies: This has resulted in a housing crisis and threats to the services that Ontario families depend on, Ford's office said in the statement, according to CTV. This mess was 100 per cent the result of the federal government, and the federal government should foot 100 per cent of the bills. Moments before the meeting, Premier Doug Ford blamed the federal government's immigration policies for putting a strain on local and provincial resources, saying Trudeau's administration has encouraged people to cross into Canada illegally. The move drew swift backlash from the provincial Opposition and prompted the federal government to pledge ongoing efforts to alleviate the burden on provinces, while urging Ontario to participate in the process. I spent a little time explaining how the asylum-seeking system works and how our system is supposed to operate, he said. Emerging from the meeting alone, Trudeau suggested Ford may not fully understand Canada's international obligations when it comes to asylum seekers. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

immigration authorities: HHS said it's using DNA testing as a backup to confirm the parent-child link and speed up the process, according to CTV. However, Azar warned that entire families may remain in the custody of immigration authorities for extended periods, even those who are claiming asylum. Health and Human Services Secretary Alex Azar told reporters that his department is ready to reunite children in its care with their parents, starting next Tuesday with those under age 5. Before the Trump administration's zero tolerance policy, migrants seeking asylum under U.S. laws were often granted temporary release as their cases were resolved. Of those, about 100 are under five years old. Azar also used a new and much higher number for migrant kids separated from their parents, under 3,000 as compared with the figure of 2,047 he provided at a Senate hearing last week. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

john mendez: The decision came in a lawsuit filed against the state by the Trump administration seeking to block all three laws, according to The Chronicle Herald. In an unusual move for a federal judge, John Mendez ended his opinion with pleas that it not be viewed through a political lens, and that Congress and the president set aside the partisan and polarizing politics dominating the current immigration debate to address the issue. California can limit police co-operation with immigration officials and require inspections of detention facilities but can't enforce a key part of a third state sanctuary law barring private employers from allowing immigration officials on their premises without a warrant, a U.S. judge ruled Thursday. There is no place for politics in our judicial system, and this one opinion will neither define nor solve the complicated immigration issues currently facing our nation, Mendez, who was nominated to the federal bench by Republican President George W. Bush, wrote in his opinion dated July 4. Today the federal court issued a strong ruling against federal government overreach, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a statement. Mendez's mixed ruling allowed both sides to claim victory. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

minute meeting: Ontario Premier Doug Ford, right, sits with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau at the Ontario Legislature in Toronto on July 5, 2018, according to Toronto Star. Hours earlier, Ford's government said it was ending federal-provincial agreement on asylum seekers. But Trudeau emerged from a 40-minute meeting with Ford at Queen's Park suggesting the rookie premier does not understand the complexities behind the migrant crisis currently straining Toronto shelter resources. Rene Johnston / Toronto Star It didn't seem to me that the premier was quite as aware of our international obligations to the UN Convention on Refugees as he might have been, the prime minister told reporters Thursday, after the leaders' first official meeting. I reassured the premier or I attempted to reassure the premier that the asylum-seeker stream is separate from the immigration stream, he said. So I spent a little time explaining how the asylum-seeking system works and how our system is supposed to operate, said Trudeau. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

prison term: He says it's reasonable to assume that's because people are wearing less clothing and are outside more often, according to CTV. Voyeurism is defined in the Criminal Code as surreptitious observation or recording of someone who is in circumstances that give rise to a reasonable expectation of privacy. Domenic Sinopoli, an inspector with the Toronto police sex crimes unit, says around 60 per cent of all voyeurism cases are reported during the summer. It's a crime that can come with a prison term of up to five years. Last month, a 29-year-old man was charged after he allegedly used his cellphone to take so-called upskirt photos of women inside a grocery store in Toronto's west end, and in May a camera was found in a Starbucks bathroom in the city's financial district, police said. Police say the number of instances where someone is being recorded or photographed inappropriately are growing -- and so is the market for such content. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

decision: The decision came in a lawsuit filed against the state by the Trump administration seeking to block all three laws.article continues below Trending Stories Vancouver High on Life vloggers die in Shannon Falls tragedy Vancouver acting community rallies behind couple who lost everything in Kitsilano fire HOLinspired Friends of Vancouver High on Life vloggers pay tribute Nine Lower Mainland Safeway stores close today, affecting 1,000 workers In an unusual move for a federal judge, John Mendez ended his opinion with pleas that it not be viewed through a political lens, and that Congress and the president set aside the partisan and polarizing politics dominating the current immigration debate to address the issue, according to Vancouver Courier. There is no place for politics in our judicial system, and this one opinion will neither define nor solve the complicated immigration issues currently facing our nation, Mendez, who was nominated to the federal bench by Republican President George W. Bush, wrote in his opinion dated July 4. California can limit police co-operation with immigration officials and require inspections of detention facilities but can't enforce a key part of a third state sanctuary law barring private employers from allowing immigration officials on their premises without a warrant, a U.S. judge ruled Thursday. Mendez's mixed ruling allowed both sides to claim victory. The Constitution gives the people of California, not the Trump administration, the power to decide how we will provide for our public safety and general welfare. Today the federal court issued a strong ruling against federal government overreach, California Attorney General Xavier Becerra said in a statement. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

feet metres: With the dramatic scene unfolding on live television, she and the officers edged carefully around the statue toward a ladder, and she climbed down about 25 feet 8 metres to the monument's observation point and was taken into custody, according to Vancouver Courier. The woman, Therese Okoumou, told police she was protesting the separation of immigrant children from parents who cross the U.S.-Mexico border illegally, according to a federal official who was briefed on what happened but wasn't authorized to discuss it and spoke on the condition of anonymity. The woman and at least a half-dozen demonstrators who displayed the banner were arrested, while the climb forced thousands of visitors to leave the iconic American symbol on the nation's birthday.article continues below Trending Stories Vancouver High on Life vloggers die in Shannon Falls tragedy Vancouver acting community rallies behind couple who lost everything in Kitsilano fire HOLinspired Friends of Vancouver High on Life vloggers pay tribute Nine Lower Mainland Safeway stores close today, affecting 1,000 workers About 100 feet 30 metres aboveground, the woman engaged in a four-hour standoff with police before two officers climbed up to the base and went over to her. A message left at a possible phone number for Okoumou wasn't immediately returned. Walker said the other demonstrators had no idea the woman would make the ascent, which wasn't part of the planned protest. The climber was among about 40 demonstrators who earlier unfurled a banner calling for abolishing the federal government's chief immigration enforcement agency, said Jay W. Walker, an organizer with Rise and Resist, which arranged the demonstration. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

laurence cook: There's been a bit of a misunderstanding there somewhere, Cook said in an interview, according to National Observer. They're in international waters, so border patrol shouldn't be boarding Canadian vessels. In the past two weeks, at least 10 Canadian fishing boats from New Brunswick have been intercepted by U.S. Border Patrol agents while fishing in the disputed waters around Machias Seal Island, a spokesman for the fishermen says. ; Laurence Cook, chairman of the advisory board for Lobster Fishing Area 38, said Wednesday that some Canadian vessels were boarded by American agents who asked about possible illegal immigrants. Machias Seal Island, which is about 19 kilometres southwest of Grand Manan Island and east of Maine, is in a disputed area known as the Grey Zone, where lobster fishermen from both Canada and the United States have long fished side by side. However, both Canada and the United States claim sovereign jurisdiction over the island and the surrounding waters at the mouth of the Bay of Fundy. The small island is a flat, treeless piece of rock, which includes a large colony of puffins and a lighthouse that is manned by two Canadian lightkeepers year-round. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

refugee convention: It didn't seem to me that the premier was quite as aware of our international obligations to the UN convention on refugees, as he might have been Justin Trudeau on Doug Ford cdnpoli onpoli It came on the heels of a belligerent news statement from Ford's team, accusing Trudeau's government of creating a mess of the refugee system and claiming it encouraged illegal border crossers, according to National Observer. Article 31 of the UN Refugee Convention, to which Canada is a party, says asylum-seekers can't have penalties imposed on them for the way they enter a country, if they present themselves promptly to authorities and show good cause for their presence. ; It didn't seem to me that the premier was quite as aware of our international obligations to the UN convention on refugees, as he might have been, said Trudeau. The prime minister made the remarks after meeting with the newly sworn-in premier at Queen's Park in Toronto on July 5 the first time the two met to discuss the thousands of asylum seekers who have made claims at the borders of Ontario, Quebec and Manitoba. So I spent a little time explaining how the asylum seeker system works and how our system is supposed to operate. Had a productive first official meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau this afternoon. Trudeau emphasized the importance of federal and provincial officials getting clarity on how we can actually work together to ensure that we are holding true to our values. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

rico-martinez: When Ford unveiled his 21-member cabinet on June 29, Rico-Martinez wasn't surprised to see no immigration minister on the list, according to National Observer. But number one, I'm a pretty generous guy I'm taking care of our own first. The co-director of the FCJ Refugee Centre Francisco Rico-Martinez had no doubt in his mind that Ford would cancel the ministry of citizenship and immigration. Once we take care of our own, once we exhaust every single avenue and don't have anyone that can fill a job, then I'd be open to that, Ford said. They were not expecting this type of radical change, said Rico-Martinez. Onpli People were saying, for instance, that immigration and refugees is not a priority for Doug Ford. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

baby jesus: The Episcopalian church's dean and rector, the Rev, according to CTV. Stephen Carlsen, says the display that's part of the church's Every Family is Holy Campaign condemns the nation's immigration policy that's holding families in detention centres at the U.S.-Mexico border. The statues were erected Tuesday morning outside Christ Church Cathedral on downtown Indianapolis' Monument Circle and surrounded by the fencing. He says the Holy Family was a homeless family with nowhere to stay and that the Bible says we're supposed to love our neighbours as ourselves. Indianapolis church puts baby Jesus in a cage as a statement about family separations U.S. President Donald Trump recently ended his administration's practice of separating families detained at the border. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

chocolate company: The chocolate company is run by a family who immigrated to Canada after their factory was bombed in Damascus, according to Toronto Star. Darren Calabrese / THE CANADIAN PRESS Happy Canada Day from our family to this beautiful country that stands for freedom and human rights. Peace by Chocolate from Nova Scotia, whose bio describes it as a family run Syrian chocolate company whose factory was bombed in Damascus, forcing us to immigrate to Canada tweeted Syrian chocolatier Assam Hadhad focuses on what he knows best as members of the community tour Peace By Chocolate's factory in Nova Scotia. Thank you for considering our differences a reason for strength not weakness. Thank you. Thank you for bringing families together not tearing them apart. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

labour struggles: The family is hanging on to its hopes to remain in Australia with support from their town of Biloela and thousands of supporter around Australia while the government sends its armed border units to arrest and detain the family.APC speaks to Aran Mylvaganam, spokesman for the Tamil Refugee Council on the circumstances surrounding the desperate situation of Priya's family and the continuing resistance to the Australian government's inhumanity, according to Rabble. Asia Pacific Currents provides updates of labour struggles and campaigns from the Asia Pacific region. In the last few weeks, the desperate situation of the family of Priya and Nadesalingam has become national news. It is produced by Australia Asia Worker Links, in the studio of 3CR Radio in Melbourne, Australia Image Flickr - Pro refugee rights protests Like this podcast rabble is reader/listener supported journalism. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

timmy kinner: Ruya was at her third birthday party complete with a pink doll-shaped cake and a Disney princess banner Saturday evening when a man armed with a large knife attacked, according to The Chronicle Herald. Ruya and five other children were badly injured, along with the three adults who tried to protect them. But at just six months old, she had the most important thing A mother who loved her so fiercely that she left behind her homeland, her husband and everything she knew so Ruya would grow up in a safe place. Timmy Kinner, a 30-year-old homeless man who had briefly been a guest at the apartment complex where Ruya lived, has been charged with first-degree murder and several other felonies in connection with the attack. Police say Kinner had recently been asked to leave the apartment complex because of bad behaviour. And Ruya's mother Bifituu Kadir is mourning her little girl, slain in the very community that was supposed to keep her safe. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

n.l .,: The town of 3,400 fundraised and got organized to sponsor one family from Iraq and one from Syria through the blended visa office-referred program, according to Toronto Star. Fatima Al-Ahmed, her children Rayane and Moussa, mother-in-law Talika Morjan, and husband Mohamad Moufleh are shown in this recent handout image. Through Facebook posts and word of mouth, McClellan connected with other like-minded people in the little town of Lewisporte, N.L., to form the Lewisporte Refugee Outreach Committee. The small Newfoundland town of Lewisporte has said goodbye to the second of two refugee families sponsored by the community. Both families have moved to Windsor, Ont., in search of better job security, proximity to family and friends, and a larger community of Arabic speakers. Stephanie McClellan / THE CANADIAN PRESS Last month, the committee officially disbanded as the town said goodbye to the second of the two families who had become part of the community over the last few years. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

ont .,: The town of 3,400 fundraised and got organized to sponsor one family from Iraq and one from Syria through the blended visa office-referred program, according to The Chronicle Herald. Last month, the committee officially disbanded as the town said goodbye to the second of the two families who had become part of the community over the last few years. Through Facebook posts and word of mouth, McClellan connected with other like-minded people in the little town of Lewisporte, N.L., to form the Lewisporte Refugee Outreach Committee. Both families have moved to Windsor, Ont., in search of better job security, proximity to family and friends, and a larger community of Arabic speakers. It will be different, said McClellan. McClellan says she's happy for her friends' next chapter, but will miss having them downstairs in her home's basement apartment. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

refugee camp: The situation in Canada is not as stark as what we're seeing in the United States where more than 2,900 children have been detained between May and June alone, according to Toronto Star. Yet a total of 595 minors have been detained at Canadian immigration holding centres in the past three years. He's right, to a certain extent. Forty-three were unaccompanied by an adult. The confinement of even one child should be unacceptable to every single one of us, particularly as we recall with shame this country's legacy of residential schools, write Hassan Yussuff. A child at a temporary refugee camp near Lacolle, Quebec, in August, 2017. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

tweet tuesday: Indeed, according to U.S. naturalization figures, the number of Iranians who were granted citizenship barely increased during final negotiations, actually falling after the July 2015 deal was signed, according to The Chronicle Herald. A look at the claim Just out that the Obama Administration granted citizenship, during the terrible Iran Deal negotiation, to 2,500 Iranians - including to government officials. Nothing in the agreement speaks to the naturalization of Iranians. How big and bad is that tweet Tuesday. The report said Hojjat al-Islam Mojtaba Zolnour, a hardline member of Iran's parliament, had made the allegation in an interview with a local newspaper. Trump's claim, which he repeated from a Fox News report, is baseless. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

cocktail party: The start time was also pushed back to make it more cocktail party than picnic, said Sarah Goldfeder, a principal at Earnscliffe in Ottawa and former special assistant to two U.S. ambassadors, according to National Observer. While some in the Ottawa social circuit bemoan having been left out this year, some who made the cut say they plan to stay away out of principle. In past years, the annual Independence Day bash has been the talk of the town, with a guest list that grew to include more than 4,000 people under former ambassador and Barack Obama appointee Bruce Heyman. ; Under successor Kelly Craft, however named to the post by U.S. President Donald Trump the guest list has been trimmed to an estimated 1,000 people. Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson, federal NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh and interim Ontario Liberal leader John Fraser are among those giving the event a pass, citing trade tensions and ongoing concerns with the administration of U.S. President Donald Trump. I wish all of my American friends a happy Fourth of July. Given the current political climate, I don't think it would be appropriate, Fraser said in an emailed statement. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

life vlogger: Ideally dialogue leads to a plan.article continues below Trending Stories Vancouver High on Life vloggers die in Shannon Falls tragedy Cousin says High on Life vlogger who drowned at Shannon Falls died selflessly West Fourth Avenue residents capture dramatic moments from Topanga Cafe fire Nine Lower Mainland Safeway stores close today, affecting 1,000 workers The earth is but one country and mankind its citizens is a Bah ' teaching that seems to resonate with most people regardless of their background, according to Vancouver Courier. It dates from 1882, in the Middle East, as the sun rose on this new era. Both forces are necessary the new to create the future, and the old to conserve what was valued in the past Ideally the two communicate. Ninety years later, when the iconic first photo of the earth was taken in 1972 by the crew of Apollo 17, it felt like there was an awakening, a collective gasp of awe. Advances in areas such as trade, transportation and communication had gradually been bringing this about right under our noses. In the photo dubbed the Blue Marble was a planet without borders. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.

patrol: There's been a bit of a misunderstanding there somewhere, Cook said in an interview, according to Vancouver Courier. They're in international waters, so border patrol shouldn't be boarding Canadian vessels. In the past two weeks, at least 10 Canadian fishing boats from New Brunswick have been intercepted by U.S. Border Patrol agents while fishing in the disputed waters around Machias Seal Island, a spokesman for the fishermen says.article continues below Trending Stories Vancouver High on Life vloggers die in Shannon Falls tragedy Cousin says High on Life vlogger who drowned at Shannon Falls died selflessly Vancouver acting community rallies behind couple who lost everything in Kitsilano fire West Fourth Avenue residents capture dramatic moments from Topanga Cafe fire Laurence Cook, chairman of the advisory board for Lobster Fishing Area 38, said Wednesday that some Canadian vessels were boarded by American agents who asked about possible illegal immigrants. Machias Seal Island, which is about 19 kilometres southwest of Grand Manan Island and east of Maine, is in a disputed area known as the Grey Zone, where lobster fishermen from both Canada and the United States have long fished side by side. However, both Canada and the United States claim sovereign jurisdiction over the island and the surrounding waters at the mouth of the Bay of Fundy. The small island is a flat, treeless piece of rock, which includes a large colony of puffins and a lighthouse that is manned by two Canadian lightkeepers year-round. (www.immigrantscanada.com). As reported in the news.