Wayne in the News

PUBLICATION: The Toronto Star
DATE: 2007.01.25

BYLINE: Debra Black
SOURCE: Toronto Star

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NDP critic urges aid for Somali-Canadian

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NDP human rights critic Wayne Marston is calling on the Harper government to take immediate action to secure consular access for a Canadian citizen who was illegally detained by Kenya, then shipped to Ethiopia without due process.

Bashir Makhtal was arrested on the Kenya-Somalia border in late December and held in a Nairobi prison for more than three weeks before he was whisked away to Somalia and on to Ethiopia. According to documents filed with the Kenyan court, Makhtal said he was seeking "a transit visa to enable exit to Canada" when he was arrested. He was put on a plane to Mogadishu two days before his court date.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

HARPER MUST ACT AGAINST TORTURE: NDP
Human Rights groups join NDP Critic in calling for action on the Optional Protocol Against Torture

Ottawa – NDP Human Rights Critic Wayne Marston (Hamilton East – Stoney Creek) was today joined by Secretary-General of Amnesty International Alex Neve, Kim Pate of the Elizabeth Fry Society, and Abdullah Almalki, a victim of torture in Syria, to call on the Conservative government to take immediate action and ratify the United Nations’ Optional Protocol to the Convention Against Torture (OPCAT).

“The protocol came into effect eighteen months ago, but for some reason both the Liberal and the Conservative governments have failed to ratify the optional protocol. Its hard to understand why a democratic government wouldn’t want to do everything it can to prevent and eliminate torture,” said Marston.

NDP CALLS FOR SPECIAL HUMAN RIGHTS ENVOY TO CHINA
Marston calls on Conservatives to stand up for Canadian Huseyin Celil

OTTAWA – During Question Period today, the NDP Human Rights critic Wayne Marston (Hamilton East-Stoney Creek) made an emotional plea for a Canadian diplomatic envoy to advocate for Huseyin Celil, the Canadian citizen illegally detained in a Chinese prison.

“The Parliamentary Secretary has spent his career agitating for human rights in China any past victory will be for nothing if this Canadian is murdered in China,” said Marston. “Huseyin Celil will never come home to his wife and children if this government doesn’t do more than talk about human rights when it is politically expedient.”

PUBLICATION: The Province

BYLINE: James McNulty

Hypocrisy on human rights: Acts tough on world stage, ignores home front

Stephen Harper's tough-guy stance as global human-rights cop is more vanishing act when it comes to his own country.

For all of his stone-throwing at the likes of China, the PM is a ducker back home, human-rights grievances piled high under his Conservative regime.

Harper's government has yet to apologize to Maher Arar, for example. Thanks to faulty RCMP intelligence, the Canadian citizen was arrested by U.S. authorities and whisked off to Syria for torture in a tiny cell.

NDP BLASTS CONSERVATIVES FOR EMPTY PROMISES
Conservatives fail to keep election promise and ratify UN protocol on Torture

OTTAWA – Wayne Marston, MP (Hamilton East – Stoney Creek) held a press conference today in Ottawa demanding that Harper keeps his election promise and put the UN Optional Protocol Against Torture before the House for ratification.

“While in China last week, Harper says he talked about human rights and the Huseyin Celil case in particular. But Canadians want more than words from this government, they want action to eliminate torture and protect our citizens at home and abroad. The first thing the Conservative government needs to do is to meet our international obligations and do what is right by adopting the Optional Protocol on Torture,” said Marston.

NDP GETS ALL PARTY SUPPORT FOR VETERANS STATE FUNERAL
Marston seconds successful motion to recognize WW1 Veterans

Ottawa – Wayne Marston, MP (Hamilton East – Stoney Creek), joined by the NDP’s Veterans Affairs Critic Peter Stoffer put forward a motion to recognize Canada’s last World War 1 Veteran with a state funeral.

“I was pleased to see all parties recognize the importance of this motion to provide a state funeral for our last World War 1 Veteran. It is an important tribute to the contribution of all our veterans and current CF personnel as well as those who sacrificed their lives in World War 1 and other conflicts.” said Marston.

MARSTON URGES FUNDING OF STELCO CO-GENERATION PLANT
Co-generation an immediate “Clean Air” measure for Hamilton

Ottawa –Wayne Marston, MP (Hamilton East – Stoney Creek) challenged the Conservative government to take immediate actions to fund the proposed Stelco co-generation plant. In letters to the Ministers of Finance and Environment, Marston urged the Conservatives to fund this important project.

“Stelco’s re-structuring bid included a commitment for federal funding for a co-generation plant. The Conservatives have ignored that commitment.” said Marston “With a toothless Conservative Clean Air Act that needs to go to an all-party committee to be improved so it can pass, the co-generation plant is an easy, short-term measure that would have immediate impact on cleaning Hamilton’s air.”

Over the summer and fall of 2006, my staff and I collected local stories about veterans who have served in our, or others, Armed Forced and others who have had experiences serving in wars or simply living through wars. Linked below is the publications that were sent out in Hamilton East - Stoney Creek.

These stories are NOT for reproduction by others.

PUBLICATION: The Hamilton Spectator
PAGE: A13
BYLINE: Lisa Grace Marr

Drop in prices casts a chill over nation's labour unions

A second straight monthly decline in the price of raw materials and manufactured goods is putting a chill over labour organizations.

Prices charged by manufacturers were down 1.6 per cent in September after a .5 per cent drop in August, while raw materials were down 5.2 per cent after a 3.7 per cent decline a month earlier.

Statistics Canada, which released the figures yesterday, attributed the drop in the price of manufactured goods at the factory gate to sliding petroleum prices.

PUBLICATION: The Hamilton Spectator

PAGE: A9

Anti-war groups stage protests at City Hall

More than 100 people gathered outside City Hall Saturday afternoon to protest against Canada's participation in the war in Afghanistan.

The anti-war protesters from local organizations huddled in the cold rain listening to speeches and raising placards for honking passing cars before taking their message to the streets on a short march along Main and King streets.

New Democrat MP Wayne Marston echoed his party's criticism of Canada's military role in Afghanistan and called for more humanitarian and reconstruction aid.