A proposed new marina for mega-yachts in Victoria's harbour
hasn't been built yet – and may never be.
Mark Hume
Dec. 13, 2009
_______
A proposed new marina for mega-yachts in Victoria's harbour hasn't
been built yet – and may never be – but there are already a lot of
oars in the water.
So many, in fact, that opponents of the plan are wondering whether
the project is being handled in a fair and transparent manner.
Consider, for example, the involvement of two top Conservative ministers
from British Columbia who have conflicting views on the sanctity of
the federal government's review process.
Last March 19, Stockwell Day, Minister of International Trade and
Senior Regional Minister for B.C., wrote to John Baird, Minister of
Transportation, to express unbridled support for the Victoria International
Marina proposal.
“In these difficult economic times we should be assisting local businesses
wherever we can. This project continues to be a potential economic
generator and will no doubt mean more jobs to the local area once
operational. I ask that you help make this proposal a reality as soon
as possible,” he stated.
Contrast that with the views of Gary Lunn, the Minister of State for
Sport and the MP for Saanich-Gulf Islands, who on Oct. 13 wrote to
Roger Patterson, a critic of the proposed project.
“I am given to understand that in this instance Transport Canada must
review the plan under the Navigable Waters Protection Act. It would
be inappropriate for me, as a Member of Parliament to politically
interfere with this process,” stated Mr. Lunn.
These letters and other documents, released by the Environmental Law
Centre at the University of Victoria, have raised an obvious question.
Why is it “inappropriate” for Mr. Lunn to interfere in the process,
but okay for Mr. Day?
Perhaps the answer is that Mr. Lunn is sensitive to criticism because
of his close ties to the developer.
Mr. Lunn's fundraising chair is Bob Evans, vice-president of Community
Marine Concepts, which is jointly pursuing the marina with WAM Development
Group.
Mr. Lunn's riding president is Jo-Anne Bilodeau, whose brother is
Conservative Environment Minister Jim Prentice. (Opponents of the
marina asked Mr. Prentice to order an environmental assessment by
an independent review panel, but he refused.)
And Mr. Lunn's campaign manager in 2008 was Bruce Hallsor, a Victoria
lawyer and federally registered lobbyist for WAM Development.
Last year, Mr. Hallsor discussed the marina with Lawrence Cannon,
who was then transportation minister. Although he is not registered
as a provincial lobbyist, he also met with Stan Hagen, when he was
B.C. tourism minister.
In a letter to Mr. Hallsor, Mr. Hagen states: “At our meeting on January
23, 2007, you outlined a proposal for a high-end marina capable of
berthing 80-foot to 120-foot yachts. … We support [these] plans to
initiate tourism activity in the Victoria harbour, and look forward
to hearing more about these exciting developments.”
Mr. Hallsor, together with Mr. Evans, also met in 2007 with B.C. Finance
Minister Colin Hansen, which raised some concerns among ministry staff.
“I understand that Hon. Stan Hagen, Minister of Tourism Sports & the
Arts, sent a letter of support to the proponents,” Todd Bailey, an
official, wrote in an e-mail to a colleague. “Perhaps I am reading
this meeting wrong, but I suspect that Community Marine Concepts will
likely be seeking a letter of support from our Minister as well.”
Then Mr. Bailey asked this question: “Is it normal for proponents
to ‘shop around' their project to Ministers during an ILMB process?
… Call me so we can discuss.”
ILMB stands for Integrated Land Management Bureau, and the note was
expressing concerns that the minister was being lobbied when the project
was under provincial review.
Given his links to the proponents, Mr. Lunn was correct to avoid interfering
politically in the process. But he has raised suspicions by failing
in his letter to mention his ties to the proponent, and by communicating
on Sept. 30 with Mr. Hallsor, the WAM lobbyist. Federal records state:
“Subject matter of the communication – sports.”
The communication may well have been about the impact the marina would
have on rowing and kayaking in Victoria harbour. But when a minister
gets lobbied by his own campaign manager, who is acting for his fundraiser,
it certainly looks bad. No wonder opponents of the marina are questioning
the government's objectivity on this issue.
In Vancouver, dozens of boat migrants
await their fate
Oct. 18, 2009
Vancouver
Jane Armstrong
Globe and Mail
Men detained after Mounties seized ship in Juan de Fuca Strait expected
to seek refugee status within days
Would-be migrants travel in a bus with tinted windows, escorted by
RCMP officers and B.C. Sheriff's vehicles through Surrey, B.C. Darryl
Dyck/The Canadian Press
_______
The mysterious foreign migrants who sailed into Canadian waters off
Vancouver Island on the weekend will appear at detention hearings
as early as Tuesday where it's possible some could be released.
The migrants, many dressed in summery T-shirts, shorts and sandals,
were intercepted on Friday afternoon when Mounties took control of
their rusting ship, Ocean Lady, in the Strait of Juan de Fuca. Approximately
76 men were onboard the vessel, which was escorted to a berth in Victoria
by a Canadian navy frigate. They were later taken to a Victoria-area
corrections facility before being sent to Vancouver for further investigation.
There have been initial reports – including a brief statement from
Public Safety Minister Peter Van Loan – that the men were from Sri
Lanka.
Aerial shots taken of the men on the ship's deck showed them waving
to cameras and smiling. They appeared to have South Asian physical
features. Even after their detention, some of the handcuffed men were
seen smiling from behind the tinted windows of the bus as it drove
onto a Vancouver-bound ferry.
While officials won't confirm the ship's origin, hundreds of Sri Lankan
asylum-seekers have shown up off the coasts of Australia and Indonesia
in recent weeks. One ship, intercepted off Indonesia, contained 250
Sri Lankans seeking asylum. Those onboard said they feared for their
lives in the aftermath of a bloody civil war between the government
and rebel Tamil Tigers.
They said they weren't separatists and appealed to Western nations
such as New Zealand and Canada to take them in.
Sri Lanka's long war against separatist Tigers came to a end this
year, but the government continues to crack down hard on dissent and
has interned up to 300,000 civilians in camps.
Outside Sri Lanka, Canada has one of the largest Tamil communities
in the world, numbering up to 300,000, most of who live in the Toronto
area.
In 1986, a boatload of 155 Tamils sailed into Halifax harbour, declaring
refugee status. Now, members of Canada's Tamil community are closely
watching Canada's latest boat drama.
Sue Nathan of the Canadian Tamil Congress moved to Canada as a teen
refugee (she anglicized her name). Conditions for friends and relatives
in Sri Lanka have worsened with the end to the war, she said.
“I really hope that the Canadian government puts them through the
due process, and if they are legitimate refugees, I hope that they
give them some form of asylum because chances are if they are sent
back, there will definitely be blood on our hands,” Ms. Nathan said.
“If someone is willing to get on a boat, it just shows how desperate
they are.”
S Several high-profile human rights organizations have criticized
the Sri Lanka government for failing to release the Tamil civilians
from the camps, noting that conditions are deplorable, with foot and
water shortages.
Liberal MP Bob Rae, who was refused entry into Sri Lanka earlier this
year on a fact-finding mission, described the Sri Lankan situation
as “politically charged,” though he noted that not all Tamils are
under threat. Some in fact are members of the government. Those most
at risk are people who criticize the government, not specific ethnic
groups, Mr. Rae said.
“It's fair to say that in Sri Lanka right now, the atmosphere is still
politically charged. People who either are, or have been politically
critical of the government or critical of the government's human rights
record feel themselves to be under some kind of threat.”
The latest drama began Friday. Police said the vessel was “not emitting
an active identification signal” and failed to contact authorities
upon its arrival in Canadian waters.
“The individuals have been transported to the Lower Mainland, specifically
a corrections facility in Vancouver, where the [Canada Border Services
Agency] will continue to examine their admissibility to Canada under
the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act,” border authority spokesman
Rob Johnston said in a statement.
“The CBSA is exercising due diligence in the screening of all the
individuals for both security and criminal threats,” the statement
continued. “The safety and security of Canadians remains the CBSA's
priority.”
Under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act, people detained
by border officials have the right to a hearing within 48 hours, so
those proceedings should begin early this week.
These boat scenes are eerily similar to the high-seas drama that unfolded
on the West Coast a decade ago when nearly 600 Chinese nationals arrived
in a succession of decrepit ocean vessels. Most of those migrants
made legal bids to stay in Canada, but more than 300 were flown back
to China. A few dozen were permitted to stay but scores more simply
vanished, believed to have slipped across the U.S. border.
Oct 17, 2009
Canada nabs suspected migrants off Pacific coast
By Allan Dowd
Reuters
The downtown core of Vancouver and the
Lions Gate Bridge rise above a morning fog in this view from Cypress
Mountain in West Vancouver, British Columbia November 17, 2008.
______
Canada has detained a ship believed to be trying to smuggle more than
70 migrants onto its Pacific coast, police said on Saturday.
A merchant vessel named Ocean Lady was intercepted by border officers
and the Canadian military off Vancouver Island, and the people on
board said they were attempting to reach Canada, the Royal Canadian
Mounted Police said.
The origin of the vessel and nationalities of the 76 people on the
ship were not immediately known.
A police photograph taken from a helicopter showed about four dozen
people on the ship's deck, many with their hands raised in surrender.
The ship was escorted to a dock near Victoria, British Columbia, where
the passengers and crew will be interviewed by immigration officials,
police said.
by Allan Dowd
|
A proposed new marina for
mega-yachts in Victoria's harbour hasn't been built yet – and may
never be
Men detained after Mounties seized ship in
Juan de Fuca Strait expected to seek refugee status within days
Canada nabs suspected migrants off Pacific
coast |
