Madame Sadako Ogata, the UN High Commissioner for Refugees, visited York University for an open forum organized by the Centre for Refugee Studies at York. Photo by Hong Zhou.

by Sandra Guiry

"The bottom line is saving lives," said United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) Sadako Ogata. She was at York for an open forum on global challenges to the office of UN High Commissioner held in the Senate Chamber on Nov. 6.

The forum, organized by York's Centre for Refugee Studies, was attended by more than 150 people, including faculty, students and members of the public. Madame Ogata commended the Centre for the work it has done in partnership with the High Commissioner's Office, including a pilot project for training refugee judges. In conjunction with a three-day official visit to Canada by Madame Ogata, the forum allowed members of the York community to hear first hand how the UN is dealing with current global refugee crises.

"This is a rare opportunity for Canadians to encounter an extraordinary woman and significant world leader," said Prof. Anne Bayefsky, Director of the Centre for Refugee Studies.

Ogata, who was first appointed to the position of UN High Commissioner in 1991, has been recently re-elected for another two year term. Emergency response units and programs for people fleeing conflict situations are the top priority for Ogata, she said.

Ogata said one of the greatest challenges for the High Commissioner over the last six or seven years has been readying an emergency program for refugees fleeing crises in the Kurdish region, the former Yugoslavia, the horn of Africa, and the Great Lakes region of Africa, she said. "I have strengthened emergency response and [the UN] strives to meet any emergency," said Ogata. "Our immediate agenda is Kosovo. The situation in Yugoslavia has worsened since the spring, with over 200,000 refugees and displaced persons. With the reduction of Serbs in Kosovo, people will go back if they feel secure. We must try to have the use of force limited, and have the police withdraw."

Ogata said her goals for the UNHCR in the face of these global challenges are: to continue to encourage the international community to accept refugees in need of asylum; to focus on peace-building, problem solving in post-conflict situations, and re-settlement initiatives; and to maintain readiness for large scale emergencies. "The bottom line is saving lives. However, we must also encourage governments to deal with the root issues or problems. Those are mainly political," said Ogata.

The international community is very helpful in raising resources when there are large scale emergencies that appear at the top of the news hour, she said. However, it is important to keep the media attention and interest on the small crises as well, because it is that ongoing attention that fosters assistance from other countries, said Ogata.

Members of the audience were able to pose questions directly to the High Commissioner. Even though the focus of Ogata's address was on crisis situations for refugees around the world, many questions from the audience were critical of Canada's own refugee policies. Members of the audience clapped after one member of the audience suggested that Canada should be accepting more refugees than it currently does.

According to the Centre for Refugee Studies, approximately 25,000 persons had their refugee claims considered by Canada's Immigration and Refugee Board in 1997. Of these, just over 40 per cent were accepted as refugees according to the Geneva Conventions. In addition, 7,700 refugees were brought to Canada from overseas under the "government-assisted program," and about 2,600 refugees were sponsored by churches, voluntary organizations or family members.

Another speaker said that Canada had turned down what he called "legitimate refugees who did not meet all technical requirements," and that this should not be happening. Ogata responded by saying that Canada does have systems and criteria in place to deal with refugee claims and that she could not comment on specific cases without more background information. Like all countries, however, Canada should be encouraged to accept all legitimate refugee claims, she said.

Others people in the audience asked questions about specific countries. For example, one person asked, "How is the UNHCR helping the people who cannot return home in Croatia because their industry, infrastructure and homes have been destroyed ?" Ogata said she recently toured the devastation in Croatia and agreed the situation there is very complicated and needs attention. The UNHCR is assisting in re-establishing the communities so people can return, but property rights need to be re-established first, she said. People there are living wherever they can, Ogata added.

The open forum with Sadako Ogata is one of a number of events on the subject of human rights that are being organized at York to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the United Nations this December.

March 31, 1999 -- that's when the opportunity to double the impact of your gift to York University ends. Until March 31, 1999, all gifts to York, designated to endowed student financial aid, will be matched by the Ontario Student Opportunity Trust Fund (OSOTF). That means that every dollar you commit will contribute two dollars to financial aid for York students.

But time is running out. If you would like to support our students through OSOTF, you still have a window of opportunity to have your dollars doubled. If you have already made a pledge to OSOTF, thank you for your generous support! Please complete your payments by March 31, 1999 to ensure that your gift is matched.

Prof. Sam Mallin, coordinator of the new BA program, and Lorenza Campagnolo, assistant to the coordinator, are pictured at the press conference which announced the Public Services Studies program.

by Don Evans

"There's nothing quite like this program being offered anywhere else in Canada," Livy Visano, dean of Atkinson College, stated at the official launch of the Bachelor of Arts in Public Service Studies, Atkinson's three-year degree program for police officers, firefighters and public-security, emergency-service and ambulance workers.

"We're filling a need by providing the education to help public servants bring a new level of understanding to their jobs. [This program] will help to develop public servants who know much more about the social, legal, cultural and economic issues behind the services they provide," Visano said.

The degree is tailored for people already employed in police and fire departments, the courts, ambulance services, immigration, probation services, correctional services and private security. It will require study in a variety of liberal arts and administrative studies disciplines that will greatly increase students' breadth of knowledge.

The program is also designed for those seeking a career move into public administration, policy development, managerial or supervisory roles in their organizations. Students will be offered courses in management skills, human resources, organizational behaviour, social work, government, politics, law, accounting and planning.

The program is offered through the Division of Evening Studies and is specifically designed to accommodate adult, part-time students, who will be able to work and study at the same time. Some of the professional and liberal arts courses on offer will be available through the Internet or correspondence.

Community policing is more effective if officers understand issues such as cultural differences, poverty, the dynamics of domestic violence and the changing nature of how people live and work, explained Atkinson humanities professor Leslie Sanders, who coordinated the development of the degree, which combines professional and liberal arts courses.

"These adult students can take courses about the immigrant experience, social and cultural history, urbanization, ethics, morality and such social problems as racism and violence against women." The result will be public servants with a more sophisticated and accurate view of the community they serve, and who will be less likely to use a 'one-size-fits-all' approach, Sanders said.

She predicted that graduates of the program will be better equipped to provide leadership and mentoring roles in neighbourhoods and communities demoralized by economic hardship or urban decay.

Atkinson College worked with the Toronto Police Service and private security agencies to design the new BA, Visano said. The first students will be admitted in January 1999, and the college expects that, within five years, as many as 250 will be enrolled.

Visano noted that law enforcement, security and emergency services have evolved into organizations that are less para-military, more democratic, more integrated with the community and more closely connected with other municipal and social services. It is only natural for men and women on the front lines to seek out the skills they need to handle all this integration, he said.

"This program is a point of departure for other initiatives," said Visano. "In tandem with curriculum development for the Public Service Studies program, we are moving toward establishing a [research] centre for police and security studies."

"Autonyme," the current exhibition by Colette Laliberté at the Glendon Gallery, focuses on cars, speed, and other issues of suburban living.

Drawings and digital prints of orderly rows of automobiles partially obscured by sandblasted glass comprise the current exhibition of work by francophone visual artist Colette Laliberté at the Glendon Gallery. The show, titled "Autonyme," continues at the gallery through Dec. 18.

Concerned with examining what she has termed "the uncertain, the ephemeral, the temporal [nature] of things," in "Autonyme," Laliberté focuses on "cars, speed and other issues of suburban living," a gallery spokesperson notes.

"With the gathering of cars in parking lots, [I am] allud[ing] to a planned urban landscape where pastoral life has been modernized into a socially and spatially segmented world," says Laliberté. "The sandblasted glass acts as a metaphor for the 'window,' as well as the flattening out of urban landscape. It creates an infinite, desolate space on which different readings unfold."

Laliberté has been participating in solo and group exhibitions in galleries across Canada since the mid-1970s. She has consistently received recognition from Canada's most prestigious visual arts granting agencies. During the 1990s, her primary method of representation has been large-scale paintings and site-specific installations in which the gallery walls become her canvas.

On Friday, Nov. 27, the artist will participate in an open discussion of the "Autonyme" exhibition and of her past work, during a lunch hour event outside the Glendon Gallery.

CUTTING EDGE FUNDRAISER: Stan Taman gets his hair length measured by Wanda Monks (both are from the Department of Human Resources) before his golden locks get chopped off in a United Way fundraiser. The ponytail will be cut down to a two-inch haircut. And don't forget to make your pledge to the United Way today! We still have a ways to go before reaching this year's York University campaign goal of $115,000.

Stan Taman of the Department of Human Resources (DHR), dresses casually and sports a 13-inch ponytail of hair, but not for long!

On Friday, Nov. 27, Taman has agreed to dress up in a sports jacket and tie -- and get a major haircut -- in order to raise funds for the United Way. The event will take place from noon to 2 p.m. in the Common Room at Calumet College.

Taman has not had a haircut in three years. Wanda Monks, a personnel analyst in DHR, approached him with the idea of wearing a suit into work as a fundraising idea. Taman replied: I'll do you one better -- I'll get my hair cut down so it's only two inches long. We thought it would be a good way to raise money for the United Way."

Taman is the Senior Employee Relations Advisor in the human resources department. His golden locks will be shorn by Vince Nero, a barber from Kliks hair salon in York Lanes. The event is being billed as "Hair by Kliks, Man by Stan, for the United Way ... do what you can!"

All members of the York community are invited to join in. An auction will also take place during the event so people can bid to make the "unkindest cut," lopping off the ponytail before the barber gives the haircut the finishing touches. The whole event will feature a colour commentary by a surprise emcee.

Anyone interested in pledging to the United Way can bring their contributions (cash or cheques) to the Department of Human Resources reception area, or to the office of Wanda Monks, Room C-3, East Office Building. Donations will also be gratefully accepted at the door on the day of the event.

Next Theatrical Trans/Formations event on Monday

The next event in the Theatrical Trans/Formations series organized this year by the Robarts Centre for Canadian Studies takes place on Monday, Nov. 30. Called Trans/Forming Genre: Poetry in Space, the event aims to cross the boundaries between theatre and dance with Canadian artists creating a genre all their own. Explore this "border zone" of performance with some of Canada's most original creators. A public screening of theatre/dance films takes place from noon to 4 p.m. in the Alumni Fireside Lounge, Centre for Film and Theatre. Films include: Le Dortoir by Carbone 14; Raging Dreams by Theatre Gargantua; and Enter Achilles by DV8. The second portion of the day, a panel presentation, "Dance/Theatre," will take place from 4:30 to 6 p.m. in Burton Auditorium. Presenters include: Hillar Liitoja, artistic director of DNA Theatre and a playwright, director and choreographer; Claudia Moore, artistic director of MoonhORsE Dance Theatre and director, choreographer, dancer; and Paula de Vasconcelos, artistic director, Le Theatre Pigeons International (Montreal) director, choreographer, designer and actor. Moderator is Prof. Darcey Callison from York's dance department. A reception with a cash bar will take place from 6 to 7 p.m. in the Alumni Fireside Lounge. Finally, from 7:30 to 9:30 p.m., a master class on "Making Dance/Theatre" led by Paula de Vasconcelos will be restricted to an invited group of about 15 dance and theatre students.

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New credit card agreement

We would like to thank the thousands of students and graduates who have supported Alumni and Student Programming by using their York University affinity Visa card. After several years with the Toronto Dominion affinity Visa card program, it is time for a change. A Canadian bank called MBNA Canada Bank has a new affinity MasterCard program which we believe offers more value to you, and more support to us. With MBNA you will enjoy superior customer service, a very low introductory interest rate on balance transfers and cash advance cheques, and then highly competitive regular rates. You may also choose between a no-fee/no out-of-country medical Gold Card, an annual fee/including out-of-country medical Gold Card or a regular no-fee affinity MasterCard picturing the campus in full bloom. Keep in mind that you support York University every time you use your affinity MasterCard for a purchase. We hope that you will consider switching with us from the TD Visa affinity card to the new MBNA MasterCard or alumni Gold MasterCard, and continue to support your alma mater for many more years to come. Watch for the York MBNA Canada affinity MasterCard application in the new year and again, thank you for your support. For more information, call Alumni Affairs at (416) 736-9675.

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Information session on journals at risk

Faculty members are invited to a briefing session dealing with problems related to the escalating costs of scholarly journals. The session on Friday, Dec. 4 is called Journals at Risk. This session will present an overview of the key issues and discuss initiatives to improve the situation. This event will be co-sponsored by the Senate Library Committee and the Senate Committee on Research. The event will include information about the Scholarly Publishing and Academic Resources Coalition (SPARC) and the National Research Council journals program, a panel discussion by York journal editors on their experiences with journal prices and publishing, and a debate on the extent to which faculty should retain copyright on their works rather than giving it to journal publishers. It will be held in the Senate Chamber, N940 Ross, from 9:30 to 11:30 a.m.

For more information, call Susan Eastwood, (416) 736-5257 ext. 40058 or fax: (416) 736-5830.

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Agnew wins human rights award

York Social Science Professor Vijay Agnew has been awarded the Myers Centre Award for the Study of Human Rights in North America. This award comes in recognition of her book, Resisting Discrimination: Women from Asia, Africa and the Caribbean and the Women's Movement in Canada.

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P & M Service Award winner