winter post 2007

FALL 2 0 0 7 1the Post • A P A R K L A N D I N S T I T U T E P U B L I C A T I O N

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PostA P U B L I C A T I O N O F T H E P A R K L A N D I N S T I T U T E

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PostVolume XI, N˚7,Fall 2007

INSIDE THE POST LETTERS TO THE EDITOR, page 3

HEALTH AND WELLBEINGHuman dignity before dollars, page 4My work as a mental health advocate, page 5

HOUSINGHomelessness in Medicine Hat, page 6Alberta needs a low-income transit pass, page 7

ALBERTAWhat happened at Didsbury, page 8Adolescent Alberta, page 9

CONFERENCE RETROSPECTIVEConference illuminates energy issues, page 10Fuelling Norway’s future, page 11

ALBERTA’S ENVIRONMENTOil and gas industry rife with contradiction, page 12McClelland Lake watershed, page 13

Alberta geologists push their limits

Although it appears much progress hasbeen made in the public awareness of

global climate change, the battle is far fromover. Environmental progress dependsupon an understanding of how some Al-berta and Canadian scientists have con-tributed to public misinformation aboutthe very real threat of global warming.

One obvious source of misinformationis from the oil patch, because there isunnecessary fear that meaningful controlson greenhouse gas emissions will severelyimpact the bottom line of the Canadianand American oil and gas industry. Whilethe science of climate change is thediscipline responsible for ourunderstanding of global warming, there isanother valuable science that haschallenged the work that climatology hasprovided : petroleum geology. Thisdiscipline is one of the most important theworld has ever known, in terms of itscontribution to the quality of life enjoyed

by developed and industrialized nations.This science has provided the expertise inthe exploration and development of oiland natural gas in petroleum basins inevery region of the world. It has enjoyed areputation second to none in achievingeconomic objectives from which we haveall received benefits.

However, it’s the very fact thatpetroleum geology has been so successfuland has provided knowledge of the entireearth’s history through exploration anddevelopment work that has contributed toa misunderstanding of global warming’scauses. Since it is earth science that isresponsible for how we understand ancientgeological processes, many petroleumgeologists in the United States and Canadahave taken it upon themselves to projecttheir discipline into areas for which theyare not qualified. There is a superficialattitude that since geology has the bestknowledge of pre-human earth processesit should also have a say in the extent towhich current sources of greenhouse gasescan be attributed.

Because petroleum geologists are soaccustomed to dealing with natural globalforces it appears obvious to them thatprojections can be easily made into thepresent time and beyond. This mistakenview ignores the fundamental fact that 6.5billion people are now for the first timeacting as important geological agents ofglobal change and contribute largely to thegeneration of carbon dioxide and othergreenhouse gases. In addition, althoughknowledgeable about the earth’s physicalprocesses, some petroleum geologists havealso taken it upon themselves to be expertsin astronomy without justification. Somehave come to the conclusion that certainearth movements and their relationshipwith the sun are the major contributors toglobal temperature change. However, it isastronomy and climatology that bestexplains processes in this area - notgeology.

Presently, there are over 35,000petroleum geologists in the world and3,500 in Canada, mostly in Calgary.Associations of global warming deniers

include some leading Canadian geologistsand have taken it upon themselves topresent their opinions about globalwarming as facts to the political arena inEdmonton and Ottawa. The same hasoccurred in the United States wheregeologists have greatly influenced leadersin the U. S. House of Representative andthe Senate. These negative influences haveaffected important political decisions andeffectively denigrated the legitimate workof climate change experts, who havecorrectly identified the source of globalwarming as mainly from human activity.

Petroleum engineers have slowed efforts to combat climate change

J.R. CENTURY

Fortunately, both the Canadian andAmerican public have finally rejected thesemisleading accounts of global warmingrecently though the democratic process. InNov. 7, the Democrats won the U. S. Houseand Senate, a change that promisesenvironmental reform. Just one monthlater, Stephane Dion became the leader ofthe Liberal Party of Canada.

See ALBERTA GEOLOGISTS/ page 9

Since it is earth science thatis responsible for how we

understand ancientgeological processes, manypetroleum geologists in theUnited States and Canada

have taken it uponthemselves to project their

discipline into areas forwhich they are not qualified.

Defending democracy

Alberta observer reflects uponNicaragua’s latest election

CECILY MILLS

This fall, I had the opportunity to reconnect with Witness for Peace

(WTP), a Washington, DC-based grass-roots organization committed to chang-ing U.S. policies that contribute to povertyand oppression in Latin America. I hadworked with WTP in Nicaragua from1992-1995 and was now a member of adelegation observing the Nicaraguan elec-tions.

At that time, election fever was buildingas Sandinista National Liberation Front(FSLN) leader Daniel Ortega maintaineda significant lead in the polls. Winning thepresidency on the first round with 35 percent of the vote and a five per cent over hisclosest opponent seemed possible, butpolls are often wrong in Nicaragua. Inter-

ference in the elections by U.S. Ambassa-dor to Nicaragua Paul Trivelli and anumber of highly placed U.S. politiciansincreased concerns that Nicaraguanswould not be allowed to vote freely.

Elections have never gone to a secondround in Nicaragua. Historically, only twostrong parties have vied for the leadershipbut all this changed in this election. Thetraditional right-wing Liberal or PLC party- the party of outgoing president EnriqueBolaños and former president ArnoldoAlemán now under house arrest after mis-appropriating public funds - faced thebreakaway ALN Liberal party led byEduardo Montealegre. In the fall of 2005,the U.S. Ambassador noted that the divi-sion of the Liberal forces -

See NICARAGUA/ page 14

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Parkland Institute is an Albertawide research network thatexamines issues of public policy.The Institute is based in theFaculty of Arts at the Universityof Alberta and its research networkincludes members from most ofAlberta’s academic institutions andother organizations involved inpublic policy research. It operateswithin the established anddistinctive tradition of Canadianpolitical economy and is non-partisan. Parkland was founded in1996 and its mandate is to:· Conduct research on economic,

social, cultural, and politicalissues facing Albertans andCanadians.

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Opinions expressed in thisnewspaper reflect the views of thewriter, and not necessarily those ofthe Parkland Institute. Readers areinvited to submit letters andarticles, which may be edited forstyle and length. Information onup coming events and conferencesmay also be submitted. TheParkland Post is organized andadmininistered as an editorialcollective.Coordinating Editor:Caitlin CrawshawDirector:Gordon LaxerExecutive Director:Ricardo AcuñaResearch Director:Diana GibsonProgram/Admin Coordinator:Cheri HarrisPromotions/Outreach Coordinator:Mary Elizabeth ArcherAdministrative Assistant:Katia MichelDesign: Flavio RojasVolunteer Proofreader:Joyce Hildebrand

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Volume X, N˚6,Fall 2006

editorial

January is an interesting month. As thenew year dawns, there is always the hope

that perhaps this will be the year that thefederal and provincial governments willstart governing for the public interest andenacting policies that put people first.

Typically, however, those hopes aredashed as soon as government starts roll-ing again after the holidays.

This year it seems that the Conservativegovernment in Ottawa has made some-thing of a new year’s resolution of its own.Prime Minister Harper has articulated, inno uncertain terms, that his governmentwill make protection and conservation ofCanada’s environment a top priority.

The PM backed up his commitmentearly in January by shuffling RonaAmbrose out of the environment portfo-lio and replacing her with one of his cabi-net’s most aggressive and strategic politi-cians - former Treasury Board PresidentJohn Baird.

Harper also moved quickly to create anew cabinet committee on the environ-ment and energy security.

For those of you who are regular read-ers of the Post and/or followers of Park-land’s various research and programminginitiatives, the idea that an environmentaland energy security strategy should be atop priority will be nothing new. Parklandhas been advocating just such a strategyfor close to two years now.

In fact, the Parkland Institute even of-fered the Conservatives an opportunity toprofile and explain their strategy to par-ticipants at our tenth annual fall confer-ence this past November - an offer theydid not take us up on (even though thefederal NDs, Liberals and Greens all did).

Likewise, Alberta’s Conservative govern-

ment seems to have made something of aresolution to make energy and the envi-ronment a top priority. Premier Stelmachhas launched a royalty review committeeand has stated that one of his priorities isenvironmental sustainability.

Premier Stelmach has backed this up byissuing his Environment Minister a three-part mandate that includes updating Al-berta’s Climate Change Act, updating andresourcing the Water for Life Strategy, andaddressing the cumulative impacts of de-velopment on the environment. Whilethese are still just baby steps, the simpleacknowledgment of a problem is leaps andbounds beyond anything coming out ofthe Premier’s office in well over 10 years.

So, as I write this, we are fully one weekinto 2007, and my hopes for some effec-tive people-friendly environmental policyfrom our federal and provincial govern-ments have yet to be completely dashed.

However, I have never been one to let“auld acquaintance be forgot, and neverbrought to mind,” and my past knowledgeof both governments makes me a bit cyni-cal about whether they will actually be ableto follow through on this newfound com-mitment to the environment.

After all, the federal Conservatives spenta full year in office before realizing that theenvironment and energy security wereimportant issues to Canadians that shouldbe prioritized. What’s more, instead of re-placing the Clean Air Act with concretepolicy, they have opted to simply replacethe minister responsible.

The issue with Rona Ambrose was notthat she was at odds with Conservative en-vironmental policy, but that she failed toeffectively sell and promote those policies.That does not demonstrate a new commit-

ment to the environment, but rather a newcommitment to spin and public relations.

This reinforces the widely held theorythat Harper is not genuinely interested inthe environment and is rather interestedin appearing to be green in time for an im-minent federal election. It is no coinci-dence that this move occurs just after therelease of polls showing that the environ-ment has replaced health care as thenumber one issue for most Canadians.

This, combined with a commitment toconsult extensively with industry and gov-ernment (not NGOs and academic ex-perts) on environmental policy, makes itunlikely that any significant changes willcome our way in this area.

On a provincial level, although the pre-mier has yet to articulate any official plansor policy, Stelmach has already suggestedthat there are limits to his environmentalconscience. In one of his first media avail-abilities as premier, Stelmach made it clearthat he does not believe you can “touch thebrake” or move to slow down developmentin the energy sector.

In other words, his commitment to ad-dressing the cumulative impacts of devel-opment must be accomplished within abusiness-as-usual growth model. Clearly,this also sets serious limits on what can beaccomplished in terms of provincial envi-ronmental policy.

In the end, it seems that despite new gov-ernments, cabinets and environmentalepiphanies, not much will change from thestatus quo. There is, however, always thatslim sliver of hope that any January bringswith it.

Ricardo Acuña is the executive director ofthe Parkland Institute.

It is no coincidence that oil and gas royalties have gone from the topic of an outlier report by Parkland in1999 to a key topic in the fall leadership race. The public policy terrain in Alberta is shifting, due tofrustrations with the overheated economy and fears of the next bust, and the lack of a government plan,which is costing the public more every minute.

Parkland is busy filling this policy void. In the fall of 2006, the institute released Selling the Family Silver,a report on oil and gas royalties, corporate profits and the disregarded public. This report coincided withParkland’s excellent 10th anniversary conference, “Power for the People.” To build on the incredibleinterest we saw in the fall, Parkland has undertaken to map out a development strategy for the province.We have struck a working group and begun a dialogue process in order to make a significantcontribution to this critical policy void. Watch for a release in late spring.

Parkland is also building on the success of our recent work promoting research on healthcare issues,including the best-selling book, The Bottom Line. As next steps, we are organizing a conference, “ForgottenFamilies: Globalization and the Health of Canadians,” Feb. 6-8. Also, in recognition that one of the leadingfactors determining the health of our society is inequality, Parkland will be releasing a report at theFebruary conference on wealth and inequality in Alberta.

Thanks to all of those who contribute their time, energy and resources to Parkland’s research program.It is critical and exciting work that is changing the public policy landscape of the province.

RICARDO ACUÑA

New year, newgreen possibilites?

January brings its usual blend

of optimism and pessimism

Parkland Research Update

DIANA GIBSON

Parkland fills the policy void

Diana Gibson is theParkland Institute’sresearcher director.


Some of Stewart Steinhauer’s statements in his Fall 2006 Post article require comment.

For example, referring to the Indian residential school system, he repeatedly applies the word “genocide,” even invoking Hitler andthe Holocaust. Certainly the system was a misguided and often cruel attempt to assimilate the Indian people into the Europeanculture, but to call it a genocide is as false as it is slanderous. “Genocide” is the gravest word in the English language and deserves tobe used only with great care. Using it carelessly, as Steinhauer does, demeans both the word and the victims of real genocides.

Steinhauer goes on to accuse Europeans of “asserting that my indigenous ancestors were sub-human and incapable of formingsocieties or nations.” He fails to specify which Europeans. It certainly wasn’t the British, when they referred to “the several Nationsor Tribes of Indians with whom We are connected” in The Royal Proclamation of 1763, or when “Her Majesty the Queen” madetreaty with specified tribes.

Some Europeans had great respect for the Indian people and their cultures, and many did not. Categorizing them all under oneconvenient stereotype is hardly less egregious than the lesser among them stereotyping the Indians.

Bill LongstaffCalgary AB

Post writer misuses terms

Is Alberta right?Everyone thinks of Alberta as a politically right-leaning province, but is it? In 1993, Ralph Klein’s Conservative Party won 44.5 percent of the vote. The Liberals (39.73 per cent) and NDP (11.01 per cent) combined would have clearly won the election, even in asupposedly conservative province. The result was a slashing of public jobs, significant downsizing of social services, privatization,escalating post-secondary tuition fees, the closing of much-needed hospitals, and an affordable-housing crisis. Alberta’s HeritageFund has remained stagnant for the past 30 years, while Norway’s is over $250 billion US - accumulated in just the last 10 years.The centre-left parties in Alberta could have easily prevented the disintegration of social services and could have built animpressive oil fund with something called strategy and cooperation.

Since 1993, King Ralph, man of the common folk, has increased Conservative support in Alberta. In 2005, the Conservatives in theprovincial election garnered 47 per cent of the vote. The Liberals had 29 per cent and the NDP 10 per cent of the vote.

The potential upcoming 2007 provincial election presents a once-in-a-generation opportunity for the left to create a governmentin Alberta. Unless the Liberals, NDP and Greens form a coalition, though, there is no hope for either one of these parties to forma government.

A solution to this problem would be for the progressive Liberals, NDP and Greens to hold pre-election elections in each of theridings in Alberta. The party that wins the pre-election in each riding will be the only party of the three in that riding that will runa candidate in the upcoming Alberta provincial election. Liberal, NDP and Green supporters will vote for just that one candidate.This would prevent the splitting of the left vote, and would allow all three parties to elect MLAs to the legislature. After theelection, the three parties would form a coalition to counterbalance the Conservatives and make them more accountable, or, in thebest case scenario, the coalition could even form the government. From there, they could finally implement a proportionalrepresentational election system.

Will the left continue to split the vote to allow the Conservatives to rule for another 35 years? Or will the left build a coalition toform a government that is more reflective of the views of Albertans and more accountable? Continuing with the same old strategyis just plain wrong. The left needs to get it right this time.

David WilsonCalgary, AB

I find it interesting that in three recent elections, the masses chose underdogs over the front runners. In Edmonton’s last municipalelection, dark horse Stephan Mandel was picked over acclaimed front runners Bill Smith and Robert Noce. In the Liberalleadership race in Montreal this December, it was Stephane Dion who unexpectedly won out over front runners Michael Ignatieffand Bob Rae. The trend was repeated in Alberta, where underdog Ed Stelmach came out on top over Jim Dinning and Ted Mortonto become leader of the Progressive Conservative party and Alberta’s Premier.

Do I detect a faint hope that voters are becoming aware that they should no longer accept decisions made in corporate boardroomsto be in their best interests?

William DascavichEdmonton, AB

Underdog victories a sign of changing times

In loving memory of my father...

Unearthing the real history of residential schools

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letters to the editor


health & wellbeing

If you’re an adult with a disability thewhole picture changes. The bright fu-

ture promised by countless news storiesisn’t a reality for many adults with disabili-ties who strive to make cultural contribu-tions.

When it comes to the province’s wealth,people with disabilities unable to work re-ceive a very small share. A document com-piled by the Alberta Disabilities Forum inNovember 2006 points out the need forcost-of-living increases in Assured Incomefor the Severely Handicapped (AISH) andrental subsidies in addition to the basicAISH amount.

The government must put more moneyinto providing affordable housing that isaccessible for persons with disabilities (adifficult task when you consider the rangeof types of disabilities for which housingmust be made accessible, including men-tal and emotional), along with more homeand personal care services. To allow peo-ple to become meaningfully involved intheir communities, our government mustprovide grants to municipalities to helpthem increase access to affordable and ac-cessible transportation that serves personswith a range of levels of disability (not justlimited to those who use wheelchairs orhave little to no mobility).

The Alberta Disabilities Forum states,“When building Alberta communities,consideration must be given to the inclu-sion and accessibility for Albertans withdisabilities (e.g. housing, communityleagues, recreation centres). As an exam-ple of inclusive communities, all new play-grounds in Edmonton must meet a cer-tain accessibility standard. This modelmust be applied beyond playgrounds to allaspects of the community.”

The ACT Centre in the east end of Ed-monton is an example of how persons withdisabilities are excluded from accessing thevery facilities intended to enrich their lives.Many individuals with disabilities that donot preclude their taking public transpor-tation have no access to the ACT Centrebecause there is no way to get there on thecity bus. If they don’t drive, have someoneto drive them, or qualify for the disabled

transportation service in the city, then theyhave no way to take advantage of the op-portunities offered by the Centre.

I have a disability that leaves me ambu-latory but unable to hike the distance fromthe bus stop to the ACT Centre. I recentlymissed a disability arts festival that I hadbeen asked to cover for the Post simplybecause of a lack of transportation. I don’tqualify for Disabled Adult Transit Servicebecause there are so many others who needthe service more desperately, so I miss outon opportunities to be active in my com-munity. Because I am not disabled enough,I must walk two blocks to a main bus routein all types of weather. I am not disabled

pounded by the fact that there are oftengaps in services.”

So few of our citizens living with dis-abilities are working and contributing toour society in expected ways because theirtime, money, and other resources are spenttrying to provide the supports they needfor themselves. If these supports were read-ily accessible to them, the greatest barrierto their active participation in their com-munities would be removed.

Roxanne Ulanicki, an advocate for per-sons with disabilities, spoke at the HumanRights Day held at the Art Gallery of Al-berta on Dec. 10. She told her story elo-quently, but hers is not the only story of

Human dignity before dollarsDoes the “Alberta Advantage” benefit persons with disabilities?

likely that someone with a disability willqualify for support.

Many adults find themselves flounder-ing. How many individuals have access toa medical professional who understandstheir disability and the effects that it hason their lives? Persons with mental healthdisabilities are truly struggling becausethere is such a severe lack of psychiatristsin our province. General physicians whomay be uncomfortable prescribing psycho-tropic medications or assessing a person’smental health are forced to step into theshoes of those who have been speciallytrained to make those judgments. Evenfinding mental health professionals forcounselling or therapy proves to be a dif-ficult task. Practitioners at Alberta MentalHealth are overworked, and people whohave a hard time fighting for regular ap-pointment times or other services often fallthrough the cracks.

How many can access medical equip-ment without too much hassle? If some-one who is hearing-impaired needs twohearing aids, Alberta Aids to Daily Livingonly covers one at a time. That person andhis/her family are left to appeal to socialservice organizations and service clubs likethe Rotary Club to help the person in need.Those who have limited eyesight and re-quire a service animal or special equip-ment have to appeal to agencies and clubsto get what they need.

Alberta is known all over Canada as aplace where opportunity abounds, but noteveryone is able to take advantage of thoseopportunities. Even if people’s disabilitiesare not visible or not as severe as those ofothers, they deserve the support of theirprovince when they are trying to build alife for themselves and become active par-ticipants in the Alberta Advantage.

Lana Phillips is an Edmonton writer whohas written for numerous publications,including Our Voice and EdmontonStreet News.

LANA PHILIPS

People living in Alberta talk

about the “Alberta Advantage.”

We live in a debt-free province,

the job market is booming and

people from all over Canada flock

to Alberta as if it is the promised

land. On the surface, the province

seems to offer a lot, but in reality,

these advantages aren’t available

to everyone.

enough, so I am left to prove that I am able-bodied enough to do everything that I amexpected to, even though my body knowsbetter.

A fairly comprehensive system providesservices to children under the age of eight-een who have disabilities. After they be-come adults, the picture shifts, and theyare forced to search out help for themselvesinstead of having the help readily accessi-ble. The Alberta Disabilities Forum’s state-ment on access to disability supports issimple and stark: “Finding required serv-ices becomes a full-time job. This is com-

its kind in Alberta. She says that at 18, “weare thrown into a bureaucratic systemwhich constantly requires us to prove weare disabled enough. Suddenly we have tobeg for what was once given without judg-ment.”

Much of her income through employ-ment with the federal government wenttoward providing her own disability sup-ports, yet that income kept her from quali-fying for most of the available support pro-grams. As anyone who receives AISH inAlberta already knows, getting married orliving common-law makes it even less

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My work as a MentalHealth Advocate

JAMAL ALI

health & wellbeing

As an individual afflicted with schizo-phrenia, I am working as a mental

health advocate to break down the stigmasurrounding mental illness. I find thiswork to be rewarding and exciting, par-ticularly my involvement with the Schizo-phrenia Society of Alberta (Calgary chap-ter) and Potential Place Clubhouse - twomental health organizations dedicated toprotecting the human rights of those withmental illness.

The need for greaterhousing optionsThe right to housing is one of the humanrights to which we are all entitled - but forthose with mental illness, this right is notalways realized.

Recently, my advocacy work led me to aparticipatory action research project thatinvestigated housing for people withschizophrenia. The research was con-ducted by members of the Peer SupportUnsung Heroes Program at the Schizo-phrenia Society of Alberta (Calgary chap-ter), led by Dr. Barbara Schneider from theUniversity of Calgary. In April 2005, ninemembers afflicted with schizophrenia, in-cluding myself, began conducting the re-search of the project, entitled, “Housing forPeople with Schizophrenia: Dilemmas ofCare and Control.” Participatory researchinvolves members of a community groupin meaningful participation in all stages ofthe research process, including choosingthe topic, developing the research question,gathering the data, analyzing the data anddisseminating and using the result.

The tension between care and controlin the relationship between people withmental illness and housing and medicalservice providers is the central theme aris-ing from our research. What we found isthat people with psychiatric disabilitieswant, need and appreciate the help andcare they receive from family members,

mental health professionals, governmentagencies and other service providers. Butto receive that care, they must submitthemselves to intrusive surveillance andcoercive control over many (perhaps all)aspects of their lives. If they are not will-ing to do this, they run the risk that careincluding housing-will be withheld. Ourresearch team formulated recommenda-tions for service providers which reflect thevoices and views of people with schizo-phrenia.

Our recommendations included a cen-tral agency for the city the specializes infinding housing options for people withpsychiatric disabilities. Service providersat this agency should follow someone rightthrough the system, from homeless tohoused, to ensure that people do not getlost in the system. This agency would pro-vide advocates to mediate disputes be-tween the mentally ill and housing provid-ers or landlords.

The research team also emphasized theneed for more education for service pro-viders and landlords about mental disor-ders. Many lack compassion and do nottreat us with respect and dignity.

Families are often an important stopgap,preventing schizophrenics from becominghomeless, and also require educationabout different housing options, as well assupport.

It is important for a person’s commu-nity to contain resources on housing forthe mentally ill, so that those with mentalillness can be supported as they work to-wards greater independence. We are veryfragile when we start to do things, and needassistance in doing taxes, saving money,learning about insurance, providing forourselves in the future, learning aboutnutrition, and managing stress.

Reducing control while providing careis possible as long as the service providersand the mentally ill work together. Serviceproviders must work with clients to helpthem make choices, but should not tellthem which decisions to make. People withmental illnesses have a right to their pri-vate lives. They need help with sorting outthe paperwork required for receiving As-sured Income for the Severely Handi-capped (AISH), for instance, but they don’twant others to decide if they have room-mates, or to intrude on their private lives.

It is time that people with psychiatricdisabilities have the opportunity to ex-panded access to housing. We should be

able to live where we want to live. Most ofus dream of living in our own homes inthe community, and all of us desire per-manent housing of some kind. Housingshould be flexible, accommodating peo-ples financial needs, their pets, etc. Gov-ernment needs to make subsidized hous-ing a priority, by offering tax incentives foraffordable housing or requiring that build-ers make a certain percentage of their unitsaffordable housing.

ing to erode the stigma. I am very opti-mistic that the youngsters we have im-pacted will be the future generation andleaders that would greatly assist in elimi-nating the stigma and discrimination fac-ing the mentally ill in our society.

Potential Place ClubhouseactivismPotential Place Clubhouse is for peoplewith different types of mental illness. Thefocus of this organization is the belief thatwe all have capabilities, talents andstrengths that can be utilized. My partici-pation in their work-related activities hasproven to be an important ingredient tomy wellness. Aside from work-related ac-tivities, the fostering of relationships isencouraged. The importance of socializ-ing is part of Potential Place’s philosophy.Taking part in the Clubhouse coffeehouses,dances and other social events nourishesmy mental health. Entering the doors ofthis organization creates an atmosphere ofempowerment among its members. Thisis the spirit and magic that becomes thecatalyst towards the well being of its mem-bers.

Too often those with mental illnesses are stigmatized and discriminated

against when they ought to be treated with respect and dignity. We need

to be seen as people, not a label with respect to our diagnosis: we are

not just ‘schizophrenic,’ ‘biopolar’ or ‘depressed.’

At some point in the future, the researchteam hopes to present their research toinfluential authorities at the local and pro-vincial level. Our objective is to bringawareness to the housing crisis facing thementally ill in Alberta. Our hope is thatthe research will convince the decisionmakers to help in the process of buildingmore affordable housing.

Community outreachmakes a differenceMy work has also led me to present to highschool students taking psychology coursesor Career and Life Management, throughthe Schizophrenia Society’s Partnershipprogram.

I have taken the opportunity to presentwith several family members in highschools in Calgary, Didsbury, Cochraneand Okotoks. The program involves a per-son with schizophrenia speaking abouttheir illness, alongside a family memberwho speaks on their experience as acaregiver.

The impact of the presentations hasbeen great. The feedback from the studentsand teachers has indicated that theirknowledge of schizophrenia has greatlyincreased. Educating young minds aboutthe disorder is an important step by help-

At Potential Place, my colleagues and Ihave worked together with other organi-zations such as Calgary Low Income Coa-lition (CLIC), Vibrant CommunitiesCalgary and the Schizophrenia Society toseek an increase in AISH from the Albertagovernment and a reduced transit passfrom The City of Calgary for all AISH re-cipients residing in the city.

Reflecting on our success, we were ableto get an increase in AISH benefits from$855 per month to $1,000 per month. Alsowe were able to get a discounted transitpass from $70 to $35 per month.

Working together with my colleagues atthe Schizophrenia Society and PotentialPlace has greatly instilled meaning andpurpose to my life. Both organizationshave connected me to groups such as CLICand Vibrant Communities Calgary. Atransformation has taken place in my life:from a miserable individual with an un-treated mental disorder during my earlieryears to a mental health advocate dedicatedto the rights of the mentally ill. My jour-ney of hope and happiness continues.

Jamal Ali is a writer, researcher and mentalhealth advocate residing in Calgary since1967. He holds a BA degree in PoliticalScience from the University of Calgary.


housing

I was about to walk past him when I spotted the snake coiled around his neck. It’s

not everyday I see a boa constrictor, so Istruck up a conversation. Where are youfrom? Where are you going? What do youfeed that snake? What are you doing here?Is the snake warm enough? He answeredmy nosy questions good-naturedly.

“The snake eats live mice and hamstersand it keeps warm with body heat,” he toldme.

He had travelled by bus from down eastand was begging for money for bus fare toget to a relative’s home in B.C. He said hewas sleeping on the bus - at least, that washis story. I gave him a bit of change andwished him luck. Later, I phoned Grey-hound and was surprised when the voiceon the other end laughed at his sad story.They don’t allow snakes on the bus. It wasthen that I realized that likely little of whathe had told me was the truth. In exchangefor some change, he gave the one thing hehad: a story.

I like a good story with a happy ending,but when it comes to homelessness, theyare few and far between. Not everyone hashis or her very own cosy bed to sleep inevery night and the warm knowledge thatit will be there tomorrow. According to theMedicine Hat Community Housing Soci-ety website (www.mhchs.ca), the averageincome of a Medicine Hat resident is lessthan both the Albertan and Canadian av-erage. In fact, according to 2000 tax data,58 per cent of Medicine Hat residents fileda tax return with an income of less than$25,000 per year.

Furthermore, Medicine Hat has a va-cancy rate of 1.7 per cent and a growth rateof 2.2 per cent, which has left many low-income families scrambling for housing.

Social housing is one option for thosestruggling to find affordable housing, butright now around 200 families and indi-viduals are waiting for social housing inMedicine Hat, and it will probably takeabout 15 months before they receive theirhousing.

Those needing immediate help oftenturn to the Salvation Army, whose Medi-cine Hat homeless shelter houses morethan 700 people each year, according towww.mhchs.ca. Others turn to places like

the Transcanada Motel, which was con-verted into transitional housing for adultsin 2002 and contains 19 units.

Both options are only temporary solu-tions, and for many people in MedicineHat, there are still barriers to finding per-manent shelter. However, a number ofcommunity efforts are working to changethe situation.

One solution has been the CommunityAction Plan on Housing and Homeless-ness, which is a project of the Medicine HatCommunity Housing Society. In Octoberand November of 2005, project staff con-ducted a survey using focus groups, a pub-lic forum, and a questionnaire to consultwith the community on housing services.Questions were also asked about what ad-ditional needs exist and what prioritiesshould be set. As a result of the consult, aplan was formulated and a document ofthe plan is posted on www.mhchs.ca.Focus groups in the survey recognized theimportant role of community supports forsuccessfully helping those in need, espe-cially “the chronically homeless and thosewith mental health and/or addiction is-sues.”

Another community venture to con-front homelessness is the Crisis AssistanceNetwork, which consists of partners fromvarious non-profit organizations. Thegroup is geared to helping individuals orfamilies in need of shelter, food or cloth-ing, and includes a number of agencies,including the Miywasin Centre, which of-fers transitional housing and related sup-ports for aboriginals in need.

For many low-income people, privatesector housing can be out of reach becauseof the start up expenses: security and util-ity deposits, moving expenses, and the firstmonth’s rent, including the costs associ-ated with securing personal identification,references and a bank account. People maybe restricted further by the size of theirfamily, or if they smoke or have pets. Ap-pearance can play a role in successfullyobtaining housing.

Darren Rudd of Medicine Hat Home-less and Community Initiatives explainsthat some common causes of homeless-ness include mental health and addiction,as well as poor socialization, work skills

and budgeting skills. Rudd believes thatsupports need to be available for peopleafter they leave the transitional housingsystem, since it can be challenging for cli-ents to seek private sector housing solu-tions. People often need the support of anagency that offers guidance with budget-ing as well as work and social skills, saysRudd.

He explains that there are a few sup-ported housing options for people withthese kinds of needs. One is the SalvationArmy-sponsored Champion Centre,which houses men in rooms above theircafé in in a room-and-board situation. Itis a supported environment with an em-phasis on family values.

But when it comes to homelessness,housing options are only part of the solu-tion. Ultimately, employment is a key ele-ment. And part of securing a job meanslooking the part. One manager of a down-town apartment told me she can’t under-stand why tenants come and go so often.She can’t understand why people are so un-stable and “aimless.” After all, “there is workin the Hat in the fast food industry,” shetold me.

But I wondered about the “look” that is[JH1]characteristic of the fast food em-ployee: a college-aged, clean-cut appear-ance. Does it really make sense to apply forthese types of jobs when you don’t thinkyou fit the profile?

The stigma of being homeless or low-income is also a hindrance for those seek-ing stability. For instance, the Tim Hortonsdowntown is an inviting spot for touristsor shoppers, with nearby park benches andflower beds. But this summer, the districtcracked down on loiterers out of a desireto rid the area of the homeless and “riff-raff” hanging out downtown during busi-ness hours, socializing and perhaps notlooking for work as diligently as the gov-ernment issue books advise.

Rhetoric concerning loiterers and thosewho spend daylight hours in idle socializ-ing downtown indicate there is resentmentabout “streeters” and their activities. Thetype of social skills and work skills requiredto hold down a job is not learned socializ-ing on the street. Street smarts are a dif-ferent skill set. Agencies such as Commu-

nity Employment Services, Human Re-sources and Employment, and SalvationArmy offer support services related to jobfinding.

However, which comes first - the chickenor the egg? Without the security of hous-ing, there’s not as much motivation forseeking employment. It becomes a viciouscircle. Rudd says that “the poor have al-ways been there and will always be a partof society.” He suggests that permanenthousing with support will stabilize people’sfutures and take the desperation out oftheir lives. Once food and shelter needs aremet, the other issues of addiction, mentalillnesses, family abuse, illiteracy, ill health,and poor life skills can be faced with a posi-tive outlook.

With the link established between hous-ing and social supports, there’s no doubtthat volunteering for a social agency canmake a real difference. One of the issuesmentioned in the plan is the need for sup-port agencies to work more closely withhousing providers.

According to Karen Ann Hall and PatSpecht, co-ordinators for Citizens Advo-cacy, another member organization ofCAN, volunteers are needed to work onthe “front lines.” It’s a more personal do-nation than cash, says Hall, since “volun-teering keeps you involved, people becomereal - flesh and blood - you become awareof the issues, volunteer and give with theheart.”

Of course, agencies appreciate any mon-etary gifts, they add, and whenever thereare food and clothing drives in MedicineHat, Hatters are always very generous.

Those interested in donating their timecan check out www.volunteerinthehat.cafor more information.

Tovah Isaacson has lived in “the Hat” forthe last three years, but has lived in fiveprovinces during her lifetime and appreci-ates Canada’s diversity. She has a BFA indrama from the University of Lethbridge,which she earned as a middle-aged person.Tovah enjoys doing volunteer work in thecommunity, particularly for CitizensAdvocacy, Veiner Centre and the Shawtelevision program Enriching Your Life.

Homeless in Medicine HatDespite Alberta’s economy, many

are being left behind

TOVAH ISAACSON

On a bustling downtown street in Medicine Hat, on a cold winter day,

shoppers are often seen hurrying out of stores, coats open, to the warm

cars that await them.

At the same time, there is likely to be someone not nearly as blessed,

standing under a nearby awning watching people walk past, like the

young man who caught my attention recently.

“Hey, can you spare some change?” he asked, cringing as the snow

blew across his dishevelled hair and ripped coat.


housing

Former Premier Ralph Klein admittedthat the Alberta government did not

have a plan to deal with the problems as-sociated with the province’s economicboom. Alberta’s new premier, Ed Stelmach,promises to remedy this by dealing withthe acute shortage of affordable housingand by tackling the lack of skilled workersin Alberta. Premier Stelmach’s early at-tempts to address the rising costs of livingresulting from our economic boom arecommendable. However, as part of theprovincial strategy to remove employmentbarriers, the government should providesupport for affordable transportation.

According to a Calgary transit survey, ofthe more than 100,000 Calgarians livingon low-income, 55 per cent use transitregularly (more than three times perweek). However, the cost of public trans-portation is a barrier for many individu-als and families living on low income.Someone working for minimum wage ($7per hour) would have to work over 10hours to purchase an adult Calgary tran-sit pass ($75/month), making the cost oftransportation extremely prohibitive.

The government of Alberta’s websitestates that “nearly 400,000 jobs will be cre-ated in Alberta over the next 10 years, butonly 300,000 new workers are expected toenter the labour market. This means theprovince may face a shortfall that may beas high as 100,000 workers.” Increasingaccess to transportation by removing in-come as a barrier will facilitate greater par-ticipation in the workforce and in ourcommunities for Albertans with limitedincomes. Removing this financial barrierwill benefit not only people living on lowincomes, but also small business ownersand other employers by vastly increasingthe labour pool.

Many American and European cities areincreasing the affordability of public trans-portation to attract larger and more reli-able work forces and to save in a variety ofways. The benefits of this approach areinnumerable, contributing to multi-mil-lion dollar savings in health care, educa-tion, and criminal justice systems. Afford-able transportation also provides a vitallink to friends and family for seniors, thedisabled and children.

In Alberta, a provincial affordable trans-portation program would enable up to400,000 low-income Albertans to accessand maintain employment, volunteer intheir community, buy groceries and otheressentials, attend medical appointmentsand places of worship, take their childrento recreation activities and enjoy the manygreat opportunities our cities, towns andrural communities have to offer.

Some may argue that cities are respon-sible for municipal transportation issues,but the inability to afford transportationis an issue of income security, which is theresponsibility of our provincial govern-ment.

The ongoing bickering over jurisdic-tional responsibility is depriving oureconomy of workers, putting a strain onour social services and health-care systems,and limiting the ability of children, sen-iors and people with disabilities to visitfriends and family and make a more mean-ingful contribution to our communities.

In the interim, Grande Prairie, Calgaryand Edmonton agreed to fund and imple-ment reduced fare public transit programsfor Assured Income for the SeverelyHandicapped (AISH) recipients. In Janu-ary 2006, The City of Calgary expandedits AISH transit pass program to includeall Calgary residents with incomes below75 per cent of Statistics Canada’s Low In-come Cut Off lines.

In 2006, more than 10,000 low-incomeCalgarians registered for the Universal LowIncome Transit Pass (ULITP) program.However, due to budgetary concerns, TheCity of Calgary has increased the cost ofthe monthly pass from $35 in 2006 to$37.50 for 2007. The City of Calgary alsoannounced that its program is scheduledto expire in December 2007, due to finan-cial constraints. If this program is can-celled, thousands of people may again facereduced access to the economic and socialopportunities that other Calgarians takefor granted.

In order to secure funding for Calgary’sULITP program and as part of a broadergrassroots movement to provide province-wide affordable public transportation,more than 16,000 constituents from acrossAlberta mailed postcards and letters totheir MLAs supporting Fair Fares for low-income Albertans. In response, the govern-ment of Alberta committed in September2006 to establish a cross-departmentalprovincial committee to further explorethe issue of affordable transportation.

Calgary has requested provincial fund-ing support for affordable transportationin the amount of $2.25 per capita. Appliedto all Alberta municipalities, it is estimatedthat the provision of affordable transpor-tation requires a provincial investment ofless than $8 million annually, a small frac-tion of the Alberta government’s projectedsurplus of $4.1 billion in 2006-07.

Alberta’s economy is currently the envyof Canada. However, unless the provincesuccessfully manages its boom, we willhave squandered the opportunity to pro-vide an inclusive, thriving, sustainableeconomy. Alberta needs an affordabletransportation program to realize these

goals. It is hoped that the government ofAlberta will partner with municipalitiesbefore the end of 2007 to provide equita-ble access to the economic, social, culturaland family life of our communities.

If you have any questions about the af-fordable transportation needs ofAlbertans, please contact your MLA. MLAcontact information is available at:www.electionsalberta.ab.ca/streetkey.

For more information on Fair Fares, orto become involved with the provincial ini-tiative in support of affordable transpor-tation, visit www.vibrantcalgary.com. Formore information on Calgary’s UniversalLow Income Transit Pass program, pleasecontact Calgary Transit at 403-262-1000or visit www.calgarytransit.com.

Ramona Johnston, the director of VibrantCommunities Calgary, is a member of FairFares, an action team that is committed toaddressing the affordable transportationneeds of Albertans.

Alberta needs a universallow income transit passSubsidized transportation

will benefit economy

RAMONA JOHNSTON

“A Low Income Transit Pass allowsme to leave my home and access thecity for my employment, doctorappointments, community activities,personal needs, groceries, othershopping, visits with my childrenand personal contact with my rela-tives. To be independent on trans-portation keeps my morale up toachieve things by handling themmyself and keeps me sane. Thanks.”

- Calgarian living on low income

A More Democratic Alberta

Making it Happen

It has been clear forsome time that Albertahas a substantial“democratic deficit.”The question is what todo about it.

Public Interest Alberta(PIA) is offeringcitizens around theprovince a chance tohave a say and play arole in bringing aboutdemocratic renewal inour province.

Please plan to attend these forums from1:00 – 4:30 PM in the following cities and dates:

March 3 - Red DeerMarch 10 - LethbridgeMarch 11 - Medicine HatMarch 16 - AthabascaMarch 17 - EdmontonMarch 23 - CamroseMarch 24 - CalgaryMarch 31 - Grande Prairie

Registration is only $10.

(Please register early as space is limited)

Please contact Public Interest Alberta

at (780) 420-0471, E-mail [email protected]

or register online at www.pialberta.org

Co- sponsored by the Parkland Institute


alberta

The media has given us a window intothese young men and the town of

Didsbury, but their accounts aren’t com-plete.

Most of the town residents who cameout that day were very angry and some toldus what they knew about these boys. I metpeople that day who had known one orboth young men for a long time. A mothertold us that her son had had troubles withDaniel Charles Haskett since grade six, andthe conflict had started over a girl. The pic-ture of angry protesters crowding the vancarrying Haskett made headlines and vid-eos of the scene turned up onwww.YouTube.com, an internationalwebsite for people to upload and viewvideo footage. The latest revelation is thatthe man accused of mischief for kickingthe van when leaving the courthouse hasbeen dismissed from the RCMP recruit-ing process because charges are pendingagainst him.

Local resident Tamara Chaney is circu-lating a petition in support of a bill (C-373) promising harsher penalties for peo-ple convicted of animal cruelty. The peti-tion has received more than 48,000 signa-tures across the country as of the writingof this article and will be presented to Par-liament early in the New Year.

On the other hand, a couple of youngpeople who had known Haskett, fromschool were there in support of someonethey didn’t believe was guilty of the crimes.They yelled, “We love you, Charles!” to the

dismay of those angry protesters who hadcome to protest the death of Daisy Duke.The local humane society examined theHaskett home and determined that in spiteof the accusations, another dog, Diesel, wasnot in danger of being abused and decidednot to take the dog out of the home.

What happened

at Didsbury

Protester discovers mixed communityreaction to animal abuse caseLANA PHILIPS

Most Post readers in Alberta have either read about or seentelevision coverage of the dog cruelty trial in Didsbury, Alberta,and the two young men (one who was a minor at the time of theincident, but turned 18 two weeks later) who are accused of thecrime. After attending the first court date and seeing thecommunity’s outraged reaction to the accused individuals inperson, I found myself shocked at the repercussions of it all in asmall town where almost everyone knows each other.

Any time violence touches us in such araw way that it makes us want to retaliatein kind, our lives are changed forever. Cru-elty toward animals strikes at the very heartof who we are because they are voicelessand defenseless. Even those of us who havebecome jaded and immune to news sto-ries of violence react with anger toward theplight of an animal who has been hurt.

Working for peace and the good of ourcommunities means working for the goodof all in the community - including ouranimals. Protecting animals by stricter laws

The few people who support the fami-lies of the two accused individuals gener-ally stay silent out of fear of retribution,and there have been many threats of fur-ther violence in what was previously apeace-loving small town. The RCMP re-cruit was so angry about what he believedhad transpired that he may possibly losethe chance to fulfill his long-term goal.Didsbury is on the national map now, andnot for reasons that anyone would want.Will their lives ever be the same? Even ifthe charges are found to be unfounded, hasthe community reached the point of noreturn to their peaceful lives? And whatabout the lives of these families and theseyoung men?

against cruelty means that we protectvoiceless, defenseless humans. Many do-mestic violence offenders often start outas animal abusers, as do serial killers.

Fighting for animal rights is a sign of acompassionate, involved citizenship. Acommunity that strives to end violencemust protect both people and animals.

Lana Phillips is an Edmonton writer whohas written for numerous publications,including Our Voice and EdmontonStreet News.

On the other hand, a couple ofyoung people who had known

Haskett, from school were therein support of someone they

didn’t believe was guilty of thecrimes. They yelled, “We love

you, Charles!” to the dismay ofthose angry protesters


Dion has promised a greater commitmentto bringing Canada into the communityof nations which support the Kyoto Ac-cord, allowing Canada to play its legitimaterole in dealing with climate change prob-lems.

Other positive changes are also in theworks. In the past, major oil industry cor-porations such as ExxonMobil have beenaverse to accepting the role that humanscontribute to global warming and, at thesame time, granted substantial sums toorganizations that promote the denial ofglobal warming. This is now changing, asthe new chairman and CEO ofExxonMobil, Rex Tillerson, has reversedcourse from the previous management.Tillerson has asserted, “We should takesteps now to reduce emissions in effectiveand meaningful ways” and provides hopethe global fossil fuel industry along withauto manufacturers and other major en-ergy players will take meaningful measuresto deal with the consequences of globalwarming.

Further cause for hope is the fact thatthe State of California has passed stringentcontrols on greenhouse emissions andcontinues to make progress in that effort.It is said that, “as goes California, so goesthe nation.” Dozens of U.S. states and hun-dreds of cities have stopped waiting forWashington to deal effectively with con-trolling emissions and have initiated inde-pendent emission reduction programs. Inaddition, some Canadian provinces and U.S. states are now cooperating in mutuallybeneficial projects.

In spite of this progress there will besome who will continue to maintain a pos-ture of global warming denial perhaps be-cause it is too difficult to admit a majorerror in judgment. Whatever the reason forcontinued denial, history will record whothese people are and what organizationsthey represent. There is an unfortunateparallel of events petroleum geologistsshould remember because it too repre-sented a monumental scientific blunder injudgment. Over 75 years ago, many U.S.

Having just last year celebrated its firstcentury, Alberta is a young province

within a relatively young nation. In 1867,when our southern neighbour was tearingitself apart in a most uncivil war, Canadawas coming together. Thirty-eight yearslater, in 1905, Alberta and its sister prov-ince, Saskatchewan, joined Confederation.

cycle, to restore an economic and environ-mental balance both short term and longrange, regional, provincial and federalplanning is necessary. The trend over thepast 12 years to centralize control eitherprovincially in Edmonton or federally inOttawa has to be replaced by a collabora-tive vision for the future.

Alberta’s adolescent, self-serving imagereinforced over the past decade by its pro-vincial government’s lack of directionneeds to be replaced by that of an elderstatesman who doesn’t sacrifice long-termsustainability for immediate economicgratification. Our non-renewable resourcewealth must be extracted and investedwisely to secure our future prosperity. Al-berta’s future must include a healthy, well-educated, participatory populace.

Harry B. Chase is...

alberta

petroleum geologists rejected the theoriesof Alfred Wegener who pioneered the sub-ject of continental drift and plate tecton-ics. This theory revolutionized geology inmany areas of exploration and develop-ment of oil, natural gas and minerals. Al-though there was scientific rationale fordiffering opinions, the real reason for theAmerican rejection of the theory of conti-nental drift and plate tectonics was that it

was based on ideology not science. This Ilearned as a geology student at the Uni-versity of Illinois. Unfortunately, somethings are slow to change.

Jack Century has been a petroleumgeologist since 1952 when he graduatedfrom the University of Illinois with B. S.and M.S. degrees. He has participated innumerous projects in Alberta, beginningwith the major Swan Hills Reef oil play. In1973, he started a consultancy, participat-ing in many drilling prospects in Alberta,the U. S. and in overseas basins. Hebecame involved with the issue of GlobalWarming on the birth of his secondgrandson in 1989 and has participated invarious environmental projects ever since.In 1990, he became Founding Chair of theEnvironmental Geology Division of theCanadian Society of Petroleum Geologists.

Adolescent AlbertaWhat does Alberta want to be whenit grows up?

HARRY B. CHASE

A defining point in Alberta’s history thathas led this province down a path dramati-cally different from its sister occurred 42years later when oil was discovered atLeduc in 1947. Since that discovery, thepaths of the two provinces have diverged,with Alberta occasionally playing the roleof the spoiled sibling. This spoiled child is

now struggling as an adolescent in termsof deciding what it wants to be if and whenit grows up. What path will it take? Whatis the plan?

During the 12-year reign of Ralph Klein,who recently admitted that his govern-ment had no plan, the image of Alberta asrebellious teenager dominated the politi-cal landscape and surpassed Quebec forthe most spoiled status withinthe Canadian family. As a resultof its energy wealth, Alberta haschosen to thumb its nose notonly at the rest of the externalCanadian family but internallyas well. The separation withinAlberta resulting from the prov-ince’s worship/pursuit of the al-mighty unfettered market hascreated two distinct classes ofwinners and losers: haves andhave-nots. The figurativefirewalls designed to keep Ot-tawa out of the province - for-merly proposed by StephenHarper and currently favouredby Ted Morton - have been re-placed by financial barrierswithin the province itself.

Platitudes such as “all boats rise with thetide” have been proven false by the rapidlygrowing number of food banks, shelters,homeless families, and working and study-ing poor. The Alberta provincial debt hasnot been eliminated; it has simply beendownloaded as an infrastructure deficitonto the municipalities. This deficit whencombined with the government’s portionof unfunded public sector pension liabili-ties rivals the previous $23 billion provin-cial debt. The unparalleled/unrestrictedpursuit of non-renewable energy sourcescoupled with unsustainable timber har-vesting practices like clear-cutting is com-promising our environmental health, es-pecially our water quality and quantity.

In order to counteract the boom/bust

The Alberta provincial debt has notbeen eliminated; it has simply beendownloaded as an infrastructuredeficit onto the municipalities.

ALBERTA GEOLOGISTS/cont. from page 1

Dozens of U.S. states andhundreds of cities have

stopped waiting forWashington to deal

effectively with controllingemissions and have initiated

independent emissionreduction programs. In

addition, some Canadianprovinces and U. S. states are

now cooperating inmutually beneficial projects.


conference retrospective

The Parkland Institute’s 10thannual conference, Power for thePeople: determining our energyfuture, explored oil and gas issuesthrough the lens of democracy.

Conference participants enjoyed adiverse group of speakers, includ-ing best-selling author JohnRalson Saul, journalists MarcLisac and Gillian Steward, Park-land Institute Director and co-founder Gordon Laxer, Norwegianeconomist Ole Gunnar Austvik,and many others.

Conference illuminates energy issues

Photo captions to go here.


conference retrospective

Part of their strategy involved directmanagement of the economic rent,

the difference between a company’s ac-counting profit and the normal profit (theminimum profit necessary to attract en-trepreneurs to an investment).

State participationin petroleum activities

The national oil company, Statoil, was cre-ated in 1972 and was instrumental in de-veloping a Norwegian petroleum industryand managing government interests on theNorwegian Continental Shelf (NCS).Statoil typically got huge shares of the bestand biggest fields. Consequently, somebegan to fear that Statoil would becometoo dominant in the industry, resulting in1984’s ‘Statoil-compromise.’ This reducedthe company’s shares substantially andgave the larger parts to the State’s DirectFinancial Interests (SDFI).

Under the SDFI arrangement, the statepays its share of investments and costs, andreceives a corresponding share of incomefrom the production license. Through theSDFI, the state takes all costs and risk, butalso all economic rent. Typically, the SDFIholds the largest shares in the biggest andmost profitable fields.

After SDFI was established Statoil be-came responsible for its administration.When Statoil was privatized in 2001, theadministration of the SDFI was transferredto the state-created trust company Petoro.Statoil remained however responsible formarketing and sales of the SDFI’s petro-leum together with its own supplies.

Today, Petoro is the largestlicenceholder on NCS (24 per cent oil, 41.6per cent gas) and represents more than 40per cent of total production. In addition,SDFI holds 18-62 per cent ownershipshares in oil and gas pipelines, and land-based facilities for oil and gas processingand refining (average 40-50 per cent). Thestate owns at present 100 per cent ofGassco, which is the operator of the inte-grated gas transportation network, 71 percent of Statoil, and 44 per cent of Norsk

tion and currency appreciation associatedwith setting a specific Norwegian produc-tion ceiling at 50-90 Million Tons of OilEquivalents (MTOE) - a value which ap-proximates the amount of energy pro-duced by burning one metric ton of crudeoil.

The creating of the Petroleum Fund inthe ’90s removed much of the cautious-ness against high production levels. As thefund decoupled earnings and expendi-tures, it protected against boom and bustcycles, loss of competitiveness in non-oiland gas sectors and dependency on oil rev-enues. Additionally, oil revenues in foreigncurrencies weren’t automatically ex-changed for the Norwegian kroneranymore, and an appreciation was avoided.With higher depletion rates, the fund alsomoved the use of the petroleum wealthfrom present to future generations. Alter-natively, production could be saved forfuture generations. However, when mov-ing capital from the ground to interna-tional financial markets, the rewards wereconsidered over time to be higher thankeeping the oil in the ground.

Consequently, from having a rather re-strictive production policy, production in-creased substantially, limited mostly byresource availability, costs and technologi-cal developments. Actual production in2005 was 223 MTOE, nearly three timeslarger than the former upper limits.

The Petroleum Fund was established asa fiscal policy tool to support a long-termmanagement of the petroleum revenues.The first net transfer came into the fundin 1996. The fund is fully integrated intothe state budget and net allocations to thefund reflect the total budget surplus (in-cluding petroleum revenues). The Minis-try of Finance is responsible for the itsmanagement, and has delegated the opera-tional management to the Central Bank.The capital is invested in non-Norwegianfinancial instruments (bonds, equities,money market instruments and deriva-tives). All government net cash flow fromthe petroleum sector goes into the fundand saved together with the return on theseinvestments (at present 40 per cent sharesand 60 per cent bonds).

With high oil prices after 2000, the fundhas been increasing at quite a rate. In 2005,it had a return on investments of ca NOK120 billion (CAD$23 billion). Combined

with a net cash flow from the petroleumsector of NOK 283 billion, the total inflowto the fund was some NOK 400 billion in2005. By the end of 2006, it is expected toreach some NOK 1,750 billion (CAD$330billion). In the national budget for 2007,the fund is forecasted to reach NOK 3,000billion (CAD$570 billion), double the sizeof the fund in 2005. As it grows, the yieldfrom investments will grow in relationwith the net cash flow from production.

Challenges aheadA combinatinAThe combination of stateownership and direct participation in theoil industry, and a strong taxation system,have succeeded in giving most of the eco-nomic rent to the state. Norway has donequite well in protecting the economy fromtribulation by creating the PetroleumFund. The state is still in control of the sec-tor on all levels, but now in a more regula-tory way than in the ’70s.

There is little controversy in Norwayabout the model and most people seemcontent to have a professional petroleumindustry, a healthy Petroleum Fund andpolitical control.

However, growing concerns are on thehorizon. How much should the fund beemphasized? Should more oil be left in theground? Will Norwegians remain moder-ate forever, or will the size of the fund leadto a greater desire to take more of themoney today? Should money also be usedto upgrade the society more than other-wise would have been done? The oil in-dustry is ultimately ‘easy come, easy go.’There will be an end to the oil supply, ulti-mately. It is critical to develop new eco-nomic bases and invest in infrastructure(including education and research), to de-crease dependency on petroleum.

Ole Gunnar Austvik is an economist atLillehammer University College inNorway. He also holds a masters of publicadminisration from Harvard University,and has published numerous articles andbooks about petroleum. This article is aversion of Austvik’s November lecture atthe Parkland Institute’s 2006 conference,Power for the people: Determining ourenergy future.

Fueling Norway’s futureHow Norway has managed its petroleum

industry since the 1970s

OLE GUNNAR AUSTVIK

When Norwegian petroleum activities started in the 1960s,

the country had little knowledge about the industry.

Fortunately, all of the political parties agreed that the

industry should be kept under national control and that

profits should benefit the entire nation.

Hydro. Statoil and Norsk Hydro often hold15-20 per cent of fields in production -making the combined Norwegian statecontrolled share (Petoro, Statoil, Hydro)of NCS production some 70 - 80 per cent.Except for Norsk Hydro, the Ministry ofpetroleum and Energy (MPE,www.odin.dep.no/oed) administer theNorwegian petroleum activities

Government petroleum revenues

In addition to the Norwegian companiesStatoil and Hydro, most major interna-tional companies have participated on theNCS from the start. The tax system for thecompanies is based on rules for the ordi-nary Norwegian corporation tax (28percent). Due to the economic rent made inthe sector, especially when oil prices arehigh, a special tax (50 per cent) is also lev-ied, making companies pay a 78 per centshare of net profit to the government.

The base for both ordinary and specialtaxes is subject to depreciation of invest-ments, operating and exploration ex-penses, financial costs, CO2-tax and anarea fee. The companies are permitted toconsolidate between fields. In order toshield normal profits from the special tax,the deduction of an “uplift” is allowed. Theuplift amounts to 30 per cent of invest-ments made, allocated over four years (7.5per cent per annum). Most important fornew entrants and small companies is thatthose not in a tax position may carry for-ward their losses and uplift with interests.

Through direct and indirect taxes anddirect ownership, the state is ensured ahigh proportion of the values created fromthe petroleum activities, and makes theNorwegian government the biggest “capi-talist” and rent taker on the NCS. In 2005,the state’s net cash flow from the petro-leum sector amounted to NOK 283 billion(CAD $52 billion) that represents approxi-mately 33 per cent of total governmentrevenues.

The Petroleum Fund

In developing the petroleum industry, theNorwegian government was also con-cerned about its macroeconomic effects.From the start, there was a fear of infla-


alberta’s environment

For years we’ve known that there wassomething not quite right about theoil and gas industry. After someanalysis, I’d say that the industry issuffering from Multiple PersonalityDisorder, for the actions of oilcompanies are often contradictory,shifting and hypocritical.

All of this adds up to a raw deal for Ca-nadians, since these multi-national

oil and gas companies, who are free enter-prise, for-profit corporations, hold Cana-dians to a different standard than their oil-producing colleagues. And Canada is al-lowing this to happen.

When it comes to their dealings in Eu-rope, Russia and Denmark, for instance,energy giants Exxon Mobil,ConocoPhilips, Chevron Corporation andBP plc tolerate government interventionand protectionist policies, yet cannot tol-erate similar behaviour form the Canadiangovernment.

BP’s CEO, for instance, has been quotedas extolling the virtues of Russia’s controlover its own natural resources. This quotewas taken right after the Russian govern-ment’s announcement of an increase instate control of that the nation’s energyindustry. This control is being tightenedon projects owned and operated by largeinternational companies like BP and RoyalDutch Shell PLC.

Another country with strong govern-ment controls, China, is also becoming amajor target for big oil and gas companies.

Pipeline company Enbridge is workingwith China’s national oil and gas company,Petro-China, to build a pipeline that willrun from Edmonton to Kitimat, B.C., thatcould transport 200,000 barrels of oil on adaily basis.

Petro-China is an energy companywholly owned by the Chinese communistgovernment.

Enbridge, a free enterprise for-profitcorporation with shareholders to please,is aggressively promoting the deal throughits own resources and that of the electedgovernments in Alberta and Ottawa.

Another corporation, Calgary-basedHusky Oil, has also set its sights on China.It has recently discovered a huge naturalgas field in the South China Sea and haspartnered with the government-ownedChina National Offshore Oil Corporation.

Clearly, these companies - several whoare based in Canada - have found attrac-tive ventures overseas, largely through col-laborations with national corporations.This contradicts the predictions of thechief economist of CIBC World Funds, JeffRubin, who has recently said that free en-terprise for-profit corporations will stopinvesting in Mexico, Russia, the MiddleEast, China, Venezuela and other countrieswith strong government control over thedevelopment of their oil reserves. Interest-

ingly, he still sees Iraq, Nigeria, Kazakhstanand Canada as countries that are safe toinvest in.

Canada is seen in different terms thanmost of the world’s oil-producing coun-tries and some Canadians are quite finewith it.

On Dec. 19, 2006, the Financial Post’sClaudia Cattaneo took up 25 columninches to tear apart Newfoundland’s Pre-mier Danny William for working on anEnergy Plan that might involve that prov-ince taking direct involvement in develop-ing its offshore resources. She perpetuatesthe ‘old tired boogey man under the bed,’used by Ralph Klein when he had no newand progressive ideas to take to the peo-ple.

Albertans, and Canadians, need to re-ject the attitude that the governmentshouldn’t participate directly in the har-vesting of its resources. Given that ExxonMobil, ConocoPhillips, Chevron Corpo-ration and BP plc are fine with working inregimes such as that in China, Russia, Nor-way, and even Alaska, Canadians and

Albertans should not be afraid to holdthem to the same standards.

77 per cent of the world’s proven oil re-serves are controlled by oil companiesowned by governments.

Norway may offer a model for howCanada should manage its oil. The Nor-way government partners with some of thelargest for-profit private, multi-nationalenergy giants in the world. In January,Canadian Press reported that Norway hadeven partnered with Calgary-based oil andgas producer Talisman Energy Inc. in or-der to restart an offshore oilfield that wasyears ago deemed unprofitable and shut-down.

Yet, Norway stays focused on its ownbest interests. The country’s oil and gas in-dustry, which came on stream in 1969, hasput $265 billion in their state savings ac-count. Since 1980, Alberta has only $13billion in its Heritage Trust account fromoil and gas royalties.

If Canada is prepared to allow China’sgovernment-run offshore oil corporationto operate in our oil and gas sector, why

Oil and gas industry rife with contradictionIndustry defined by hypocrisy

would it not be similarly involved? If any-thing, Canada should be more involved inorder to ensure the security of both oil andgas and industrial stability.

NORM GREENFIELD

Canada’s government will point to theNorth American Free Trade Agreement asthe reason why we can’t have our ownnatural resources controlled by ourselves,forgetting to point out that Mexico wasexcluded from that clause. In fact, Mexicohas a clause in their constitution dictatingthat their oil and gas industry must remainin the control of the Mexican government.

It is time Canada and Alberta take con-trol of our future and let their governmentknow it is okay to put an end to the issuesof Multiple Personality Disorder in ournatural resource industry.

Norman Greenfield is a political andcorporate communications consultant nowliving in Edmonton, but has clients andworks around the world. He is a registeredFederal government Lobbyist, and can bereached at [email protected] or780-935-6275.

Albertans, and Canadians, needto reject the attitude that the

government shouldn’t partici-pate directly in the harvesting

of its resources. Given thatExxon Mobil, ConocoPhillips,Chevron Corporation and BPplc are fine with working in

regimes such as that in China,Russia, Norway, and even

Alaska, Canadians andAlbertans should not be afraid

to hold them to the samestandards.

The Parkland Instituteneeds volunteers fromcommunities aroundAlberta. We are lookingfor: distribution, webpage design, media list,event organizing,promotions, fundraisingand more!To get involved call Cheri at(780) 492-8558 or email us [email protected]

volunteers!


alberta’s environment

“We talk about natural resources as ifeverything had a price tag. You can’tbuy spiritual values at a shoppingmall. The things that uplift the spirit- an old-growth forest, a clear river,the flight of a golden eagle, the howlof a wolf, space and quiet withoutmotors - are intangibles.”

- George Schaller, National Geographic,

October 2006

It’s one of the rare places in Alberta’sboreal that has felt few human foot-

prints. For millennia, the inaccessibility ofthe spectacular fen draining intoMcClelland Lake has allowed this rich eco-system to flourish. That is about to change.Four years ago, the fen, located 90 kmnorth of Fort McMurray, was opened totar sands mining. Petro-Canada’s con-struction of the Fort Hills project tailingspond in the McClelland watershed is onlytwo years away.

The precariousness of the entire 330-km2 watershed - less than half the size ofEdmonton or Calgary - became starklyclear to four Alberta Wilderness Associa-tion (AWA) staff and volunteers as we flewover it last July. The forests and wetlandssurrounding McClelland Lake are alreadymarred with clear-cut’s, well pads, roads,seismic lines, and a pipeline corridor.

But as we returned to Fort McMurray,we realized that this damage is minimalcompared to what is to come. Flying overthe vast open-pit mines, tailings ponds,and billowing emissions of operating tarsands projects, we saw the grey wastelandthat will replace the upper portion of theMcClelland watershed, including half thefen, if the Fort Hills project is allowed toproceed as planned.

Petro-Canada: “We have lots oflawyers”

According to their website, “Petro-Canadais committed to environmentalsustainability and continuously improvingour operational practices and stewardshipin the oil sands and elsewhere. We takepride in being a highly principled com-

pany.” In September, I met with a repre-sentative of Petro-Canada, the operator ofthe Fort Hills project, to discuss concernsabout environmental impacts.

Petro-Canada, he said, has completeconfidence that the unmined half of thefen will remain unaffected and that themined portion will be restored to its origi-nal condition in two or three hundredyears. Apparently what took nature 8,000years to accomplish, Petro-Canada thinksit can do in one-fortieth the time, startingwith a flayed landscape and with no evi-dence that a patterned fen can be restored.

When we discussed the planned tailingspond, which will straddle the McClellandwatershed boundary, Petro-Canada’sspokesperson agreed that naphthenic ac-ids, pollutants from tar sands mining, areprobably the most serious toxins in tail-ings. Naphthenic acids are not included inthe government’s Surface Water Qualityregulations: industry is allowed to return“used” water to the Athabasca River whenit meets those standards. He assured methat nobody would ever return water con-taining high densities of naphthenic acidsto the river because “it would kill things,”and people just wouldn’t do that. Right.

He also pointed out that naphthenic ac-ids exist naturally. According to PembinaInstitute’s statistics, however, the averagedensity occurring naturally in the area’swater bodies is 1 ml/L; in tailings ponds, itis 110 ml/L. Tailings ponds are so toxic -in perpetuity, according to some experts -that as I stood beside them, I heard theconstant boom of airguns to keep birdsand other wildlife away. Who will ensurethat these deterrents are still operating afew lifetimes from now, when the tar sandsare history?

The depth of Petro-Canada’s commit-ment to the environment might best besummed up in their representative’s veiledthreat as we ended our meeting: “And don’tforget,” he said. “We have lots of lawyers.”A Petro-Canada presentation to the OilSands Consultation Panel in FortMcMurray this fall confirmed this attitude:“Make hay while the sun shines,” was thepresenter’s comment, reported in theGlobe and Mail the next day.

How Did We Get Here?

The betrayal of both the Alberta public andthe McClelland Lake ecosystem has been

as toxic as the tailings and emissions thatwe smelled from 1,000 feet up. In 2002,after TrueNorth Energy (the original op-erator of Fort Hills project) discovered oilunder the fen, the government broke itsown amendment guidelines to give in tothe company’s request to change the 1996IRP, which protected the fen from mining.The protective notation on the McClellandLake Wetland Complex (MLWC), recom-mended through the Special Places pro-gram in the late 1990s, was removed. InOctober 2002, the Energy and UtilitiesBoard (EUB) approved TrueNorth’s appli-cation despite a lengthy hearing withstrong opposition to the project.

Four years after signing all of the neces-sary approvals, what can the governmentdo to revisit the process and approvals?Apparently nothing, according to AlbertaEnvironment, unless it can be shown that“a major error or something fraudulenthappened during the approval process.” Anapproval can be challenged through theEnvironmental Appeals Board, but thetime for appealing the Fort Hills approv-als ended years ago, and there was no fraudor major error to appeal - only govern-ment’s flawed industry-biased interpreta-tion of public interest.

Shelving the Bad News

According to Alberta Environment’swebsite, “an EIA (Environmental ImpactAssessment) report plays an importantrole in Alberta Environment’s review ofapplications.... The completed environ-mental assessment assists decision-makersto decide if a project is in the public inter-est.”

True North had an EIA done on the areathat would be directly affected by theirproject. The portion of the EIA that con-cerned the MLWC predicted major, possi-bly irreversible project effects. Not surpris-ingly, True North “withdrew the portionof its EIA describing the project’s impactsto the MLWC,” asking the Board to acceptin its place the promise to convene a com-mittee “to develop a management strategyto sustain the unmined eastern portion ofthe wetland” (EUB Decision 2002-089).What is surprising, or should be, is theEUB’s acceptance of this substitution: thereplacement of a mandated EIA with anon-existent (at that time) committee.

According to Petro-Canada’s amendeddevelopment plan, mining is scheduled tobegin in the MLWC in 2020. The EUBDecision states that the Fort Hills opera-tor must submit to the government “an ac-ceptable mitigation plan [for the unminedportion of the fen] prior to mining in theMLWC.” Tailings pond constructionwithin the watershed, however, will beginin 2008 or 2009, causing disruption to theMLWC with a mitigation plan still far fromcomplete.

Where Are We Now?

All of Petro-Canada’s approvals are inplace, including a water license for with-drawing 39.27 million m3 per year fromthe Athabasca River. Petro-Canada is al-ready removing rare plants from the fenfor pilot projects. They plan eventually to

remove rare plants and replant them whenthe fen is “reclaimed”: a Noah’s Ark ap-proach to reclamation. But will there beroom on the ark for the endangeredwhooping cranes who stop to rest here ontheir migrations? Will resident lynx,moose, and river otters find refuge fromthe massive disturbance that will sendshock waves through their habitat? Willdeclining species such as the short-earedowl and American bittern abandon theirnesting grounds?

What is the dollar value of an irreplace-able gift of nature like the McClelland Lakewatershed? Of the Red-listed Canadiantoad or the rare pitcher plant? Is an an-cient fen worth a billion barrels of oil,enough to supply Canada’s (or rather, theUnited States’) needs for 15 months? Iwonder if our children and grandchildrenwill thank us for destroying this uniqueecosystem in exchange for one-third of onepercent of Alberta’s recoverable bitumen.

Unless the public is mobilized, the wa-tershed’s fragile rare plants and mosses willbe crushed under the four-metre-high tiresof 400-ton mining trucks, the proud newsymbol of our province that seems to havereplaced the wild rose. The fen’s intricatepatterning - delicate strings of black spruceseparating peat-filled pools - will no doubtdisappear because of disturbance of thewater regime that feeds it. And since themining will occur in the upper part of thewatershed, nobody knows what the impactwill be on the entire region.

Urgent Action Needed

Judging by the 170 presentations to the OilSands Consultation Panel, Albertans caredeeply about our wild lands. Of those pre-senters, 150 expressed great concern aboutthe impacts of the headlong rush to de-velop the tar sands. If all Albertans hadbeen given an aerial tour of the tar sandsmines instead of our Ralph-bucks, I sus-pect that we would all be in an uproar. Noone could remain unaffected by the sightsand smells of greed next to the quiet beautyof the boreal.

“There are certain natural treasures ineach country that should be treated astreasures,” says world-renowned biologistGeorge Schaller. We must recognize beforeit is too late that the McClelland Lake wa-tershed is a treasure and that we are de-pendent on the boreal forest’s services anddiversity.

The only thing that might save theMcClelland Lake fen and watershed is aflood of letters to Petro-Canada and gov-ernment ministers, a public boycott ofPetro-Canada, and letters to the editor ofevery newspaper and magazine in theprovince.

For more information on the McClellandLake watershed, go towww.AlbertaWilderness.ca.

Joyce Hildebrand is a conservationspecialist with the Alberta WildernessAssociation (AWA), based in Calgary, andconsiders herself one of a fortunate fewwho get paid for doing what they love.

McClelland Lake

Watershed“Make hay while the sun shines!” says Petro-Canada

JOYCE HILDEBRAND


“liberal” in Latin America means conserva-tive, pro-corporation and small govern-ment - meant that Ortega, the dreadedMarxist ‘dictator’ and ‘enemy of democ-racy,’ could win. Trivelli tried, without suc-cess, to unite the forces of the right.

Finally he chose Montealegre as his can-didate. Trivelli claimed just days before theelection that the U.S. would have to “re-visit the relationship it has with Nicara-gua if Ortega wins,” including the CentralAmerican Free Trade Agreement (CAFTA),the Millennium Challenge Account whichprovides Nicaragua with $175 million inaid, investments from private companies,and Nicaragua’s debt with multilateral in-stitutions in which the U.S. participates.Embassy Spokesperson Kristin Stewardlinked Ortega and the Sandinistas to in-ternational terrorism. USAID officialAdolfo Franco and U.S. Secretary of Com-merce Carlos Gutierrez threatened loss ofjobs and aid if Nicaraguans chose Ortega.Congressmen Dan Burton and DanaRohrabacher threatened to embargo the$500 million that half million Nicaraguansliving in the U.S. send to their families eachyear. Remittances represent 17 per cent ofNicaragua’s GDP and equal Nicaragua’stotal exports.

United States interference in Nicaraguanelections is nothing new. In 1990, throughthe National Endowment for Democracy,the U.S. channeled $15 million to consoli-date opposition to the Sandinistas and tofund anti-Sandinista literature, speakersand events in what the U.S. Embassy la-bels as Nicaragua’s first “democratic” elec-tion. Threatened with the continuation ofthe U.S.-funded Contra war and the eco-nomic embargo, Nicaraguans elected theU.S.-sponsored party and presidential can-didate, Violeta Chamorro. In Nicaragua´ssecond “democratic” election in 1996, theU.S. State Department advised against vot-ing for Ortega and called into question his“democratic” credentials and U.S.-backedcandidate Alemán won the presidency. Inthe third ‘democratic’ election, Floridagovernor Jeb Bush took out a full-page adin La Prensa, Nicaragua´s major newspa-per on Oct. 29, 2001, expressing outrightsupport for U.S.-favoured presidentialcandidate Bolaños, and suggesting thatOrtega, allied with terrorists, was “an en-emy of everything the United States rep-resents.”

The FSLN was also split. Herty Lewites,a popular long-time Sandinista memberasked Ortega, the perpetual presidentialcandidate, to hold a leadership convention.Ortega refused and threw Lewites out ofthe Sandinista Party. Together with mem-bers of an earlier FSLN fragmentation andprominent Sandinistas, Lewites foundedthe Movement to Rescue Sandinismo(MRS), a democratic wing of theSandinistas. The MRS rose in the pollsuntil the sudden death of Lewites in Julybefore plummeting.

Our delegation - which included 17North Americans and one Canadian - metwith the four major political parties as wellas various groups involved in the electionprocess, including: the Supreme Electoral

Council, the governmental body in chargeof the election process; the 11,000-strongEthics and Transparency Nicaraguan civicobservers; the Movement for Nicaragua, agroup urging Nicaraguans, especiallyyoung people to vote and facilitating pro-curement of necessary identification. Allof these groups were financed by a numberof countries and organizations, amongthem USAID featured prominently.

The partiality of the U.S. governmentwas evident in the “educational” material,including a beautifully crafted comicbook-style history of Nicaragua that vili-fied the Sandinista revolution of the 19sand subsequent ‘democratic’ governments- all elected with U.S. support - withoutonce mentioning the role of the U.S.-funded Contras or the U.S.-imposed em-bargo on the Nicaraguan economy.

In 1987, the International Court of Jus-tice in the Hague ruled against the UnitedStates that the CIA had illegally minedNicaragua´s harbours. The U.S. govern-ment refused to accept the World Court’sjurisdiction and never paid the $17 billionin war damages. Nevertheless, both right-wing Liberal parties, the U.S. Embassy andgroups funded by USAID coincided inqualifying Nicaragua as a young democ-racy of only 16 years, as though no gov-ernment prior to 1990 had been demo-cratic.

“It is a word without meaning,” a poorcampesino (peasant) woman maintained.“There is no democracy here. Democracyis having enough to eat, sending your chil-dren to school, having access to health care,housing and employment. This is the de-mocracy we want.”

Over 2,000 accredited international ob-servers from organizations including theCarter Center, the European Union, theOrganization of American States and WTP,as well as 18,000 Nicaraguan observers as-sured an average of 1.7 observers for eachof 11,243 voting stations. The U.S. fi-nanced the training of the vast majorityof the national observers to guard againstelectoral fraud. Ethics and Transparencycovered 100 per cent of the voting stationsand did a “quick count” of results to checkpossible fraud. Representatives from eachof the four major political parties werepresent from start to finish in almost allof the voting stations and had the right tointervene if they noted any abnormalitiesin the voting process.

Just over 2.3 million Nicaraguans -roughly 73.5 per cent of eligible voters -cast their ballots. From our observation,the voting process in Nicaragua was free,fair, and transparent - precisely what wehad come to ensure.

“Together, we will work, as we did in thepast, for the good of all - but especially forthe poor,” reflected my friend Rosibel.While the national government did noth-ing for the poor under Alemán andBoleños, Sandinista mayors and munici-pal councils tended to receive moreprojects funded by bilateral aid and inter-national NGOs, making the people feel lessabandoned.

NICARAGUA/ continued from page 1

The popular sector, whose poor citizensearn their living salvaging recyclables fromthe Managua dump and of the rural areaof Arenal in the municipality of Masatepe,where we spent two days, expressed theirmistrust of the word ‘democracy.’

Nicaraguans chose to give Ortega themost votes - 38 per cent. The two rightwing parties, the ALN and the PLC, wonrespectively 28 per cent and 27 per cent ofthe votes. The other Sandinista party, theMRS, finished with 6 per cent.

Why did 38 per cent of Nicaraguanschoose Ortega? Perhaps they were reach-ing out for the smallest sign of hope. Afterall, in Nicaragua 79 per cent of the popu-lation live on less than US$2 per day - 45per cent on less than one dollar a day.Three-quarters of the population doesn’treceive the minimum level of nutrition,and two thirds of the rural populationdoesn’t have access to water. Furthermore,one million school-aged children do notattend school, 55 per cent of the countrylacks basic medicine, over halfthe country’s population is unemployed,and 50 per cent of households have no ac-cess to electricity.

On Nov. 12, for instance, one projectflew 104 poor persons to Venezuela for eyeoperations. Another project sends hun-dreds of poor Nicaraguan youth study inCuba. In San Ramón, a small town thatalways elects Sandinista municipal coun-cils, hundreds of children each day flockto a lunch program funded by Spain. Doz-ens of other projects give the people hope.

When it comes to helping his strugglingcitizenry, I don’t believe Ortega can do verymuch. He has been a pragmatic politician,but he is limited by having only 38 per centof seats in the Assembly. Unlike RomeoDallaire, Ortega willingly shook handswith the devil and never looked back. Hemade pacts with Alemán and Boleños toconsolidate the power of the FSLN and thePLC in all facets of government. Ortegalikely will continue the “pact” withAlemán´s PLC party for the coming fiveyears. Between them they are expected tohold 63 seats in the 93-member legislature,a two-thirds majority.

The last insult to the Revolution cameon Oct. 26. With the support of theSandinistas, deputies voted for an absoluteban on abortion, criminalizing all abor-tions,, including therapeutic abortions.The Catholic Church called for 20 years inprison for all who participate in abortion.The Assembly settled for six years. RecentlyOrtega returned to the Catholic Church,married his long-time partner with whomhe had eight children. Now he is a devoutCatholic, close to his former arch-enemy,Cardinal Obando y Bravo. The people ofNicaragua are reluctant to let go of theirdream, but as far as Ortega is concerned,the revolution was cancelled long ago.

During the electoral campaign, all po-litical parties vowed to diminish poverty,create jobs, and spend more on educationand health. Can Nicaraguans hope that thedeputies they elected will agree on the wayto achieve this? Will the United States, theWorld Bank, the International MonetaryFund, CAFTA, allow them to do so?

international politics

In the third ‘democratic’ election,Florida governor Jeb Bush tookout a full-page ad in La Prensa,

Nicaragua´s major newspaper onOct. 29, 2001, expressing outright

support for U.S.-favouredpresidential candidate Bolaños,

and suggesting that Ortega, alliedwith terrorists, was “an enemy of

everything the United Statesrepresents.”

The popular sector...expressedtheir mistrust of the word

‘democracy.’“It is a word without

meaning,” a poor campesino(peasant) woman maintained.“There is no democracy here.

Democracy is having enough toeat, sending your children to

school, having access to healthcare, housing and employment.This is the democracy we want.”


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Ortega was sworn in as President ofNicaragua on Jan. 10, 2007, several daysafter meeting with the International Mon-etary Fund in Washington, where he waspresented with the new IMF program forNicaragua. Ortega has already signed onto CAFTA, a treaty designed to meet theU.S. trade interests. The Executive Direc-tor of the Millennium Challenge Accountwarned the president-elect that ‘democ-racy’ will be a condition for the continua-tion of the program in Nicaragua. The In-

international politics

ter-American Development Bank will can-cel less of the debt owed to it by Nicaraguathan agreed upon last February. Will theUnited States respect this small, impover-ished country´s sovereignty? I hope so.

While Nicaraguans celebrated the U.S.elections which gave the Democrats a ma-jority in both Houses, my 17 co-delegatesreturned to the U.S., knowing their gov-ernment had interfered in the Nicaraguanelections and would likely continue to in-terfere as Ortega prepared to take over. As

the sole Canadian, I bring back a messageas well. Throughout the ’80s, Canadianswere very supportive of the revolution. Allover Canada, support groups mush-roomed. In Alberta, Tools for Peace andFarmers for Peace founded by some of thewonderful ‘Marta’s and Henry’s’ that graceour province, focused exclusively on Nica-ragua. We refused to adopt any of the poli-cies of U.S. government, joined millionsof Americans in protesting the Contra war,and facilitated their efforts to break theembargo.

Nicaraguans are aware of the political,economic, social and environmental im-plications of CAFTA and neo-liberal poli-cies. They demonstrate - usually peacefully- for their rights with the slogan: “A rightnot defended, is a right that is lost!” I re-ally fear that the U.S. government will nottake lightly to any demonstrations. WillOrtega be forced to unleash the army andpolice on demonstrators? Will USAIDclose down in Nicaragua? Will the battleof words and threats continue unabated?Will our ‘Canadian’ press continue to printas god-given truth the U.S. propagandaoriginating from Miami?

As Canadians, we owe it to the peopleof Nicaragua to be informed and to helpthem in their quest for their democraticrights to water, education, health, jobs,food and sovereignty.

Cecily Mills holds a PhD in Microbiologyfrom the University of Alberta. In addi-tion to spending three years in Nicaraguawith WFP from 1992-95, she traveled toNicaragua in 1988 at the time of theContra war and several times since 1996.She has contributed to the WFP publica-tions Bitter Medicine and High Price toPay on the effects of neo-liberalism andstructural adjustment programs onNicaragua and in particular on women.Presently, she volunteers with Change forChildren, an Edmonton-based NGO witha 30-year history of working for sustain-able, grassroots community developmentin Nicaragua and other Latin Americancountries.

Now, I fear that the Canadian govern-ment will heed the U.S. rhetoric and jointhe U.S. War on Terror against Nicaragua.I feel that the Canadian International De-velopment Agency (CIDA) may be pres-sured to decrease or withdraw its supportof the second poorest country in the West-ern Hemisphere. Over the last three dec-ades, Change for Children found Nicara-guan NGOs to be excellent partners ingrassroots development projects. Years af-ter a project is completed, communitiescontinue to maintain and extend the workbegun with modest financial support. TheNational Union of Farmers and Ranchers(UNAG) predicts that CAFTA, by forcingNicaraguan farmers to compete with sub-sidized products from U.S. agribusiness,will eliminate over 400,000 agriculturaljobs over the next decade. Free trade zones- with their history of forced overtime, ani-mal-like treatment and union-busting -will expand U.S. ‘investment’ in modern-day slavery. Economic violence will extendto the privatization of water, with devas-tating consequences on the poorest Nica-raguans. Ecological disasters and forceddisplacements will continue to plague in-digenous and poor campesinos as our gov-ernment refuses to control the actions ofCanadian mining companies in the globalsouth.

Unlike Romeo Dallaire, Ortegawillingly shook hands with the

devil and never looked back. Hemade pacts with Alemán and

Boleños to consolidate the powerof the FSLN and the PLC in all

facets of government.

Throughout the ’80s, Canadianswere very supportive of the

revolution... In Alberta, Tools forPeace and Farmers for Peace

founded by some of thewonderful ‘Marta’s and Henry’s’that grace our province, focused

exclusively on Nicaragua. Werefused to adopt any of the

policies of U.S. government,joined millions of Americans inprotesting the Contra war, andfacilitated their efforts to break

the embargo.


Win

ter

2007

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