Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - February 22, 1989, Winnipeg, Manitoba Winnipeg free press february 1989 Page 7 we fears Rise Over threats to atmosphere Ottawa first came the Stockholm conference on the environment in and the declaration at the end of which began Man has the Funda mental right to Equality and adequate conditions of in an environment of a Quality that permits a life of dignity of Well that we Are established such Legal Princi Ples As the fact that nations have an obligation not to cause environmental damage to their or to the areas like the oceans and environment shared by set Standard after a decade of came the massive United nations convention on the Law of the with its influential Section on the Protection and preservation of the Marine those environmental provisions now set the Standard for Many countries in dealing with the Ocean Environ states the obligation to protect and preserve the Marine in the environment Sec Tion states in its opening states have the Sovereign right to exploit their natural resources Pur Suant to their environmental poli cies and in accordance with their duty to protect and preserve the Marine states shall cooperate in developing rules and recommended practices for the reduction and control of Marine says a later pro new evidence the world has moved and frightening new evidence of new kinds of impending dangers to this Little planet from changes in the global atmosphere have presented there have been an assortment of and a few International including protocols dealing with pollutants affecting the Ozone layer and with the Sulphur emissions causing acid but the work is just begin it was to search for appropriate National and International responses to further the Effort that 80 Legal and science policy experts from around the world gathered in Ottawa this the Canadian certain to be highly influential in the proceed Joan Cohen Ottawa editor was eager to get work under Way on what they called a Frame or this would set out some principles re Garding the common responsibilities of nations to preserve the Atmo As the environment portion of the Law of the sea convention and others had done though Likely in More it would also establish institutions such As a Dis Putes settlement mechanism and specific agreements or developed separately on individual would operate under this these include the existing Proto col on acid rain and the Montreal protocol on Protection of the Ozone open Agenda the Canadian speakers insisted that it would be the meeting that determined where International action would be focused and the subject matter was in Canadian officials acknowledged that the out come might be develop ing proposals for both a framework document for a separate convention or launching the Effort to restrain global questions about a framework agreement took front stage As the conference the fact is that even the experts on the problems of atmospheric pollution do not Al ways understand the process of International lawmaking or the vocabulary keynote speaker Mostafa the head of the United nations environment dropped a Bombshell for the meet ing when he said participants should abandon plans for a Frame work convention for the Protection of the they should concentrate on the problem of glob Al and plan for Early action to reduce the use of Chloro fluorocarbons which also cause Ozone thinning and a careful Reading of Tolbas nations agreed on a Law of the sea now they need a Law of the suggests he had a mistaken idea of what a framework convention is All i keep getting signals that reservations particularly in the scientific with regard to the Effi Lazof these agreement seen As useful Model Cacy of an umbrella convention for All atmospheric problems which in clude issues As yet unquantified and ill defined to contemplate a Universal so Lution in one quantum leap May be to seek the no one disagrees on that in a framework agree ment lends itself perfectly to the kind of situation Tolba de allowing the International Community to Slot in action plans As they Are developed and As the knowledge comes the subordinate protocols can be amended relatively easily when new information comes in or new plans plans Are already under Way to Amend the Montreal protocol on the Ozone layer to provide for much swifter reductions in Csc emis in the unofficial clearly defined a framework agreement As being an Al inclusive document when in fact it is the but he was scarcely according to Alan the eminent International Law expert and negotiator who has been recruited by Joe Clark As his adviser on environmental speakers in the open morning sessions of the International meeting used Frame work agreement to mean six quite different one of these speak ers is a close associate of Beesley at International and a major review framework agreements being used More and More often in International endear Beesley in a major opening re View of the relevant International Law pointed out such with their have become the Standard method of approach ing problems when All the facts Are not yet on the opportunities that could be pursued through such a Beesley noted that the principles in such a document could serve an educative As much or More than a coercive he was Why it was important to look at principles of a positive some such positive obligations had been put Forward in papers that would be discussed during the closed including obligations to cooperate to do research on matters related to the to collect and Exchange data to assist developing countries to notify neighbors of and so Strong role whatever its the meet ing offered numerous indications that Canada is playing a Strong leadership role in the attack on atmospheric it has hosted three of the major conferences on the subject in recent these included the Montreal con Ference on the Ozone layer in which saw 24 nations pledge to re Duce the use of and last junes Toronto conference on the changing where prime minister Brian Mulroney invited the International Community to produce an International Accord on the environment by More than it is Canadian officials who appear to offer most of the analysis on How problems can be passed along the proposals put Forward when the meeting ends today will be passed along to another meeting or institution for further and will Likely show up again at the High level political meeting on the environment planned for the Hague this in an aside this lawyer Beesley a prime mover in the Law of the sea negotiations predicted that International negotiations on environmental matters Are Likely to be ahead throughout the coming Getty Marks election Kickoff by making a tasteless Blunder Edmonton it began As a but by the end of the Day Alberta Premier Don Getty was forced to deny that he beats his this was surely one of the strangest election kickoffs in Canadian his the Premier got himself into this mess on monday just after he announced a provincial election for March he turned to an Edmonton columnist and said i maybe whack my beat my but Ive never abused a seat Getty was referring to an obscure suggestion by the columnist that the Premier is a closet abuser of seat he tossed off his comment in a Light tone theres no doubt he meant it As a joke but what a Clanger from a pre Mier who campaigning on a pledge to strengthen the Alberta family Don braid in Alberta Gettys aides froze in their tracks one nearly swallowed his re porters made varying expressions of not All the re Mark was so strange that everybody doubted they heard it was and now the voters will have to decide if the remark is important enough to make a differ but theres no doubt that this was exactly the wrong thing for Don Getty to even in since last May he has been offer ing himself As the Champion of the the whole weight of the bureaucracy has been thrown into his crusade to strengthen family last weeks throne speech mentioned the words family or families 40 millions have already been spent on family facilities such As swimming pools and skating the family is at the very heart of the progressive conservatives drive for As As Getty has used this Issue to put his personal stamp on the casual remark yet the with one casual picked up the Centrepiece and smashed it to the without even realizing what hed this whole family thing has been a very skilled creation by the pre Miers said an aide to Liberal Leader Laurence to have him say this on Day minute one its like an atom Gettys office later professed amazement that any reporter would consider writing about it was Only a said his press Secre but How to ignore such a strange outburst at the very Gettys remark shows he Doest realize that jokes about family violence Are no longer funny if they Ever it demonstrates an Odd insensitivity to the very Issue he claims is closest to his stranger still is the reflection on Gettys own with the pre Miers awaiting trial for drug trafficking a situation that has devastated Gettys wife Why say anything at All that draws Atten Tion to his family the opposition was All Over this like a cheap new Democrat Leader Ray Martin said Gettys re Mark is in bad after missing the significance at called it horrific and demanded that Getty apologize to Al Berta More the Alberta advisory Council on women issues the governments own body also asked Getty to stopped laughing Margaret the noted acidly that the councils cur rent newsletter carries an article called family violence no laugh ing Getty stopped laughing by late afternoon on after his aides scented a major he said he regretted the and assured reporters that he Doest beat his opening Days dont come much worse than Don braid is a Calgary Herald Getty a bad joke tories language policy is simply ant French Premier Garv Hilmons double Star Ofarri Premier Gary Hilmons double Standard on minority language rights discredits Mani Tobas Al party opposition to the Meech Lake constitutional the Premier told la society Francomano Toraine that expanded vices in the French language would be provided in the governments own Good recalling his party sentiments when it threw the province into a frenzy of prejudice five years Filmon indicated Franco Manitoban have not to whatever status their language achieves comes from the goodness of governments not constitutional entity he Doest understand the constitutional the language Equality clause in the 1870 Manitoba act which he says confers no historic rights on French Manitoba but is merely an obligation to translate statutes is the identical clause in the 1867 British North America act he believes guarantees English not just but services and commercial Manitoba tories Pride themselves this province allows commercial signs in any and All the right to hang up a store sign pales by comparison to the right to be addressed by your government in your Lan Manitoba tories also Pride them selves they didst advocate use of the not withstanding clause to get around the 1979 and 1985 supreme court rulings affirming Manitoba official they Are ignorant of the the notwithstanding clause applies to the charter of rights and Manitoba bilingualism arises from its 1870 it is Little wonder that Quebec Premier Robert Bourassa last week described the Frances Russell Manitoba Premier As More the position of Hilmons party is simply language and the Magazine published by Canadas commissioner of official devoted its 1985 Issue to the Manitoba language crisis of As Leader of the official outlined his party fierce antagonism to the constitutional settlement the former nip government had forged with the Federal government and the it Guaran teed services in French in Exchange for having to translate Only the provinces Core the tories ruptured the parliamentary process with 263 hours of forc ing the government to withdraw the proposal and Send the Issue to the supreme the court ruled that Manitoba had to translate All its Laws and henceforth had to function on a legislative level in both French and in Hilmons explanation of his party behaviour is very illuminating when reread from the perspective of his decision 19 to withdraw Meech Lake from the legislature to punish Bourassa for Banning English on outdoor Manitoba Quebec constitutional Protection for minority Lan Guage rights is a modest Filmon it will be observed that the reference to the use of either language is Only with respect to the the legislature and that on Fil Mon asserted by Banning English on commercial Bourassa was violating the constitutional rights of in Filmon wrote that the provincial government didst even have to bother consulting Franco Manitoban about its response to the 1979 supreme court ruling reinstating French As an official acting in the spirit of the the government went beyond the Legal require ments and consulted the French speaking Community on the Extension of services in Filmon wrote his party objected to the notion of entrenchment of French As an official language of Manitoba and the fur ther entrenchment of the Extension of French language services in the Constitution also objectionable to us was the fact that the nip wished to Amend our Constitution without any open Public consultation whatsoever on an Issue where they lacked a Public mandate such actions we alien to the democratic and parliamentary traditions that have protected our Freedom in this country for Many that although Filmon Heads a minority he has refused to hold Public hearings on Meech Lake prior to presenting Manitoba views at a closed first ministers meeting in Filmon was a vigorous supporter of legislative entrenchment is not necessarily the most desirable vehicle for protecting it is certainly potentially inflexible and would limit the ability of elected representatives of the people Here in Manitoba to dispose of issues of language subject to the eve present disciplines of the the moment Bourassa used the notwithstanding clause to override the supreme court judgment upholding English commercial Filmon changed his the clause is a threat to minority he Hilmons withdrawal of Meech Lake has Only Given the tories a fou Point Lead Over the liberals in internal party sources that is not enough to win a Meech Lake should be opposed because it decentralized Canada to a dangerous not because of Quebec language it int working at Home nor will it play on the National doonesbury by Garry Trudeau less than is Moth 6kf05e Bush was ethics Wulp i 50rryfor Bush watch i 15 this what Bush ;