- 17 Mar 2010 17:08
#13346949
I find it inconceivable that the UN Human Rights Council singles out Canada for criticism while totally ignoring severe human rights abuses throughout Africa, Asia and the middle east (excluding their frequent criticism of Israel).
Minorities in Canada have freedom to worship or practice their faith openly and without restriction. People of all races get equal treatment by all government agencies. Adult education if offered free to people of all races and cultures. There is no evidence that there is any systematic racism practiced by any governmental body.
Why would the UN concern themselves with Canada when there is so much suffering as a result of racism elsewhere in the world? Canada is a beacon of freedom and diversity and should be held up as such, not derided for minor and unsubstantiated claims by those who themselves have a political agenda.
A recent survey found that 74% of Canadians would accept their children marrying someone outside their race. Only 14% opposed mixed marriages. Those who most frequently opposed mixed marriages were the minorities themselves. It is white, English speaking Canadians who were most accepting of mixed marriages. http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2010/03/15/13240306-qmi.html
To me, further proof of the Anti Western bent found in the UNHRC.
Original Document.
http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/13session/A.HRC.13.23%20Add.2_en.pdf
Minorities in Canada have freedom to worship or practice their faith openly and without restriction. People of all races get equal treatment by all government agencies. Adult education if offered free to people of all races and cultures. There is no evidence that there is any systematic racism practiced by any governmental body.
Why would the UN concern themselves with Canada when there is so much suffering as a result of racism elsewhere in the world? Canada is a beacon of freedom and diversity and should be held up as such, not derided for minor and unsubstantiated claims by those who themselves have a political agenda.
A recent survey found that 74% of Canadians would accept their children marrying someone outside their race. Only 14% opposed mixed marriages. Those who most frequently opposed mixed marriages were the minorities themselves. It is white, English speaking Canadians who were most accepting of mixed marriages. http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2010/03/15/13240306-qmi.html
To me, further proof of the Anti Western bent found in the UNHRC.
Original Document.
http://www2.ohchr.org/english/bodies/hrcouncil/docs/13session/A.HRC.13.23%20Add.2_en.pdf
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/canada/story.html?id=2691221
Canada hit back yesterday over a United Nations "expert report" that criticizes how minorities are treated in the country, charging it contains inaccuracies, and also bases several findings on unsubstantiated claims.
The rebuke at the Geneva-based UN's Human Rights Council came just minutes after Gay McDougall, the UN's Independent Expert on Minority Issues, tabled the document at a session where Libya, China and Iran are expected to slip under the radar despite claims of serious persecution of minorities by those countries.
Ms. McDougall, who investigated Canada during a 10-day cross-country tour, told the council that "diversity is celebrated" in Canada--then painted a grim picture of discriminatory practices she said minorities feel they face.
Both her statement and the report charge that minorities in Canada are victims of disproportionate levels of poverty, workplace discrimination, and racial profiling by police. "Canada is undoubtedly a society open to and accepting of cultural, religious and linguistic differences," Ms. McDougall said. "However, many belonging to ethnic, religious and linguistic minorities ... feel their problems have not been adequately addressed."
According to the report, Canada needs to give minorities special help to get jobs, to become more politically active, to move out of poor areas and to cut their high-school drop-out rates. Canada should also ensure that Muslim and Arab communities don't feel they are "targeted" by counter-terrorism measures, the report says.
Canadian officials indicated yesterday that Canada particularly disagrees with Ms. McDougall's "content and analysis" of alleged racial profiling.
In one instance, the report draws conclusions from the findings of a single media report. "The report contains strong comments on racial profiling, without offering clear statistical evidence to support such observations," Alison Leclaire Christie, Canada's deputy permanent representative to the UN in Geneva, told the council.