'Golden Parade' carries pharaohs to new home in Egyptian capital

Issued on:  03/04/2021 - 

The carriage carrying the remains of Queen Ahmose-Nefertari, daughter of Pharaoh Seqenenre Tao II, advances as part of the parade of 22 ancient Egyptian royal mummies in Cairo Saturday

Khaled DESOUKI AFP

Cairo (AFP)

A procession of floats carried the mummified remains of 22 pharaohs, including Egypt's most powerful ancient queen, through Cairo Saturday evening, in an eye-catching parade to a new resting place.

Under hefty security, the mummies were driven on floats seven kilometres (four miles) across the capital from the iconic Egyptian Museum to the new National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation.

Dubbed the "Pharaohs' Golden Parade", the 18 kings and four queens travelled in order, oldest first, each aboard a separate vehicle decorated in ancient Egyptian style.

Both pedestrians and vehicles were barred from Tahrir Square, site of the current museum, and other sections of the route.

Images of the slick parade and an equally carefully choreographed opening ceremony were broadcast live on state television, to rousing music.

The mummies entered the grounds of the new museum to a 21-gun salute, after a slightly shorter than expected journey time of around half an hour.

"This grandiose spectacle is further proof of the greatness... of a unique civilisation that extends into the depths of history," said President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi just ahead of proceedings.

Seqenenre Tao II, "the Brave", who reigned over southern Egypt some 1,600 years before Christ, was on the first chariot, while Ramses IX, who reigned in the 12th century BC, brought up the rear.

Another great warrior, Ramses II, who ruled for 67 years, and Queen Hatshepsut, the most powerful female pharaoh, were also on the short voyage.

Emblazoned with the name of their allocated sovereign, the gold and black coloured carriages were fitted with shock absorbers for the trip, to ensure none of the precious cargos were accidentally disturbed by uneven surfaces.

- 'Upgraded cases' -

Discovered near Luxor from 1881 onwards, fascinating new details of the pharaohs' lives -- and deaths -- are still emerging.

A high-tech study of Seqenenre Tao II, involving CT scans and 3D images of his hands and long-studied skull fractures, indicate he was likely killed in an execution ceremony, after being captured in battle.

For their procession through Cairo's streets, the mummies were placed in special containers filled with nitrogen, under conditions similar to their regular display cases.

The new resting place, the National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation in the Fustat district of Old Cairo, consists of sleek, low-rise buildings topped with a pyramid amid expansive grounds.

The mummies will undergo 15 days of laboratory restoration before they are showcased individually in their new home, in an environment redolent of underground tombs.

They will be accompanied by a brief biography.

In their new home, they will occupy "slightly upgraded cases", said Salima Ikram, professor of Egyptology at the American University in Cairo.

Temperature and humidity control will also be enhanced.

The "museum has what it takes to preserve (mummies), the best laboratories... it is one of the best museums we have," Waleed el-Batoutti, adviser to the tourism and antiquities ministry, told state television.

- 'Curse of the Pharaoh' -

The National Museum of Egyptian Civilisation opened its doors to limited exhibits from 2017 and will open fully on Sunday, before the mummies go on display to the general public two weeks later.

In the coming months, the country is due to inaugurate another new showcase, the Grand Egyptian Museum, near the Giza pyramids.

It too will house pharaonic collections, including the celebrated treasure of Tutankhamun.

Discovered in 1922, the tomb of the young ruler, who took the throne briefly in the 14th century BC, contained treasures including gold and ivory.

A so-called "curse of the pharaoh" emerged in the wake of Tutankhamun's unearthing in 1922-23.

A key funder of the dig, Lord Carnarvon, died of blood poisoning months after the tomb was opened, while an early visitor likewise died abruptly in 1923.

With the parade coming only days after several disasters struck Egypt, some inevitably speculated on social media about a new curse provoked by the latest move.

The past days have seen a deadly rail collision and a building collapse in Cairo, while global headlines were dominated by the struggle to refloat the giant container ship MV Ever Given which blocked the Suez Canal for almost a week.

The mummies' re-housing "marks the end of much work to improve their conservation and exhibition," said UNESCO Director-General Audrey Azoulay, who was in Cairo for the parade.

"This raises emotions that go much further than the mere relocation of a collection -- we will see the history of Egyptian civilisation unfold before our eyes."

© 2021

Liberals hope for 'tame' convention, in contrast to rival parties' controversies


OTTAWA — Thousands of federal Liberals gathered online Thursday night for the start of a three-day national convention that promises to be downright dull compared to similar events held by the Conservative and New Democratic parties.

© Provided by The Canadian Press

And that suits Liberals just fine.

They hope Canadians will see a governing party focused on the serious policy issues of the day — the COVID-19 pandemic, the economy, climate change, the social safety net, systemic racism — without any of the infighting or controversy that beset the Conservatives' convention last month and that threatens to similarly dominate the NDP's convention this weekend.

Priority policy resolutions up for debate and votes at the Liberal gathering include calls for a universal basic income, enforceable national standards for long-term care homes and a green economic recovery.

Nothing on the agenda is as potentially damaging as the Conservatives' internal squabbling over the place of social conservatives in their midst or their refusal to accept a resolution that climate change is real.

Nothing is as potentially divisive as New Democrats' incipient fight over the definition of anti-Semitism or as radical as their proposed resolutions calling for abolition of the military and nationalization of major automakers.

The biggest buzz at the virtual Liberal event is likely to be around Mark Carney, the former governor of the Bank of Canada and the Bank of England, and whether his appearance at the convention signals an intention to finally take the plunge into partisan politics.

"It looks pretty tame, doesn't it?" rookie Toronto MP Marci Ien, one of the convention co-chairs, said in an interview.

"But I have to say tame isn't a bad thing."

Whereas the Conservative convention featured an attempted takeover by anti-abortion forces within the party, Ien said the Liberals will be talking about how the pandemic has hit women hardest and how to ensure an economic "she-covery."

And whereas the Conservatives voted against a resolution recognizing that climate change is real, she said Liberals will hear from Carney, now the United Nations special envoy on climate action and finance, and Canadian Heritage Minister Steven Guilbeault, a prominent environmentalist before jumping into politics, on what more needs to be done to combat the environmental crisis.

There will also be panels and workshops on systemic racism, reconciliation with Indigenous people, agriculture and protecting Canadians during the ongoing pandemic, among other things.

"These are the things that we're focusing on, that we think are important," said Ien.

Thursday night, the convention was to feature a conversation between Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland and Ken Dryden, the former minister who negotiated a national child care deal with the provinces back in 2005, only to see it abandoned by the subsequent Conservative government in 2006. A child care plan is expected to be a big part of Freeland's first budget, to be delivered in just over a week.

Freeland had originally been scheduled to speak with former finance minister and prime minister Paul Martin but he was forced to cancel his appearance due to personal commitments.

Registered Liberals will also hear about how to run a campaign safely, should their minority government fall or provoke an election during the pandemic. Most of that advice, from various panels sprinkled throughout the three days, will not be for public consumption.

But there will be one open session about running a virtual campaign with two veterans of last fall's U.S. presidential campaign: Caitlin Mitchell, senior digital adviser for the Biden-Harris ticket, and Muthoni Waambu Kraal, former national political and organizing director for the Democratic National Committee.

The convention itself will be entirely virtual, testing the party's ability to appeal to Canadians without the normal visuals or hoopla that attend in-person conventions.

Ien said the pandemic-induced digital convention has one upside: it's allowing people, who might not have been able to afford travel and hotel bills, to take part from the comfort of their homes. The result is the largest policy convention in the party's history, with more than 4,000 Liberals registered to take part as of Wednesday and more expected to join in.

It's also forced convention organizers to find innovative ways to engage the virtual delegates. Ien, who will host a conversation Friday evening with Carney, said she intends to use Instagram to solicit questions to put to the former central banker.

One question is undoubtedly top of mind with most Liberals: Will Carney run for the party in the next election?

"I'll ask him and let him know that there are many people inquiring, including you," Ien said.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published April 8, 2021.

The Canadian Press

Global supply lines struggle to clear container backlog after Suez chaos

By Jonathan Saul and Timothy Aeppel 

4/7/2021

© Reuters/MOHAMED ABD EL GHANY FILE PHOTO: 

Ship Ever Given, one of the world's largest container ships,

 is seen after it was fully floated in Suez Canal

LONDON/LOS ANGELES (Reuters) - A backlog of container ships carrying consumer goods has grown in some key strategic ports after a near week-long blockage in the Suez Canal, adding to ongoing disruptions to global trade, industry sources say.

Dozens of container ships were stuck when the 400-metre-long (430-yard) Ever Given ran aground in the canal on March 23, with specialist rescue teams taking almost a week to free the vessel.

The suspension of sailings through the waterway left shipping companies - including container lines - with millions of dollars in extra costs, which were not covered by insurance.

"The blockage of the Suez Canal will increase the negative impact on global supply chains in the coming weeks, as the availability of empty equipment, particularly in Asia and Europe, will be affected," Reiner Heiken, chief executive of U.S. headquartered Hellmann Worldwide Logistics, told Reuters.

Container shipping companies, carrying products ranging from mobile phones to designer goods, have been contending for months with disruptions caused by the coronavirus pandemic and a surge in demand for retail goods that led to wider logistical bottlenecks including in top consumer market the United States.

While some transporters of goods have turned to rail, that option has barely made a dent as about 90% of world trade is transported by sea.

European and U.S. retailers have warned about potential supply snags due to the impact from Suez.

Port officials in Europe's leading gateways say the impact will be felt in coming days, adding to already stretched supply lines.

Barbara Janssens, with the Port of Antwerp, said the port and terminal operators were "already preparing for what's ahead".

"The impact on global supply chains is expected to last for several months. There is simply not enough spare capacity across the worldwide container ship fleet to help counter the worst effects of the Suez incident," Janssens said.

Leon Willems, with the port of Rotterdam, said it expected its container traffic to be around 10% higher than normal every day in the coming weeks.

"Both the port and container terminals are doing everything they can to minimise disruptions," Willems said.

Maersk, the world's number 1 container line, said in a customer note that vessels held up in Suez would be delayed for a number of days before they reached U.S. East Coast ports.

In an unusual step, the company urged the ports "to take this opportunity to clear cargo from terminals which will allow them to operate more efficiently".

The East Coast Port of Newark did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

A source at the southern U.S. port of Savannah said they expected to clear a backlog of ships in the coming days.

LONG WAITING TIMES

While ports on the U.S. East Coast are more exposed to any disruptions in the Suez Canal, the surge in demand for retail goods has overwhelmed West Coast terminals in recent months.

Container ships face longer waiting and discharging times at West Coast ports than in many other ports around the world, analysis from logistics platform project44 showed.

Eugene Seroka, executive director of the Port of Los Angeles, said they were making progress whittling down the backlog, which could be cleared by the end of May or early June.

Mario Cordero, executive director of neighbouring Long Beach port, also expected their backlog to be reduced by summer.

"But for at least the next couple of months, we expect a continuing surge on the volume that we're seeing." Cordero said.

Analysts Sea-Intelligence expected a ripple effect in the coming weeks between Asia and Europe and disruption of container trade.

Hong Kong's Transport and Housing Bureau said the government was monitoring the situation although the disruption had not had a significant impact on shipping operations between Europe and Hong Kong.

Transporters elsewhere have been turning to a rail links between China and Europe to get critical supplies through, although users stressed volumes were still small.

Journey times via the rail routes, which run from China through Kazakhstan or Mongolia to Russia and then on to freight centres across Europe, typically take between 16-18 days compared with four weeks by sea and just under a week by air.

Danish freight forwarder DSV, Dutch freight management company GVT and Maersk all said they were seeing a surge in interest for rail freight between Europe and Asia.

"Land transport between Asia and Europe will always be able to cover only a small share of the total transport volume," Hellmann's Heiken said.

(Additional reporting by Nikolaj Skydsgaard in Copenhagen, Bart Meijer in Amsterdam and Donny Kwok in Hong Kong; Editing by Veronica Brown and David Evans)

Opinion: Prairie agriculture on a collision course with shipping containers in B.C.
Reg Ens 

4/8/2021


Hard-working farmers and food producers in the Prairies aren’t just feeding Canadians — they’re feeding the world. Because Canada enjoys favourable conditions for food production that far exceed the needs of our population, our agri-food sector is primarily export-oriented.

© Provided by Leader Post 

Canola exports have been a bright spot in the pandemic economy.

In fact, according to the Canadian Agri-Food Trade Alliance, Canada is the fifth-largest exporter of agricultural and agri-food products in the world after the EU, U.S., Brazil and China. C anada exports $56 billion a year in agriculture and agri-food products, and approximately half of everything we produce is exported as either primary commodities or processed food and beverage products.

Western Canada shares a common food production system that is meeting local, national and global needs, serving people who only want more of what we have to offer. That demand continues to grow through the storm of the pandemic. It’s a beacon of light signalling the potential of our sector, and a golden opportunity to drive Canada’s economic recovery.

As a member of the Canadian Federation of Agriculture, I can tell you that our country’s agriculture and food producers have displayed incredible resilience under the stress of the pandemic, as farmers continue to put food on our collective table. What’s more, producers are not only keeping our grocery stores full, but they are exporting at record levels in response to the world’s food security concerns.

In the Prairies, spring 2020 exports of bulk grains, oilseeds and pulses (like beans and lentils) were up nearly 30 per cent over the previous year. Canola from Saskatchewan and Manitoba was a star commodity, with exports jumping 37 per cent in the first eight months of 2020. It’s remarkable, during a time of unprecedented disruption, that Canada produced record food volumes. Our supply chains also delivered.

But the performance and contribution of Canada’s agriculture sector should not be taken for granted.

There is a growing supply chain conflict on the West Coast that will affect farmers and producers in both the Prairies and in B.C. Imagine two passing ships, one laden with containers full of consumer goods coming here from Asia, and one carrying agricultural exports from Canada. Except these two metaphorical ships are on a collision course.

The Port of Vancouver — Canada’s largest port — is rapidly running out of industrial land. Vancouver is in a heated competition to attract inbound container traffic. This dynamic is prompting a story that farmers and food producers are all too familiar with. That is: Agriculture is being side-lined as other, presumably more competitive products and commodities, are favoured.

An example of this conflict is taking place on a small parcel of port land on the south shore of Vancouver Harbour, where a family company called West Coast Reduction — which processes and ships agricultural products — is in the crosshairs. This long-time operator services 11,000 customers across Manitoba, Saskatchewan, Alberta and B.C. They handle more than half of the Prairie-farmed canola oil bound for Asia. As well, they are the only facility in Western Canada able to refine feedstocks for biofuel — a service that is critical to meeting our national climate change targets.

The prime minister’s mandate letter to the Minister of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada spells out a clear directive: “Strengthen local, sustainable and value-added food supply chains in Canada.” We could not agree more, but this will mean tackling the Port of Vancouver’s ambitions to use lands for containers at the expense of food producers.

Government is trumpeting agriculture as an important driver of Canada’s post-pandemic economic recovery. That will mean balancing a diverse set of activities at our country’s largest port.

West Coast Reduction is a textbook example of sustainable local agriculture, and a high-value exporter. They are prepared to invest to accommodate more home-grown exports, but their existence at the Port of Vancouver is threatened by an eviction to make way for container terminal development.

It is time for the federal government to grab hold of the tiller and steer clear of the coming collision that will affect farmers throughout Western Canada.

Reg Ens is executive director of the B.C. Agriculture Council.

Should Studios Worry About Congress’ Next Big Labor Fight?
Ashley Cullins 4/8/2021

Should Studios Worry About Congress’ Next Big Labor Fight

Before Hollywood’s workforce was temporarily sidelined by the pandemic, it was California’s AB 5 law that was a hot topic among studio executives worrying about their bottom lines.

The bill, which Gov. Gavin Newsom signed into law in September 2019, reclassified many independent contractors as employees — or, at least, it aimed to do so before waves of litigation and lobbying caused the state to dole out exemptions like Ugg boots on a segment of “Oprah’s Favorite Things.” Now, worker classification legislation has gone national.

In California, AB 5 codified a test used by the state’s supreme court in a dispute involving trucking company Dynamex. Under that ABC test, a worker is presumed to be an employee unless they meet three criteria — one of which demands that “the worker performs work that is outside the usual course of the hiring entity’s business.” AB 5 was targeted at gig-economy jobs like those offered by Uber, which tried to get around that requirement by arguing its contractors are drivers and it is a technology company. California voters in November made that argument moot by approving Proposition 22, which explicitly classified app-based drivers as independent contractors.

Meanwhile, in D.C., the Protecting the Right to Organize Act of 2021 (PRO Act) was introduced in February by Rep. Bobby Scott (D-VA) and passed the House on March 9. It’s now sitting in the Senate Committee on Health, Education, Labor, and Pensions. And, while experts doubt the PRO Act now has enough votes to pass the Senate, they expect that the reclassification fight will become a big issue.

The PRO Act would amend multiple federal statutes, including the National Labor Relations Act, in an effort to make it easier for workplaces to unionize — but it also redefines who’s considered an employee, using the Dynamex test.

While Hollywood workers already covered by a guild or union collective bargaining agreement wouldn’t be affected by the PRO Act, other contractors — like music supervisors, personal assistants and some producers — could find themselves eligible to organize if it passes.

And, since California has already gone to war over the ABC test once, its businesses have a head start over other hubs like New York and Georgia, which haven’t yet dealt with such restrictive standards for worker classification.

“It would give California back an advantage, at least for a time,” says Greg Zbylut, a CPA and tax lawyer, adding that other states would likely draft legislation to create their own industry-specific carve-outs. “States can’t be broader than the federal government, but they can be narrower. There’s nothing that’s going to stop a state from coming back and saying, ‘We want to narrow this and make it more restrictive.'”

In California, it could create situations where a worker is an independent contractor under AB 5 for wage and hour purposes but would be an employee when it comes to organizing and collective bargaining. “It’s creating a patchwork of compliance issues for employers nationwide,” says Fox Rothschild partner Sahara Pynes, who specializes in employment matters. “It really gives the unions a lot of juice to negotiate for more workers and makes it more likely that workers would want to unionize.”

Christopher Thornberg of Beacon Economics says no one likes workers being taken advantage of, but this bill is like “using a shotgun to kill a mosquito.” He doubts it will pass but says if it did, all hell would break loose. “Our government is driven more by narrative than data,” he says. “They should look at what happened in California and see it wasn’t reasonable.”

Adds employment lawyer Ann Fromholz, “It’s going to significantly change the way companies operate. There will be lawsuits from every industry that’s affected by this.”

A version of this story appeared in the April 7 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. 

USA

Indigenous advocacy group launches campaign against new voting bills

Jared Gans 

The Hill 

4/7/2021

An advocacy group for Native Americans is putting up billboards in various states to oppose measures that it says would increase voting restrictions.

© The Hill Indigenous advocacy group launches campaign against new voting bills

The campaign launched by the Global Indigenous Council comes as more state legislatures are considering voting laws like the one in Georgia that sparked corporate backlash.

Tom Rodgers, president of the Global Indigenous Council and an enrolled Blackfeet tribal member, said the goal of the campaign is to draw attention to bills that would limit the number of available polling stations and ballot drop-off spots, calling the measures especially harmful to Native Americans who may not have access to the remaining voting locations.

Such legislation, he added, is opening painful wounds for Native Americans, who faced obstacles to voting for years even after federal protections were put in place.

"It's truly a teachable moment of history, and it's repeating itself again," Rodgers told The Hill. "The Jim Crow of the West. We were already historically subject to restrictions on our ability to have an equal opportunity to vote."

He said some states put up barriers to voting in the past by requiring residents to pay taxes and own property before they could vote, disenfranchising younger and poorer voters.

Now, more than 360 bills that would limit voting rights have been introduced in 47 states this legislative session, according to the Brennan Center for Justice.

Rodgers said his group's campaign is targeting states with a significant Native American population that have a historical record of voting rights discrimination. The goal of the billboards, he said, is to encourage residents in Arizona, Georgia, Montana and Nevada to advocate against certain bills in their state legislatures.

In his criticism of restrictions on mail-in voting, Rodgers said the long distances many Native Americans need to travel to reach polling locations can unjustly impact those populations. In Montana, for example, more than 78,000 residents, or 6.5 percent of the state population, are Native American.

Billboards were first put up in Phoenix last week, and Rodgers said the council will move on to Atlanta next week and Montana the week after.

"There is a lot of focus on the South, as there should be...but it is now prevalent across the United States," Rodgers said.

The billboard shows an image of tombstones for students who attended the Carlisle Indian Industrial School. The location was the first government-run boarding school for Native American children designed to assimilate the students into white society, according to the Carlisle Indian School Project, which seeks to maintain and honor the legacy of those who attended the school.

The school's motto was "kill the Indian" and "save the man," according to the National Park Service, which said at least 168 students at the school died of various diseases.

"They were separated from their parents, from their culture, from their land," Rodgers said.

He said the campaign is designed to teach others about how Native populations were mistreated in the past through assimilation measures like the school and how that mistreatment lingers through voting restrictions.

"We're more than museums on your walls - we're just people that you've chosen not to see for far too long," he said. "So you put us away on reservations, put us away in your attic, in your basement, and ultimately you put us away in your graveyard."

The billboard campaign comes on the heels of the council's efforts to pressure senators to confirm now-former Rep. Deb Haaland (D-N.M.) to lead the Interior Department as the first Native American Cabinet secretary. The Senate confirmed Haaland in mid-March in a 51-40 vote, with nine senators absent.

First Nations open to twinning 

Trans-Canada


Four First Nations near the Manitoba-Ontario border say they are prepared to give “conditional consent” for the first phase of the twinning of the Trans-Canada Highway between Kenora and the border.

“We can get so much done when we agree to work together,” Niisaachewan Chief Lorraine Cobiness said at a news conference Tuesday.

She was joined by the leaders of Wauzhushk Onigum, Shoal Lake 40 and Washagamis Bay First Nations, which call themselves the Niiwin Wendaanimok (Four Winds Group).

Following months of discussions with provincial transportation officials, the group has agreed to allow Ontario to enter its territory under its guidance to start the first phase of the project; in return, the provincial government is expected to work collaboratively with the Anshinaabeg and ensure the communities benefit from the project.

That would amount to $77 million in direct and indirect economic activity for the four bands, and a safer drive for travellers.

“I think we all have had… not the greatest experience on that highway at most times,” Cobiness said.

“There is a definite desire to make sure that the highway is safe for everybody to travel on.”

The partnership will also help advance reconciliation, said Wauzhushk Onigum Chief Chris Skead.

“The past relationship has been genocidal for the Anishinaabeg. More recently it hasn’t worked for anyone. But now these discussions have been guided by Manito Aki Inaakonigaawin, the sacred law of the Earth,” Skead wrote.

“We have been guided by the principles of Weweni (Take our time), Bebeka (doing it right), Biiziindun (listen), and Kegotachken (do not be afraid).”

The chief of Shoal Lake 40 said the journey thus far has included a harmonized process for understanding environmental impacts and mitigation measures. The creation of an Anishinaabe Guardians Program and opportunities that will establish the foundation of the nations’ economies are also part of the project, said Chief Vernon Redsky.

The first phase of the twinning, which will involve connecting Highway 1 from the Manitoba-Ontario border to Highway 673, is expected to start this fall. The next two phases, which the nations have yet to consent to, would involve the section from Highway 673 to Kenora. There will be a sacred ceremony at the end of the month, if the Ontario government agrees to the partnership’s conditions.

— with files from Dylan Robertson

Maggie Macintosh, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Winnipeg Free Press

CANADA
North’s only law school launches Indigenous law and justice institute


Editor's note: Story originally published April 6, 2021. Seventh paragraph quote from law school dean, Jule Hughes, was corrected to change the word 'secular' to 'settler'.

Thanks to the Justice Partnership and Innovation Program offered by Canada’s Department of Justice, Lakehead University’s Bora Laskin Faculty of Law will receive up to $437,139 to launch an Indigenous Law and Justice Institute, Maamawi Bimosewag – They Walk Together, and expand the law program.

Lakehead University’s Bora Laskin Faculty of Law is not only the singular law school in Northern Ontario, but was one of only two law schools (the other being University of British Columbia’s Peter A. Allard School of Law) that offered mandatory courses in Aboriginal law prior to the Truth and Reconciliation Commission (TRC).

Now, since the release of the TRC’s directives, many universities are responding and once again, so is the law school.

The creation of the Maamawi Bimosewag – They Walk Together Indigenous Law and Justice Institute is a response to Call to Action #50:

“In keeping with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, we call upon the federal government, in collaboration with Aboriginal organizations, to fund the establishment of Indigenous law institutes for the development, use, and understanding of Indigenous laws and access to justice in accordance with the unique cultures of Aboriginal peoples in Canada.”

It is an important step on the path to reconciliation, and one that Bora Laskin Faculty of Law Dean Jula Hughes says is the basis for the Institute’s creation.

“The call to action really speaks to the fact that Canada is built on settler law, British and French,” said Hughes, “in a manner that didn't account for the existing legal orders before the Europeans came, but also not consistent with Indigenous lawmaking.”

“The failure to recognize it has resulted in, or has been a contributor to, the many injustices that Indigenous people have experienced.”

The heart of the Calls to Action, a path to reconciling the treatment of Indigenous people in Canada, is the heart that beats behind the school of law as well.

“The law school was founded with the support and partially on the instigation of Indigenous communities and organizations here in Thunder Bay and in Northwestern Ontario. That's been a big consideration from the beginning,” said Hughes.

“And those same organizations and communities that supported the law school in the first place, our partners at Anishinabek Nation, Fort William First Nation, Grand Council Treaty No. 3, the Métis Nation of Ontario, the Nishnawbe Aski Nation and the Chiefs of Ontario, are all in support of this new Institute.”

The Director of the Indigenous Law and Justice Institute, which launched on April 1, 2021, is Professor Nancy Sandy, with guidance from Hughes and the Anishinawbe Omaa Minowaywin, the law school’s Indigenous advisory council.

“The work at the institute going forward is going to be responsive to what communities and partners want us to do,” said Hughes. “We are very aware that the expertise is in the communities, not in the law school. We're learners in this process and we hope to be helpful partners, but the communities are the drivers. That's going to shape the future of the work of the Institute.”

The school’s location will also shape the curriculum.

According to a release announcing the Institute’s launch, “by offering legal education with a triple mandate in Aboriginal and Indigenous Law, Natural Resources and Environmental Law, and Sole/Small Town Practice with the Integrated Practice Curriculum (IPC), its curriculum provides students with a legal education that will prepare them to practice law in Northern Ontario and Canada while understanding the issues pertinent to the land and peoples of this region.”

Said Hughes, “The vision for the future, where we have vibrant, indigenous legal orders contributing to Canadian law, but also in forming how indigenous self-governance will look in the future. The Institute's work is to contribute to a better awareness of legal orders and allow students in law to become competent practitioners when it comes to indigenous laws, so that they can support the work of those indigenous communities, governments, and organizations.”

You can find more information about Lakehead University’s Bora Laskin Faculty of Law by visiting Lakehead’s website.

Jenny Lamothe is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter at Sudbury.com. She covers the Black, Indigenous, immigrant and Francophone communities.

Jenny Lamothe, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Sudbury.com

ECOCIDE

Massive fire engulfs chemical plant near Houston

A fire burning at a Houston-area chemical distribution plant on Wednesday led to a shelter-in-place order for two nearby neighborhoods. The thick black smoke from the fire could be seen for miles.

 Duration: 00:44 

WE HAVE CHEMICAL PLANTS IN THE CITY OF EDMONTON #YEG

WW3.0
Nation-state cyber attacks could lead to cyber conflict

Allen Bernard 4/8/2021 

A new report from HP released Thursday, Nation States, Cyberconflict and the Web of Profit, found that nation-state cyber attacks are "moving us closer to a point of advanced cyber conflict."

© Provided by TechRepublic Image: iStock/CROCOTHERY

"Nation-state conflict doesn't take place in a vacuum; as evidenced by the fact enterprise is the most common victim within those attacks analyzed," Ian Pratt, global head of Security for Personal Systems at HP, said in a statement. "Whether they are a direct target or a stepping-stone to gain access to bigger targets, as we have seen with the upstream supply chain attack against SolarWinds, organizations of all sizes need to be cognizant of this risk."

The research, which was sponsored by HP and conducted by Mike McGuire, senior lecturer in criminology at the University of Surrey, found a 100% rise in "significant" nation-state incidents between 2017-2020. McGuire, who looked at over 200 cybersecurity incidents associated with nation-states since 2009, found that enterprise-class organizations are now the most common target (35%), followed by cyber defense (25%), media and communications (14%), government bodies and regulators (12%) and critical infrastructure (10%).

"Nation-states are devoting significant time and resources to achieving strategic cyber advantage to advance their national interests, intelligence gathering capabilities, and military strength through espionage, disruption and theft," McGuire said in a statement. "Attempts to obtain IP data on vaccines and attacks against software supply chains demonstrate the lengths to which nation-states are prepared to go to achieve their strategic goals."

McGuire also relied on first-hand intelligence gathering from informants across the Dark Web and consultations with an expert panel of 50 leading practitioners in relevant fields (such as cybersecurity, intelligence, government, academia and law enforcement) to develop his findings. What he found was a "clear picture of escalations in tensions" that are being supported by increasingly complex structures that intersect with the underground cybercrime economy known as the "Web of Profit."

Other findings include:

The increase in attacks represent a "worrying" or "very worrying" escalation in tensions
COVID-19 presented a "significant opportunity" for nation-states to exploit

Supply chain attacks such as the SolarWinds hack increased 78% in 2019

Between 2017 and 2020 there were 27 software supply-chain attacks associated with nation-state actors

Over 40% of cyber attacks involved targets with physical and digital components such as an energy plant—a phenomenon known as "hybridization"

Nation-states may be "stock-piling" Zero Day exploits

Most experts believe nation-states are monetizing cybercrime

Nation-states are recruiting cybercriminals to conduct attacks

Nation-states and the Web of Profit

The study also found that nation-states are buying tools and services from the Dark Web and thus contributing to the Web of Profit. Likewise, tools developed by nation-states are making their way onto the black market. The Eternal Blue exploit that was used by the WannaCry hackers in 2017 is a good example, the report said.

Even though 20% of incidents involved sophisticated, custom-made weapons such as targeted malware or weaponized exploits that were likely developed by nation-state cybersecurity programs, half involved low-budget, straightforward exploits that could be easily purchased on the Dark Web.

Half (50%) of the tools used were built for surveillance, 15% enabled network incursion and positioning, 14% were for damage or destruction, and 8% for data extraction. The mix of tools suggests that nation-states are more focused on listening than stealing data.



"Cybercrime economies are shaping the character of nation-state conflicts," McGuire said in a statement. "There is also a second generation of cyber weaponry in development that draws upon enhanced capabilities in computing power, AI [artificial intelligence] and cyber-physical integrations."

Nation-states also are weaponizing chatbots to deliver phishing messages, react to new events and send messages via social media sites. In the future, deep fakes, drone swarms capable of disrupting communications or engaging in surveillance, and quantum computers capable of breaking almost any encryption algorithm will all be part of the digital battlefield, he said.

To de-escalate cyber-tensions and prevent nation-states from being drawn into further acts of cyberconflict, 70% of the expert panel say it is necessary to create a cyberconflict treaty, but few believe it will happen anytime soon.