Gord Downie and the Hip gone fishin in northern Ontario
Photobombing the picture was Downie’s longtime friend and celebrated Canadian author, Joseph Boyden.The CBC reported that the entire band, along with Boyden, were taking a post-concert fishing trip that would be led by aboriginal guides. A spokesperson for the Tragically Hip’s record label, Universal Music, did not respond to requests for comment. Facebook Downie posed for a photograph this week after he was spotted by a local woman, Catherine Cheechoo, at the Timmins Airport during one leg of his jaunt to northern Ontario“Oh. My. Gord,” Cheechoo wrote on her Instagram post. Advertisement Advertisement Advertisement
Gord Downie has sung about a famous fishing trip that ended in disaster for Toronto Maple Leafs defenceman Bill Barilko. He has taken them himself in the past.So when the curtains closed after the Tragically Hip’s final concert — one in which the singer struck a political note urging Canadians to address the plight of First Nations — it made perfect sense for Downie to flee the spotlight for the sun, stars and fresh air in abundance on James Bay.That doesn’t mean it wasn’t a surprise. LEAVE A REPLY Cancel replyLog in to leave a comment Login/Register With: Twitter
The Directors Guild of Canada handed out 17 awards tonight honouring the best work created by Members this past year in a star-studded, elegant event. Three special career acknowledgments were also handed out during the evening, including the Lifetime Achievement Award to filmmaker Anne Wheeler. The inaugural DGC Discovery Award was presented to newcomer Chloe Leriche for her/his film Avant Les Rues.Arisa Cox hosted the Awards Gala which was held at The Carlu in Toronto.Presenters included this country’s hardest working filmmakers and actors; Meredith MacNeill, Tracey Deer, Megan Follows, Director X, Benz Antoine, and Nicholas Campbell, to name just a few. Advertisement Below is a full list of the awards presented at the 2016 DGC Awards Gala:DGC LIFETIME ACHIEVEMENT AWARDPresented by ShaftesburyAnne Wheeler2016 DON HALDANE DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARDManny Danelon2016 DGC HONOURARY LIFE MEMBER AWARDPresented by BellMediaTrina McQueenDGC DISCOVERY AWARDPresented by Entertainment OneChloé Leriche – Avant les RuesOUTSTANDING DIRECTORIAL ACHIEVEMENT IN FEATURE FILMPresented by TechnicolorPaul Gross – Hyena RoadOUTSTANDING DIRECTORIAL ACHIEVEMENT IN MOVIES FOR TELEVISION AND MINI-SERIESPresented by deluxeKari Skogland – Sons of LibertyOUTSTANDING DIRECTORIAL ACHIEVEMENT IN DRAMATIC SERIESPresented by PanavisionHelen Shaver – Vikings – Born AgainOUTSTANDING DIRECTORIAL ACHIEVEMENT IN COMEDY SERIESPresented by SIM GroupJerry Ciccoritti – Schitt’s Creek – Moira’s NudesOUTSTANDING DIRECTORIAL ACHIEVEMENT IN FAMILY SERIESPresented by William F. WhiteBruce McDonald – Heartland – Before the DarknessALLAN KING AWARD FOR EXCELLENCE IN DOCUMENTARYPresented by Rogers Group of FundsGuantanamo’s Child: Omar Khadr – Patrick Reed & Michelle ShephardANDHaida Gwaii: On the Edge Of The World – Charles WilkinsonBEST PICTURE EDITING – DOCUMENTARYCathy Gulkin – Guantanamo’s Child: Omar KhadrBEST SHORT FILMPortal to Hell!!!BEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – FEATURE FILMPresented by Pinewood Toronto StudiosAidan Leroux – Born to Be BlueBEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – MOVIES FOR TELEVISION AND MINI-SERIESPresented by Vanguarde Artists ManagementRob Gray – Sons of LibertyBEST PRODUCTION DESIGN – TELEVISION SERIESJohn Dondertman – Orphan Black – Certain Agony Of The BattlefieldBEST PICTURE EDITING – FEATURE FILMMatthew Hannam – Into the ForestBEST PICTURE EDITING – MOVIES FOR TELEVISION AND MINI-SERIESRon Wisman Sr. & Ron Wisman Jr. – The Secret Life of Marilyn MonroeBEST PICTURE EDITING – TELEVISION SERIESD. Gillian Truster – Orphan Black – Scarred By Many Past FrustrationsBEST SOUND EDITING – FEATURE FILMHyena Road – Jane Tattersall, Supervising Sound Editor; Kevin Banks, Sound Editor; Ed Douglas, Sound Editor; David Evans, Sound Editor; Barry Gilmore, Sound Editor; Martin Gwynn Jones, Sound Editor, David McCallum, Sound Editor; Brennan Mercer, Sound Editor; Dave Rose, Sound Editor; Claire Dobson, 1st Assistant Sound Editor; Krystin Hunter, 1st Assistant Sound EditorBEST SOUND EDITING – MOVIES FOR TELEVISION AND MINI-SERIESThe Secret Life of Marilyn Monroe – Steve Medeiros, SFX Editor; Jane Tattersall, SFX Editor; Krystin Hunter, Dialogue Editor; David McCallum, Dialogue Editor; Susan Conley, ADR Editor; Joe Mancuso, Music Editor; Claire Dobson, 1st Assistant Sound EditorBEST SOUND EDITING – TELEVISION SERIESThe Expanse – The Big Empty – Nelson Ferreira, Supervising Sound Editor and ADR Editor; Nathan Robitaille, Sound Designer; Tyler Whitham, SFX Editor; Dustin Harris, Dialogue Editor; Dashen Naidoo, 1st Assistant Sound Editor Login/Register With: Twitter Advertisement Advertisement Facebook LEAVE A REPLY Cancel replyLog in to leave a comment 
LEAVE A REPLY Cancel replyLog in to leave a comment Advertisement Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers rose to No. 2 with a greatest hits compilation that was buoyed by the singer’s death last week. Other new albums from Demi Lovato and Miley Cyrus also reached the top 10. It marked the third-largest sales week for a country album this year and the largest for a woman in nearly two years, according to Billboard. The Timmins, Ont., native’s return eclipsed a number of other strong performers on the U.S. charts. Facebook In the United States, “Now” sold 137,000 equivalent units with a large majority of those sales — about 134,000 copies — from traditional album purchases, rather than streaming on services like Apple Music and Spotify. Advertisement The five-time Grammy Award winner’s latest release “Now” rose to the peak position on both the U.S. and Canadian Billboard album charts in its debut week. Advertisement “Now” was solely written and co-produced by Twain and marks her first album release since 2002’s “Up!”In the years between her projects she battled Lyme disease, which she said led to dysphonia, a vocal cord disorder that forced her to stop singing. She dedicated her time to writing a 2011 autobiography and divorced her husband and longtime producing partner Robert (Mutt) Lange. TORONTO — Shania Twain is back on top of the charts with her first studio album in 15 years. Twain’s album also grabbed the top spot on the U.K. charts by edging out British band Wolf Alice by a mere 764 copies, according to the Official Charts Company.by David Friend Shania Twain performs at the opening night ceremony of the U.S. Open tennis tournament at the USTA Billie Jean King National Tennis Center on Monday, Aug. 28, 2017, in New York. Twain is reclaiming a position atop the charts with her first studio album in 15 years. THE CANADAIN PRESS/AP-Invision-Charles Sykes Sales in Canada were the strongest one-week performance for an album since Drake’s “Views” debuted in May 2016. Twain’s album moved 73,000 equivalent units, which include a calculation of the album’s digital streams. Login/Register With: Twitter
Advertisement LEAVE A REPLY Cancel replyLog in to leave a comment Facebook Login/Register With: Advertisement
The first double eviction of the season rocked the Big Brother Canada house this week and after two sets of explosive competitions were secured and two unsuspecting votes were cast, two bold players were sent out the BBCAN6 backdoor.Both 24-year-old Ottawa-based server Veronica Doherty and 27-year-old Thunder Bay, Ont., soccer coach Hamza Hatoum, who were feared for their unpredictable gameplay and nerve to make game-changing moves, were sent packing this week after the house scrambled for stability despite a week of deception.“I look at some of the people in the house and think that me and Veronica definitely deserve to be in there over a lot of people,” Hatoum said, just moments after his ouster as Postmedia Network sat with the two stunned evictees. Advertisement Twitter
Advertisement Login/Register With: WHAT’S SHOOTING IN ONTARIO – AS OF APR-27-18DGC (Director’s Guild of Canada) Hotlist – CLICK HERE (31 page PDF)OMDC (Ontario Media Development Corporation) MEDIA LIST – CLICK HERE (3-page PDF) Advertisement Advertisement Twitter ACTRA – CLICK HEREIATSE 873 – CLICK HERE.LOOKING FOR A JOB? CHECK OUT OUR CASTING, JOB & CREW NOTICESCASTING A PRODUCTION? HIRING CREW? POST YOUR NOTICE HERETO VIEW OR POST CASTING NOTICES: CLICK HERETO VIEW OR POST CREW & JOB NOTICES: CLICK HERE.ARE YOU A FREELANCER? CREW? DO YOU WORK BEHIND THE SCENES?ARE YOU A PRODUCTION COMPANY?DO YOU PROVIDE A SERVICE TO THE INDUSTRY?ADD YOUR COMPANY (OR YOUR SERVICES) TO THE PRODUCTION DIRECTORYRegister & List your company in the FREE eBOSS PRODUCTION DIRECTORYCLICK HERE.DEALS AND DISCOUNTSCheck out our deals page for discounts on events, restaurants, industry services, health and fitness, auto services and much more – CLICK HERE.FOLLOW eBOSS CANADA ON SOCIAL MEDIA The Entertainment Business One-Stop ShopFacebook: https://www.facebook.com/eboss.canada/Twitter: https://twitter.com/eBOSSCanadaInstagram: https://www.instagram.com/eBOSSCanada/YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/ebosscanadaDOWNLOAD THE eBOSS CANADA APPFor up-to-date News, Job Notices, Casting Notices, Events, and much more Facebook LEAVE A REPLY Cancel replyLog in to leave a comment 
High Life First Man Giant Little Ones | Keith Behrman, CanadaWorld PremiereGirls of the Sun | Eva Husson, FranceInternational PremiereHotel Mumbai | Anthony Maras, AustraliaWorld PremiereThe Hummingbird Project | Kim Nguyen, CanadaWorld PremiereIf Beale Street Could Talk | Barry Jenkins, USAWorld PremiereManto | Nandita Das, IndiaNorth American PremiereMaya | Mia Hansen-Løve, FranceWorld PremiereMonsters and Men | Reinaldo Marcus Green, USACanadian PremiereSpecial Presentations Opening Film MOUTHPIECE | Patricia Rozema, CanadaWorld PremiereNon-Fiction | Olivier Assayas, FranceCanadian Premiere Roma Piers Handling, CEO and Director of TIFF, and Cameron Bailey, Artistic Director of TIFF, today unveiled the first round of titles premiering in the Gala and Special Presentation programmes of the 43rd Toronto International Film Festival.Of the 17 Galas and 30 Special Presentations, this first announcement includes 21 World Premieres, 7 International Premieres, 8 North American Premieres and 11 Canadian Premieres. The selection announced today includes 13 features directed by women.“We have an exceptional selection of films this year that will excite Festival audiences from all walks of life,” said Handling. “Today’s lineup showcases beloved auteurs alongside fresh voices in filmmaking, including numerous female powerhouses. The sweeping range in cinematic storytelling from around the world is a testament to the uniqueness of the films that are being made.” Old Man & the Gun | David Lowery, USAInternational PremierePapi Chulo | John Butler, IrelandWorld PremiereRoma | Alfonso Cuarón, Mexico/USACanadian PremiereSpecial Presentations Closing Film Shoplifters | Hirokazu Kore-eda, JapanCanadian PremiereThe Sisters Brothers | Jacques Audiard, USA/France/Romania/SpainNorth American PremiereSunset | László Nemes, Hungary/FranceNorth American PremiereThrough Black Spruce | Don McKellar, CanadaWorld PremiereThe Wedding Guest | Michael Winterbottom, United KingdomWorld PremiereThe Weekend | Stella Meghie, USAWorld PremiereWhere Hands Touch | Amma Asante, United KingdomWorld PremiereWhite Boy Rick | Yann Demange, USAInternational PremiereWildlife | Paul Dano, USACanadian Premiere Advertisement If Beale Street Could Talk More Festival films, including additional Gala and Special Presentations selections, will be announced in the coming weeks. Next up: the Canadian lineup, which will be unveiled on August 1 at 10am ET.The 43rd Toronto International Film Festival runs from September 6 to 16, 2018. Ticket packages are now on sale.BROWSE ALL FILMS The Hate U Give Facebook Where Hands Touch Advertisement Widows “Every September we invite the whole film world to Toronto, one of the most diverse, movie-mad cities in the world. I’m thrilled that we’ve been able to put together a lineup of Galas and Special Presentations that reflects Toronto’s spirit of inclusive, passionate engagement with film. We can’t wait to unveil these films for our audience.”This year, the Gala and Special Presentations programmes will include films by Claire Denis, Steve McQueen, Alfonso Cuarón, Barry Jenkins, Nicole Holofcener, Patricia Rozema, Damien Chazelle, Elizabeth Chomko, Zhang Yimou, Bradley Cooper, Nadine Labaki, Anurag Kashyap, Amma Asante, Matteo Garrone, Eva Husson, Jason Reitman, Lee Chang-dong, Keith Behrman, George Tillman, Jr., Olivier Assayas, and Jiang Wen. LEAVE A REPLY Cancel replyLog in to leave a comment A Star is Born The Land of Steady Habits Hidden Man Advertisement The Wedding Guest Login/Register With: Beautiful Boy The Kindergarten Teacher | Sara Colangelo, USACanadian PremiereThe Land of Steady Habits | Nicole Holofcener, USAWorld PremiereLife Itself | Dan Fogelman, USAWorld PremiereThe Public | Emilio Estevez, USAWorld PremiereRed Joan | Sir Trevor Nunn, United KingdomWorld PremiereShadow | Zhang Yimou , ChinaNorth American PremiereA Star is Born | Bradley Cooper, USANorth American PremiereWhat They Had | Elizabeth Chomko, USAInternational PremiereWidows | Steve McQueen, United Kingdom/USAWorld Premiere The Hummingbird Project The full list of Festival ’18 films announced today:GALASBeautiful Boy | Felix van Groeningen, USAWorld PremiereEverybody Knows | Asghar Farhadi, Spain/France/ItalyNorth American PremiereFirst Man | Damien Chazelle, USACanadian PremiereGalveston | Mélanie Laurent, USACanadian PremiereThe Hate U Give | George Tillman, Jr., USAWorld PremiereHidden Man | Jiang Wen, ChinaInternational PremiereHigh Life | Claire Denis, Germany/France/Poland/United KingdomWorld PremiereHusband Material | Anurag Kashyap, IndiaWorld Premiere SPECIAL PRESENTATIONSBen is Back | Peter Hedges, USAWorld PremiereBurning | Lee Chang-dong, South KoreaNorth American PremiereCan You Ever Forgive Me? | Marielle Heller, USAInternational PremiereCapernaum | Nadine Labaki, LebanonNorth American PremiereCold War | Paweł Pawlikowski, Poland/United Kingdom/FranceCanadian PremiereColette | Wash Westmoreland, United KingdomCanadian PremiereDogman | Matteo Garrone, Italy/FranceCanadian PremiereThe Front Runner | Jason Reitman, USAInternational Premiere Galveston The Sisters Brothers Maya Twitter
Login/Register With: The festival said Rain died of natural causes in Stratford, Ont., where he built his career as an actor.Before his death, Rain was one of few surviving members who founded the company in 1952, the festival said. He performed at the theatre for about 45 years, becoming one of its “most respected leading men,” it said.Rain played a range of roles at the theatre including Malvolio in “Twelfth Night”, the title role in “King John” and Prince Hal in “Henry IV, Part 1.”The festival said Rain “made an indelible mark on popular culture” as the voice of the computer, known as Hal 9000, in Stanley Kubrick’s film “2001: A Space Odyssey.”“Douglas shared many of the same qualities as Kubrick’s iconic creation: precision, strength of steel, enigma and infinite intelligence, as well as a wicked sense of humour,” said Cimolino.“But those of us lucky enough to have worked with Douglas soon solved his riddle and discovered that at the centre of his mystery lay warmth and humanity, evidenced in his care for the young members of our profession.”Rain, who was born in Winnipeg, Man., in 1928, started performing radio plays as a child actor on CBC radio and he did voice-over work for the National Film Board of Canada, according to the theatre company.It also said Rain performed at theatres and festivals all over Canada and he was nominated for a Tony Award in 1972 for his role as William Cecil in “Vivat! Vivat! Regina!”The theatre company said he is survived by his two sons, daughter, granddaughter and daughter-in-law.Cimolino said the festival will be dedicating its upcoming production of “Othello” to Rain’s memory.“Douglas dedicated his talent to the stages of his native land,” said Cimolino. “We owe him so much.” This composite image shows Douglas Rain in an undated handout photo by Terry Manzo (left), and as Henry V in the Stratford Festival in 1966 (Peter Smith / The Canadian Press). Facebook Advertisement LEAVE A REPLY Cancel replyLog in to leave a comment 
Advertisement Advertisement STRATFORD, Ont. — The Stratford Festival says it is mourning the loss of a “rare artist” and one of its pioneers, Douglas Rain, who died at the age of 90 on Sunday morning.“Canadian theatre has lost one of its greatest talents and a guiding light in its development,” the festival’s artistic director, Antoni Cimolino, said in a press release Sunday.“Douglas Rain was that rare artist: an actor deeply admired by other actors.” Twitter
Advertisement Login/Register With: Facebook Photo: CBC To be fair, we should point out that in 2017, revenues for movie house owners in Canada and the United States reached a rather impressive US$11.1 billion. Taking that as a glass of water being more than half full, Vince Guzzo (pictured above), the President and CEO of Guzzo Cinemas and the newest Dragon on CBC’s Dragons’ Den, has announced he’s actively exploring the expansion of his namesake company beyond his home province of Quebec. More specifically he’s looking into other markets including major Canadian business hubs like Vancouver and Calgary. READ MORE Vince Guzzo, the President and CEO of Guzzo Cinemas and the newest Dragon on CBC’s entrepreneurially-focused show, Dragons’ Den, announces he’s actively exploring the growth and development of his business enterprises across Canada, given his exceptional successes in his home province of Quebec. Expanding into other markets, including major Canadian business hubs like Vancouver and Calgary, will allow Guzzo to take advantage of the broad economic opportunities available in other parts of the country.Guzzo owns and operates Guzzo Cinemas, the largest chain of independent movie theatres and IMAX screens in Quebec and the third largest in Canada, with ten current locations and two more slated for opening in 2019. The powerful entrepreneur has recently brought his business acumen and eccentric style to the forefront of the Canadian media landscape in his role as a Dragon on CBC’s 13th season of Dragons’ Den, one of the country’s most beloved and well- watched television programs for the better part of a decade. READ MORECurtain Up for Vince GuzzoIn the age of online streaming services like Netflix, Prime or Crave, there are persistent rumours about the tough times for cinema chains. In March of last year for example, Variety opened an article on the subject with this sentence: “Anyone in the movie business who tells you they’re not scared stiff about the future is probably lying.” So, any news of expansion in the film exhibition business has to be accepted as good news.
LEAVE A REPLY Cancel replyLog in to leave a comment Advertisement Advertisement Twitter
Cullen Crozier, aptn National NewsA successful alternative school program in the town of Fort Smith in the Northwest Territories is on the verge of closing because of funding cuts by the Territorial government.It’s called the Pheonix program and it helps students who have slipped through cracks in the education system. This has put many students who are benefitting from the program at risk of losing everything they have worked so hard for.The program caters to students who have had trouble fitting into the regular school system. Heather Villeneuve is an administrator at the Pheonix program at the school.“The majority of students work very very well in a regular high school setting. But there are those intelligent young people who need to get their education and be successful in life who need a different way of school. A lot of very deserving people who are ready to be educated but on different terms. This program is meeting their needs.”Catherine Benwell is a single mother who is just a few courses away from receiving her diploma. She says that the program has been instrumental in her academic achievements.“it’s very hard because a child needs a lot of attention and there isn’t a lot of childcare in this town and what not and so you have to balance it out and with this program it helps a lot.”In the last three years the program has helped nearly 30 students receive their high school diplomas, 90% of which are aboriginal students.But the program is still threatened by cuts. Starting next semester the government of the Northwest Territories will cut funding to the Pheonix school from $660,000 to an estimated $440,000. Villenuve says people are working hard because they don’t know what is going to become of the program.“people are scrambling now just trying to get as many credits as they can in before we close and it’s just really disheartening.”Villeneuve says the program will have to run during regular school hours to help save money. But they say that will stop the program in it’s tracks.Jason Lepine is with the District Education Authority.“in this day and age when we would like everybody to succeed the last thing we should be doing is throwing obstacles in the way of success that’s not to say that we are not capable of working or collaborating with the government to ensure success of the phoenix program it’s just that it’s very discouraging to have those reductions.”Other students:As for Catherine Benwell and the other 24 students set to graduate this year, the worry is that other students in their position won’t get the same opportunity to succeed.“I was very disappointed because from people thinking that this is going to be going on for a long time then just cutting it off all of a sudden and changing their life plans type of thing I felt very disappointed.”The government of the Northwest Territories is set to release it’s budtget next month.The community of Fort Smith is now rallying to keep the program alive.So far, the government has been unavailable to comment on the cuts.
APTN National NewsLights, camera, action.It’s all part of the annual Winnipeg Aboriginal Film Festival.The festival has one main goal in mind, to showcase the best emerging filmmakers.APTN National News reporter Ntawnis Piapot met up with one filmmaker who used his personal experience to tell his story.
Tom Fennario APTN National NewsIt’s been 375 years since Europeans incorporated Montreal and now the city wants to reconcile itself with its Indigenous residents.The city has announced a series of measures to make it a reality.That includes helping to fund this year’s annual pow wow.tfennario@aptn.ca
Kathleen MartensAPTN NewsA boatload of ignorant fishermen should be charged for drinking, urinating and exposing themselves to families, said an angling group working to reduce conflict on B.C.’s Fraser River.“It’s the worst incident reported this summer,” said Rod Clapton, co-chair of the Fraser River Peacemakers.“They’re idiots…As far as we’re concerned they should be charged with indecent exposure if the information reported is accurate.”Clapton said he sent an email to the RCMP Monday asking them to find the five men caught on camera Saturday getting into a heated argument with members of the Union Bar First Nation.“We’re not going to let this go,” Clapton added in a telephone interview with APTN News. “No member of the sport fishing community would excuse this. It’s unacceptable.”Photos of the men in an aluminum boat were posted on Facebook. The men are seen drinking, urinating and making lewd gestures.One witness said a man dropped his pants and underwear and exposed himself to women and children cleaning fish on the shoreline.“They were casting, talking loud, swearing – and their voices carried,” said Stacy McNeil.“We said, ‘Hey, there’s children here.’ But instead of moving on one guy started peeing and told us to shut up.”McNeil said the man made “disrespectful” and unwanted sexual comments while exposing himself.“As adults, we see this all the time. But our kids were so confused and scared, with no idea why it was happening.”McNeil said several families were working in the fish camp between Hope and Yale when the incident occurred at about 5 p.m. on Aug. 25.She said her hands were shaking as she called Hope RCMP and described the scene to a dispatch operator on the line.No officer was available to come out but RCMP did provide an email address for witnesses to share their photos and video.She said three boats piloted by community members pulled up to the anglers and “told them to move along.”She said there was shouting back and forth and a fight came close to breaking out.“They said, ‘We started it, the women started it.’ They were calling down First Nations (people), saying we were stealing all the fish.”McNeil said the incident could have escalated into something more dangerous.“I was trying to be calm because my children were there,” she said of the kids that are between three- and 15-years-old.“My body was shaking because I was so angry. I was trying not to stoop to that level and respond.”She said she is proud the community was able to defuse the incident and there was no violence.Sto:lo Chief Ernie Crey, who co-chairs the Peacemakers group with Clapton, agreed.“We encourage people to share the river instead of getting into a fight over it,” he said.Crey said misunderstandings crop up when anglers are unaware they’ve anchored in a traditional fishing hole.“In the past they used to throw rocks at one another,” said Crey, “or branches of trees.”In 2009, he said former chief Willie Charlie was shot in the face with a pellet gun. That’s when Peacemakers was formed.“We don’t get involved in criminal activity,” added Clapton. “We go and talk and help resolve differences.”The group recently received an award from the federal government for its 10 years of advocacy and mediation.But this encounter shows it still has work to do.“This is a pretty nasty incident,” said Clapton.“We really expect the RCMP to pursue this and identify these individuals.”kmartens@aptn.ca
Paqtnkek Mi’kmaq Nation Chief Paul Prosper says keeping child welfare under provincial jurisdiction “is contrary to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.” Photo: Assembly of NS Mi’kmaq Chiefs.Justin BrakeAPTN NewsMi’kmaq chiefs in Nova Scotia are adding their voices to the growing number of Indigenous leaders concerned that the Trudeau government could soon table a child welfare bill that doesn’t give full jurisdiction to First Nations.On Friday the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaq Chiefs issued a press release calling on Ottawa to ensure the latest draft legislation is amended to include full jurisdiction for First Nations over child welfare.“The legislation, in its current form, does not recognize the inherent right to self-government which would allow First Nation communities to rightfully assume jurisdiction and governance over their own child welfare matters without the permission of Governments,” Paqtnkek Mi’kmaw Nation Chief Paul Prosper says in the statement.Propsper, who holds the justice portfolio for the assembly, also says in the release that it’s “not acceptable for Canada to force us to require the consent of the Provinces and Canada prior to taking jurisdiction over our children and families.“This approach is contrary to The United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.”In a Feb. 11 letter to Prime Minister Trudeau, Prosper said Section 11 of the draft, Indigenous Family and Unity Act, “denies the jurisdiction and governance by First Nations people over their own child welfare matters.”He said “the provinces have failed in protecting our vulnerable children,” and that as a result of being removed from their communities they’ve “lost their language, their culture, their identity.”Prosper said the only resolution is “if we have full jurisdiction.”Jennifer Cox works with the Kwilmu’kw Maw-klusuaqn Negotiation Office, and with the Nova Scotia chiefs.She was recently tasked with developing a self-government model on child welfare for Mi’kmaq communities in Nova Scotia.Cox says at present the federal funding and provincial legislative authority for child welfare “don’t mix very well.”She says the risks and harms associated with removing a child from their community and culture aren’t currently legislated as considerations in when children are being removed from their home.“The federal legislation, if it were to recognize our inherent rights to develop our own laws, will put us in a position where we could create our own legislation here in Mi’kma’ki,” she explains.“And that will make big changes for us because we will be able to do things that make more sense, essentially.”Asked if the province supports the transfer of full jurisdiction over child welfare to First Nations, a spokesperson for Nova Scotia’s Department of Community Services said they support the Mi’kmaq “to move towards self-governance for child welfare and a Mi’kmaw Child Welfare Law.”Heather Fairbarin said in Nova Scotia the Mi’kmaq Family and Children’s Services (MFCS) “implements child protection on reserve,” and that the agency’s board of directors is “governed by Mi’kmaw leadership including many of the chiefs.”She said the province “has a good working relationship with the agency,” and that MFCS “is required to follow the standards within the provincial Children and Family Services Act. The department has a good working relationship with the agency.”It’s not clear if Nova Scotia supports transferring jurisdiction over child welfare to the Mi’kmaq, but Cox says based on the province’s support for the move to Mi’kmaq self-governance, “in principle it sounds like they will be supportive of First Nations jurisdiction.”Cox says the federal legislation “will be basically useless if it doesn’t deal with the issue of jurisdiction.”She says if there’s legislation in place at the federal level “that recognizes we have this inherent right, [it] will allow us to get down to the real business of negotiating the actual laws that we need to have in place.”If that happens, she adds, “it will hopefully set the national standards for certain things, like the removal of children…that will supersede the provincial and territorial legislation.”In Friday’s statement Prosper said Mi’kmaq “need to ensure our children are safe in their own communities.“We can only do that if we have jurisdiction and the financial means to support this work.”APTN News asked Trudeau earlier this week when his government will table the already delayed child welfare bill.The prime minister didn’t offer a timeframe, but said the bill will be “a historic piece of legislation on many levels,” and that it “embodies reconciliation.”jbrake@aptn.ca@justinbrakenews
He is the winningest goaltender in Montreal Canadiens’ history.But as Carey Price was savouring his 315th franchise win Tuesday night, he took time to impart some advice to aspiring Indigenous hockey players.After all, he comes from a small First Nation in B.C., where his mother was once chief.smiller@aptn.ca@sophieclaude
The Canadian PressNewly published research has concluded that food insecurity in Nunavut grew after a federal program was brought in to fight hunger in the North.The study, published Tuesday in the Canadian Medical Association Journal, found that the ability of northerners to dependably put food on the table declined significantly during the years Nutrition North was being rolled out and has remained down.That’s despite a budget that has increased 65 per cent to $99 million last year from $60 million in 2011.“We can definitely observe that (food insecurity) has been increasing despite the presence of this big program that is supposed to make food more affordable and accessible,” said Andree-Anne Fafard St-Germain, a researcher at the University of Toronto.Inadequate access to nutritious food due to lack of money is a major problem in the North, where groceries often cost two or three times what they do elsewhere. Rates of food insecurity are about four times higher than in southern Canada.The federal government has long chipped in for Arctic groceries. In 2011, Nutrition North was instituted by the Conservative government to replace a program that subsidized food shippers. That subsidy was transferred to retailers on the theory that market forces would make the program more efficient and just as effective.Ottawa says that between 2011 and 2015, the cost of a food basket for a family of four dropped about five per cent and the weight of eligible items shipped north increased by about 25 per cent.But in analyzing survey responses from 2007 to 2016 collected by Statistics Canada in 10 Nunavut communities, Fafard St-Germain found those numbers weren’t showing up on the dinner table.Food insecurityIn 2010, food insecurity affected 33 per cent of families. That number grew in 2011 to 39 per cent. By 2014 – a year after full implementation of Nutrition North – nearly 47 per cent of northerners couldn’t count on a square meal.Those results weren’t the result of economic changes in the territory, said Fafard St-Germain. Nor have things improved.“Every period just seems to be getting worse and worse, generally.“More food is being shipped. More food is being consumed. But at the same time more people are telling us they can’t put food on the table.”Fafard St-Germain acknowledged her data doesn’t explain why.She suggests that subsidized food is being bought in larger amounts by the families that can afford it. Low-income families – and Nunavut has large income disparities – are being left out.“It is possible that some people are eating more fruits and vegetables and milk and all of those foods that are being subsidized. But others are not really benefiting from this because the food is still way too expensive.”Fafard St-Germain’s work is the first to look at Nutrition North’s impact on families, but it’s not the first to find shortcomings.A 2016 study found the program resulted in stale-dated, poor quality food on store shelves without making grocery bills more affordable.The auditor general found in 2014 that the government was largely in the dark about whether Nutrition North had actually done anything for the people who needed it most.aptnnews.ca
HALIFAX – China’s ambassador to Canada says his country hopes the U.S., Canada and Mexico can “make achievements” in ongoing NAFTA talks.Speaking to reporters after meeting with Nova Scotia’s cabinet, Ambassador Lu Shaye said that China has taken “close notice” of North American Free Trade Agreement negotiations.“NAFTA is very effective to regulate the trade relations between these three countries,” Lu said through a translator.He sidestepped a question about what China was learning about U.S. President Donald Trump’s trade approach through the NAFTA talks, saying his country will always seek multilateral trade, “No matter what kind of trade policy the U.S. government adopts.Still, he said his country recognizes free trade is under a growing threat: “While China will follow this ideology to develop friendly relationships with all the countries in the world, protectionism is rising in some parts of the world.”Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s Liberal government has been seeking deeper trade relations with China despite suggestions the initiative could risk upsetting the Trump administration during the NAFTA renegotiations.Others have also warned about potentially rejecting a $1.5-billion bid by Chinese state-owned company CCCC International Holding Ltd. to take over Canada’s Aecon Group Inc. construction firm.They say rejecting the deal on security grounds would anger China.Lu was asked Tuesday whether such a move would jeopardize potential trade talks between the two countries.“We will respect any decision made by the Canadian government in this regard (Aecon),” he said.The discussions with Premier Stephen McNeil focused on areas such as seafood, education, tourism, and energy, as well as the recent friendship agreements between Nova Scotia and the Chinese provinces of Shandong and Guangdong.Lu made note that McNeil also made it known that he would like to see a direct air link between China and Halifax. The ambassador said that he would work to “promote and make it happen.”McNeil said getting direct air access would help build the momentum the province has been building in getting its own access to Chinese markets.“When I was in China the last two times I met with different airlines,” he said. “We have a number that would be looking at it and we hope Air Canada does as well.”He said the preferred entry point from the province’s perspective would be Guangdong province, where “they consume an awful lot of our seafood product.”China is Nova Scotia’s second largest trading partner after the U.S. According to the province, total exports jumped to $495 million in 2016, an increase of 17 per cent from 2015.Seafood exports alone were valued at $255 million.McNeil was asked how important a formalized free trade deal with China would be for his province.“We’re a trading province. We’re not waiting for a formalized one (deal), we are going in and making a commitment, but the Prime Minister obviously is working hard to achieve that for the country.”
EDMONTON – Justice Minister Kathleen Ganley is to reveal specifics today on how cannabis will be sold in Alberta when marijuana is legalized later this year.Premier Rachel Notley’s government has already passed a bill that says private operators will be allowed to sell cannabis in storefront locations while the province will handle online sales.The minimum age to purchase and use marijuana will be 18.The bill says marijuana won’t be allowed in existing no-smoking zones, or at playgrounds, sports fields and splash parks.Alberta has also passed rules to bring traffic penalties for drug-impaired driving in line with the rules for alcohol-related offences.The federal government had hoped to make cannabis legal as of July 1, but the Senate is not expected to vote on the proposed law until June 7, which would push the implementation date into the fall.
TORONTO – Canadian Tire Corp. says it’s expanding its loyalty program to allow customers to collect and redeem Canadian Tire Money across its various retail brands.The company says starting later this spring, customers will be able to collect money at Sport Chek, Mark’s, Atmosphere and Gas+ locations in addition to Canadian Tire itself, as well as redeem it at locations other than Gas+ stations.Canadian Tire says the revamped program will be called Triangle and include both loyalty money and two new MasterCards issued under the program.The program will allow customers to collect money either through an app or a loyalty card that will also offer personalized content and offers, while purchases with the branded MasterCards earn additional money.The update to the loyalty program comes amid wider shifts in loyalty programs in Canada, including Air Canada moving away from Aimia Inc.’s Aeroplan program to its own system, and Loblaw Co. combining loyalty programs at its grocery stores and Shoppers Drug Mart, as companies look to better target customers.Canadian Tire Corp. chief marketing officer Susan O’Brien said the time was right to update the loyalty program that’s been active since 1958 as competition increases.“We’ve got wonderful competition out there that’s making us think through new ways to connect our customers better and give them back the value that they want,” said O’Brien.“We have a ton of analytics and data that helps us make decisions of course, and one of the things we know is a customer shops at Mark’s, shops at Canadian Tire retail, shops at Sport Chek, so why wouldn’t we be giving them the benefit and the rewards that go along with it?”
A rally in oil prices after a two-month slide indicates traders are betting that OPEC and its allies including Russia will agree to produce less crude.Representatives of oil-producing nations will hold a highly anticipated meeting Thursday in Vienna, with analysts predicting that they will agree on a cut of at least 1 billion barrels a day in an effort to bolster prices.Russian President Vladimir Putin boosted expectations for a deal when he said at the G20 summit over last weekend that Russia and Saudi Arabia have agreed to extend an attempt by OPEC to balance oil supply and demand — although he provided no figures.Crude prices began falling in October and continued to plunge last month due to oversupply and fears that weaker global economic growth would dampen energy demand. The price of both benchmark U.S. crude and the standard for internationally traded oil fell 22 per cent in November.On Monday, however, West Texas intermediate rose $2.02, or 4 per cent, to settle at $52.95 a barrel, and Brent international crude climbed $2.23, or nearly 4 per cent, to close at $61.69 a barrel in London.Analysts attribute the turnaround to a truce in the escalating trade dispute between the United States and China. That has raised hopes that, with a cessation in further tit-for-tat tariffs, short-term economic growth and energy demand might be stronger than feared.Also, the Alberta premier announced that the Canadian province will trim production by 8.7 per cent because a shortage of pipeline capacity has caused a glut of Canadian crude. Canada is the largest source of oil imported by the U.S.Finally, the small but wealthy Persian Gulf nation of Qatar said Monday that it will leave OPEC in January. Qatar has been feuding with Saudi Arabia and three other Arab nations that accuse it of financing terrorism.Qatar is one of the smallest oil producers in OPEC, so its departure will have only a marginal impact on the cartel’s share of the world’s supply. Still, the surprising announcement by Qatar’s energy minister underscores the political tension within OPEC, “which doesn’t necessarily make it easier to come to a decision” on cutting production, said JBC Energy analyst David Wech.Some analysts expect OPEC and Russia will agree to even larger cuts, about 1.5 million barrels a day. Anything less, they say, could set the stage for continued global oversupply next year and send oil prices lower.OPEC must produce “a credible agreement” to cut output by about 1.5 million barrels a day for oil prices to recover their recent losses, Credit Suisse analyst William Featherston wrote in a note Monday. The Saudis, he said, will have to bear the largest share of cuts.Saudi Arabia seems eager to reduce supply, Featherston said, but the kingdom’s decision is complicated by President Donald Trump’s desire for lower prices and the Saudis’ wish to improve relations with the U.S. after the murder of journalist and U.S. resident Jamal Khashoggi.Trump blamed OPEC and Saudi Arabia earlier this year for high oil prices. When U.S. crude skidded to $54 on Nov. 21, he tweeted, “Thank you to Saudi Arabia, but let’s go lower!” Trump might complain about cuts designed to send prices higher.U.S. producers have benefited from higher prices. American output has soared since the price bust of 2014-15, and the U.S. Energy Information Administration estimates that the U.S. has eclipsed Russia and Saudi Arabia to become the world’s biggest producer. (Saudi Arabia remains the top exporter.)Much of that new U.S. production is coming out of shale formations that lie underneath West Texas and New Mexico. Executives of some companies that operate there, including Trump supporter Harold Hamm, the chairman and CEO of Continental Resources Inc., have said recently that they might cut back on production if oil falls below $50 a barrel, which it barely avoided in late November.“I think (Trump) is starting to realize that if oil prices continue to fall, it might have a negative effect for U.S. producers,” said Phil Flynn, a prominent oil analyst. “I think he has heard from a couple of them, ‘Hey, you don’t want to crash this thing too hard.’”David Koenig, The Associated Press
COLOMBO, Sri Lanka (AP) — Fitch Ratings has downgraded Sri Lanka’s long-term foreign-currency issuer default rating, citing political upheaval that has resulted in the country having no functional government.Fitch says it lowered the country’s rating to B from B plus with a stable outlook, reflecting heightened external financing risks, uncertain policy outlook and a slowdown in fiscal consolidation.Sri Lanka is now without a government after a court ordered disputed Prime Minister Mahinda Rajapaksa and his ministers to refrain from conducting their duties as it hears a case challenging their eligibility to hold office after losing two no-confidence votes in Parliament.The dispute arose after President Maithripala Sirisena sacked Ranil Wickremesinghe as prime minister and replaced him with Rajapaksa.Rajapaksa has been unable to form a parliamentary majority.The Associated Press