Home                                             Dec. 19-25

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Conservative Members of Parliament James Moore, of B.C. and Belinda Stronach of Ontario, are the only two Tory MPs who plan to vote in favor of same-sex marriage when the government's legislation comes before the House of Commons ."In short, I believe in equality under the law for all Canadians for civil marriages, which in a perfect world would be termed civil unions," said Moore.  "And I also believe strongly in the separation of church and state in order to protect the rights of religious institutions and people of faith from having to embrace or perform same-sex marriages if they choose not to." Moore and Stronach are to appear together at a fundraiser in Port Coquitlam in February.

U.S. President George W. Bush has been chosen as Time magazine's Person of the Year for his "bold, uncompromising" leadership and election victory, the magazine said.

Maher Arar, the Syrian-born Canadian who was allegedly tortured in Syria on suspicion of being involved in terrorism, has been named Time magazine's Canadian Newsmaker of the Year. Since his release, Arar has emerged as "a vocal proponent of human rights in Canada ..." the magazine said.