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The Answer to some personal injury ques-tions Page - 22
The Profi le of African Soccer Teams Page - 17
Confi dence in Nut-shell Page - 12
ሃብቶም፡ ትእምርቲ ሕሉፉን እዋናውን ታሪኽ መንእሰያት ኤርትራ Page - 10
ኦውዲተር ጀነራል ሸይላ ፍረዘር
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Articles appearing in assorted columns of Meftih newspaper are intended to generate civil and informed public discussions. You don’t have to agree with opinions expressed by the writers. However, that should push you to express your own views. Through that way we generate lively and civil discussions in the community. Rejoinders are not forums for personal insults and we want readers to adhere to these principles.
Life is always full of surprises. You really don’t know what to expect and how to prepare for it. It can be a little daunting! With so much that we can’t control we need to focus on what we can, which is ourselves. Yes, look-
ing within is sometimes the preparation, power and in some cases defense which we need to successfully navigate through life.
You will often read articles about how changing your attitude can change the way you respond or see situations. Though this is true, take it one step fur-ther, why do you go into a situation with the attitude you have? Whether apply-ing for a job, going in for an interview or starting your fi rst day of work, how you feel about yourself can infl uence the way people around you perceive you.
Think about this scenario; Tom and Sarah are waiting their turn to go into a board room for their interview for a new position at a prestigious company. Tom’s called in and as he walks towards the room he starts to focus on what the inter-viewers may be like; tough, funny, bored, and he begins to wonder what may be expecting, whether he is dressed to their liking, whether they feel he would fi t into the company culture, whether he should smile a lot or a little, etc.
By the time Tom reaches the board room he has not only gone from being
nervous to panicky, but he is stricken with self-doubt and that low self esteem trans-lates itself into a ‘dead fi sh’ handshake. That’s the beginning of the end of Tom’s interview at this company. Now let’s take Sarah; she’s been sitting in the waiting room taking a keen interest in the com-pany’s general environment.
She’s called in for her turn and begins to focus on her core strengths and how she sees herself working in this com-pany. She is eager to meet her potential boss and new colleagues should she be chosen to work their. Sarah thinks about what she can offer and focuses on just being herself. She remembers what other employers liked about her and the contri-butions she’s made and the people she’s met.
The door opens to the board room and she’s more than happy to see that these may be her new friends. She extends her hand to say hello! The confi dence is natu-ral and genuine, which is a great duo for a
fi rst impression!Whether you’re going for an interview
or walking into a room fi lled with people you don’t know yet at a party, how you carry yourself has a lot to do with what you are thinking and how that makes you feel. Confi dence is about being comfort-able. If you’re confi dent about yourself, you will not only feel comfortable quicker in a new situation, but you will put others around you at ease as well.
So next time you feel the nerves start-ing up, focus on yourself and settle into your comfort zone because at the end of the day, no one knows you better than you! Now isn’t that comforting?
Mimi Chandy is an Employer Out-reach Specialist in Toronto, specializing in helping candidates fi nd jobs in Can-ada. Mimi has a strong back in Human Resources and Marketing; specifi cally in recruitment and training.
( Parts of the information the in this article is adapted from Karen Railey , The author popular e book, How to Improve Fading Memory and Thinking skills with Nutrition. )
Teff is a fascinating grain, ancient, minute in size, and packed with nutri-tion. Teff is believed to have originated in Ethiopia between 4000 and 1000 BC.
The grain has been widely cultivated and used in Ethiopia, Eritrea and Austra-lia. Teff is grown primarily as a cereal crop in Ethiopia where it is ground into fl our, fermented for three days then made into enjera, (እንጀራ) sour pan cake type fl at bread. It is also eaten as porridge and used as an ingredient of home-brewed alcoholic drinks. The grass is grown as forage for cattle in Australia and is also used as a component in hut (ጎጆ) con-struction in Ethiopia. In the U.S. it is culti-vated in South Dakota and Idaho and is popular in many health food stores.
The word teff came from the Amharic word teffa ( ጠፋ ) which means “lost,” due to small size of the grain and how eas-ily it is lost if dropped. It is the smallest grain in the world; the common English names for teff are teff, lovegrass, and an-
nual bunch grass.Because the grains of teff are so small,
the bulk of the grain consists of the bran and germ. This makes teff nutrient dense as the bran and germ are the most nu-tritious parts of any grain. This grain has very high calcium content, and contains high levels of phosphorous, iron, copper, aluminum, barium, and thiamin. It is con-sidered to have an excellent amino acid composition, with lysine levels higher than wheat or barley. Teff is high in pro-tein, carbohydrates, and fi ber. It contains no gluten so it is appropriate for those with gluten intolerance.
The color of the Teff grains can be ivo-ry, light tan to deep brown or dark red-dish brown purple, (ነጭ/ ቀይ/ስርገኛ/ጥቁር ጤፍ) depending on the variety. The plants germinate quickly and are adapted to environments ranging from drought stress to water logged soil conditions. It is believed There are over 250 known species of Eragrostis, or love grasses, Most of them believed to be found in Ethiopia but only a few are of signifi cant agricultural value. Teff is a very versatile grain. Teff fl our can be used as a substi-tute for part of the fl our in baked goods apart from enjera.
In the next article I will share with you the information regarding the grate nutritional value of Teff and some reci-pes off Teff.
Whole Grains: Teff (Eragrostis)
ጣፍ - ወርቃዊ እኽሊJob Search Tips
Looking for information about job hunting? This is a great place to start!
A Job-Seeker’s Guide to Successfully Completing Job Applications gives you the information you need to successfully complete a job application.
The Workopolis.ca and Monster.ca websites both provide useful infor-mation about careers and job hunting.
Check out Job Search Techniques from Mazemaster, the one-stop shop for youth employment.
The Career Centre, from Canada’s Charity Village, offers job hunting ideas and self-marketing strategies.
The Job Search website from Dalhousie University has great tips for job hunters.
Job Search Skills from NextSteps.org offers pointers on getting organized, staying positive, where to check out advertised jobs, and networking.
Work Search is part of the University of Waterloo Career Development Manual. It provides information about searching for work, preparing résu-més and cover letters, and presenting your qualifi cations in an interview.
Careerbuilder.com has greats tips on resumes, interviews, cover letters and thank you letters, salaries, job search and more.
The Quintessential Careers website has lots of job hunting tips and ad-vice.
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CameronProfi le
Though their light may have faded somewhat since they brightened up the world stage at the 1990 FIFA World Cup™, Cameroon are not a side to un-derestimate at the 2010 FIFA World Cup in South Africa. The top African nation in FIFA’s rankings, they also bring Africa’s richest pedigree to the fi nals. They have appeared a continental-best fi ve times in the World Cup, and no other African side has yet eclipsed their historic run to the Italy 1990 quarter-fi nals – though Senegal equalled the achievement in 2002.
However, the team have not man-aged to advance past the group stage in three fi nals appearances since then, winning just once in their nine matches. They lost out on Germany 2006 entirely after missing a penalty kick in the fi nal moments of their last qualifi er against Egypt. But the long road to the 2010 World Cup has forged considerable momentum behind what many Camer-oonians are hoping is the right mix of players, and a new generation of Roger Millas and Francois Omam-Biyiks.
The road to South AfricaThough the 2-0 victory in Morocco
that clinched their qualifi cation was straightforward enough, Cameroon had in fact completed an impressive turn-around in a campaign that started with just a draw from their fi rst two matches. Two victories in four days over contend-ers Gabon were followed by a compre-hensive 3-0 defeat of Togo, and Camer-oon’s four consecutive wins were more than enough to reach South Africa. In the end, the team, led from the back by the likes of veterans Geremi Njitap, Rigobert Song and goalkeeper Idriss Carlos Kameni, gave up just two goals in six fi nal round contests.
The star playersEto’o scored a total of nine goals in
11 qualifi ers, and the world class striker will be the fi rst player opposing coaches try to stop. The promising Pierre Webó is the other main threat up front, while Jean Makoun, Stephane Mbia and Alex-andre Song give the midfi eld a classy but rugged edge in front of mainstays Song, Geremi and Kameni.
The coachThe reversal of fortune for Camer-
oon coincided with the arrival of no-nonsense 45-year-old coach, French-man Paul Le Guen, who took over from German veteran Otto Pfi ster after the slow start. Le Guen had previously taken charge of big clubs Lyon, Rangers and
Paris St. Germain, and he brought a sea change in attitude and professionalism to the side. His controversial decision to hand the captaincy to three-time African player of the year Samuel Eto’o in place of long-time captain Rigobert Song turned out to be just what the two players and the team needed.
Record• Cameroon were eliminated at the
group stage of Spain 1982 despite not suffering a defeat. They lost out to Italy for second in the table on the goals scored ti-ebreaker after three draws.
• Cameroon have played in 17 FIFA World Cup matches, the most of any na-tional team from Africa. Their 1-0 defeat of holders Argentina to kick off the 1990 FIFA World Cup is one of the great up-sets in the history of the event.
• Roger Milla was a record 42 years and 39 days old when he scored for the
Lions against Russia in the 1994 World Cup. He was also the fi rst African to play in three World Cup fi nals.
What they said“We have again made people believe
in this team. It’s a great achievement for all of us to be able to play in a World Cup, especially one in Africa. We are danger-ous because we have a good mix of ex-perience, and we have learned to play together,” Cameroon striker Samuel Eto’o.
South AfricaProfi le
There is an air of cautious optimism in South Africa as the Rainbow Nation prepares to write what is undoubtedly the most signifi cant chapter of its short football history. A mammoth task lies ahead.
Recent years have brought ample disappointments, but Bafana Bafana have also shown, albeit in patches, that - given motivation and purpose - they
can be a potent threat. And there can be no greater motivation than represent-ing their country in a FIFA World Cup™
on home soil. In 1996, four years after their read-
mission to international football, South Africa shot to prominence and stunned the African continent by claiming their maiden CAF Africa Cup of Nations tro-phy against Tunisia at Soccer City in Jo-
hannesburg. How ironic that, 16 years later, South Africa will return to the ven-ue where they achieved this fi rst major success, aiming to rewrite the script on an even bigger stage.
Their gallant performance at the FIFA Confederations Cup last June, when they lost narrowly to Brazil in the semi-fi nals and to Spain in the third place play-off, should certainly serve as a chill-ing reminder to their detractors that this team, when stretched to its potential, cannot be underestimated. That tourna-ment witnessed several impressive per-formances strung together by the hosts, and ultimately it was only their inability to convert cleverly-tailored moves into goals that led to their demise.
The road to South AfricaSouth Africa, by virtue of their role as
hosts, gained automatic qualifi cation.
The star playersTalented midfi eld maestro Steven Pi-
enaar is South Africa’s prize assert. In the absence of the country’s most successful striker, Benni McCarthy, who remains out of favour, Pienaar brings much-needed innovation and imagination to the side.
Since his arrival at Everton, Pienaar has reinvented himself and matured as an all-round player. While he continues to polarise opinion in his native coun-try, no-one in South Africa disputes the confi dence he exudes on the fi eld and his ability to inject inspiration into the
yy
The Profile of African Teams
Cameron Team
South Africa Team
continue to next page...
June 201018
team’s play. His performances during the FIFA Confederations Cup were yet another reminder that he will be key to any South African success in 2010.
Yet arguably just as vital to the Bafa-na Bafana cause are two players who have laboured tirelessly and effectively with little recognition: wingbacks Sibo-niso Gaxa and the enterprising Tsepho Masilela.
The coachNow in his second stint as a South
Africa coach, Carlos Alberto Parreira’s return was greeted with mixed feelings in South Africa, although the Brazilian’s many supporters are adamant that he is the man to lead this side to the ‘Prom-ised Land’ in 2010. Parreira certainly has the pedigree, having led his native country to the beautiful game’s ultimate prize at the 1994 FIFA World Cup USA. The extensively-travelled coach also brings a wealth of experience, which should prove vital in revitalising a South African side struggling with some signif-icant pre-tournament problems. How-ever, Parreira will be hoping to avoid the diffi culties he endured during an inaus-picious fi rst spell as head coach, which witnessed him fail to lead South Africa beyond the fi rst round at the 2008 Africa Cup of Nations.
Previous FIFA W orld CupsSouth Africa have failed to make it
beyond the group stages in either of their two previous FIFA World Cup ap-pearances. Clearly, this is a situation they will be desperate to remedy. Their fi rst appearance was in France 1998, six years after they had been readmitted to the global football family. Despite a 3-0 drubbing to France in their open-ing game, they went on to put a decent show against Denmark and Saudi Ara-bia, drawing against both. Korea/Japan 2002 was expected to be an opportu-nity for Bafana Bafana to step up to the next level but, ultimately, they fl attered to deceive, crashing out after the group stage despite beating Slovenia 1-0 for their fi rst-ever FIFA World Cup win.
Record* This is South Africa’s third appear-
ance at the FIFA World Cup. Their fi rst participation was at France 1998 and they also qualifi ed for Korea/Japan 2002.
* Benni McCarthy scored the coun-try’s fi rst goal at the FIFA World Cup in a 1-1 draw against Denmark on 18 June 1998.
* South Africa’s incumbent captain, Aaron Mokoena remains the country’s most capped player.
* South Africa hosted and won the CAF Africa Cup of Nations in 1996 at their fi rst attempt, beating Tunisia 2-0 in Johannesburg’s Soccer City. They went on to fi nish as runners-up at the follow-ing edition in 1998, losing to Egypt 2-0 in the fi nal.
What they said“We are all aware that it is a huge hon-
our to play in a World Cup on home soil; not many players have had such a privi-lege. We are also aware of the task that lies ahead. For us, the World Cup is our priority, it’s our biggest goal. We need to represent our country with pride,” Aaron Mokoena, South Africa captain.
GhanaProfi le
The only African side to get out of the group stage at the 2006 FIFA World Cup Germany™ and the fi rst to qualify for South Africa 2010, Ghana are anxious to prove themselves as the cream of the continent. Though this will be only their second appearance at the fi nals, the Black Stars have enjoyed considerable success at all levels of international foot-ball. They have won four CAF African Cup of Nations titles, though none since 1982, as well as two FIFA U-17 World Cups, and they became the fi rst African team to lift the FIFA U-20 World Cup when they beat Brazil on penalties in October 2009. With added experience since their 2006 adventure, where they lost to Italy and Brazil but beat the Czech Republic and USA, Ghana are set to be a major threat at Africa’s fi rst FIFA World Cup.
The road to South AfricaGhana guaranteed their place in the
fi nals after going unbeaten through their opening four matches of the fi nal round. They did not concede a goal in the group until a shock 1-0 defeat at Be-nin, but that came after they had already qualifi ed. The key stretch for the west Africans came in June 2009 when they won 2-0 away to both Mali and Sudan, with Germany 2006 veteran Matthew Amoah scoring a goal in the fi rst match and both in the second. Ironically, Ghana were shakier in the previous round of qualifying, only topping the group on goal difference over Gabon and Libya after losing a match to both teams.
The star playersAlthough Ghana lack the attacking
fi repower of many African sides, they rely most prominently on a world class midfi eld led by Michael Essien. The Chel-sea man usually pairs with Sulley Mun-tari and captain Stephen Appiah to form a formidable engine room capable of
both stifl ing attacks and creating them. Two of the trio Asamoah Gyan, Junior Agogo and Matthew Amoah usually op-erate in attack, while the England-based duo of John Mensah and John Paintsil keep the back tight in front of another Premier League player, goalkeeper Rich-ard Kingson.
The coachWith Claude Le Roy’s departure after
a relatively disappointing third-place fi n-ish at the 2008 Cup of Nations on home soil, Milovan Rajevac took over leader-ship of the Black Stars. A former defend-er that played his career in Yugoslavia, the Serbian was best known for a brief coaching stint with Red Star Belgrade as well as leading perennial Serbian strug-glers FK Borac to their fi rst-ever qualifi -cation for a European tournament.
Record• Ghana were the youngest team
at Germany 2006, with an average age of just under 24 years.
• Asamoah Gyan scored the fast-est goal of the 2006 FIFA World Cup after 68 seconds in their 2-1 win over Czech Republic. It was also Ghana’s fi rst-ever goal in the fi nals.
• Ghana lost 3-0 to Brazil in the
second round of Germany 2006, but they were without the talismanic Michael Es-sien, who was suspended.
What they said“This team is very hungry to play in
the fi nals again. My players are aware of what they can achieve, and we have the quality to go far. I am very confi dent about the future,” Ghana coach Milovan Rajevac.
Ivory CoastProfi le
If an African team is to make a major impact on the 2010 FIFA World Cup™ fi nals in South Africa, Côte d’Ivoire are seen by many as the most likely can-didates. And with world class talent throughout the starting 11, it’s no won-der. Les Elephants also a point to prove after being eliminated in the fi rst round at Germany 2006, albeit in an extremely diffi cult group, where they lost 2-1 to giants Argentina and the Netherlands before coming from two goals down to beat Serbia and Montenegro 3-2.
With more experience, and a little more luck in the draw, Didier Drogba and Co are certain to be a handful in at-tack as they look to cement their emerg-ing pedigree on the international level at South Africa 2010.
The road to South AfricaBefi tting their status as one of the
continent’s powerhouses, Côte d’Ivoire strode through qualifying without los-ing a match, running away with their fi nal qualifying group ahead of Burkina Faso, Malawi and Guinea. There only moment of genuine uncertainty came when they were on the brink of qualify-ing, although - as usual - Didier Drogba responded when his team needed him. The Chelsea man’s decisive 70th-minute goal at Burkina Faso gave the side just enough insurance to hold off the Stal-lions 3-2 in Ouagadougou, and fi ttingly, it was his dramatic equaliser after com-ing off the bench against Malawi that gave the West Africans a 1-1 draw and the point they needed to reach South Africa. All told, the Chelsea man was top scorer for Les Elephants, with six goals in
The Government of Canada released the proposed Canadian Securities
Act on May 26th, marking a key step to-wards a long-standing commitment to establish a Canadian securities regula-tor.
Refl ecting the Government’s willing-ness to work collaboratively with prov-inces and territories, this is a voluntary regime, which enables provinces and territories to opt in at their choice.
The proposed Act refl ects the input of 10 participating provinces and terri-tories, and the Government invites the remaining provinces to join the initia-tive.
“Canadians, who rely on capital markets for their savings and retire-ment plans, deserve the protection of strong regulation that reaches all parts of our country,” said the Honourable Jim Flaherty, Minister of Finance. “The proposed Act we have released today brings us closer to the regime that mar-kets demand and that Canadian inves-tors need.”
As Canada’s performance during the global fi nancial crisis demonstrated, our fi nancial regulatory regime is a sound model for other countries. However, Canada is the only major industrialized country that lacks a national securities regulator. Our fi nancial system can be strengthened by the establishment of a national securities regulator to oversee Canada’s capital markets. This step will strengthen the stability, integrity and effectiveness of the Canadian fi nancial system.
The proposed regime will provide:
• better and more consistent protection for investors across Canada;
• improved regulatory and crimi-nal enforcement to better fi ght securi-ties-related crime;
• new tools to better support the stability of the Canadian fi nancial sys-tem;
• faster policy responses to emerging market trends;
• simpler processes for business-es, resulting in lower costs for investors; and
• more effective international representation and infl uence for Cana-da.
The proposed Canadian Securities Act is built on provincial securities regu-lation and harmonizes existing legisla-tion in the form of a single statute. It benefi ts from the work of the Expert Panel on Securities Regulation (the Hockin Panel) and other reform efforts, and refl ects domestic and international best practices. It proposes signifi cant improvements in terms of governance, adjudication, fi nancial stability, and reg-ulatory and criminal enforcement, and provides a wide scope of authority to regulate fi nancial instruments and par-ticipants in capital markets.
“The Canadian Securities Transition Offi ce led the work on the proposed Canadian Securities Act in consultation with participating provinces and terri-tories and key stakeholders,” said Min-ister Flaherty. “I would like to recognize its Chair, Doug Hyndman, its Vice-Chair, Bryan Davies, and the Executive Vice-President and Senior Policy Advisor, Lar-ry Ritchie, for their hard work over many months. I would also like to acknowl-edge the important contributions of the
members of the advisory committee of the 10 participating provinces and ter-ritories and their regulators and govern-ments.” These provinces and territories are British Columbia, New Brunswick, Newfoundland and Labrador, Nova Sco-tia, Ontario, Prince Edward Island, Sas-katchewan, Northwest Territories, Yukon and Nunavut.
The new regulator will take advan-tage of the expertise and infrastructure of participating provinces and territo-ries. The organization will be an agency with a strong network of local offi ces whose staff members are authorized and empowered to make key decisions that refl ect local market demands.
The Transition Offi ce will release a detailed transition plan during the sum-mer to help ensure a smooth and order-ly transition.
Concurrent with releasing the pro-posed Canadian Securities Act, the Gov-ernment has referred the proposed Act to the Supreme Court of Canada for its opinion on the following question: Is the annexed proposed Canadian Securities Act within the legislative authority of the Parliament of Canada?
“The opinion will provide legal cer-tainty to all provinces, territories and market participants,” said the Honour-able Rob Nicholson, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada.
Should a favourable ruling be re-ceived from the Supreme Court of Can-ada, the Government of Canada intends to introduce for adoption in Parliament a Securities Act, which would then go through the normal parliamentary leg-islative process.
Government of Canada Moves to Protect Canadian Investors:
Finance Minister takes key step in estab-lishing a Canadian Securities Regulator
TORONTO – Toronto City Council-lor and Mayoral Candidate, Gior-
gio Mammoliti, today signed his name, in front of 200 senior citizens, a pledge to reduce property taxes for residential and commercial property owners in To-ronto by 5%.
Part of Mammoliti’s platform an-nouncement, he vowed to eliminate property taxes for low income seniors entirely and reward families that care for seniors with a $10,000 annual allow-ance.
“We need to rethink the way Toronto does business. Torontonians are being unfairly taxed by a municipal govern-ment that refuses to seek alternative options to alleviate rising taxes incurred by the residents of Toronto” said Mam-moliti.
“Seniors have paid enough property taxes, it’s time we repay them and allow them to live their lives comfortably and with dignity in their own homes”.
Mammoliti proposed covering the cost of a property tax reduction through such measures as bureaucratic cuts at city hall, a Toronto based lottery and rais-ing boat club rent fees from a very low $.07 per square foot to a very reasonable $1.00 per square foot.
A Public Pledge From Mammoliti: 5% Tax Reduction Across The Board
(CBC): Canada’s economy expanded by 1.5 per cent in this year’s fi rst quarter, the third straight gain after a re-cession.
Statistics Canada released data Monday showing Cana-da’s gross domestic product grew by 1.5 per cent between January and March inclusive, following a 1.2 per cent gain in the three months before that.
GDP was growing at a 6.1 per cent annualized rate in the fi rst quarter, compared with 4.9 per cent in the fourth quarter of 2009. That pace of growth is the strongest in more than a decade.
Economy grew at 6.1% an-nual pace in Q1
continue to page 22
June 2010
Dear Editor,I fi nd this article on votetoronto.ca. I
want to share with your readers. Please publish it in your newspaper.
Thank you!Senait
Key Issues Facing Toronto
The following 25 key issues are not all-inclusive but broadly represent many of the values of VoteToronto and its support-ers:
(1) Transparency at City Hall: Insti-tution of tough fund-raising, confl ict of interest and lobbying restrictions, explicit codes of ethics for both politicians and civil servants; elimination of appointed bodies which do not protect community interests.
(2) Affordable Housing: Restoration of non-profi t housing programs to 1990 levels, in order to begin rebuilding the supply of mixed income, affordable rental housing.
(3) Tenant Regulations: Development of more effective tenant and landlord reg-ulations to ensure fair rents, high quality maintenance and secure living environ-ments for tenants and reasonable inter-vention capabilities for landlords.
(4) Housing the Homeless: Provision of adequate housing, in combination with support and rehabilitation programs for homeless persons; strong interventions for mentally ill, alcohol and drug debilitated street persons, to get them off the street and into safe supportive surroundings.
(5) Health Care: Provision of adequate health care funding and the creation of comprehensive public clinics, family practices and home care programs at the neighbourhood level.
(6) Community Programs: Creation of local community education and support programs for children, adolescents, seniors, handicapped persons, immigrants and newcomers to Toronto, delivered in acces-sible and appealling forms, languages and settings.
(7) Public Education: Improvements to public education, including reductions in class size; better before and after school care; increased preparation time for teach-ers; high quality special education assis-tance; support for heritage languages; and strong after-school artistic, recreational and social activities.
(8) Economic Development: Aggres-sive programs to develop Toronto as a knowledge-based city, and the institution of more aggressive economic develop-ment and investment attraction initiatives.
(9) Employment Programs: Provision
of adequate minimum wages, job retrain-ing and apprenticeship programs; protec-tion of the right to organize; and the cre-ation of programs to expedite immigrant entry into the workplace.
(10) Community Facilities: Elimina-tion of user fees for public recreational and community facilities and upgrading of these resources to serve the broadest pos-sible population.
(11) The Arts: Increased funding for the arts, with particular support for unique-ly Torontonian or Canadian interpretations, and the promotion of arts and culture-based attractions for both Torontonians and visitors.
(12) Public Transit: Setting of stable and affordable public transit fares; expan-sion of Toronto, GTA and Southern Ontario public transit, linked to inter-city rail ser-vices; use of gas tax, road usage and park-ing taxes to fi nance public transit improve-ments; restrictions on expressway and arterial road expansion coupled with the introduction of reserved transit lanes and expanded light rail.
(13) High-Speed Rail Transportation: Development of frequent, very high speed, affordable regional passenger rail service in the Windsor to Quebec City corridor and into near northern Ontario and the adja-cent US.
(14) Alternative Modes of Transpor-tation: Upgrading of pedestrian, cycling and handicapped access facilities and creation of car free zones; improvements to streetscapes, parks and other outdoor amenities.
(15) Island Airport: Closing of the polluting and disruptive Toronto City Cen-tre Airport, with restoration of the site to wetlands, beach and parks use; tight re-strictions on aircraft fl ight activity over Toronto.
(16) Port Lands: Redevelopment of the Port Lands featuring parks and wet-land, alongside mixed-use housing and high technology and knowledge-based commercial space; transfer of industrial port activities to other Golden Horseshoe areas.
(17) Streets and Parks: Improved streets and parks environments and main-tenance.
(18) Policing: Redirection of polic-ing with proactive initiatives to support community based policing and proactive crime prevention; curb illegal weapons dealing and possession; pursue white col-lar crime; provide stronger supervision and leadership to street level offi cers; institute signifi cantly stronger civilian oversight and discipline functions; reconstitute the department to refl ect the makeup of the city’s population; strengthen training and
orientation to better provide social servic-es related capabilities.
(19) Air Pollution: Dramatic reduc-tions in air pollution through elimination of fi ne particulate pollution, carcinogens and noxious gases from power plants, transportation sources and industrial pro-cesses, coupled with greater usage of fuel cells, wind and solar energy and hybrid, low pollution energy technologies.
(20) Parkland: Accelerated creation of nearby parks and conservation areas, en-compassing lake and waterway edges and watersheds, moraines and other geological features, plant and wildlife refuges.
(21) Land Use: Promotion of intensi-fi cation of land use throughout the GTA, within existing transit corridors and nodes; institution of policies which encourage lo-cation of people’s residences in proximity to where they work; protection of existing residential neighbourhoods.
(22) Energy and Waste Services: As-
surance of the long-term security of de-livery of affordable energy, potable water, sewage treatment, waste collection and recycling services in an environmentally friendly and sustainable form.
(23) Language and Culture: Promo-tion of the bilingual and multicultural aspects of Canada, including strong links with Quebec, with Aboriginal peoples and with other distinctive regions.
(24) Public Leadership: Assumption of a North American and global leadership role in creative urban affairs and innova-tions; taking on a leadership role in the Great Lakes basin.
(25) Regional Governance: Develop-ment of a strong coordinating function for the GTA and the Golden Horseshoe, partic-ularly in respect to curbing urban sprawl; eliminating pollution; creating green pro-tective zones; and improving public tran-sit.
21
Editor-in-chief: Aaron Berhane260 Adelaide st. E. #192Toronto, ON. M5A 1N1Tel: 416-824-8124, Fax: [email protected]: Grace Cherian, Mohamed EdrisContributors: Naza Hasebenebi, Medhin Ghebreslasie, Yusuf Abdulmenan, Amle-set Tesfay, Bode Odetoyinbo, Leslie Lakos, Mimi Chandy, Jamila Aman
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Articles appearing in assorted columns of Meftih newspaper are intended to generate civil and informed public discussions. You don’t have to agree with opinions expressed by the writers. However, that should push you to express your own views. Through that way we generate lively and civil discussions in the community. Rejoinders are not forums for personal insults and we want readers to adhere to these principles.
A Habesha woman planned to marry a German man, and they both asked their parents to show up for the wedding at 2 p.m. The parents of the groom arrived on time while the parents of the bride came at 4 p.m. The bride excused her parents’ behaviour by saying, ‘it’s our culture to come late.’ She had to swallow her shame.
The majority of us might endorse the attitude that ‘lateness is a part of our cul-ture’. That’s why we are not able to avoid this bad behaviour despite the fact that we live in a country where everyone is extremely punctual. We come a half or one hour late to meetings. We arrive two or three hours late for weddings, and we don’t respect the appointments we set with those among our own community. This is our habit for any event we organize.
Instead of following our schedule for events, we allow events to dictate our schedule. If people show up, we start the meeting, but if they don’t, we wait. Punctual persons may become victims, and they may arrive late the next time.
Most of us say, ‘it is not necessary to arrive early at meetings or any community event if most people arrive late’. We maintain the attitude that ‘lateness is a part of our culture’ and spend our time accordingly. We never try to change it.
But the punctuality we show in areas outside our community is surprising. We get to work on time and we respect our appointments, meetings, or events organized by those outside our community. We fi nish our tasks on time. We don’t allow any room for lateness. We really act like Canadians.
Why don’t we apply this good behaviour with members of our own community? Is it our lack of respect for one another, lack of responsibility, or lack of discipline only when we deal with our own community?
Whatever the reason is, we have to be aware that time is as precious to members of our community as it is to anyone else. The good behaviour we exercise elsewhere should be refl ected in our community too, and this will help us to bring about the changes we wish. We must be conscious about our behaviour. If we respect ourselves, then we will respect members of our community too. If we disguise them, that’s a disguise to ourselves as well.
Culture is learned behaviour. It’s what we do, not who we are. Therefore, let’s change our excuse of saying, ‘it’s our culture’ by undergoing a time revolution. It is about time, too.
Meftih The Life Line of Eritrean CommunityAward Winning Independent Monthly Newspaper
I wish I could write in Tigrigna, but I am Amchie, I don’t know how to express myself in Tigrigna. I don’t either know how to ex-press myself in English, but I want to try.
When I read Y.A. article I felt she (I am as-suming the writer is a woman if I am not wrong)was reading my mind. This what they call community doesn’t talk about the challenges we face. We women carry all the bur-den of raising our children, some men do not help their ex-wives. They don’t want to see their ex-wives succeed. We need help from the churches and mosques if there is no politics like I see in the community.
Your sister B.B.
Yes Y.A. we need to talk
June 2010
Personal injury broadly speaking means any kind of accident or oc-
currence that leads to bodily injury to a person. A few examples will suf-fi ce: Motor vehicle accidents, medical malpractice, wrongful death cases, dog bites, slip and falls and assaults. I have put together a few questions and an-swers that will guide you in this techni-cal are of the law.
Q: Can I Recover compensation (damages) regardless of how I got my injuries?
A: Absolutely not! In order to recov-er damages, you or your Lawyer must prove that the other side played a part in causing the injury. Put differently, the other side must be found responsible for
causing the injury through an intention-al act, a failure to act, or an omission where he or it has a legal duty to act – negligence.
Q: What is Negligence? A: Negligence can generally be de-
fi ned as conduct that is culpable in that it falls short of what a reasonable person would do to protect another individual from foreseeable risks of harm. What is foreseeable depends on the fact of each case and the duty imposed by the law on the other party.
Q: I felt ok after I had an accident, but days later, I am in Pain, can I Do anything?
A: If you have suffered an injury it is probably more prudent to contact a law-yer shortly after the incident. Although generally in Ontario the Statute of Limi-tations stipulates for a two year time pe-riod to start a legal claim following the date the claim was discovered, commu-nicating with a lawyer in the immediate after-math of the incident allows for a complete and thorough assessment and examination of all the relevant facts of the case which allows the lawyer to of-fer the injured party legal advice about their situation.
Q: I have been injured in an acci-dent. What am I entitled to claim?
A: Every case differs but generally, the injured party may claim for loss of income - pain and suffering - rehabilita-tion and associated medical costs.
Q: If the person who injured me apologizes, can it be used in court to prove liability?
A: Since 2009, the Ontario Apol-
ogy Act prevents apologies from being used against the apologizer as proof of liability in civil suits, including personal injury cases.
Q: Even if I was partly responsible for my injuries, can I still sue?
A: Yes. You may still fi le a claim against the other party who is also re-sponsible for a percentage of the injury or accident. What the court does in these kinds of cases is to reduce the amount of the monetary award that you would or-dinarily be entitled to collect in propor-tion to your level of blame worthiness.
Q: Should I talk to the insurance Adjuster before I have consulted with a lawyer?
A: No. It is typically in your interest to consult a personal injury Lawyer be-fore speaking to the Insurance Company You will get the benefi t of full legal ad-vice before you make any statements written or verbal.
Q: What if my injuries are so seri-ous that I cannot return to work?
A: You will be advised to apply for and will receive a benefi t called in-come replacement benefi ts. This is paid through your insurance company if you are insured or a passenger in a motor vehicle accident. This benefi t pays 80% of your net loss of income up to a maxi-mum of $400.00 per week.
You may also be entitled to receive short term disability benefi ts and/or long term disability benefi ts through ei-ther a privately held insurance policy or a group policy of insurance purchased by your employer.
Lastly, you may apply to Canada
Pension Plan for a disability pension in certain circumstances. In addition to these benefi ts, you are entitled to claim for remaining loss of income in your lawsuit.
Q: How about if I am not working at the time. Can I get any benefi ts?
A: If you were the primary caregiver for someone in your home before the ac-cident and you are not able to continue providing care after the accident, you may be entitled to caregiver benefi ts of $250.00 per week. You may be entitled to an additional $50.00 per week for ev-ery other person you were taking care of before the accident.
Even if you were not the primary caregiver for someone in your home, you may be entitled to non-earner ben-efi ts of $185.00 per week beginning six months after the accident, if you are completely unable to carry on a normal life. You must be at least 16 years old to receive non-earner benefi ts.
Q: What if I am a student and can’t return to school?
A: If you cannot return to school, you are eligible for a lost educational expense not to exceed $15,000.00 for expenses incurred before the accident for tuition, books, equipment or room and board.
The above article is not legal advice. Please consult your Lawyer if you or a loved one has been injured in an acci-dent.
Bode Odetoyinbo is the Senior Part-ner at the Odetoyinbo Law Offi ce. He can be consulted at 905-487-6333 or at www.lawyer4me.com
22
The Answers to somepersonal injury questions
By Bode Odetoyinbo
‘Cheik’ (the Elder, the Wise or the Master) Rabah Saadane quickly tried his hand at coaching. He soon found employment with the national association, fi rst taking charge of various youth teams. In 1982, he was part of the coaching staff as Algeria disputed the 1982 FIFA World Cup in Spain. Four years later, he took over the reins of the national side but paid the price for poor results at the global show-case. He took up the post again for a short while in 1999, then from 2003 to 2004 and began his current stint in 2007. In the club game, the veteran trainer notably lifted the CAF Champions League with Raja Casablanca in 1989 and the Arab Champions League title with ES Se-tif in 2007.
Previous FIFA World CupsSouth Africa will mark Algeria’s
third appearance at a FIFA World Cup fi nals, and they will be looking to graduate from the group stage for the fi rst time in their history. In 1982, they made history by defeat-ing West Germany 2-1 and Chile 3-2, only to lose 2-0 to Austria. Four years on from their debut, with a certain Saadane in the dugout, they shared a 1-1 draw with Northern Ireland before losing 1-0 to Brazil and 3-0 to Spain.
Records1 CAF African Cup of Nations
(1990) What they said“Our qualifi cation has made it
possible for the country to put itself back on the map. It’s a joy and even an honour to be at the origin of that. I’m touched to the see the happi-ness we have given our people. It’s a splendid example to have set the young,” Rabah Saadane, coach
Source: FIFA
The Profile of African...from page 24
The U.S. economy expanded at a three per cent pace during the same period.
Goods-producing Canadian indus-tries grew by 2.7 per cent during the quarter, outpacing the 1.1 per cent gain in services. In manufacturing, the gains were widespread, with durable and non-durable goods advancing 5.9 per cent and 2.1 per cent, respectively.
Increased consumer spending, a hot housing market and government spending — although less than before — helped power the gains.
Pressure to raise ratesCalling the fi gure “stunning,” TD
economist Diana Petramala cautioned in a note Monday morning that the pace is likely to soften.
“The blockbuster performance is unlikely to be repeated,” she said, as consumer spending and housing activ-ity likely cannibalized future activity.
The GDP data comes a day before the Bank of Canada meets for a regular-ly scheduled six-week policy meeting.
Considering news a few weeks ago that the Canadian economy added 109,000 jobs in April (its best month ever) and the latest data suggesting the Canadian economy is expanding at its fastest pace since 1999, the bank will face pressure to raise its benchmark interest rate for the fi rst time in three years.
“If you had to answer the question, ‘Why should the Bank of Canada be raising interest rates?’ said BMO chief economist Douglas Porter in a note Monday, “back-to-back quarters of GDP growth of 4.9 per cent and 6.1 per cent is a pretty good place to start.”
I have no-ticed many more cases of stress, anxiety and depression in Canada than I saw in China. These condi-tions show up here at a much earlier age. I
suppose that the living environment here is much more stressful.
The answer to these problems seems simple. Leave your stressful en-vironment and you can more easily treat and even cure the conditions. Of course, this is usually diffi cult; so if you
eliminate the symptoms even while liv-ing in the same environment, it will be easier to live and prosper there.
In China the patient often goes to the psychologist and acupuncturist, and there is no reason the same would not be benefi cial in Canada. That being said, I would like to talk about the way I see Traditional Chinese Medicine’s role in promoting mental health.
Traditional Chinese Medicine can
balance the body, which will control the symptoms and make the therapist’s job easier. In cases where the patient can remove him or herself from the stress, Traditional Chinese Medicine should actually be able to exact a cure.
When I talk about Traditional Chi-nese Medicine, I am speaking of treat-ment with both Chinese herbs and acu-puncture needles. In Traditional Chinese Medicine we approach the body in a different way than Western medicine. The symptoms manifested by these psychological problems according to Traditional Chinese Medicine theory are caused by defi ciencies or imbalanc-es of chi, which can be alleviated by the use of needles and herbs.
My knowledge and experience sug-gests that almost all patients suffering from stress, anxiety, and depression will benefi t from treatment with needles and herbs. Some people feel good for a short time, while others can actually stop drugs and psychotherapy. It usu-ally takes about ten treatments to get substantial results. Many people will feel temporary relief after one or two treatments, so they will discontinue treatments before the treatment has
been maximized.
One of the interesting and vital ele-ments of Traditional Chinese medicine is that the way we treat and prescribe is geared towards each individual. We look at age, constitution, living environ-ment, lifestyle, work, and length of con-dition. Stress, anxiety and depression are treated differently 95% of the time.
There are a variety of Chinese herbal formulas to treat various psychological conditions. A formula of Chinese herbs is similar to a doctor’s prescription in the sense that the dosage and specif-ics of the medicine need to be closely monitored by a trained professional.
Even though I realize through my own experiences that case studies and individual examples are not the same as a longitudinal study, never the less, I would like to relate a recent experience from my own practice in Toronto.
A woman in her fi fties, who has suf-fered from depression since her teen years, came to my offi ce. Two people very close to her had recently died. She was in a severe depression and suffer-ing from anxiety, grief, and exhaustion.
She had insomnia and was feeling sui-cidal. She was so weak she could barely walk or lift her arms.
After ten visits she has gone back to work and has almost returned to her old life. Now when I see her she is smil-ing and says she feels wonderful.
No doctor can promise these kind of results every time, but I truly believe that Traditional Chinese medicine is an untapped resource for many of the health problems associated with our stressful lives here in Canada.
For further information, please see page 1 (Chinese Acupuncture and Herbs Clinic)
23
By Dr. Xiyan Cao
THE CAT:One day, a cat dies of natural causes
and goes to heaven, where he meets the Lord Himself.
The Lord says to the cat, “You lived a good life, and if there is any way I can make your stay in heaven more comfort-able, please let me know.”
The cat thinks for a moment and says, “Lord, all my life I have lived with a poor family and had to sleep on a hard wooden fl oor.”
The Lord stops the cat and says, “Say no more,” and a wonderful, fl uffy pillow appears.
A few days later, six mice are killed in a tragic farming accident, and all of them go to heaven.
Again, the Lord is there to greet them with the same offer.
The mice answer, “All our lives we have been chased.
We have had to run from cats, dogs, and even women with brooms.
Running, running, running; we’re tired of running.
Do you think we could have roller skates so that we don’t have to run any-
more?”The Lord says, “Say no more” and fi ts
each mouse with beautiful new roller skates.
Week later, the Lord stops by to see the cat and fi nds him snoozing on the pillow.
The Lord gently wakes the cat and asks him, “How are things since you got here?”
The cat stretches and yawns, then re-plies, “It is wonderful here.
Better than I could have ever expected. And those ‘Meals On Wheels’ you’ve been sending by are the best!”
An Elderly WomanA woman in her eighties made the eve-
ning news because she was getting mar-ried for the fourth time. The following day she was being interviewed by a local TV station, and the commentator asked about what it felt to be married again at that age and would she share part of her previous experiences, since it seem quite unique the fact that her new husband was a ‘fu-neral director.’ After a short time to think, a smile came to her face and she proudly ex-plained that she had fi rst married a banker when she was in her twenties, in her for-ties she married a circus ring master, and in her sixties she married a pastor and now in her eighties, a funeral director. The amazed commentator asked her why she had mar-ried men with such diverse carriers. With a smile on her face she explained, ‘I married one for the money, two for the show, three to get ready, and four to go.’
Yes or NoThe following is a true story.
Following a miserable year, the CEO of a company called all the Project Managers for a performance review meeting. After giving them a piece of his mind, he asked each Manager to present his/her case. One of the Managers gave a long winding speech of excuses on his Project’s perfor-mance over which the CEO got irritated and yelled “Just tell me Yes or No”. The Man-ager coolly said “Yes or No” and sat down!
Drunk manA drunk was walking down the sidewalk
with a limp. A man coming in the opposite direction notice that he only had one shoe on. The man said to the drunk, “hey buddy, what’s the matter, lose a shoe”? The drunk replied, “Nah, found one”.
GiftA few days before her birthday a hus-
band asked his wife, “Dear, what would you like for your present?”
Wife: I really don’t think I should day.Husband: How about a diamond ring?Wife: I don’t care much for diamonds.Husband: well, the, a mink coat?Wife: You know I do not like furs.Husband: A golden necklace?Wife: I already have three of them.Husband: Well, gosh, what do you
want?Wife: What I’d really like is a divorceHusband: Hmmm, I wasn’t planning on
spending that much
A WardenA game warden noticed how a particu-
lar fellow named Sam consistently caught more fi sh than anyone else. When the oth-er guys would only catch three or four a day, Sam would come in off the lake with a boat full. The warden asked Sam his secret. The successful fi sherman invited the game warden to accompany him and observe.
So, the next morning the two men met at the boat dock and took off in Sam’s boat. When they got to the middle of the lake, Sam stopped the boat, and the war-den sat back to see how it was done. Sam’s approach was simple. He took out a stick of dynamite, lit it, and threw it in the air. The explosion rocked the lake with such a force that dead fi sh immediately began to surface. Sam took out a net and started scooping them up. Well, you can imagine the reaction of the game warden. When he recovered from the shock of it all, he began yelling at Sam, “You can’t do this! I’ll put you in jail, buddy! You will be paying every fi ne there is in the book!”
Meanwhile, Sam set his net down and took out another stick of dynamite. He lit it and tossed it in the lap of the warden with these words, “Are ya gonna sit there all day complaining, or are ya going to fi sh?”
If You Suffer From Stress, Anxiety, or DepressionTraditional Chinese Medicine Will Help You
Joke of the Monthby Susan
June 201024
fi ve matches.
The star playersLes Elephants feature top-drawer tal-
ent throughout their side, with the Chel-sea pair of Didier Drogba and Salomon Kalou a formidable duo up front. Sevilla’s Didier Zokora and Barcelona’s Yaya Toure provide bite in midfi eld alongside Mar-seille’s diminutive Bakary Kone, while the England-based pair of Emmanuel Eboue and Kolo Toure combine with Stuttgart’s Arthur Boka to form one of the best de-fences in Africa.
The coachVahid Halilhodzic took the reins of
his fi rst national side when he assumed control of Côte d’Ivoire after the 2008 CAF African Cup of Nations. However, the Bosnian only made it through the next edition of the continental contest when he was sacked after a disappoint-ing quarter-fi nal fi nish at Angola 2010. After Guus Hiddink and Bernd Schuster were both linked with the job, Sven-Goran Eriksson was given the helm just months before the start of the fi nals.
South Africa 2010 will be Eriksson’s third FIFA World Cup after leading Eng-land to the quarter-fi nals at both the 2002 and 2006 fi nals. He had an unsuc-cessful stint with Mexico in the fi rst half of qualifying for 2010, but he was sacked after less than a year. He is a vastly expe-rienced club coach, having led Gothen-burg to the UEFA Cup in 1982, and lead-ing teams in Portugal, England and Italy.
Record• Côte d’Ivoire were the only nation at
Germany 2006 whose squad was made up of players entirely based at clubs out-side their home country.
• They are the only team to never failed to score in a FIFA World Cup match.
• Côte d’Ivoire conceded early goals in all three of their 2006 matches, with all six of their goals against coming be-fore the 40th minute.
What they said“At the last World Cup we played re-
ally well, but we were unlucky because we were in a very tough group with Ar-
gentina and Holland and went out in the fi rst round. But I think with this kind of experience, it will be possible at South Africa 2010 to do much better. Perhaps we can make the quarter-fi nals and then semi-fi nals; this is something we can achieve,” Côte d’Ivoire striker Didier Drogba.
NigeriaProfi le
Expectations are diminished for Ni-geria at the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™, but it was not long ago that the Super Eagles were seen as the most like-ly African nation to fi nally reach the last four of a FIFA World Cup. And though they have just one point from their last fi ve matches in the fi nals and missed out
on Germany 2006 altogether, the conti-nent’s most populous nation looks likely to be a dangerous dark horse with little to lose up against the world’s best.
That was how the side came to USA 94, where they dismantled eventual semi-fi nalists Bulgaria 3-0 in their fi rst match before going on to cruelly fall 2-1 against Italy in the second round. However, that was not before the likes of Sunday Oliseh, Victor Ikpeba, Jay-Jay Okocha and Finidi George had become synonymous with the next generation of explosive African football. A similarly quick start in 1998 - they stunned Spain 3-2 in one of the matches of the tourna-ment to start and beat Bulgaria again 1-0 - gave way to another second round defeat, this time a disheartening thump-ing at the hands of Denmark 4-1. But af-ter dramatically reaching South Africa in their fi nal qualifi er, Nigeria could be forgiven for going into the fi nals with a positive attitude.
The road to South AfricaA surprising scoreless draw in their
fi rst match in the fi nal round of CAF qualifying to Mozambique left Nigeria playing catch-up to Tunisia from the start, and consecutive draws with the Carthage Eagles had the west Africans staring elimination in the face. Howev-er, Tunisia lost 1-0 in Mozambique and Nigeria came from a goal behind twice to win 3-2 in Kenya. Striker Obafemi Martins was the hero on the day, com-ing on at half-time before scoring the fi rst equaliser on the hour mark and the winner just nine minutes from time. The goal stamped Nigeria’s ticket to the next
World Cup.
The star playersThe Super Eagles have the ability to
score a lot of goals in South Africa be-hind a pacy, dynamic attack that features the likes of Martins, Yakubu Aiyegbeni, Peter Odemwingie as well as youngsters Victor Obinna and Ikechukwu Uche and evergreen Nwankwo Kanu in what is surely his last role of the dice. They won’t be a soft touch behind that either, with Jon Obi Mikel anchoring the midfi eld, and captain Joseph Yobo in the centre of defence.
The coachDespite qualifying the Super Eagles
for another FIFA World Cup, Shaibu Amodu was demoted after the team fi n-ished third at the 2010 CAF Africa Cup of Nations in Angola. He was replaced by former Sweden boss Lars Lagerback at the end of February. The 61-year-old led Sweden for over a decade - part of the time as co-manager with Tommy Soder-berg - and took the side to the knockout rounds at Korea/Japan 2002 as well as Germany 2006. His teams also qualifi ed for three consecutive European Cham-pionships.
Record• Nigeria’s 3-0 waltz over Bulgaria
in their USA 94 debut match was more remarkable given that the Europeans went on to beat Greece, Argentina, Mex-ico and Germany in the tournament.
• Since Clemens Westerhof built the 1994 side and left the Super Eagles, the team has been coached by such well-known European journeymen as Jo Bon-frere, Philippe Troussier, Bora Milutinovic and Berti Vogts.
• Nigeria have a rich history at other worldwide tournaments, having won the 1985, 1993 and 2007 FIFA U-17 World Cup as well as the 1996 Olympic Football Tournament.
What they said“We know that we will have a tough
job at the World Cup. We are up against some tough teams like Argentina, with top players like [Lionel] Messi. It’s impor-tant for us to prove that we can play our own game against the best,” Nigeria for-ward Chinedu Obasi.
AlgeriaProfi le
Algeria will end a 24-year absence from football’s top table when they kick their fi rst ball at the 2010 FIFA World Cup South Africa™. Les Fennecs (the Desert Foxes) may have won the CAF African Cup of Nations since appearing at Mex-ico 1986, but they spent a long time in the wilderness before slowly working their way back as a competitive force at the start of the century. The current crop of players feel stronger than ever, with enough belief to put in a historic perfor-mance in South Africa.
The road to South AfricaUntil fi nally sealing their place via
a one-off play-off match with Egypt in Khartoum, Sudan, on 18 November, Alge-ria both suffered and impressed in their qualifying campaign. They won all six of their home games in the second and third qualifying rounds but lost three of their away visits, while drawing twice and winning the other game. As a result, they fi nished one slender point ahead of Gambia, Senegal and Liberia in their fi rst qualifying group, before ending on equal terms with the Pharaohs in their second, and bringing about the need for a play-off on neutral terrain. The duo nonetheless came in eight points ahead of Zambia and 11 ahead of Rwanda.
The star playersScorer of the goal that took Les Fen-
necs through to South Africa, Antar Ya-hia is one of the pillars at the back for his team, a status he shares with Madjid Bougherra, Nadir Belhadj and goalkeep-er Lounes Gaouaoui, although back-up custodian Fawzi Chaouchi is now mak-ing serious claims on the gloves. Mid-fi eld is Algeria’s strength, meanwhile, with captain Yazid Mansouri spreading the ball around and forward-thinkers Karim Ziani and Mourad Meghni the most likely players to spark danger. Last-ly, striker Karim Matmour has steadily been proving himself more than useful on the right wing.
The coachFollowing a modest playing career
in his homeland and briefl y in France,
Nigeria Team
Algeria Team
The Profile of African...from page 18
continue to page 21
June 2010 25
Any person currently charged with or previously convicted of any crimi-
nal offence inside or outside of Canada may be prohibited from visiting, work-ing, studying or applying for permanent residence in Canada. Even offences as seemingly minor as some moving traffi c violations may render an individ-ual inadmissible to Canada. Ex-amples of convictions that could make a person inadmissible to Canada include: Driving Under the Infl uence (DUI), Driving With Ability Impaired (DWAI), Theft, Petty Theft/Larceny (Shoplifting), Assault, Disorderly Conduct, Ob-struction of Justice.
There are, however, ways of coming to Canada despite hav-ing criminal convictions in the past:
1. Criminal Rehabilitation: If an individual was convicted of one or more offences and more than 5 years have elapsed since the completion of the imposed sentence(s), including probation, that person is eligible to sub-mit an Application for Criminal Rehabilitation. This application involves providing information about the conviction(s) and pro-viding proof that the applicant has been rehabilitated and is not likely to re-offend.
2. Temporary Resident Permit (TRP): If a person was convicted of an offence and less than 5 years has elapsed since the most recent conviction, the individual is technically criminally inad-missible to Canada. However a Tempo-rary Resident Permit allows a person to be admitted to Canada for a specifi c pur-pose. This application involves showing why it is necessary for the applicant to enter Canada and why he or she is not a risk to Canadian society.
3. Deemed Rehabilitation: If an individual was only convicted of one offence and the equivalent Canadian offence does not carry a maximum sen-tence of 10 years or more, the person
is deemed to have been rehabilitated. No application is required, but proof of completion of the sentence must be properly provided.
4. Non-Convictions: Some sen-tences such as deferred adjudication or conditional discharges are not consid-
ered convictions for the purposes of Ca-nadian immigration. Because sentencing varies from state to state and country to country, each case must be examined on its own merits.
The misdemeanor-felony distinction in U.S. law is not an important distinc-tion for the purposes of Canadian im-migration, because even misdemeanor convictions may result in criminal inad-missibility for the purposes of Canadian immigration.
Source: Campbell Cohen: canadavisa.com
CRIMINALITY ISSUES FOR VISITORS, TEMPORARY FOREIGN WORKERS &
PERMANENT RESIDENTS
The rate of immigration remains high with more than 500,000 new perma-
nent and temporary residents in 2009. Immigration Minister Jason Kenney had the following to say:
“Momentum toward a full economic recovery continued throughout 2009, and immigration will continue to sup-port that momentum.” Immigration Minister Kenney went onto say that “The Government of Canada is maintaining immigration levels to meet Canada’s short-, medium- and long-term econom-ic needs, help offset our aging popula-tion and low birthrate, and sustain our workforce.”
Canadian immigration released the following immigration statistics:
• There were 252,124 new immi-grants in 2009. Canadian immigration had a target of between 240,000 and 265,000 new permanent residents.
• The immigration levels are 30,000 higher than the average annual intake of permanent residents in the 1990s.
• Sixty percent of new Canadian immigrants were economic migrants bringing must needed skills and experi-ence to Canada.
• There were 178,640 temporary foreign workers and 85,131 foreign stu-dents who came to Canada in 2009.
Canadian immigration also men-tioned that overseas workers and stu-dents who graduate in Canada can re-main through the Canadian Experience Class (CEC) and through a provincial nominee program. In 2009 Canadian immigration accepted 2,544 CEC appli-cants. Immigration Minister Kenney had the following comments to make:
“The number of foreign students who came to Canada grew by seven percent last year, resulting in the highest num-ber of foreign students ever admitted to Canada.” He went onto say “To be a more innovative society able to compete and prosper in a global, knowledge-based economy, Canada needs people with an international outlook, skills and experi-ence. Attracting more international stu-dents is a priority for our government.”
Canadian immigration also provided further details of refugee statistics:
• 22,844 refugees emigrated to Canada. This included resettling 7,425 government-assisted refugees and 5,036 privately sponsored refugees.
• There were also 10,383 refugees in Canada who had made successful asy-lum claims plus their dependants.
• Further immigration reforms will if they go ahead result in an increase in twenty percent in the number of gov-ernment-assisted and privately spon-sored refugees resettled in Canada.
Citizenship and Immigration Canada (CIC) also released the most requested statistics from the last quarter of 2009 (September to December).
Source: workpermit.com
Canadianimmigrationremained at
high levels in 2009
by Moneca Kaiser
Wind chimes wake ghosts and beckon forgotten lovers mourning.Not that the lovers have been forgot-ten,But that they are so long lost that one might forget to mourn them,Or pretend to. For one might feel forsaken. Hear the prayer distilled to its single forlorn note,Now but a chant
Echoing aside the abyssWhile twilight masquerades as threshold? I have always known she is a kingdomAnd been seduced by our worlds revealed without shadowFor three breaths,Only. There might I claim my throne were not my debt too heavy to disavowFor I am too muchIn love.
The shattering of each and every soul reverberates in the cadaverOf what was once my heart.And still I am deaf.And just moments ago dumb. A prayer of single note aspires to be a chantThen falters and is demotedTo a lament.Such is my shame, for I have knownThe myriad of suff erings born of no particular Tuesday In the east the duty falls upon the
listener to understand.It is not for him to sayBut for me,To know. Such is how wind chimes hailDisintegrating our precarious tiesBefore we can even beginTo graspOr perhaps because we have begun. Such blessings in our windsAnd a friend who captures their wisdomsBy hanging chimes while I sleep.