Seven Ontario teens killed in separate crashes
POSTMEDIA NEWS JANUARY 4, 2012
The Ontario Provincial Police urged motorists to be wary of the dangers of winter driving Wednesday after seven Ontario teens died following two separate multi-vehicle crashes four hours apart.
A crash on Highway 17 east of Sudbury, Ont., on Tuesday night claimed the life of Keegan Melville, 18, and Zabrina Rekowski, 19, who died at the scene of the accident near Hagar, Ont.
The driver of the minivan they were travelling in, Hillary Afelskie, 19, died in hospital Wednesday afternoon, said Staff Sgt. Tim Foster of Noelville OPP.
Another passenger in the vehicle, 19-year-old Emily Olmstead from Renfrew, west of Ottawa, remained in hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
The accident happened when the westbound minivan crossed over the centre line on the highway and crashed into an eastbound Jeep.
The two passengers in the Jeep were taken to hospital with serious injuries. They are Walter Rancourt, 72, and Patricia Rancourt, 71, both of nearby Sturgeon Falls, Ont.
Four other teens, ages 17 to 19, died in a separate crash earlier in the day near Parry Sound that involved three vehicles.
West Parry Sound OPP said the accident happened around 2 p.m. Tuesday on Highway 69 when a Chevrolet Camaro lost control on icy roads and crossed the centre line. It was then hit by a Honda Civic and soon after a Chevrolet Optra travelling behind the Civic. Three other people were also sent to hospital in the crash, including a 14-year-old.
"These fatal collisions were both related to winter driving conditions," the OPP said in a statement. "As a result of the circumstances surrounding these avoidable tragedies the Ontario Provincial Police is reminding motorists of how important it is to constantly adjust driving behaviour to the road conditions."
With files from the Ottawa Citizen
POSTMEDIA NEWS JANUARY 4, 2012
The Ontario Provincial Police urged motorists to be wary of the dangers of winter driving Wednesday after seven Ontario teens died following two separate multi-vehicle crashes four hours apart.
A crash on Highway 17 east of Sudbury, Ont., on Tuesday night claimed the life of Keegan Melville, 18, and Zabrina Rekowski, 19, who died at the scene of the accident near Hagar, Ont.
The driver of the minivan they were travelling in, Hillary Afelskie, 19, died in hospital Wednesday afternoon, said Staff Sgt. Tim Foster of Noelville OPP.
Another passenger in the vehicle, 19-year-old Emily Olmstead from Renfrew, west of Ottawa, remained in hospital with non-life threatening injuries.
The accident happened when the westbound minivan crossed over the centre line on the highway and crashed into an eastbound Jeep.
The two passengers in the Jeep were taken to hospital with serious injuries. They are Walter Rancourt, 72, and Patricia Rancourt, 71, both of nearby Sturgeon Falls, Ont.
Four other teens, ages 17 to 19, died in a separate crash earlier in the day near Parry Sound that involved three vehicles.
West Parry Sound OPP said the accident happened around 2 p.m. Tuesday on Highway 69 when a Chevrolet Camaro lost control on icy roads and crossed the centre line. It was then hit by a Honda Civic and soon after a Chevrolet Optra travelling behind the Civic. Three other people were also sent to hospital in the crash, including a 14-year-old.
"These fatal collisions were both related to winter driving conditions," the OPP said in a statement. "As a result of the circumstances surrounding these avoidable tragedies the Ontario Provincial Police is reminding motorists of how important it is to constantly adjust driving behaviour to the road conditions."
With files from the Ottawa Citizen
Top female Mountie says harassment allegations raise 'legitimate' questions
POSTMEDIA NEWS FEBRUARY 8, 2012 6:33 PM
The RCMP needs to foster a culture that encourages members to admit and learn from their mistakes rather than keep them hidden where they can "fester and grow," says the highest-ranking female Mountie.
In a candid speech delivered at a mess dinner in Quebec late last year, Deputy Commissioner Line Carbonneau said while many of the harassment allegations against the force go back many years, they raise "legitimate" concerns about the RCMP's work environment, policies and practices.
"There's no doubt the RCMP has at times been perceived as arrogant, reluctant to recognize its weaknesses or failures, and thus, unable to correct its mistakes and draw lessons from them," she said.
Not long after she made those remarks, Carbonneau was tapped by Commissioner Bob Paulson to develop a strategy for boosting female representation in the force's senior ranks.
The force has been grappling with a flurry of accusations of rampant harassment in the workplace.
A class-action lawsuit is expected to be filed soon on behalf of dozens of current and former female Mounties who say they were mistreated. And the RCMP Public Complaints Commission is probing whether the force investigated harassment allegations in a thorough and impartial manner and whether RCMP guidelines for dealing with such allegations are adequate.
Carbonneau, who is based in Ottawa and has been with the force since 1975, is currently on temporary leave and unavailable for interviews, a spokesman said Wednesday.
The force, however, did agree this week to provide Postmedia News with a copy of a speech she gave Nov. 17 at an RCMP mess dinner in Montreal.
According to the force, regimental and mess dinners are formal affairs designed to boost morale, honour past deeds and traditions and symbolize "pride of profession."
While her speech, delivered in French, noted a number of the force's accomplishments in recent years — she said the force had exceeded its hiring goals, built a more a diversified workforce and embraced social media — she also spoke of the force's challenges.
While some of the force's past and present problems have been exaggerated a little, "it is obvious we face our share of obstacles and weaknesses to correct," she said.
She stressed the need for the force to be more transparent and to follow up on criticism "aimed at us in order to continuously better ourselves."
"People aren't ready to take police at their word as they once used to," she said.
While being a member of the RCMP is like being part of a family, a family can also have its "dark side" that is closed to the outside world, she said.
The desire to remain loyal to that family can lead to "negative, even undesirable, behaviour," she said.
A family can also be dysfunctional, she added. "Sometimes, problems that should have been dealt with and corrected remain hidden beneath the surface, where they fester and grow."
Such problems can't be ignored, she said.
Carbonneau is expected to deliver her ideas for boosting female representation in the senior ranks by the end of March.
In the meantime, Paulson has centralized oversight of all harassment complaints in Ottawa, boosted the intake target for women in the force to 35 per cent from 30 per cent, and launched a gender-based audit of the force.
The plain-spoken leader has also vowed to bring swift discipline against officers who commit plain and "outrageous" conduct.
Two more on most wanted list are deported
Postmedia News February 14, 2012
OTTAWA - Two more people on the Canada Border Services Agency's most wanted list were removed from the country, the agency announced Tuesday.
Ian Getfield was removed on Friday and Steven Mark Nairn on Tuesday, the CBSA said in a news release. Both were born in Jamaica. Thirteen members of the "Wanted by the CBSA" list have now been removed.
Both were ``inadmissible for serious criminality,'' the release said.
Getfield was arrested by Toronto police on Jan. 31 and had been ``convicted of possession of narcotics, failure to comply with release conditions, trafficking in a narcotic,'' among other charges.
Nairn had been arrested in Surrey, B.C., on Jan. 20 after tips were received from the public. He had been ``convicted of unlawful possession of cocaine and heroin along with five counts of robbery in Canada.''
Under the program 20 individuals have been located in Canada and four abroad, thanks to the public's help, according to the CBSA.
Ian Getfield was removed on Friday and Steven Mark Nairn on Tuesday, the CBSA said in a news release. Both were born in Jamaica. Thirteen members of the "Wanted by the CBSA" list have now been removed.
Both were ``inadmissible for serious criminality,'' the release said.
Getfield was arrested by Toronto police on Jan. 31 and had been ``convicted of possession of narcotics, failure to comply with release conditions, trafficking in a narcotic,'' among other charges.
Nairn had been arrested in Surrey, B.C., on Jan. 20 after tips were received from the public. He had been ``convicted of unlawful possession of cocaine and heroin along with five counts of robbery in Canada.''
Under the program 20 individuals have been located in Canada and four abroad, thanks to the public's help, according to the CBSA.
Three killed in Via Rail derailment west of Toronto
Postmedia News February 26, 2012
Three people are dead and dozens were sent to hospital after a Via Rail train derailed in Burlington, Ont., Sunday afternoon.
“There are reports of several injuries to passengers and three fatalities, all Via crew members who were in the locomotive at the time of the accident,” the rail company said in a statement Sunday evening. “There were one locomotive and five cars on the train, all of which derailed,” the statement said.
Via said three passengers were airlifted to hospital with serious injuries and 42 other passengers and one crew member were also taken to local hospitals. Via said it was trying to determine what caused the accident in conjunction with the Transportation Safety Board, which was sending a team to the scene to investigate the crash.
Earlier reports said as many as 60 were trapped after the derailment. But Via said Sunday evening “all other passengers have been removed from the train and are either en route to Toronto or will be shortly.”
A passenger told the Hamilton Spectator that there was “sheer panic” on the train. “It felt like we hit some bumps in the road and then the train jumped and it kept jumping and it tipped over to the side,” Hannah Lemke, 22, told the newspaper. “Everything went flying, people were screaming. It felt like forever. I’m sure it was only a couple of seconds.”
The incident happened around 3:30 p.m. while train 92 was travelling from Niagara Falls, Ont., to Toronto. Michelle Lamarche of Via Rail says the incident happened two stations west of Toronto, near Aldershot, on a train carrying 75 passengers.
A Hamilton health official told a local media outlet “there is a risk of some part of the train exploding.” Hamilton Health Sciences declared a code orange — which means it is facing an external disaster — as victims from the scene arrived at hospital.
Toronto and Hamilton both sent EMS crews to help local crews tend to victims. Air ambulances were also on scene. Burlington is about 60 kilometres southwest of Toronto.
Other trains were expected to be affected by the accident, which blocked tracks at the site. Via set up a special number to inquire about passengers: 1-888-842-6141.
Malcolm Andrews, a Via Rail spokesman, couldn’t say how many engineers or passengers have been killed in passenger train derailments in Canada. “There have been very few (deaths),” he said. “I have been here for 35 years and this is extremely rare. Canada has one of the safest records of any railway in the world.
“Our focus today is on the comfort and safety of our crew members and passengers.”
In July 2011, a Via Rail train travelling from Oshawa, Ont., to Windsor, Ont., derailed after it hit a pickup truck. The driver of the truck, a 24-year-old man, was seriously injured. Six passengers from the train were sent to hospital with minor injuries.
In February 2010, seven people received minor injuries when a Via Rail train travelling from Montreal to Halifax derailed and slammed into a house. That derailment, which involved two locomotives and seven wagons going off the tracks, happened near Quebec City. A father and his two school-age daughters were killed when the car they were riding in was struck by a Via Rail passenger train in Edmonton in May 2010.
None of the passengers on board the train, which was travelling from Toronto to Vancouver, were injured. Investigators at the time were considering whether weather played a factor in the accident, as it was snowing when the train hit the vehicle.
One of the deadliest crashes involving a Via Rail train occurred in February 1986 in Alberta. The passenger train collided with a CN freight train 17 kilometres west of the community of Hinton, Alta. Twenty-three people died. Another 71 people sustained injuries in the crash, which was later blamed on human error.
MONTREAL — Prime Minister Stephen Harper on Tuesday wished hockey great Jean Beliveau a "speedy recovery" after the Hall of Famer was hospitalized following a stroke.
"Mr. Beliveau is a great Canadian and a remarkable ambassador for our national sport," the prime minister said in a statement.
The Montreal Canadiens announced on Tuesday that Beliveau, who won 10 Stanley Cups with the team, suffered a stroke Monday night and was admitted to hospital.
The 80-year-old is undergoing "active investigation and treatments", the team announced.
For the duration of his convalescence, Beliveau has asked that everyone respect his privacy and that of his family.
His name was the third highest trending item on Twitter in Canada Tuesday afternoon.
Beliveau, who twice won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player, suffered a previous stroke in Jan. 2010.
And that wasn't his first brush with serious health issues.
He has dealt with cardiac problems for decades and underwent 35 chemotherapy treatments for a malignant throat tumour in 2000. His cancer has been in remission for years.
During his first team physical in 1953, he was diagnosed as having "an Austin's motor in a Cadillac chassis," the former car a tiny British model of the day. Beliveau overcame that anomaly during a career that took the 13-time all-star to the Hall of Fame in 1972.
In 1,125 games from 1953-71, all for the Canadiens, Beliveau scored 507 goals and added 712 assists. He would join the front office as a vice-president and be part of another seven Cup teams in this capacity.
Beliveau also won the inaugural Conn Smythe Trophy in 1965 as the MVP of the playoffs, and the 1956 Art Ross Trophy as the NHL's leading points-scorer.
To this day, more than 40 years since he retired as a player, he maintains a legendary love affair with his fans worldwide.
MONTREAL — At least 1,000 students blocked the entrance to downtown Montreal’s Loto-Quebec building at lunchtime on Wednesday, leading to an intervention by Montreal riot police.
Police say five people were arrested during the incident and the charges were to be disclosed later in the evening.
Student leaders said the police action was excessive for a peaceful demonstration.
Students targeted the building because it houses the offices of the conference of rectors and principals, which supports tuition hikes.
Police lined Sherbrooke St. and used flash bombs to disperse the crowd. Student leaders said they haven’t been co-operating with police because they don’t trust them.
Television footage showed some students being dragged away by police after trying to erect a barrier along the major artery.
This was the latest in a series of student protests against tuition hikes across the province.
Student protesters snake through streets of Montreal
Postmedia News March 29, 2012
MONTREAL — Students marched by the hundreds Thursday in Montreal as part of their latest demonstrations against tuition hikes. Dressed in bright colours, and with some wearing masks, students joined any of the four marches snaking through the city.
The protesters caused traffic tie-ups, and some of their compatriots contributed to a disruption in the scheduled court appearance of a man accused of being an influential figure in the Montreal Mafia. The protest came a week after another massive protest saw more than 100,000 gather people in the city.
Demonstrators gathered at Montreal's Phillips Square around noon and took off in four different directions in colour-themed demonstrations. One orange-themed march opposed police brutality; another in green demanded free tuition; while a yellow march denounced "scab" students "who have the right to be against the strike" but not to cross picket lines; and blue demonstrators contested the provincial government's plans for making up lost class time.
Along the routes, supporters could occasionally be seen wearing red or waving red colours, the colour of the general protest movement. While the first hour of the protest wasn't marked by any confrontation with police, organizers were telling reporters to expect some "direct action" later in the day. Just over two hours after the protests started police reported at least some incidents involving graffiti on a bus and police cars. As the protests ended police reported three arrests.
Meanwhile, Education Minister Line Beauchamp indicated in Quebec City that if the striking students want to talk to the government about changes in the province's loans and bursaries, they must first accept that tuition fees are going up. Beauchamp told reporters that until the students budge on their position, there will be no talks. But if they do accept that tuition will rise by $1,625 a year, in five annual $325 increments, the government will discuss possible changes to ensure the fee hike does not penalize the most vulnerable students.
"I have taken note that every time there is something from the (legislature), . . . each time the student associations answer, 'We don't want to talk about loans and bursaries program, accessibility, we want to talk about a freeze on tuition fees,' " she said. "My only reaction is that the three principal parties in the (legislature) are talking about raising tuition fees. So I say to the students, your position does not reflect the position of the majority of the (legislature), elected by the population."
Earlier Thursday, a large and very vocal group of students caused a temporary delay in a court hearing for Antonio (Tony) Mucci, alleged to be an influential figure in the Montreal Mafia, at the Montreal courthouse. The students showed up Thursday morning to protest the first court appearance of dozens of college students arrested in an occupy-type protest in February.
Mucci's brief hearing took place in the same room as the students who were making their first court appearance. The judge presiding in that third-floor courtroom decided to delay Mucci's hearing until later Thursday. Mucci faces a series of firearms related charges filed in 2010. His case is still at the preliminary inquiry stage and his lawyer is expected to tell the judge how he intends to proceed when arguments are made at a later date.
Postmedia News February 26, 2012
Three people are dead and dozens were sent to hospital after a Via Rail train derailed in Burlington, Ont., Sunday afternoon.
“There are reports of several injuries to passengers and three fatalities, all Via crew members who were in the locomotive at the time of the accident,” the rail company said in a statement Sunday evening. “There were one locomotive and five cars on the train, all of which derailed,” the statement said.
Via said three passengers were airlifted to hospital with serious injuries and 42 other passengers and one crew member were also taken to local hospitals. Via said it was trying to determine what caused the accident in conjunction with the Transportation Safety Board, which was sending a team to the scene to investigate the crash.
Earlier reports said as many as 60 were trapped after the derailment. But Via said Sunday evening “all other passengers have been removed from the train and are either en route to Toronto or will be shortly.”
A passenger told the Hamilton Spectator that there was “sheer panic” on the train. “It felt like we hit some bumps in the road and then the train jumped and it kept jumping and it tipped over to the side,” Hannah Lemke, 22, told the newspaper. “Everything went flying, people were screaming. It felt like forever. I’m sure it was only a couple of seconds.”
The incident happened around 3:30 p.m. while train 92 was travelling from Niagara Falls, Ont., to Toronto. Michelle Lamarche of Via Rail says the incident happened two stations west of Toronto, near Aldershot, on a train carrying 75 passengers.
A Hamilton health official told a local media outlet “there is a risk of some part of the train exploding.” Hamilton Health Sciences declared a code orange — which means it is facing an external disaster — as victims from the scene arrived at hospital.
Toronto and Hamilton both sent EMS crews to help local crews tend to victims. Air ambulances were also on scene. Burlington is about 60 kilometres southwest of Toronto.
Other trains were expected to be affected by the accident, which blocked tracks at the site. Via set up a special number to inquire about passengers: 1-888-842-6141.
Malcolm Andrews, a Via Rail spokesman, couldn’t say how many engineers or passengers have been killed in passenger train derailments in Canada. “There have been very few (deaths),” he said. “I have been here for 35 years and this is extremely rare. Canada has one of the safest records of any railway in the world.
“Our focus today is on the comfort and safety of our crew members and passengers.”
In July 2011, a Via Rail train travelling from Oshawa, Ont., to Windsor, Ont., derailed after it hit a pickup truck. The driver of the truck, a 24-year-old man, was seriously injured. Six passengers from the train were sent to hospital with minor injuries.
In February 2010, seven people received minor injuries when a Via Rail train travelling from Montreal to Halifax derailed and slammed into a house. That derailment, which involved two locomotives and seven wagons going off the tracks, happened near Quebec City. A father and his two school-age daughters were killed when the car they were riding in was struck by a Via Rail passenger train in Edmonton in May 2010.
None of the passengers on board the train, which was travelling from Toronto to Vancouver, were injured. Investigators at the time were considering whether weather played a factor in the accident, as it was snowing when the train hit the vehicle.
One of the deadliest crashes involving a Via Rail train occurred in February 1986 in Alberta. The passenger train collided with a CN freight train 17 kilometres west of the community of Hinton, Alta. Twenty-three people died. Another 71 people sustained injuries in the crash, which was later blamed on human error.
Montreal Canadiens great Jean Beliveau hospitalized after stroke
Postmedia News February 28, 2012
"Mr. Beliveau is a great Canadian and a remarkable ambassador for our national sport," the prime minister said in a statement.
The Montreal Canadiens announced on Tuesday that Beliveau, who won 10 Stanley Cups with the team, suffered a stroke Monday night and was admitted to hospital.
The 80-year-old is undergoing "active investigation and treatments", the team announced.
For the duration of his convalescence, Beliveau has asked that everyone respect his privacy and that of his family.
His name was the third highest trending item on Twitter in Canada Tuesday afternoon.
Beliveau, who twice won the Hart Trophy as the NHL's most valuable player, suffered a previous stroke in Jan. 2010.
And that wasn't his first brush with serious health issues.
He has dealt with cardiac problems for decades and underwent 35 chemotherapy treatments for a malignant throat tumour in 2000. His cancer has been in remission for years.
During his first team physical in 1953, he was diagnosed as having "an Austin's motor in a Cadillac chassis," the former car a tiny British model of the day. Beliveau overcame that anomaly during a career that took the 13-time all-star to the Hall of Fame in 1972.
In 1,125 games from 1953-71, all for the Canadiens, Beliveau scored 507 goals and added 712 assists. He would join the front office as a vice-president and be part of another seven Cup teams in this capacity.
Beliveau also won the inaugural Conn Smythe Trophy in 1965 as the MVP of the playoffs, and the 1956 Art Ross Trophy as the NHL's leading points-scorer.
To this day, more than 40 years since he retired as a player, he maintains a legendary love affair with his fans worldwide.
Montreal riot police arrest 5 after busting up tuition hike demonstration with flash bombs
Postmedia News Mar 7, 2012MONTREAL — At least 1,000 students blocked the entrance to downtown Montreal’s Loto-Quebec building at lunchtime on Wednesday, leading to an intervention by Montreal riot police.
Police say five people were arrested during the incident and the charges were to be disclosed later in the evening.
Student leaders said the police action was excessive for a peaceful demonstration.
Students targeted the building because it houses the offices of the conference of rectors and principals, which supports tuition hikes.
Police lined Sherbrooke St. and used flash bombs to disperse the crowd. Student leaders said they haven’t been co-operating with police because they don’t trust them.
Television footage showed some students being dragged away by police after trying to erect a barrier along the major artery.
This was the latest in a series of student protests against tuition hikes across the province.
Student protesters snake through streets of Montreal
Postmedia News March 29, 2012
MONTREAL — Students marched by the hundreds Thursday in Montreal as part of their latest demonstrations against tuition hikes. Dressed in bright colours, and with some wearing masks, students joined any of the four marches snaking through the city.
The protesters caused traffic tie-ups, and some of their compatriots contributed to a disruption in the scheduled court appearance of a man accused of being an influential figure in the Montreal Mafia. The protest came a week after another massive protest saw more than 100,000 gather people in the city.
Demonstrators gathered at Montreal's Phillips Square around noon and took off in four different directions in colour-themed demonstrations. One orange-themed march opposed police brutality; another in green demanded free tuition; while a yellow march denounced "scab" students "who have the right to be against the strike" but not to cross picket lines; and blue demonstrators contested the provincial government's plans for making up lost class time.
Along the routes, supporters could occasionally be seen wearing red or waving red colours, the colour of the general protest movement. While the first hour of the protest wasn't marked by any confrontation with police, organizers were telling reporters to expect some "direct action" later in the day. Just over two hours after the protests started police reported at least some incidents involving graffiti on a bus and police cars. As the protests ended police reported three arrests.
Meanwhile, Education Minister Line Beauchamp indicated in Quebec City that if the striking students want to talk to the government about changes in the province's loans and bursaries, they must first accept that tuition fees are going up. Beauchamp told reporters that until the students budge on their position, there will be no talks. But if they do accept that tuition will rise by $1,625 a year, in five annual $325 increments, the government will discuss possible changes to ensure the fee hike does not penalize the most vulnerable students.
"I have taken note that every time there is something from the (legislature), . . . each time the student associations answer, 'We don't want to talk about loans and bursaries program, accessibility, we want to talk about a freeze on tuition fees,' " she said. "My only reaction is that the three principal parties in the (legislature) are talking about raising tuition fees. So I say to the students, your position does not reflect the position of the majority of the (legislature), elected by the population."
Earlier Thursday, a large and very vocal group of students caused a temporary delay in a court hearing for Antonio (Tony) Mucci, alleged to be an influential figure in the Montreal Mafia, at the Montreal courthouse. The students showed up Thursday morning to protest the first court appearance of dozens of college students arrested in an occupy-type protest in February.
Mucci's brief hearing took place in the same room as the students who were making their first court appearance. The judge presiding in that third-floor courtroom decided to delay Mucci's hearing until later Thursday. Mucci faces a series of firearms related charges filed in 2010. His case is still at the preliminary inquiry stage and his lawyer is expected to tell the judge how he intends to proceed when arguments are made at a later date.
Student protesters snake through streets of Montreal
POSTMEDIA NEWS MARCH 29, 2012
File photo of a protest in Montreal, which has been hit by mass student protests in recent weeks.
Photograph by: Allen McInnis , THE GAZETTE
MONTREAL — Students marched by the hundreds Thursday in Montreal as part of their latest demonstrations against tuition hikes.
Dressed in bright colours, and with some wearing masks, students joined any of the four marches snaking through the city.
The protesters caused traffic tie-ups, and some of their compatriots contributed to a disruption in the scheduled court appearance of a man accused of being an influential figure in the Montreal Mafia.
The protest came a week after another massive protest saw more than 100,000 gather people in the city.
Demonstrators gathered at Montreal's Phillips Square around noon and took off in four different directions in colour-themed demonstrations.
One orange-themed march opposed police brutality; another in green demanded free tuition; while a yellow march denounced "scab" students "who have the right to be against the strike" but not to cross picket lines; and blue demonstrators contested the provincial government's plans for making up lost class time.
Along the routes, supporters could occasionally be seen wearing red or waving red colours, the colour of the general protest movement.
While the first hour of the protest wasn't marked by any confrontation with police, organizers were telling reporters to expect some "direct action" later in the day. Just over two hours after the protests started police reported at least some incidents involving graffiti on a bus and police cars. As the protests ended police reported three arrests.
Meanwhile, Education Minister Line Beauchamp indicated in Quebec City that if the striking students want to talk to the government about changes in the province's loans and bursaries, they must first accept that tuition fees are going up.
Beauchamp told reporters that until the students budge on their position, there will be no talks. But if they do accept that tuition will rise by $1,625 a year, in five annual $325 increments, the government will discuss possible changes to ensure the fee hike does not penalize the most vulnerable students.
"I have taken note that every time there is something from the (legislature), . . . each time the student associations answer, 'We don't want to talk about loans and bursaries program, accessibility, we want to talk about a freeze on tuition fees,' " she said.
"My only reaction is that the three principal parties in the (legislature) are talking about raising tuition fees. So I say to the students, your position does not reflect the position of the majority of the (legislature), elected by the population."
Earlier Thursday, a large and very vocal group of students caused a temporary delay in a court hearing for Antonio (Tony) Mucci, alleged to be an influential figure in the Montreal Mafia, at the Montreal courthouse.
The students showed up Thursday morning to protest the first court appearance of dozens of college students arrested in an occupy-type protest in February.
Mucci's brief hearing took place in the same room as the students who were making their first court appearance.
The judge presiding in that third-floor courtroom decided to delay Mucci's hearing until later Thursday.
Mucci faces a series of firearms related charges filed in 2010. His case is still at the preliminary inquiry stage and his lawyer is expected to tell the judge how he intends to proceed when arguments are made at a later date.
Ministers seek clemency for Canadian in Iran
POSTMEDIA NEWS APRIL 15, 2012
Canadian officials issued an urgent appeal to the Iranian government Sunday, fearing an Iran-born Canadian sentenced to death could be executed “imminently.”
In a joint statement, Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird and Minister of State of Foreign Affairs Diane Ablonczy said Canada was “gravely concerned” Hamid Ghassemi-Shall’s execution “may be carried out imminently.”
Ghassemi-Shall went to Iran in 2008 to visit his ailing mother but was jailed and sentenced to death for alleged crimes against the Iranian state.
“Canada urgently appeals to the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran to grant clemency to Mr. Ghassemi-Shall on compassionate and humanitarian grounds,” their statement said.
Amnesty International says the dual national was sentenced to death in 2008 on espionage-related charges.
“We urge Iran to reverse its current course and to adhere to its international human rights obligations,” the ministers added.
© Copyright (c) Postmedia News
Police arrest students in several Quebec protests
POSTMEDIA NEWS APRIL 19, 2012
Students from all corners of Quebec march through the streets of Montreal protesting against the coming tuition fee increases for all Cegep and University students.
Photograph by: Allen McInnis , Montreal Gazette
Police in several Quebec cities clashed with protesters Thursday while the provincial government sought to meet with student representatives, looking to bring an end to the longest student strike in Quebec history.
In Gatineau, Que., police arrested more than 150 students following demonstrations that at one point involved acts of vandalism and projectiles thrown at police officers, resulting in student injuries.
Police used pepper spray on student demonstrators at the St-Jean Bosco junior college during a third day of confrontation in the city, part of widespread protests against an impending tuition fee increase in the province.
The students marched on the college minutes after a group of about 75 demonstrators muscled aside police guarding the doors at the Universite du Quebec en Outaouais and forced their way inside the locked building.
The protesters tried to force their way into the college as well, but were repelled after two young men in the front row were pepper sprayed.
About 500 demonstrators marched through Gatineau, their numbers bolstered by three busloads of some 150 demonstrators from Montreal.
On Wednesday, 161 protesters were arrested for blocking the road near UQO. The university announced Thursday that classes would be cancelled on Friday.
Meanwhile, protests at Quebec City's Limoilou junior college Thursday led to 49 arrests.
And in Montreal, a group of about 200 demonstrators moved randomly through the downtown core on Thursday morning, running through traffic, throwing garbage cans and blocking the entrance to a bank before police intervened.
The demonstrators quickly broke into two groups, one of which moved east, blocking several intersections and halting traffic as protesters turned north.
It was unclear what happened to the second group, but several dozen people were soon spotted blocking the entrance to a branch of the CIBC. Police intervened about 8:30 a.m., spraying what appeared to be smoke or a chemical irritant into the crowd.
The protesters moved on and some were seen breaking garbage cans and tossing them into an intersection.
Most Montrealers making their way to work simply navigated around the unfolding bedlam and the protest had ended by 8:50 a.m.
Two people were arrested, said Montreal Police Const. Daniel Fortier.
Education Minister Line Beauchamp said her staff is in contact with the Federation etudiante universitaire du Quebec, representing striking university students, and the Federation etudiante collegiale du Quebec, representing junior college students boycotting classes, about opening discussions, "starting Friday, if possible."
But students were cool to the idea, FEUQ president Martine Desjardins saying students were upset that Beauchamp appeared to try to create a rift in the student movement by scheduling talks on the eve of an important meeting of one of the biggest student associations, CLASSE (Coalition large de l'association pour une solidarite syndicale etudiante).
She said her organization is scrambling to find a way to encourage both CLASSE and Beauchamp to take the necessary steps to allow negotiations to take place.
But for now, she said, if CLASSE is not included, FEUQ won't be there either.
Beauchamp, who issued an ultimatum Wednesday to student associations, calling on them to denounce violence, noted in the legislature that FEUQ and the FECQ have both condemned all forms of violence.
And the provincial government joins them in deploring "excessive brutality."
Beauchamp said she would like to discuss with the two federations their proposals to save $300 million a year in university administrative costs through better management.
The minister was silent on the role of CLASSE, the most politically motivated association of striking students. CLASSE is to discuss at a convention in Montreal on Saturday the government's demand that it denounce violent acts.
CLASSE represents about 70,000 of the 175,000 striking students, is excluded.
Gabriel Nadeau-Dubois, co-spokesman of CLASSE, was quick to respond by Twitter. Alluding to violent campus confrontations across the province Thursday, he tweeted: "The situation is deteriorating. The minister should take this into account and stop denying the reality." He also called for "a real dialogue now."
Montreal Gazette and Ottawa Citizen
Ex-SNC-Lavalin executive with Gaddafi ties arrested in Switzerland on fraud charges
SNC-Lavalin
Riadh Ben Aissa
Riadh Ben Aissa, SNC-Lavalin’s former executive vice-president — and the company’s point man in North Africa — is being detained by police in Switzerland.
Ben Aissa is being held on accusations of corrupting a public official, fraud and money laundering related to his business dealings in North Africa, Switzerland’s Office of the Attorney General confirmed to Postmedia News in an email Sunday.
He has been in custody since mid-April following an investigation launched by Swiss authorities in May of 2011.
In February, SNC-Lavalin announced that Ben Aissa and another executive, Stephane Roy, had lost their jobs. Both men had links to Saadi Gaddafi, the son of the late Col. Muammar Gaddafi. The elder Gaddafi was killed last October.
Swiss officials say they have requested and obtained the assistance of their Canadian counterparts in the investigation, and according to Jacqueline Buhlmann, a spokeswoman for the Swiss ministry, they proceeded to execute certain measures in mid-April.
Two weeks ago, a dozen RCMP officers raided SNC-Lavalin headquarters in Montreal as part of an investigation into the Quebec engineering giant.
Last March, the company said that $56-million had been paid to unnamed “agents” in North Africa to help secure contracts for two projects, and that CEO Pierre Duhaime had approved the payments. That included a payment of $22.5 million made through SNC-Lavalin’s office in Tunis.
© Postmedia News
