Ottawa denounces East Jerusalem building plan
Federal budget estimates doubted
Wanted: Montrealers to help Haiti
OTTAWA: CANADA CONDEMNS JERUSALEM BUILDING PLAN
Canada has joined an international chorus of protest against Israel's recent decision to expand Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem. In a statement, Canada's foreign affairs minister, Lawrence Cannon, said that further settlements are an obstacle to the prospects for peace with Palestinians. Mr. Cannon said that Canada welcomes recent Israeli and Palestinian moves to start indirect peace talks and expressed hope that such talks would lead to direct negotiations. The United States, the European Union and the United Nations have all said that building permanent Jewish settlements in East Jerusalem puts regional peace in jeopardy.
OTTAWA: DISAGREEMENT EMERGES ON FEDERAL BUDGET PROJECTIONS
Parliament's budget watchdog disagrees with some of federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty's predictions in his budget last week as regards the federal deficit and the rate at which it will be eliminated. Kevin Page says he agrees with Mr. Flaherty's projections for the next two years but is dubious about the following two years. Mr. Flaherty forecast a $53.8-billion deficit at the close of the present fiscal year, falling to $1.8 billion in 2014-15. Mr. Page says the figure for that year will more likely be $12.3 billion. The parliamentary officer forecasts $6 billion less in corporate tax revenues and $4.5 billion in higher spending, due in part to higher service charges on the national debt. Mr. Page says that to achieve a balanced budget, the economy would have to operate at greatly above capacity and actions would have to be taken to increase revenues or cut spending. A spokesman for the minister replied that Mr. Flaherty based his projections on a consensus of private-sector economists.
OTTAWA: UNION OPPOSES COLOMBIA TRADE ACCORD
Canada's largest labour organization says it is angry with the federal government's decision to try to hasten approval of a free-trade deal with Colombia. The Canadian Union of Public Employees says the decision comes at a time when there are new reports of the murders of Colombian union leaders. CUPE says it is unacceptable that the government would even be talking to the Colombian government, let alone fast-tracking an agreement with reports of the ongoing abuses. A new report from Colombia's National Labour School says that 45 Colombian trade union leaders were murdered in 2009. The report says the victims were women and men killed by right-wing death squads tied to the government.
OTTAWA: MONTREALERS CALLED UPON TO HELP HAITI
Haitian expatriates living in Montreal will be asked to play a role in the reconstruction of their ancestral homeland that was wrecked by an earthquake in January. About 100,000 Haitians live in Montreal. Some will take part in a three-day gathering of expatriate Haitians in Washington later this month. Haitians living in Miami and France also will take part. The Ottawa-based Foundation for the Americas, a think tank for Latin America, has told the Canadian Press that the Oorganization of American States will be looking to the Montrealers for help in such professions as medicine and teaching, while Haitians living in the U.S. will likely supply business leadership and entrepreneurial skills. One million Haitians are U.S. residents. The Foundation says that Haitians expatriates are the largest external source of financing for their homeland, sending home as much as $2 billion a year, or about one-quarter of Haiti's annual income.
OTTAWA: CANADA TO GET 'NEW' NATIVES
The federal government has introduced legislation that would extend formal Indian status to some 45,000 people. They're the grandchildren of women who married non-natives. The bill presented by Indian Affairs Minister Chuck Strahl in response to a ruling of the British Columbia Court of Appeal in 2009 which gave Ottawa until April 2010 to change the Indian Act, which governs who has Indian status. The Act stipulates that native women who marry non-natives can pass on their status to their children but not to their grandchildren. Natives on reserves qualify for benefits not available to those living elsewhere. The financial implicatons of the impending change aren't clear.
CHILE
A strong tremor shook Chile on Thursday, less than two weeks after a major earthquake caused widespread destruction and killed several hundred people. The latest tremor measuring 7.2 was the strongest of dozens that have shaken Chile since the earthquake, which measured 8.8. There were no initial reports of damage or injuries in the capital, Santiago, or in Valparaiso, where the latest tremor was felt. The tremor was centred 114 kilometres from Valparaiso. A tsunami alert is in effect. The tremor occurred shortly before Sebastian Pinera was scheduled to be sworn in as Chile's new president. He succeeds Michelle Bachelet, who could not serve another term because of constitutional rules. Mr. Pinera's victory in the election in January ended the rule of a left-wing coalition that has governed Chile since the end of General Augusto Pinochet's dictatorship 20 years ago.
BRAZIL
Brazil's President Luiz Inacio Lula da Silva is appealing to U.S. President Barack Obama to help resolve a bilateral trade dispute. Brazil is angry about U.S. government subsidies for the American cotton industry. So far, the U.S. has ignored a ruling by the World Trade Organization that the subsidies are unfair. In reaction, Brazil earlier this week announced higher tariffs on imported American cosmetics, appliances and cars. Mr. Lula da Silva says that he does not want the dispute to lead to confrontation and that Brazil will drop the new subsidies within 30 days if the U.S. ends its cotton subsidies.
MEXICO
Eight journalists have been kidnapped in a Mexican border city in a two-week period. The Inter-American Press Association says the abductions are unprecedented in the Western Hemisphere. Only three of the eight journalists have been released. There's no word of the five others. The kidnappings occurred between Feb. 18 and March 3 in Reynosa in the Gulf coast state of Tamaulipas near the U.S. border. The press lobby wants the Mexican government to rescue the five journalists still in captivity. Reynosa and several other cities in Tamaulipas have been the scene of a number of shootouts between the powerful Gulf drug cartel and their former allies known as the Zetas.
GREECE
A protest against government economic plans in Greece turned violent on Thursday as more than two million workers across the country staged a 24-hour strike. Thousands of people marched in Athens to protest against a government austerity program that aims to reduce a huge national debt. The debt has created a major financial crisis that threatens economic stability throughout the European Union. A splinter group described as anarchists smashed store windows in a main square. Fifteen people were injured. Police fired tear gas and detained five people. Elsewhere in Athens, protesters threw firebombs and burned a car.
UKRAINE
Ukraine's new prime minister, Mykola Azarov, has promised that the country will meet all its obligations to the International Monetary Fund. He also admits that the government is broke because the previous government plundered the country. Mr. Azarov's new government needs to adopt a budget for 2010 and to restart talks with the IMF about further lending. The Fund suspended a $3.5-billion loan after the previous government of ousted Prime Minister Yulia Timoshenko increased minimum wages and pensions by as much as 10 per cent. The Regions Party of President Viktor Yanukovich supported the increases. Mr. Azarov became prime minister as a result of an alliance between the Regions Party, the Communists and the Litvyn bloc of the parliamentary speaker, Volodymyr Litvyn.
TORONTO: ASPERS TRY TO REGAIN NEWSPAPERS
The Globe and Mail newspaper reports that the Asper family is trying to return to the newspaper business. The Aspers are reported bidding for control of bankrupt Canwest Global Communications Corp.'s newspaper division, which consists of 46 publications. Canwest's creditors put them up for sale in January. According to The Globe, the shortlist of six bidders includes B.C. newspaper tycoon David Black, Glacier Media Inc. of Vancouiver and a buyout led by National Post executive Paul Godfrey. The bidding for the newspapers was closed a week ago. A few weeks ago, the Aspers back a bid for Canwest's broadcasting business by a private equity firm. However, Ontario Superior Court had already approved a bid for the broadcast assets by Shaw Communications Inc. Canwest went into bankruptcy protection last year, unable to repay its creditors $4 billion.
MARKETS
TSX on Thursday: 11,982, up 20. Canadian dollar: US97. Euro: C$1.40. Oil: $82.23 .14.
SKIING
Erik Guay of Canada won the
final super-G race of the season and claimed the World Cup title in
that event.
Guay, who also won a super-G race on Sunday in Kvitfjell, Norway,
went into the race in third place but his blistering run down the
Kandahar course gave him the title.
CURLING
Canada's Rachel Homan has her first loss of the world junior curling championship. The Ottawa skip dropped an 8-6 decision to host Switzerland. Homan had already clinched a playoff berth before today's game. Early action is underway at the Tim Hortons Brier in Halifax.
Weather
British Columbia on Friday: rain south, sun north, high C9 Vancouver. Yukon: sun. Northwest Territories: mix sun cloud. Nunavut: mix sun cloud snow. Whitehorse -4, Yellowknife -2, Iqaluit -14. Alberta: sun north, cloud south. Saskatchewan: sun. Manitoba: rain. Edmonton 4, Regina 2, Winnipeg 5. Ontario: rain. Quebec: sun. Toronto 12, Ottawa, Montreal 11. Maritimes: sun. Newfoundland and Labrador: cloud. Fredericton 10, Halifax 8, Charlottetown 2, St. John's -1.
