News Briefs
Issue date: 2/5/08 Section: News
Freedom of speech?
Salman Hossain is currently being investigated by the RCMP for posting his views on the role of the Canadian military in the war in Afghanistan online. Hossain has been encouraging homeland attacks on the military in hopes that his writings will encourage the Canadian government to pull its troops out of the war.
The RCMP believes that his writings are examples of incitement and facilitating terrorism and have been investigating Hossain since September 2007. Senator Colin Kenny, a member of the Senate National Security and Defence Committee, believes that Hossain should be prosecuted, not only for the safety of Canadian soldiers on home soil, but also to discourage facilitation of terrorism.
The argument against the prosecution, however, is that charging Hossain is infringing on Hossain's freedom of speech and right to assert his beliefs. Prosecutors and police are having difficulty straddling the line between what could be thought of as terrorism, and what exactly the limitations of freedom of speech should be.
Hossain has also written many derogatory comments about the Jewish community.
Black-focused school proposed in Toronto
Despite the Liberal Party's opposition to funding religious based schools, Dalton McGuinty and his party will not prevent the establishment of a controversial black-focused school - a plan put forth by the Toronto District school board. McGuinty, however, will not be putting forth any additional money to allow for the construction of the school as he believes that it will further separate students, and is allowing the people of Toronto to voice their thoughts on the issue rather than stopping it before it even has a chance to begin.
The idea sprouted from statistics showing an increasing dropout rate of black high-school students, and will educate based around "Afrocentric" philosophy in attempts to encourage students to stay. Under-achievement and drop-out rates are an issue across the province in many ethnicities, however, and creating a black-centred school exclusive to the Toronto area will not be the answer to the problem, according to Conservative Elizabeth Witmer.
Salman Hossain is currently being investigated by the RCMP for posting his views on the role of the Canadian military in the war in Afghanistan online. Hossain has been encouraging homeland attacks on the military in hopes that his writings will encourage the Canadian government to pull its troops out of the war.
The RCMP believes that his writings are examples of incitement and facilitating terrorism and have been investigating Hossain since September 2007. Senator Colin Kenny, a member of the Senate National Security and Defence Committee, believes that Hossain should be prosecuted, not only for the safety of Canadian soldiers on home soil, but also to discourage facilitation of terrorism.
The argument against the prosecution, however, is that charging Hossain is infringing on Hossain's freedom of speech and right to assert his beliefs. Prosecutors and police are having difficulty straddling the line between what could be thought of as terrorism, and what exactly the limitations of freedom of speech should be.
Hossain has also written many derogatory comments about the Jewish community.
Black-focused school proposed in Toronto
Despite the Liberal Party's opposition to funding religious based schools, Dalton McGuinty and his party will not prevent the establishment of a controversial black-focused school - a plan put forth by the Toronto District school board. McGuinty, however, will not be putting forth any additional money to allow for the construction of the school as he believes that it will further separate students, and is allowing the people of Toronto to voice their thoughts on the issue rather than stopping it before it even has a chance to begin.
The idea sprouted from statistics showing an increasing dropout rate of black high-school students, and will educate based around "Afrocentric" philosophy in attempts to encourage students to stay. Under-achievement and drop-out rates are an issue across the province in many ethnicities, however, and creating a black-centred school exclusive to the Toronto area will not be the answer to the problem, according to Conservative Elizabeth Witmer.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Zeyphr
posted 3/04/08 @ 3:16 PM EST
WOW ! All this fuss over a photo that is less resque than what is commonly run into on the Web ! Come on Small Town Gilliam, Oregon Grow Up ! This is truly a fuss over absolutely Nothing to say the least ! Zeyphr !
Ed Taboada
posted 3/06/08 @ 5:13 PM EST
I believe that freedom of speech is one of the founding principles of a working liberal democracy. Clearly, however, there must be a limit. That limit is drawn when someone openly calls for the death of another group or individual. (Continued…)
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