UN Asks Canada to report back on poverty and murdered Aboriginal women
November 24, 2008
OTTAWA, Nov. 24 - A key United Nations human rights monitoring body has issued a report highly critical of Canada's record on women's human rights. The UN Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) reviewed Canada's compliance with the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, and issued its Concluding Observations in Geneva this week. The Committee asked Canada to report back in one year on steps taken to address inadequate social assistance rates across the country and the failure of law enforcement agencies to deal with the disappearance and murder of Aboriginal women and girls.
"Canada has serious work to do to fulfill the human rights of women," said Shelagh Day, Chair of the Human Rights Committee of the Canadian Feminist Alliance for International Action (FAFIA). "Canada is more than capable of fully realizing these rights, but has failed to do so."
"The poverty of women in Canada is a central concern to this United Nations expert treaty body," said Leilani Farha, Co-Chair of FAFIA. According to Farha, "The CEDAW Committee found that welfare rates are too low to provide women and their children with adequate housing and food. It recommended that Canada establish consistent standards for social assistance in all parts of the country, and ensure that welfare rates provide an adequate standard of living."
"The high level of violence against Aboriginal women was shocking to the UN Committee," said Sharon McIvor, an Aboriginal women's leader, and Co-Chair of FAFIA. "The Committee has urged Canada to establish an inquiry into the 511 Aboriginal women and girls who are missing or murdered," said McIvor, "and to remedy deficiencies in the law enforcement system. Poor social and economic conditions of Aboriginal women in Canada were also a major concern," said McIvor "and the Committee recommended a comprehensive strategy to deal with their poverty, lower educational attainment, poor health, and lack of access to clean water and decent housing."
Other deficiencies in Canada's realization of women's human rights include the lack of affordable child care spaces and housing, insufficient access to civil legal aid, inadequate services and shelters for women and girls experiencing violence, the cancellation of funding to the Court Challenges Program, the poor representation of women in public life, continuing labour market inequality particularly for racialized women, the mistreatment of federal women prisoners and girls in detention, and the elimination of Status of Women funding for advocacy by women's organizations.
"The CEDAW Committee wants to see real steps forward," said Louise Riendeau, member of FAFIA's Steering Committee. "So do we. FAFIA is seeking an immediate meeting with Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Helena Guergis, Minister of State (Status of Women) to discuss an implementation process."


Summary
A UN committee asked Canada for a report over one year to show the correction of bad social assistance rates across the country and the police not doing anything when Aboriginal women and girls go missing or get killed. The results were terrible, Canada shows a lack of commitment to womens rights. There is too much violence against women and not enough government assistance. The committee has made many recomendations for change.

Questions
Do you think Canada should change?
Should the police be punished for not bringing justice to the Aboriginal women?
Should all provinces in Canada have an equal social assistance program?

Pound angry over being characterized as racist

Jorge Barrera, Canwest News Service Published: Wednesday, October 22, 2008

National Post

Site:http://www.nationalpost.com/story.html?id=901465

Richard Pound said he would not be stepping down as chancellor of McGill University or leaving the International Olympic Committee over controversial comments he made to a Montreal newspaper.
In an August interview with La Presse about the Olympics in China, Pound referred to Canada as "un pays de sauvages" 400 years ago.
Pound was responding to criticism about the IOC's involvement in China despite that country's checkered history on human rights.
Various First Nations organizations said they took offence to the comment because it implied that Canada was a land populated by savages before Europeans settled it. A native group, LandInSights, wrote the IOC's ethics commission calling for Pound's suspension over his comments.
The IOC, however, decided not to open a file on the complaint, said Pound, adding that the comments were misinterpreted.
Pound said he has been surprised at the ferocity of some of the attacks directed his way. He said much of it has been based on a mistranslation of the French word sauvages into the English word savage.
"(Sauvages) is basically living free in what was to the Europeans a sort of large, unknown territory," said Pound.
"TheIOC looked into it and my explanation of it and said it's not a racist comment as far as they are concerned they are not going to open a file," said Pound
Pound also said he would not be stepping down from his position as chancellor because his comments had nothing to do with his role at McGill.
He is also considering legal action over some statements directed his way.
"I have no desire to make anything into a war. If it goes that way that is fine. If people are out there referring to me as a racist that is a little different," said Pound. "I can be inept, clumsy or wrong, but I am not a racist, I never have been, I never will be.
"Ihave been involved in more than half a century in the Olympic movement in which I have played a leading role in trying to cut down and attack discrimination based on politics and gender and I have a pretty good record on that."
Pound said he was "disappointed" with British Columbia Prime Gordon Campbell who also waded into the controversy Tuesday with a criticism of Pound's comment.
"The premier of a province, I think, has a special responsibility to make sure he knows, in this case, knowing this interview was in French and to understand that there is a huge difference between sauvages and savage," said Pound.
Pound said he has tried to get in contact with Assembly of FirstNations national chief Phil Fontaine and the Assembly of First Nations for Quebec and Labrador Ghislain Picard, but received no response.

Summary:This is about how pound is saying that he did not make a racist comment about first nations and he will not be stepping down from mc gill university as a teacher.

Questions:

do you think that pound will step down after being pressured?

do you think it was a racist comment ?

what do you think would happen if pound left McGill university?would it affect them at all?

First Nations get a say in how Ed money spent

Barry Neufeld won't be on the local board of education when School District No. 33 finalizes its aboriginal education agreement with First Nations communities. He's confident though all the I's will be dotted and the T's crossed in the not-too-distant future. At his final meeting as a trustee last week, Neufeld delivered his report as the chair of the board's curriculum and instruction committee, noting the progress being made on the front to deliver a local agreement for aboriginal students. Neufeld estimated there are almost 1,800 aboriginal students in the district. He also pointed out the federal government provides money to individual bands but it is up to the bands and the district to set up their agreements for aboriginal education. "We want First Nations to have a say in how their money is going to be spent," he told his colleagues on the board. Neufeld expects the new board will have more information to work with next month. He said there will be two separate documents. The first is the enhancement agreement, which sets out to enhance educational opportunities for all aboriginal students. Curriculum and instruction committee minutes point out the enhancement agreement will establish the terms for success and how all the partners will be able to measure this. At present, there are still few details about what the agreement means. The general aim though is to bring education closer to First Nations parents and the communities in general. Along with the enhancement agreement, there are local education agreements in the works with several individual bands, such as the Kwaw Kwaw Apilt, Soowahlie, Shxwha:y, Squiala, Tzeachten and Skwah, among others. While much of the work has been completed, Neufeld pointed to a couple of things that will need addressing, such as the possible establishment of an organization to follow through on the agreement, something the new board will likely be addressing. An even bigger issue he cited is the large number of off-reserve aboriginal people not covered by band agreements. "The only real challenge yet is who really represents aboriginal people who don't live on the reserves," Neufeld said. At a meeting earlier this year, district staff outlined the enhancement process, which had started with discussions with the individual bands. After this, school district and other educational partners were brought into meetings with the aboriginal communities to discuss how to make the system best meet the needs of aboriginal students.

Summary

The article is about Barry Neufeld, who is going to step down when the School District No. 33 finalizes its aboriginal education agreement with First Nations communities. However at his final meeting he pointed important things such as progress being made on the front to deliver a local agreement for aboriginal students, he estimates that there are 1,800 aboriginal students in the district, and finally he mentions that federal government provides money to individual bands but it is up to the bands and the district to set up their agreements for aboriginal education.

Questions

1. Would you have stepped down if you were Barry Neufeld?

2. Do you think it is the right thing for Barry Neufield to step down from the School District No. 33 even though he already saw the development for the Aboriginal students?

3. Would you have done the same thing if you were him?