We Are All Responsible for the Safe Passage of Syrian Refugees0

• Analysis
• September 8, 2015

Philosophers are fond of asking this question, to press peoples’ intuitions about the right thing to do: Imagine you are walking by a pond, in your fanciest suit on your way to an important meeting, and you notice a baby …

Pause Before You Laugh at Governor Walker0

• Analysis
• September 2, 2015

Election campaigns are comedy fodder. This week’s top supplier is Wisconsin Governor Scott Walker, the man running for the Republican presidential nomination in the United States. When queried on Sunday by Chuck Todd of NBC News’ Meet the Press about …

Terror No-Go Zones an Election-Friendly Scrap0

• Analysis
• August 16, 2015

Published in the Ottawa Citizen, August 14, 2015

The campaign trail declaration by the Stephen Harper Conservatives to set up a regime of designated no-go terrorist activity zones is a left-over from the omnibus anti-terrorism legislation that the government …

Unlike Canadian Expats Living Abroad, Non-Citizen Residents Are Directly Impacted by our Laws, Yet Have No Say in Them0

• Analysis
• August 13, 2015

Published in the National Post, July 31, 2015

Donald Sutherland is upset. He wants to vote in Canadian elections because he feels Canadian, because he has to restrain himself from saying “eh?” and because he’s a citizen. But he’s …

What Does Mullah Omar’s Death Mean for Afghan Peace Talks?0

• Analysis
• August 12, 2015

While the Taliban insurgency rages in Afghanistan, the acknowledgement of Mullah Omar’s death has sparked debates on the impact of this event on the future of the peace talks and the Taliban war.

The enigmatic Taliban leader Mullah Omar remains …

The Charter Strikes Back: A Step Forward for Refugee Rights in Canada0

• Analysis
• July 30, 2015

By Stephanie J. Silverman

Almost a year after the Federal Court of Canada struck down the ban on refugee claimants’ denial of health care, a new judicial review finds that a pernicious aspect of the Conservatives’ overhaul of refugee rights …

Disaffection Prevails Among Afghans Today0

• Analysis
• July 15, 2015

In April of 2014, when I visited Afghanistan to observe its third national election, the spring air in Kabul was filled with the anticipation, hope and determination of common men and women exercising their democratic rights to vote in the …

Shining a Light on Canada’s Deteriorating Human Rights Record0

• Analysis
• July 15, 2015

By Leilani Farha

Published in the Toronto Star, July 13, 2015 Last May I was appointed UN Special Rapporteur on the right to housing. The goal of this position is to advance the rights of marginalized communities around the world …

The Final Push: Canada and the Trans-Pacific Partnership Trade Deal0

• Analysis
• July 15, 2015

By Arne Ruckert, Ronald Labonté and Ashley Schram

The Trans-Pacific Partnership is nearing the end game of negotiations, creating a market of 800 million people with a combined economic clout of US$28-trillion annually. After the U.S. Congress granted fast-track authority …