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Bob Mackin Last month it was the winter

Horgan hypocrisy: last text messages as premier deleted

Bob Mackin

The B.C. government’s freedom of information office has admitted that all of John Horgan’s text messages from his final three days as premier were deleted.

John Horgan (Twitter)

A request for all of Horgan’s sent and received texts from Nov. 16 to 18 resulted in a no records response. David Eby was sworn-in as Horgan’s successor on Nov. 18.

“I can confirm that the ex-premier’s government phone was searched, and Office of the Premier did not locate records,” said an email from senior FOI analyst Sascha Pannwitz.

”As the text messages were casual, non-substantive, and not required for ongoing business needs, they were deleted under the transitory records schedule.”

Jason Woywada, executive director of the B.C. Freedom of Information and Privacy Association (FIPA), said the transitory label can sometimes be justified. For instance, a public official’s messages about arranging a coffee meeting need not be kept in perpetuity. But, Woywada said, deciding what is genuinely transitory is subjective and open to abuse.

“We have no ability to trust that the Premier’s Office is making a decision that is in the public interest and that they are retaining the records that they should and/or are withholding the records that they should,” Woywada said in an interview.

Equally troubling, he said, is the suggestion that Horgan’s last 72 hours as premier could have elapsed without being party to a single message of any lasting importance.

“It’s passing strange that the premier didn’t make a decision via text message in the last three days in office,” Woywada said. “That seems incredibly low possibility and incredibly low probability. So part of what’s happening here is by not releasing information, they create the very scandal that starts to give rise and entrench a narrative that they have something to hide all the time.”

Horgan did not respond to interview requests.

In 2015, while leader of the NDP opposition, Horgan criticized what he called “a culture of deception, deceit, and delete, delete, delete” after the Information and Privacy Commissioner found widespread triple-deleting under BC Liberal Premier Christy Clark. During Question Period on Oct. 27, 2015, Horgan scoffed at Clark’s suggestion that many of the messages were transitory.

From chief of staff Geoff Meggs’s text messages, obtained via FOI.

“It may well be that the Premier is transitory, and I’m hopeful that that’s the case, but the documents that belong to British Columbians should be available when they’re asked for, and that has not been the case on her watch,” Horgan said. “The most open and transparent government in British Columbia’s history is not overseen by her.”

The Office of the Premier, however, did release text messages via FOI from nine people inside and outside government to Horgan’s chief of staff, Geoff Meggs.

External correspondents mostly wished Horgan and Meggs well and sought their personal contact information. A Nov. 17, 9:21 p.m. message from Bob, with initials B.D., said “Great working with you Geoff. Hell of a ride!” Bob Dewar was Horgan’s 2017 campaign manager and an aide until his 2021 retirement.

Meggs sent himself a test text, while a staffer wondered whether he wanted her to forward messages from his government email account to a personal account. The next page was withheld entirely under a privacy clause.

The exchange with Horgan’s deputy minister Lori Wanamaker was mostly censored, but one with press secretary Aileen Machell was mostly visible. She sought approval Nov. 17 to attach Horgan’s name to a quote written about Eby for placement in a news release about the 37th premier’s swearing-in: “When we formed government, I assigned David Eby to tackle some of our toughest problems. He put out the dumpster fire at ICBC and ended an era of money laundering a previous government ignored. He is a roll-up-your sleeves guy who will work hard to improve the lives of British Columbians.”

Replied Meggs: “OK, will see him in 90 minutes or so. Is a quote necessary?”

“We can remove it but it might look weird to not have a quote,” Machell replied. “Whatever you would like me to do.”

The quote attributed to Horgan appeared in the Nov. 18 news release.

More than three hours after Eby’s swearing-in, the “talent director” at the government’s human resources department texted Meggs. “I’m wondering if you are free for a moment,” wrote Meg Burrows. Meggs did not respond by text.

Eby had previously announced the replacements of Meggs with Matt Smith and Wanamaker with Shannon Salter. It took until the week of Christmas for the Office of the Premier to admit that Meggs left with a $339,784 severance package, only exceeded by Wanamaker’s $591,089 golden parachute.

Horgan came to power in 2017 after promising to improve the FOI law. The NDP government also promised in early 2019 that it would finally add the Legislative Assembly’s administration. Instead, the NDP government imposed a $10 application fee for FOI requests in late 2021.

Horgan backed down from an attempt to exempt the Premier’s Office from FOI requests and stopped short of fulfilling a promise for a government-wide duty to document law. The watered down measure threatens a fine up to $50,000 for wilfully destroying records in order to avoid complying with an FOI request.

FIPA’s Woywada said it was yet another case of a political party in opposition demanding greater government transparency until it got into power.

“It’s important that some of these political parties actually start acting on increasing government transparency as they get into office,” he said.

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January 5, 2023

Bob Mackin The B.C. government’s freedom of information

U.S. college admissions scandal mastermind Singer sentenced

Bob Mackin

The kingpin of the U.S. college admissions scandal, which involved two British Columbians, was sentenced to jail in Boston Jan. 4 for 42 months.

U.S. District Court Senior Judge Rya Zobel also sentenced William “Rick” Singer to three years probation and ordered the 62-year-old St. Petersburg, Fla. resident to pay $10.7 million restitution to the Internal Revenue Service and forfeit $5.3 million of assets and $3.4 million in cash.

“The conduct in this case was something out of a Hollywood movie: wealthy, entitled parents, paying for their children to secure admission to colleges, using fake test scores, falsified resumés, and even staged or photoshopped pictures,” U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts Rachael Rollins told reporters. “They gained admission that was not based on merit or athletic ability, but rather on cheating.”

The 55 people charged actually included Hollywood stars Felicity Huffman and Lori Laughlin and spawned a Netflix documentary heavy on re-enactments.

Point Grey resident David Sidoo and Surrey’s Xiaoning “Peggy” Sui were two of the 53 convicted since early 2019.

Singer owned and operated the Edge College and Career Network LLC and was CEO of the not-for-profit Key Worldwide Foundation. From 2011 to 2019, he conspired with parents, coaches and a university athletics administrator to gain admission via bribery to well-known colleges and universities. Test proctors and administrators were paid off to allow cheating on entrance exams. Coaches and administrators were bribed to accept applicants based on fraudulent sports credentials.

David Sidoo accepting the Order of B.C. from Premier Christy Clark and Lt. Gov. Judith Guichon in 2016 (BC Gov)

Key disguised the bribes as charitable donations, which even allowed parents to deduct payments from their taxes. Singer took in $25 million, paid $7 million in bribes and used $15 million for his own benefit.

“Any parent or guardian who has ever experienced the college admissions process should be angry,” Rollins said. “Any student or student athlete who spent their lives preparing to get into college, or to compete in college athletics, should be angry. This is not how the process should work. And that is precisely why this investigation and prosecution was so important.”

Sui, a Chinese citizen with Canadian permanent residency, was arrested in September 2019 while travelling in Spain. She spent 157 days in a Madrid jail and was eventually sentenced in May 2020 to time served. A judge fined Sui $250,000 and she forfeited the $400,000 bribe she paid Singer in order to arrange her son’s admission to the University of California Los Angeles. Her son had no prior competitive soccer experience, but was falsely billed as a top player on two private teams in Canada.

Xiaoning Sui (Twitter)

Mining and energy stock promoter Sidoo, a former University of B.C. and Canadian Football League star, was sentenced to 90 days jail in July 2020 after pleading guilty to conspiracy to commit mail fraud.

In 2011 and 2012, Sidoo paid $200,000 to Singer. Singer hired tennis pro Mark Riddell who used false identification to pose as Sidoo’s sons in order to ace their college entry exams. On two occasions, the Floridian flew to B.C. to write exams.

Dylan Sidoo was accepted to Chapman University, but later transferred to University of Southern California. Jordan Sidoo entered University of California Berkeley. They both graduated.

Not only did David Sidoo serve jail time, but his name was removed from the field at Thunderbird Stadium, he lost his B.C. Sports Hall of Fame induction and his Order of B.C. award was stripped.

“Operation Varsity Blues exposed a bold and shameless, decade-long scheme that undercut hardworking students trying to get into these prestigious universities the right way — through hard work, grades, community service, and sheer perseverance,” said FBI Special Agent Joseph Bonavolonta. “Everyone we’ve arrested, charged and convicted to date are integral to the scheme’s success. But, without Rick Singer, they never would have succeeded.”

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January 4, 2023

Now on Google Podcasts!

Bob Mackin The kingpin of the U.S. college

Business, Miscellany, News, Opinion, Sports

thePodcast: Happy New Year! Looking into the 2023 crystal ball

For the week of Jan. 1, 2023:

The MMA Panel reconvenes. This time, the sequel to last week’s 2022 review.

Fearless prediction panel Andy Yan and Mario Canseco.

Host Bob Mackin welcomes ResearchCo pollster Mario Canseco and Simon Fraser University city program director Andy Yan to look into the crystal ball and make predictions about 2023.

Plus Pacific Rim and Pacific Northwest headlines and a tribute to the late, great Pelé.

CLICK BELOW to listen or go to TuneIn or Apple Podcasts.

Have you missed an edition of theBreaker.news Podcast? Go to the archive.

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thePodcast: Happy New Year! Looking into the 2023 crystal ball

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January 1, 2023

For the week of Jan. 1, 2023: The

Does Sim’s election win cause Eby to stick to a 2024 provincial vote?

Bob Mackin

Premier David Eby says he isn’t planning to call an early provincial election in 2023. Instead, he says he’ll keep working toward the scheduled October 2024 vote.

ResearchCo pollster Mario Canseco said there are plenty of reasons for Eby to stay to true to his word. Even while he has a $5.7 billion surplus to spend, next year’s budget to table and a spring Legislature session two weeks shorter than the last.

Vancouver’s 2022 mayoral election results and the provincial ridings of the city. (Andy Yan)

Alberta’s election is scheduled for May 29 and the Rachel Notley-led NDP will need help from B.C.-based party organizers and volunteers.

“It’s also not absolutely necessary,” Canseco said. “I could understand why in 2020 the NDP decided to go for it. They had very high ratings related to the COVID-19 pandemic, they had an extremely weak BC Liberal leader in Andrew Wilkinson, who was being helped by people who did not do a fantastic job.”

Kevin Falcon obviously doesn’t control Eby’s agenda, but Canseco believes Falcon would prefer Eby keeps his promise while the BC Liberals rebrand as BC United.

“If you have an election in May [2023] you don’t have time to implement all of the changes. I think there will be a lot of people out there who are considering running for the new BC United who will be happy to do that in 2024, but not necessarily running as a BC Liberal candidate in 2023, so you still have to deal with the baggage of the party,” Canseco said.

The BC Liberals have hope to start 2023, after the rebirth of the centre-right in October’s civic election. The BC Liberals hold only two of Vancouver’s 11 ridings now. A decade ago, under Christy Clark, they held a 6-5 edge.

A common denominator in 2022 was Kareem Allam, who managed Falcon’s February leadership win and Sim’s ABC Vancouver victory eight months later before becoming Sim’s chief of staff. Sim also received help on his transition team from former Surrey Mayor Dianne Watts, the BC Liberals’ 2018 leadership runner-up.

Premier David Eby and Mayor Ken Sim at Queen Elizabeth Park (@KenSimCity)

Sim fell 957 votes shy of Stewart in 2018. Sim’s NPA won the biggest voting bloc with five councillors, but five of the top seven vote-getters skewed left: Green (3), COPE (1) and OneCity (1).

Four years later, Stewart had 112 fewer votes than 2018, but Sim gained almost 37,000. ABC won seven of 10 council seats and all but one on Park Board. ABC ran as big tent, centrist alternative that exploited the parting on the left. In the words of incumbent OneCity councillor Christine Boyle, the left ran too many candidates. “We split the vote,” she Tweeted.

Andy Yan, director of the Simon Fraser University city program, said the civic election result could be a major reason for Eby to avoid an early election in 2023. The Southeastern neighbourhoods, which also sit in three NDP ridings, flexed their muscle at the ballot box and decided the new order at 12th and Cambie.

“Are these ridings in play?” Yan said. “I wonder if they’re in trouble.”

According to Yan’s analysis of civic voting patterns, Sim dominated six of the seven civic polls that are within the provincial Vancouver-Fraserview riding, which flipped from the BC Liberals to the NDP’s George Chow in 2017. Sim also won five of the six polls in Vancouver-Kingsway, Health Minister Adrian Dix’s riding, and showed strong in Vancouver-Kensington, Mable Elmore’s riding.

“We’re not talking about Point Grey or Kerrisdale,” Yan said. “We’re actually talking about Sunset and Killarney. I think a lot of this is also a testament to the hard work and money that was involved in this particular election, that ABC was able to really get their vote out.”

Before Oct. 15, Eby’s leadership campaign ran hand-in-hand with Stewart and his fledgling Forward Together party. Eby’s constituency assistant Dulcy Anderson was one of Stewart’s candidates for council.

Kevin Falcon enters the Wall Centre ballroom on Feb. 5 (BC Liberals/Facebook)

Four days after Stewart and his slate suffered the humiliating shutout, Eby became NDP leader and premier designate by default, with the disqualification of Anjali Appadurai.

Sim was sworn-in to start the first full week of November. Eby was sworn-in on the Friday of the next week. They have only said nice things about each other in public, as both need to find solutions to the Downtown Eastside and Chinatown. Former housing minister Eby supports greater density and previously threatened to override cities that don’t speed-up housing approvals. Sim and ABC are unlikely to resist.

The friction that existed between city hall and the provincial government during 2008 and 2017, when Vision Vancouver often butted heads with the BC Liberals, just isn’t there. Yan said that Eby and Sim are appearing to work together because they must be pragmatic and avoid being too partisan. He wonders how long that will last.

“They’ve got shared problems,” Yan said. “If there is seen a tension between the two, it becomes a risk for both of them. They talk about politics being strange bedfellows. It’s in neither one of their interests to have have all-out tensions.”

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December 31, 2022

Bob Mackin Premier David Eby says he isn’t

Business, News, Sports

Pelé’s soccer legacy felt in Vancouver

Bob Mackin

The debate rages: is Diego Maradona or Lionel Messi the greatest soccer player of all-time?

Their talent and achievements are undeniable. But Pelé — Edson Arantes do Nascimento — ranks far above them in my books.

Postcard from Pele’s 1975 visit to Vancouver.

One of the greatest athletes of all-time died Dec. 29 at age 82. Not only was he Brazil’s greatest soccer export, a member of three World Cup champion squads, but he played an instrumental role in opening Canadian and American eyes to the beautiful game in the 1970s during three seasons with the North American Soccer League’s New York Cosmos.

A man of average height from humble beginnings who was a magician with the ball. He dazzled Vancouverites on several occasions and inspired many of us to play the game and imagine we were wearing his number 10.

I had the thrill of meeting Pelé when I was a child (my father was on the Whitecaps’ radio team at CJOR), and then as a young reporter when he appeared as a MasterCard spokesman at a convention in Vancouver.

I dropped everything while covering the Beijing 2008 Olympics to attend his photo op outside the Forbidden City.

I wasn’t the only one disappointed Pelé didn’t light the cauldron at the Rio 2016 opening ceremony in legendary Maracana. He was reportedly in ill health.

But his footprints were already in the stadium. Along with the ball he used to score his 1,000th goal. Artifacts in the museum that is the shrine to Brazil’s “futebol” triumphs that I first visited during the 2007 Pan American Games.

Pelé’s visits to Vancouver:

July 30, 1971: Pelé led Brazil’s Santos to a 3-1 win in a friendly against Hannover 96 of West Germany at Empire Stadium. The 22,193 fans saw Pelé score the 1,086th goal of his career, a 22-yard free kick in the second half.

July 7, 1972: Santos blanked the B.C. Premier League All-Stars 5-0 at Empire Stadium before 16,304 fans. Pelé played 82 minutes and didn’t score with his two shots on target, which was a moral victory for besieged goalkeeper Greg Weber.

May 27 and 28, 1975: Two-day visit to B.C. included an appearance at the B.C. Sports Hall of Fame’s seventh annual induction banquet. Multisport athlete Reg Clarkson headed the list of inductees overshadowed by famous guests Pelé and sports writer George Plimpton, who were presented with Montreal 1976 Olympic coin sets. Reporters wanted to know about the $7 million offer from the New York Cosmos. The Big Apple was the star’s next stop, the next night, where the Whitecaps registered a road win.

Whitecaps ad in the Vancouver Province from July 7, 1975.

July 7, 1975: The Cosmos with star signing Pelé came to Vancouver for a friendly match against the Whitecaps at Empire Stadium. Reserved seats were sold out, but general admission was $4.50 at the gate. (Worth $23.02 in 2022 dollars). Owner Herb Capozzi offered free tickets to the match for anyone buying tickets to all four of the remaining regular season games. The visitors were 2-1 victors in front of 26,495, then a local soccer attendance record. Israeli Mordecai Spiegler scored both New York goals. Sergio Zanatta had Vancouver’s.

Sept. 10, 1976: The Cosmos came for another friendly, this time against Canada’s national team as it prepared for World Cup qualifying. Brian Budd’s goal stood as the winner of the 3-1 match, but goalkeeper Tony Chursky was the star who made two saves off Pelé scoring chances. Giorgio Chinaglia’s penalty kick goal spoiled Chursky’s shutout bid late in the match.

June 30, 1977: In a league match, the Whitecaps upped their game against Pelé, Chinaglia and German star Franz Beckenbauer. Two other players with P surnames stole the show: Derek Possee and Buzz Parsons scored twice each in the 5-3 win before 30,277 fans, a record for a Canadian club match at the time. Almost as awesome as the Whitecaps’ unlikely victory was the soccer-caused traffic jam on the Ironworkers Memorial Second Narrows bridge.

Sept. 8, 1979: Almost two years after Pelé’s dramatic retirement match at Giants Stadium in New Jersey, he was back on the pitch. This time in a dapper white leisure suit to perform the ceremonial kickoff before Soccer Bowl. Said ABC’s Jim McKay: “The man who, in many ways, put the sport of soccer on its way in the United States.”

Pelé passed the ball to Whitecaps’ captain John Craven. A good omen, indeed. Vancouver edged the Tampa Bay Rowdies 2-1 for their only North American Soccer League title.

May 3, 1992: Then a FIFA goodwill ambassador, Pelé came to Swangard Stadium in Burnaby for the opening of the CONCACAF under-20 world championship qualifying tournament. Host Canada beat Guadeloupe 4-2 before 2,110 fans.

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Bob Mackin The debate rages: is Diego Maradona

Business, Miscellany, News, Sports

What didn’t happen in 2022

Bob Mackin

So many things happen every year in Metro Vancouver, but what about those that didn’t in 2022?

Here is a partial list.

Still no woman as Vancouver mayor

In his second try on Oct. 15, ABC Vancouver leader Ken Sim made history becoming the 41st Mayor of Vancouver and first Chinese-Canadian elected to the job.

Mayoral candidate Colleen Hardwick and her TEAM team at the 2010 Olympic cauldron on Jack Poole Plaza Oct. 4. (Mackin)

For the third-consecutive election, a woman finished third. This time, it was TEAM for a Livable Vancouver leader Colleen Hardwick, who won a council seat in 2018 on Sim’s NPA ticket.

Between 1993 and 2011, four women finished second for the Vancouver mayoralty. The NPA’s Suzanne Anton had the highest vote total in 2011 with 58,152.

Vancouver lags behind numerous cities. Seattle’s Bertha Knight Landes and Portland’s Dorothy McCullough Lee became their cities’ first female mayors in 1926 and 1949, respectively. Victorians elected Gretchen Brewin in 1985, six years before Torontonians voted for June Rowlands and 20 years before Dianne Watts made history in Surrey.

In 2017, Valerie Plante became Montreal’s first female mayor and the other Vancouver —the one in Washington State — elected Anne McEnerny-Ogle. Calgarians elected Jyoti Gondek mayor in 2021.

No electric car race

The streets around Eastern False Creek were supposed to become a temporary racecourse for the first time since the 2004 Molson Indy. The first of five annual Canadian E-Fests was scheduled for June 30-July 2, including a Nickelback concert, environmental conference, e-sports tournament and ABB Formula E World Championship race.

In April, the electric car race was postponed to 2023 due to promoter One Stop Strategy Group’s failure to obtain permits from public and private landowners. Vancouver wasn’t included on the 2023 race schedule in June when Formula E terminated its contract with OSS.

OSS balked at city hall’s July offer to refund its $500,000 deposit, because of the requirement to involve lawyers to oversee dispersal of funds to ticketholders and contractors.

Ticketing agency ATPI Travel and Events Canada Inc. sued OSS and its executives in Quebec in September for $3.4 million.

(Formula E/Twitter)

Broadway Subway didn’t stay on schedule

At least it wasn’t a Take Out the Trash Friday announcement.

Late on a Thursday, Nov. 24, the provincial government admitted the Broadway Subway wouldn’t meet the late 2025 deadline. The five-week concrete strike in the summer delayed tunnel boring, which means a new target of early 2026. Bad news for the businesses on Broadway separated from customers by construction barriers.

Even with 2022’s rapid increases in inflation and interest rates, the government insisted the project remains within budget. However, it didn’t include the $2.83 billion figure in the announcement.

Sewage plant still not open

Metro Vancouver’s North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant, on the old BC Rail station site in North Vancouver, was supposed to be up and running two years ago. In March 2021, the Metro Vancouver board admitted the budget had doubled to $1.058 billion and said it would be in service by 2024.

The board decided to formally fire design, build and finance contractor Acciona in January. The Spanish giant is also working on the new Pattullo Bridge, Broadway Subway and Site C.

In a strange, pre-Christmas twist, Metro Vancouver filed court papers alleging that the Acciona-employed daughter of Coquitlam’s city manager used her father’s laptop, and Mayor Richard Stewart’s account, to access a copy of a confidential report about the project.

Cancellation culture

The pandemic wreaked havoc with the B.C. Superweek bike races again, which meant no Gastown Grand Prix for the third straight summer.

There was no Hallowe’en or Christmas train in Stanley Park, after the Park Board failed to keep the miniature train and its tracks in a good state of repair.

The Pacific National Exhibition launched a Winter Fair, complete with ice skating in the Agrodome and festive concerts in the Coliseum. But it ended prematurely due to December’s snow and ice storms.

No open air tour of downtown streets for the jolly, old elf again. Telus didn’t renew its sponsorship of the Santa Claus Parade.

With great enthusiasm, Best Buy announced drone shows around Canada Place’s Christmas festival on the first Friday and Saturday of December. But producer North Star Entertainment encountered unexpected interference and kept its fleet grounded.

Tragic coincidence

The PNE had sudden, second thoughts about hosting the first stop on Punjabi gangster rapper, actor and political candidate Sidhu Moosewala’s summer tour in July.

On May 27, it announced ticket sales would be delayed while it consulted the Vancouver Police Department. Just two days later, the 28-year-old, who had lived in the Toronto area, was shot to death in India. He lost police protection the previous day.

Police in India investigated allegations that a Canadian gangster was behind the killing.

Sidhu Moosewala (Twitter)

Big tantrum

Rapper Lil Baby, the Breakout Festival’s headliner, didn’t take the PNE Amphitheatre stage Sept. 19, due to an alleged illness. Hundreds of the 5,200 attendees were so disappointed, they rioted. Vending kiosks and equipment were destroyed and violence spilled over into area neighbourhoods. Vancouver Police are investigating dozens of males captured on mobile phone footage during the melee.

Luxury ships keep cruising

When American lawmakers closed a loophole that required cruise ships on the Alaska run to stop in a Canadian port, B.C.’s tourism industry feared it was the beginning of the end.

Instead, Vancouver saw a record 307 cruise ship visits in 2022, up 6% from 2019. The season ran from April 10 (Holland America Koningsdam arrival) to Nov. 2 (Crown Princess departure).

The 815,000 passenger visits was below the 1.1 million pre-pandemic figure, but Port of Vancouver hopes the forecast 334 ship visits in 2023 will bring a record 1.3 million passenger visits.

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Bob Mackin So many things happen every year

Vancouver art teacher acquitted of sexual touching

Bob Mackin

A Vancouver art teacher was found not guilty Dec. 23 of two sexual touching charges, despite one of the B.C. Supreme Court’s top judges finding the alleged victim’s testimony more credible and reliable.

Law Courts Vancouver (Joe Mabel)

Shaozhai Zhai Chen, 51, was charged with sexual interference and invitation to sexual touching. He denied he put his hands down the pants of a nine-year-old student and denied that he had put that student’s hand on his penis, over his clothes, during art classes at his Vancouver home in March 2021.

Chen denied that the sexual touching ever took place. He testified that he only touched the student intentionally to correct posture while the student was drawing or painting, or to admonish the student’s fidgeting.

“The evidence in this case leaves me strongly suspecting that Mr. Chen touched [the child] under [the child’s] pants as…described,” said Associate Chief Justice Heather Holmes in her oral ruling. “However, the evidence does not give me confidence on that point, beyond a reasonable doubt.”

A finding of guilt does not require absolute certainty, she said, “but it does require more than a strong suspicion.”

Holmes said Chen’s evidence was not compelling, but she could not reject it entirely.

At the trial, the alleged victim testified remotely via Microsoft Teams from a support centre in Vancouver, that on a number of occasions, when seated at an easel, Chen put his hand down the back of the complainant’s pants to touch the front. The complainant used a scooping motion to demonstrate the manner in which Chen allegedly moved his hand from back to front. The complainant also testified that Chen asked if it was itchy and said not to tell parents of the touching.

But Holmes said some of the complainant’s evidence was conflicting, including the timing of the alleged incidents and whether there was a parent or another student present.

“[The child’s] uncertainty or discomfort in remembering or describing this conduct, do not reduce the credibility of…evidence,” Holmes said. “However, together with the associated absence of detail, they leave…evidence about this allegation as little more than a bare assertion of the conduct … described with little context against which to assess its reliability. [The child’s] evidence, even standing on its own about this allegation, would not be sufficient to prove the allegation beyond a reasonable doubt.”

To some extent, Holmes said, she agreed with the Crown that Chen’s evidence “included damaging inconsistencies.” For instance, he overemphasized his strict and demanding approach as a teacher and the non-compliance of the complainant.

Chen submitted evidence at trial of photographs of students, including the complainant, in his living room studio drawing or painting in positions that he testified were incorrect. Chen said he usually took such photos to publish on WeChat for promotional purposes.

“It is inconceivable, in my view, that Mr. Chen would have used photos such as these for promotional purposes, if, as he testified, the proper approach and his reputation as a strict teacher in this way were as important to him as he testified,” Holmes said.

Chen had no real explanation for why he did not correct the students’ positions before taking the photos and was not clear about any other purposes of the photos. While Holmes said that reflected poorly on Chen’s reliability as a witness, she took into account he testified through a Mandarin interpreter.

“I allow that some nuances may have been lost in that process, either in the questions asked of him or the responses he gave,” she said.

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Bob Mackin A Vancouver art teacher was found

Business, News, Sports

Canadian athletes became safe sport activists in 2022

Bob Mackin

Canadians regained women’s Olympic hockey gold, returned to soccer’s men’s World Cup after a 36-year absence and hoisted the Davis Cup world tennis championship for the first time.

But 2022 was also a year of history off the field of play, as Canadian summer and winter athletes and their supporters united to target abuse, neglect and corruption in their sports.

How did we get here?

Rob Koehler of Global Athlete (GlobalAthlete.org)

Rob Koehler, director general of Global Athlete, blamed the win-at-all-costs mentality of Own the Podium, the high performance legacy of the Vancouver 2010 Winter Olympics. Koehler said a public inquiry is needed, like the one in 1989 after the Ben Johnson doping scandal.

“There’s an opportunity here for Canada to lead the way in understanding safe sport, and understanding how to create a better safe sport,” Koehler said. “You cannot do that until you learn from the past, to develop the future.”

Key dates in a year of controversy.

Jan. 19

Athletics Canada CEO Dave Bedford retired suddenly over complaints about sexually charged Tweets.

Feb. 8

Bob Birarda, the former coach of the Vancouver Whitecaps women’s team and national under-20 women’s team, pleaded guilty to three counts of sexual assault and one count of touching a young person for sexual purpose. Birarda appeared via web link to North Vancouver Provincial Court from his lawyer’s office for crimes that occurred between 1988 and 2008.

March 14

Dozens of current and former Canadian sliders called for the immediate resignation of Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton president/acting CEO Sarah Storey and high performance director Chris Le Bihan. Their long list of grievances included a toxic culture, lack of care for athlete safety and poor transparency and governance.

March 22

In the wake of two 2021 Rugby Canada coaching controversies and disappointments at the Tokyo Olympics, Calgary-based STRAAD Consulting’s high performance review said current and former players confessed they were not proud to wear the national team jersey.

“Either through acts of ‘omission or commission’ the leadership of the organization – board, executive, operations, and coaches – have not effectively managed the short-term and long-term needs of the high-performance program,” said the board-ordered report.

April 20

Bob Birarda in 2005 (CSA)

A woman filed a $3.55 million lawsuit in Ontario Superior Court against Hockey Canada, alleging eight national junior team players sexually assaulted her in a London, Ont., hotel on June 19, 2018. The case was settled out of court the next month. Sport Canada froze Hockey Canada’s funding.

April 29

Four former players filed a $5.5 million lawsuit against Water Polo Canada, alleging physical, psychological and emotional abuse, sexual harassment and mental suffering between 2004 and 2016. In October, after the papers were served, the board ordered an independent investigation and suspended coach Pat Oaten.

May 4

More than 100 current and former Canadian boxers demanded the resignation of Boxing Canada’s high performance director Daniel Trepanier, over allegations of physical and psychological abuse and neglect. They got their wish four days later.

May 11

Former elite gymnast Amelia Cline launched a class action lawsuit in B.C. against Gymnastics Canada and six of its provincial affiliates, on behalf of all gymnasts since 1978 who allegedly suffered sexual, physical and/or psychologically abuse.

May 26

Relatives of the Canadians killed in the Iranian military’s 2020 missile attack on Ukraine Airlines flight 752 successfully pressured the Canadian Soccer Association to cancel a June 5 World Cup warmup match against Iran at B.C. Place Stadium. The friendly against replacement Panama was cancelled when Canada’s Qatar-qualified players went on strike for a new contract.

June 12

New Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton president Tara McNeil (BCS/Twitter)

At the Canadian Olympic Committee’s annual meeting in Montreal, federal sport minister Pascal St-Onge set an April 1, 2023 deadline for federally funded national sport organizations to fall under jurisdiction of the new Office of the Sport Integrity Commissioner, the April-appointed Sarah-Eve Pelletier. She also announced a new Sport Canada athlete advisory committee.

July 27

Hockey Canada executives testified to a House of Commons committee that $8.9 million was paid in 21 sexual abuse settlements since 1989. Some of the funds came from amateur player registration fees.

Oct. 11

After months of controversy, including sponsors pausing or ending their payments, Hockey Canada CEO Scott Smith and the board of directors resigned. A new five-woman, four-man board, chaired by retired judge Hugh Fraser, was elected Dec. 17.

Nov. 2

A North Vancouver Provincial Court judge sentenced Birarda to almost 16 months in jail, four months house arrest, four months under 8 p.m. to 6 a.m. curfew and three years probation.

Nov. 5

Ciara McCormack (Twitter)

The Bobsleigh Canada Skeleton annual general meeting that began Sept. 29 in Calgary resumed at the Whistler Sliding Centre. Storey dropped a bombshell: she would not seek a third term as president. Her successor was sport physiologist Tara McNeil.

Dec. 1

Ciara McCormack, the former player who blew the whistle in 2019 on Birarda’s return to coaching, added her voice to the campaign for a judicial public inquiry into Canada’s sport system.

At a House of Commons status of women committee hearing, McCormack also called for an investigation into the Canadian Soccer Association for covering up Birarda’s misconduct in 2008.

“There’s a lot of taxpayer money going into FIFA 2026 and there was so much harm done in our situation that hasn’t been remedied in any capacity,” McCormack testified.

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Bob Mackin Canadians regained women’s Olympic hockey gold,

Unlike Canada, U.S. to require COVID-19 testing of travellers from China

Bob Mackin

The Canadian government is not imposing any new rules on travellers arriving at Vancouver International Airport from China, where the spread of the Omicron variant is overwhelming hospitals and funeral homes.

Vancouver International Airport control tower (YVR)

However, the United States will step-up COVID-19 testing for travellers on flights originating in China, Hong Kong and Macau beginning Jan. 5 at 9:01 p.m. Pacific.

The U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention will require passengers provide a negative result, taken within two days of departure, or proof of recovery from the virus within the last 90 days. The policy applies regardless of vaccination status or nationality.

“This requirement also applies to individuals boarding a flight to the United States from Incheon International Airport, Vancouver International Airport, or Toronto Pearson International Airport who have been in the PRC, including the Special Administrative Regions of Hong Kong or Macau, within the past ten days,” said the U.S. advisory on Wednesday.

The Public Health Agency of Canada [PHAC] said in a statement on Wednesday that it continues to watch the situation in China, though it did issue a caution Dec. 23 to anyone planning to travel for Chinese New Year.

“PHAC is also closely monitoring the COVID-19 situation in China including genomic sequencing data and the potential impacts of circulating variants on public health. BF.7, short for BA.5.2.1.7, a sub-lineage of the omicron variant BA.5, has been spreading in China,” according to PHAC spokesperson Mark Johnson.

As of Dec. 17, BF.7 was estimated to be 5% to 8% of positive cases. The latest PHAC report said BQ variants are now the dominant immune evasive strains, while previously dominant BA.5 lineages were declining.

“Under current Canadian conditions, BQ lineages of Omicron are more capable of spreading quickly than BF.7,” Johnson said by email.

The website for the People’s Republic of China’s Embassy in Ottawa said in a Dec. 27 notice that passengers booked to fly from Canada to China are required to provide a negative nucleic acid test within 48 hours of boarding. Passengers are no longer required to apply for a health code from the embassy or nearest consulate before departure.

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December 29, 2022