Canada's Only Di Bella Cancer Clinic a Very Lonely Place

Total Page:16

File Type:pdf, Size:1020Kb

Canada's Only Di Bella Cancer Clinic a Very Lonely Place Nouvelles et analyses accessibility, comprehensiveness, porta- moral authority than most of his Chrétien also knew that Bouchard bility and public administration. provincial counterparts. The unholy al- could not afford to walk away from the The deal also represents real progress liance between Harris and Bouchard, deal: his voters would never forgive in some directions that will improve the the exasperation that Harris triggered him. He simply told the Quebec pre- delivery of care and ensure a national in Ralph Klein, the unseemly spitting mier that if he didn’t sign, he wouldn’t rather than a patchwork system. The match between the have and have-not get the money. And billions of dollars initial $500 million for health data tech- provinces — all this revealed that Ot- will lubricate any negotiations. nology is only the first step in a potential tawa bashing is the only activity that In the end, Chrétien managed to $2.8 billion program. The federal gov- unites premiers. smooth over voters’ fears about health ernment also put $1 billion in the pot for Bouchard’s signature on the final care, reveal the rifts between the pre- medical equipment, an investment that deal must have been particularly grati- miers and reinforce his vision of health allows Ottawa to claim a leadership role fying for Chrétien. Only 3 days earlier, care as a national program, rather than in modernizing health care. Bouchard had expressed outrage that a crazy quilt of different provincial ser- Politically, this conference allowed Ottawa was trying to bring the vices. All in all, not bad for a day’s Jean Chrétien to emerge with more provinces “to their knees.” However, work. — Charlotte Gray, Ottawa Canada’s only Di Bella cancer clinic a very lonely place One year after Canada’s first Di Bella Under immense political and popu- month and $1300 for each month method (DBM) cancer clinic opened in lar pressure, Italian health officials sup- thereafter,” Malkin’s Web site advises. Toronto’s Italian district, the number ported historical studies of DBM pa- The site acknowledges that evidence of patients it has attracted can be tients and 11 uncontrolled phase II of DBM’s efficacy is “anecdotal” and counted on 2 hands. In fact, 1 hand trials. The historical review, reported there is “currently no acceptable Cana- might do the trick. last year in Cancer (86[10]:2143-9), con- dian medical proof that this treatment “I must say, it is a little discouraging cluded that the 5-year survival rate for will cure cancer.” at times,” said Dr. Aaron Malkin, 12 DBM patients was significantly lower Why, then, did he bother introduc- months after setting up the Isola Bella than for patients receiving conventional ing the widely discredited protocol Oncological Multiple Therapy Clinic therapy, with no evidence of improved here? “I’m curious about the results, in a second-floor office in August 1999. survival prospects. The phase II trials, and I’m looking after the patient’s inter- During its first year the clinic received reported in the BMJ (1999;318:224-8), est,” he said. “All of the information un- many inquiries, Malkin said in an in- found insufficient efficacy to warrant til now has been anecdotal. Di Bella and terview, but it actually treated only “5 further clinical trials. his colleagues didn’t do a careful study.” to 10” patients. This was a far cry from Malkin thinks his Toronto clinic is Because some components of DBM the situation in 1997 and 1998, when the only one of its type in North Amer- have known anticancer properties, the “cure” developed by Italian physi- ica. The clinic’s original advertising was Malkin “thought it would be interesting ologist Luigi Di Bella was attracting a limited to the Buffalo News and a to see what happened” during treatment. firestorm of international attention. As Toronto-based Italian-language news- As for his own lack of patients, he says: Charlotte Gray reported in CMAJ in paper, but in August he began promot- “I’m not worried about that. I’m semi- 1998 (158[11]:1510-2), the phones of ing the clinic and DBM on a Web site, retired. I’m doing other things.” Toronto MP Joe Volpe were then www.oncomtc.com. At the Canadian Cancer Society, ringing 10 times a day with inquiries Three doctors are involved in the medical affairs director Dr. Barbara about DBM. Most callers wanted clinic. Malkin, an internist with a doc- Whylie was unwilling to express direct Volpe, an Italian-Canadian who was torate in biochemistry, was head of criticism of the Di Bella treatment. then parliamentary secretary to the clinical biochemistry at Toronto’s Sun- Whylie said the society recognizes the health minister, to explain why the nybrook Hospital from 1961 to 1992. growing public interest in complemen- “miracle” cocktail was not available in The other physicians are DBM special- tary cancer therapies and supports the Canada. ists based in Italy. Malkin meets ini- right of patients to make their own de- Di Bella’s controversial cocktail com- tially with the patient, then consults cisions about treatment. However, “be- bines bromocriptine, melatonin and so- with his Italian colleagues, who develop fore abandoning conventional therapies matostatin or octreotide with comple- a treatment protocol that is prepared by and taking up any complementary ther- mentary substances, including vitamin an Italian pharmacy. Initial treatment apy, they should thoroughly discuss im- C and shark cartilage; it is taken with lasts at least 3 months. “For all of these plications with their physician or health low doses of chemotherapeutic agents services, the Isola Bella Clinic will re- care provider.” — David Helwig, Lon- such as cyclophosphamide. quire a retainer of $3800 for the first don, Ont. 1030 JAMC • 17 OCT. 2000; 163 (8).
Recommended publications
  • Dr. Luigi Di Bella and the Politics of Elixirs
    15506 June 2/98 CMAJ /Page 1510 Docket: 1-5506 Initial: JN Customer: CMAJ June 2/98 Dr. Luigi Di Bella and the politics of elixirs Features Chroniques Charlotte Gray Charlotte Gray is a In brief contributing editor at CMAJ. HEALTH CANADA AND THE CANADIAN-ITALIAN PHYSICIANS ASSOCIATION recently spent $20 000 to send 4 Canadian cancer specialists to Italy to check out the “miracle” CMAJ 1998;158:1510-2 anticancer cocktail prepared by an Italian physician. Most doctors remain decid- edly sceptical about this latest “cure,” but Charlotte Gray says their suspicions count for little when an issue like this captures the imagination of the public and their politicians. En bref SANTÉ CANADA ET L’ASSOCIATION MÉDICALE CANADO-ITALIENNE ont dépensé récemment 20 000 $ pour envoyer quatre cancérologues canadiens en Italie se familiariser avec le «cocktail miracle» anti-cancéreux mis au point par un médecin italien. Cette dernière «cure» laisse la plupart des médecins carrément sceptiques mais, nous dit Charlotte Gray, leurs doutes ne pèsent guère une fois qu’une pareille question a enflammé l’imagination de la population et de ses politiciens. he dying are willing to attach their hopes to any cure. This was true “Sending when the black death was ravaging Europe, it’s true at the end of the T 20th century and it will likely be true when we’re touring the universe conventional 1000 years from now. But should our politicians support such desperate hopes? That’s the question Dr. Michael Pollak asks as he observes the hype surround- doctors to examine ing Dr.
    [Show full text]
  • Canada and the Middle East Today: Electoral Politics and Foreign Policy
    CANADA AND THE MIDDLE EAST TODAY: ELECTORAL POLITICS AND FOREIGN POLICY Donald Barry Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper came to power in 2006 with little experience in foreign affairs but with a well developed plan to transform his minority Conservative administration into a majority government replacing the Liberals as Canada’s “natural governing party.”1 Because his party’s core of Anglo-Protestant supporters was not large enough to achieve this goal, Harper appealed to non- traditional Conservatives, including Jews, on the basis of shared social values. His efforts were matched by those of Jewish leaders and the government of Israel to win the backing of the government and its followers in the face of declining domestic support for Israel and the rise of militant Islamic fundamentalism. These factors accelerated a change in Canada’s Middle East policy that began under Prime Minister Paul Martin, from a carefully balanced stance to one that overwhelm- ingly favors Israel. Harper’s “pro-Israel politics,” Michelle Collins observes, has “won the respect—and support—of a large segment of Canada’s organized Jewish community.”2 However, it has isolated Canada from significant shifts in Middle East diplomacy and marginalized its ability to play a constructive role in the region. Harper and the Jewish Vote When he became leader of the Canadian Alliance party, which merged with the Progressive Conservatives to form the Conservative Party of Canada in 2004, Tom Flanagan says that Harper realized “The traditional Conservative base of Anglophone Protestants [was] too narrow to win modern Canadian elections.”3 In a speech to the conservative organization Civitas, in 2003, Harper argued that the only way to achieve power was to focus not on the tired wish list of economic conservatives or “neo-cons,” as they’d become known, but on what he called “theo-cons”—those social conservatives who care passionately about hot-button issues that turn on family, crime, and defense.
    [Show full text]
  • Alternative North Americas: What Canada and The
    ALTERNATIVE NORTH AMERICAS What Canada and the United States Can Learn from Each Other David T. Jones ALTERNATIVE NORTH AMERICAS Woodrow Wilson International Center for Scholars One Woodrow Wilson Plaza 1300 Pennsylvania Avenue NW Washington, D.C. 20004 Copyright © 2014 by David T. Jones All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced, scanned, or distributed in any printed or electronic form without permission. Please do not participate in or encourage piracy of copyrighted materials in violation of author’s rights. Published online. ISBN: 978-1-938027-36-9 DEDICATION Once more for Teresa The be and end of it all A Journey of Ten Thousand Years Begins with a Single Day (Forever Tandem) TABLE OF CONTENTS Introduction .................................................................................................................1 Chapter 1 Borders—Open Borders and Closing Threats .......................................... 12 Chapter 2 Unsettled Boundaries—That Not Yet Settled Border ................................ 24 Chapter 3 Arctic Sovereignty—Arctic Antics ............................................................. 45 Chapter 4 Immigrants and Refugees .........................................................................54 Chapter 5 Crime and (Lack of) Punishment .............................................................. 78 Chapter 6 Human Rights and Wrongs .................................................................... 102 Chapter 7 Language and Discord ..........................................................................
    [Show full text]
  • PRISM::Advent3b2 8.25
    HOUSE OF COMMONS OF CANADA CHAMBRE DES COMMUNES DU CANADA 39th PARLIAMENT, 1st SESSION 39e LÉGISLATURE, 1re SESSION Journals Journaux No. 1 No 1 Monday, April 3, 2006 Le lundi 3 avril 2006 11:00 a.m. 11 heures Today being the first day of the meeting of the First Session of Le Parlement se réunit aujourd'hui pour la première fois de la the 39th Parliament for the dispatch of business, Ms. Audrey première session de la 39e législature, pour l'expédition des O'Brien, Clerk of the House of Commons, Mr. Marc Bosc, Deputy affaires. Mme Audrey O'Brien, greffière de la Chambre des Clerk of the House of Commons, Mr. R. R. Walsh, Law Clerk and communes, M. Marc Bosc, sous-greffier de la Chambre des Parliamentary Counsel of the House of Commons, and Ms. Marie- communes, M. R. R. Walsh, légiste et conseiller parlementaire de Andrée Lajoie, Clerk Assistant of the House of Commons, la Chambre des communes, et Mme Marie-Andrée Lajoie, greffier Commissioners appointed per dedimus potestatem for the adjoint de la Chambre des communes, commissaires nommés en purpose of administering the oath to Members of the House of vertu d'une ordonnance, dedimus potestatem, pour faire prêter Commons, attending according to their duty, Ms. Audrey O'Brien serment aux députés de la Chambre des communes, sont présents laid upon the Table a list of the Members returned to serve in this dans l'exercice de leurs fonctions. Mme Audrey O'Brien dépose sur Parliament received by her as Clerk of the House of Commons le Bureau la liste des députés qui ont été proclamés élus au from and certified under the hand of Mr.
    [Show full text]
  • HT-EM Logos Stacked(4C)
    EXCLUSIVE POLITICAL COCOVERAGE:OVVEERARAGGE: NNEWS,REMEMBERING FEATURES, AND ANALYSISLYSISS INSIDEINNSSIDIDE ACCESS TO HILL TRANSPORTATION POLICY BRIEFING PP. 19-33 JEAN LAPIERRE P. 10 INFORMATION P. 14 CLIMBERS P.41 TWENTY-SEVENTH YEAR, NO. 1328 CANADA’S POLITICS AND GOVERNMENT NEWSWEEKLY MONDAY, APRIL 4, 2016 $5.00 NEWS SYRIAN REFUGEES NEWS NDP ‘Very, very Wernick planning to stick NDP policy few’ Syrian convention refugees came around PCO for a while, ‘one for the to Canada push on for ‘nimbleness and ages,’ many from refugee eager to vote camps: CBSA offi cial Bolduc agility’ in public service on Mulcair’s leadership BY ABBAS RANA “Very, very few” of the BY LAURA RYCKEWAERT thousands of Syrian refugees Privy Council who have come to Canada came Clerk Michael More than 1,500 NDP members from refugee camps and most had Wernick says will attend the party’s policy con- been living in rented apartments his current vention in Edmonton this week to in Syria’s neighbouring countries, priorities include help shape the NDP’s future. a senior CBSA offi cial told creating a public Many are eager to see a review Parliament in February. service that has vote on NDP Leader Tom Mulcair’s Conservatives are now accusing ‘nimbleness leadership and there’s much talk the federal government of convey- and agility’ so about the direction of the party and ing a false perception to Canadians it can meet its “soul,” after its crushing defeat that refugees were selected from the needs of a in the last federal election. refugee camps. But the government ‘busy, ambitious NDP analyst Ian Capstick says it has never said all Syrian government that said the event will be “one for the wants to do a lot ages.” Continued on page 35 in it’s mandate, but I think this Continued on page 34 would be true had we been NEWS SENATE dealing with a blue government NEWS PUBLIC SERVICE or an orange Sen.
    [Show full text]
  • Children: the Silenced Citizens
    Children: The Silenced Citizens EFFECTIVE IMPLEMENTATION OF CANADA’S INTERNATIONAL OBLIGATIONS WITH RESPECT TO THE RIGHTS OF CHILDREN Final Report of the Standing Senate Committee on Human Rights The Honourable Raynell Andreychuk Chair The Honourable Joan Fraser Deputy Chair April 2007 Ce document est disponible en français. This report and the Committee’s proceedings are available online at www.senate-senat.ca/rights-droits.asp Hard copies of this document are available by contacting the Senate Committees Directorate at (613) 990-0088 or by email at [email protected] Membership Membership The Honourable Raynell Andreychuk, Chair The Honourable Joan Fraser, Deputy Chair and The Honourable Senators: Romeo Dallaire *Céline Hervieux-Payette, P.C. (or Claudette Tardif) Mobina S.B. Jaffer Noël A. Kinsella *Marjory LeBreton, P.C. (or Gerald Comeau) Sandra M. Lovelace Nicholas Jim Munson Nancy Ruth Vivienne Poy *Ex-officio members In addition, the Honourable Senators Jack Austin, George Baker, P.C., Sharon Carstairs, P.C., Maria Chaput, Ione Christensen, Ethel M. Cochrane, Marisa Ferretti Barth, Elizabeth Hubley, Laurier LaPierre, Rose-Marie Losier-Cool, Terry Mercer, Pana Merchant, Grant Mitchell, Donald H. Oliver, Landon Pearson, Lucie Pépin, Robert W. Peterson, Marie-P. Poulin (Charette), William Rompkey, P.C., Terrance R. Stratton and Rod A. Zimmer were members of the Committee at various times during this study or participated in its work. Staff from the Parliamentary Information and Research Service of the Library of Parliament:
    [Show full text]
  • Ministerial Staff: the Life and Times of Parliament’S Statutory Orphans
    MINISTERIAL STAFF: THE LIFE AND TIMES OF PARLIAMENT’S STATUTORY ORPHANS Liane E. Benoit Acknowledgements Much of the primary research in support of this paper was gathered through interviews with more than twenty former and current public servants, lobbyists, and ex-exempt staff. I am sincerely grateful to each of them for their time, their candour and their willingness to share with me the benefit of their experience and insights on this important subject. I would also like to acknowledge the generous assistance of Cathi Corbett,Chief Librarian at the Canada School of Public Service,without whose expertise my searching and sleuthing would have proven far more challenging. 145 146 VOLUME 1: PARLIAMENT,MINISTERS AND DEPUTY MINISTERS And lastly, my sincere thanks to C.E.S Franks, Professor Emeritus of the Department of Political Studies at Queen’s University, for his guidance and support throughout the development of this paper and his faith that, indeed, I would someday complete it. 1 Where to Start 1.1 Introduction Of the many footfalls heard echoing through Ottawa’s corridors of power, those that often hit hardest but bear the least scrutiny belong to an elite group of young, ambitious and politically loyal operatives hired to support and advise the Ministers of the Crown. Collectively known as “exempt staff,”1 recent investigations by the Public Accounts Committee and the Commission of Inquiry into the Sponsorship Program and Advertising Activities,hereafter referred to as the “Sponsorship Inquiry”, suggest that this group of ministerial advisors can, and often do, exert a substantial degree of influence on the development,and in some cases, administration, of public policy in Canada.
    [Show full text]
  • 2004-05-12 Pre-Election Spending
    Federal Announcements Since April 1, 2004 Date Department Program Amount Time Span Location Recipeint MP Present Tally All Government 6,830,827,550 Per Day 151,796,168 1-Apr-04 Industry TPC 7,200,000 Burnaby, BC Xantrex Technologies Hon. David Anderson 1-Apr-04 Industry TPC 9,500,000 Richmond, BC Sierra Wireless Hon. David Anderson 2-Apr-04 Industry TPC 9,360,000 London, ON Trojona Technologies Pat O'Brien 5-Apr-04 Industry Canada Research Chairs 121,600,000 Calgary, AB Hon. Lucienne Robillard 7-Apr-04 Industry TPC 3,900,000 Drumondville, PQ VisuAide Hon. Lucienne Robillard 7-Apr-04 Industry TPC 5,600,000 Montreal, PQ Fermag Hon. Lucienne Robillard 13-Apr-04 Industry 75,000,000 Quebec, PQ Genome Canada Hon. Lucienne Robillard 26-Apr-04 Industry TPC 3,760,000 Vancouver, BC Offshore Systems Hon. David Anderson 28-Apr-04 Industry TPC 8,700,000 Vancouver, BC Honeywell ASCa Hon. David Anderson 3-May-04 Industry TPC 7,700,000 Ottawa, ON MetroPhotonics Eugene Bellemare 4-May-04 Industry TPC 7,500,000 Port Coquitlam, BC OMNEX Control; Systems Hon. David Anderson 6-May-04 Industry TPC 4,600,000 Kanata, ON Cloakware Corporation Hon. David Pratt 7-May-04 Industry TPC 4,000,000 Waterloo, ON Raytheon Canada Limited Hon. Andrew Telegdi 7-May-04 Industry TPC 6,000,000 Ottawa, ON Edgeware Computer Systems Hon. David Pratt 13-May-04 Industry Bill C-9 170,000,000 Ottawa, ON Hon. Pierre Pettigrew 14-May-04 Industry TPC 4,000,000 Brossard, PQ Adacel Ltd Hon.
    [Show full text]
  • Field Experimental Evidence on the Effectiveness of Direct Mail in A
    For Want of a Nail: Field Experimental Evidence on the Effectiveness of Direct Mail in a Political Campaign∗ Peter John Loewen D´epartement de science politique, Universit´ede Montr´eal [email protected] Daniel Rubenson Department of Politics, Ryerson University [email protected] This version printed on May 24, 2007 Note: This is a working dissertation article. Please do not quote or cite without permission. Abstract Direct mail is a pervasive feature of modern political campaigns. But does it work? This paper presents evidence from a field experiment into the effects of direct mail. Working with a front-running campaign during the race for the leadership for the Liberal Party of Canada, we randomly assigned a subset of convention delegates to receive a direct mail treatment. We then measured the effects of this treatment on delegates’ ratings and preference ordering of leadership candidates using a survey instrument. Our results indicate that despite its ubiquity, the direct mail had minimal and probably negative persuasive effects. 1. Introduction Does direct mail work? Political campaign managers certainly believe it does. In nearly every type of political campaign at every level of competition, some form of mail is used. Sometimes this mail serves the purpose of outlining a candidate’s position, or casting an opponent’s position in an unfavourable light. At other times it is used for fundraising. It also sometimes serves a mobilizing function, encouraging potential voters to participate in an election. Most often it takes up several of these tasks at once. Whatever its purpose, there seems little question that direct mail is a frequently used tool in politics generally.
    [Show full text]
  • Jean Augustine Fonds Inventory #515
    page 1 SERIES FILE LIST - S00376 Jean Augustine fonds Inventory #515 Call #: File: Title: Date(s): Note: 2007-022/087 (1) Carnival Play 'Mas in Grenada. --13 [before 1959?] photographs : b&w ; 13.9 x 8.5 cm and smaller. -- Annotations on reverse. 2007-022/087 (2) Photographs of Jean Augustine with family, [after 1959] friends and community. --64 photographs : col. and b&w ; 14.7 x 10.0 cm and smaller. - 28 negatives : col. ; 46 and 15 mm. -- Includes photo of Sr. Enda, nun who secured scholarship for Augustine in Grenada. 2007-022/087 (3) Carnival pageant in Grenada. -- 8 1962 photographs ; b&w ; 14 x 9 cm. 2007-022/087 (4) Toronto Teachers' College or Master's of [ca. 1963] Education graduation portrait proof. -- 10 photographs : col. ; 8.8 x 11.3 cm. 2007-022/087 (5) Jean Augustine in the classroom and with [after 1963] students. -- 53 photographs : col. & b&w ; 15 x 10 cm and smaller. - 15 negatives : col. ; 35 mm. 2007-022/087 (6) First Caribana parade. -- 9 photographs : col. 1967 ; 9 x 9 cm. 2007-022/087 (7) Caribana parade at Varsity Stadium and the [after 1967?] University of Toronto. -- 8 photographs : col. ; 8.8 x 11 cm. 2007-022/087 (8) School and class portraits. -- 89 photographs 1972 - 1988 : col. and b&w ; 20.5 x 25 cm and smaller + two yearbooks. 2007-022/087 (9) Jean Augustine in the classroom, at school [198-?] assemblies, with students and family. -- 25 photographs : col. and b&w ; 10 x 10.5 cm and 8.9 x 12.5 cm.
    [Show full text]
  • Thestar.Com | Investigation | Watchdog Needs Teeth
    TheStar.com | Investigation | Watchdog needs teeth http://www.thestar.com/News/article/226476 TODAY'S WEATHER LGT.RAIN 15 C 4 Day Forecast | Traffic Tuesday, January 08, 2008 | Today's Toronto Star PHOTOS VIDEO COLUMNISTS BLOGS PODCASTS RSS MOBILE NEWSLETTERS ALERTS nmlkji Search thestar.com nmlkj Search the Web Advanced Search | Full Text Article Archive HOME NEWS COMMENT BUSINESS SPORTS ENTERTAINMENT LIVING SCIENCE- TECH WHEELS.CA TRAVEL CLASSIFIEDS CAREERS Toronto & GTA | Ontario | Canada | World | Ideas | Global Voices | Obituaries | Local Highlights LOST IN MIGRATION, PART THREE Watchdog needs teeth JIM RANKIN / TORONTO STAR Toronto lawyer Ben Trister helped found the Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants in 2004 but in two years was declaring it an abject failure. Email story Print Choose text size Report typo or correction License this article SPEAK OUT: TELL US YOUR STORY VOICES: RESPONSE TO OUR SERIES PART 1: PROBLEMS IN THE SYSTEM PART 2: THE STAR UNDERCOVER (WITH VIDEOS) VIDEO: ONE CONSULTANT'S ADVICE PART 3: WATCHDOG NEEDS TEETH WHAT YOU NEED TO KNOW (IN 10 LANGUAGES) PREYING ON IMMIGRANTS UNCHECKED: LAWYERS (JULY 16) STAR SERIES SPARKS OPPOSITION FURY EDITORIAL: ONLY GOVERNMENT CAN END ABUSES COMMENT: VICTIMIZED AND 1 of 5 1/8/2008 9:27 PM TheStar.com | Investigation | Watchdog needs teeth http://www.thestar.com/News/article/226476 The Canadian Society of Immigration Consultants was NEGLECTED created to clean up and professionalize a troubled HOW WE CONDUCTED THIS INVESTIGATION industry. But the model has critical flaws SNAPSHOTS OF CANADIAN Jun 18, 2007 04:30 AM IMMIGRATION (FLASH) GRAPHS: REFUGE AND NICHOLAS KEUNG ACCEPTANCE JIM RANKIN STAFF REPORTERS STEP-BY-STEP: APPLYING FOR People who hope to call Canada home often seek advice from REFUGEE STATUS immigration consultants to fulfil their dreams.
    [Show full text]
  • Canada's Inadequate Response to Terrorism: the Need for Policy
    Fraser Institute Digital Publication February 2006 Canada’s Inadequate Response to Terrorism: The Need for Policy Reform by Martin Collacott CONTENTS Executive Summary / 2 Introduction / 3 The Presence of Terrorists in Canada / 4 An Ineffective Response to the Terrorism Threat / 6 New Legislation and Policies / 16 Problems Dealing with Terrorists in Canada / 21 Where Security Needs To Be Strengthened / 27 Problems with the Refugee Determination System / 30 Permanent Residents and Visitors’ Visas / 52 Canada Not Taking a Tough Line on Terrorism / 60 Making Clear What We Expect of Newcomers / 63 Working With the Muslim Community / 69 Concluding Comments and Recommendations / 80 Appendix A: Refugee Acceptance Rates / 87 References / 88 About the Author / 100 About this Publication / 101 About The Fraser Institute / 102 Canada’s Inadequate Response to Terrorism 2 Executive Summary Failure to exercise adequate control over the entry and the departure of non-Canadians on our territory has been a significant factor in making Canada a destination for terror- ists. The latter have made our highly dysfunctional refugee determination system the channel most often used for gaining entry. A survey that we made based on media reports of 25 Islamic terrorists and suspects who entered Canada as adults indicated that 16 claimed refugee status, four were admitted as landed immigrants and the channel of entry for the remaining five was not identified. Making a refugee claim is used by both ter- rorists and criminals as a means of rendering their removal from the country more difficult. In addition to examining specific shortcomings of current policies, this paper will also look at the reasons why the government has not rectified them.
    [Show full text]