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concordia’s independent newspaper change sudokus with vision pencils since 1980 Tragic irony ANNUAL ANTI-POLICE BRUTALITY DEMONSTRATION PROVOKES BRUTALITY FROM BOTH SIDES • NEWS PAGES 4 & 5 • Features page 13 Election candidates: Meet the slates • Fringe arts page 21 Cody Hicks closes Art Matters with the debut of Dirty Wedding Men’s basketball team falls short at nationals • Sports page 26 volume 29, issue 26 • Tuesday, March 17, 2009 • thelinknewspaper.ca volume 29, issue 26 • Tuesday, THE LINK • MARCH 17, 2009 • THELINKNEWSPAPER.CA/NEWS NEWS 03 Where’s the $800,000? Student money reserve, CSU deficit in question • TERRINE FRIDAY for CFS-Quebec, an affiliate of the can thank [2005-06 CSU group of the CFS. CFS, Duff answered it was “a dif- President] Mohamed Shuriye and The “Agent of Record” clause Lev Bukhman, former health- ferent organization.” [2006-07 CSU President] blocked other potential health care administrator for the Quebec Bukhman was never invited to Khaleed Juma for that,” said care administrators from tender- Student Health Alliance—or Council to plead his case. Chivi. ing to represent the CSU. ASEQ—was officially fired from “Lev Bukhman was in breach The current $800,000 reserve Although his ego is bruised, representing the Concordia of contract and there is a possible of the CSU’s health plan—which Bukhman says his biggest con- Student Union last week. lawsuit on account of his actions,” was supposed to be used in the cern is the students. Bukhman, who last month said Elie Chivi, CSU VP commu- 2009-10 academic year under a “Keyana Kashfi has done accused former CSU executive nications. “So why would we new retention accounting everything in her power to keep Steven Rosenshein of a $25,000 invite someone who hurt our model—will now be put towards a me from telling the truth to CSU extortion attempt, was decidedly organization so much?” future health plan with a new councillors. She has provided relieved of his duties at the March Chivi said the current execu- administrator. false information, she has with- 11 Council meeting. tive has always been open with Chivi said there’s no need for held proper documents, and may The allegations against the overspending that put them students to worry: “The CSU have misrepresented the truth,” Rosenshein—an employee of the in a deficit, now nearing executives have regularly stated Bukhman said. “A central ques- Canadian Federation of Students- $800,000. that at the end of our mandate the tion is, ‘Is that money a tie to the Quebec—were never discussed at It is now suspected that a deficit, in its entirety, is going to recent large losses and misappro- the meeting. Instead Joel Duff, an number of CSU financial be recuperated.” priation of funds of the CSU?’” admitted salesman for the CFS accounts were used to juggle On Dec. 11, 2008, CSU Bukhman said he has yet to Concordia student Beisan Zubi refus- and advisor to the CSU, made a funds during the period of finan- President Keyana Kashfi signed receive any reply from es to leave the room for an in camera closed presentation to Council. cial mismanagement circa 2005- into an agreement with health Rosenshein and, if converstation regarding the CSU’s “Steven Rosenshein doesn’t 2007. care administrator Morneau requested, would be willing to health plan. Zubi is currently filming a documentary about democracy in work for the CFS,” Duff later said. “One of the bank accounts was Sobeco and the National Student take a lie detector test to prove light of the upcoming CSU elections. When told that Rosenshein works the health plan reserve and you Health Network—a working his allegations. PHOTO TERRINE FRIDAY $68.4 million student centre to come ‘soon’ CSU president says essential agreement will be signed by end of her term • JUSTIN GIOVANNETTI held his thumb and index finger in the air increase the lot prices. “Five prospective a centimetre apart, proof that Kashfi’s sites are in the core of downtown, around The six-year-old student centre proj- words were not simple hyperbole. campus,” said Kashfi. “We want the ect has emerged as an issue in the “The management agreement with the building near the traffic of students—the $68.4 the cost to build the proposed student Concordia Student Union election, but university will be done by the end of my Hall building is key, the Library building centre in millions. despite promises of fast construction, no mandate,” promised Kashfi. “We’ve made is key, and it needs to be accessible and slate has actually contacted the CSU for it clear: it needs to be agreement first, visible to students.” information about the state of the proj- building second.” The timeline for the construction of ect. the building will depend heavily on the That is part of the problem, says CSU “We are the only university of CSU’s ability to secure financing. “The President Keyana Kashfi. “I have worked building and design process will take two $6 our size in Canada that the amount of money currently in the on this for many hours, nearly 20 hours a or three years, but we can’t start on that week, but from a certain point of view, it doesn’t have a student until we have enough money to begin. We student centre fund in millions. looks like no work was done. When we centre building, [...] know we can’t get a loan until we have tell people that work has been done they Concordia also has the least $10 million in the bank and a more shun us.” amount of space per student steady source of income,” said Kashfi. The prospective student centre— “We won’t have that much money at which already collects a $2 per credit stu- in any Canadian university.” present rates for another two years.” $2 dent fee levy—is a much-needed project —Keyana Kashfi, With only six million dollars currently the amount per-credit that the CSU already that goes beyond electoral politics for CSU President in the student centre fund, the $68.4 mil- collects for the student centre. Kashfi. lion building looks like a large invest- “We are the only university of our size Projected to have a floor area of ment for the CSU, especially considering in Canada that doesn’t have a student 20,643 square metres, the student centre that the student union’s yearly operating centre building,” said Kashfi. “Concordia will be “a one-stop shop for students,” budget is only $1.8 million. also has the least amount of space per beamed Kashfi. “We will move all student “The university projects that it will $5.40 student in any Canadian university.” services into the building. It will be cost $5.40 per credit to sustain and begin the amount per-credit that the university For nearly a year now, Kashfi has shared space with the university; 62 per work on the building. Personally, I think believes will be required to sustain and negotiated with Concordia’s administra- cent of the building will be CSU space that is pretty high,” Kashfi said. begin work on the student centre. tion over every line of a management and one-third will be for the university.” Despite a gloomy funding situation, agreement that will solve the problem. The nine or 10-floor building will be a Kashfi is set on sealing an agreement The final agreement will control the hub for student affairs on campus, cen- between the university and the CSU building’s projected $68.4 million bill, tralizing the student union, student study before her mandate ends in June. Kashfi construction, use of space and hundreds space, an auditorium for presentations is confident, especially due to a strong $1.8 of other stipulations from food to securi- and university services like financial aid show of support from the current CSU the CSU’s current annual operating budget. ty. into a single structure. Council. “Although things are still in the nego- Kashfi wants the building to be invit- “We briefed Council on the summary tiation process, we are pretty close to get- ing for students, “a home away from of the agreement [on March 11] and it ting a signed agreement,” Kashfi con- home, where students can relax, study or passed unanimously. They passed a reso- firmed. drink coffee with friends.” lution saying ‘stay on this road and go 20,643 Sitting behind the president, the The final site of the building has not and bring us back a final draft when it the projected amount of total floor space in CSU’s VP Communications Elie Chivi been released for fears that owners could is completed.’” square metres of the student centre. 04 NEWS THE LINK • MARCH 17, 2009 • THELINKNEWSPAPER.CA/NEWS Two girls run away from the police officer, who is wielding a baton. PHOTO ION ETXEBARRIA The Link gets arrested An account of events at the anti-Police Brutality demonstration The riot squad was out in full force to halt protest. PHOTO ION ETXEBARRIA Protesters vandalized the city, here with “Fuck the Police” scrawled across the bus. PHOTO ION ETXEBARRIA • COMMENT BY R. BRIAN HASTIE sion managed to continue and ended up As the police advanced from a block and crimes, the policeman pointed his gun, on Ste-Catherine Street in front of Place a half away, we retreated back up Ste- loaded with rubber bullets, to the crowd at The 13th Annual International Day des Arts. Catherine Street to get to McGill metro. regular intervals. Against Police Brutality started off the way We continued westward and that’s when most people had anticipated: throngs of Trying to get the story we realized our error in judgment: the riot Freedom of the press denied people from diverse backgrounds clad in I spent most of the afternoon with Alex police were both ahead of and behind us.

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