Celebrations for the 59th Anniversary of the Independence of India at the Manitoba Legislature

Today, at the Manitoba Legislature, was the day for celebrating the 59th Anniversary of the Indpendence of India in 1947. A considerable crowd came out to join in the celebrations which included speeches, singing and dancing. During the celebrations, Dr. Reeni Soni and Dr. Pawan Singal were honoured for their contributions.

The Heart of Europe - Czech and Slovak Pavilion

At the Heart of Europe Pavilion on Saturday evening, we were privileged to enjoy the dancing of the local Furiant Dancers as well as the dancers of the Cifra dance ensemble who hvae come all the way from the Czech Republic. One of the highlights of the evening was the Master of Ceremonies Stefan Zhanel. His brother, Michael, who usually joins him was off sick. Stefan did an excellent job, and was helped out briefly by a short appearance by an ambassador in training - his father George.

In the photo, Ambassadors Ashley Rother and Stefan Zhanel and Stefan's father George Zhanel join Naomi and me after the show. Thank you to all those at the pavilion who made our visit such a success.

The Greek Pavilion

At the Greek Pavilion on Saturday evening, we were treated to fine food and an exhibition of first class Greek dancing. This year the contributions of Greek men were featured - starting with well known historical names like Socrates and Hippocrates and moving forward to modern Greek icons. There was a chorus of shouts of "Opa" after exhibitions of particularly good dancing.

We thank all the Greek Pavilion ambassadors (see photo) - Marisa Louridas, Yiorgo Matheos, Dino Alevizos and Natalina Ardita. A special thank you to the pavilion coordinator Vicky Scouras - and to all the volunteers.

Stonewall's Quarry Days

Three Days each year feature Stonewall Quarry Days. This year it was August 18-20. On Saturday, there was lots to do in the centre of Stonewall and at Quarry Park beginning with a Pancake Breakfast at the Legion.

The Africa Pavilion - Sheila Omom and helping people in Kenya

At the African Pavilion, in the Souvenirs section, I found Sheila Omom. She is from Kenya, and she is trying to help people in Kenya develop economically viable opportunities. She brought a variety of items made in Kenya back to Winnipeg to help raise money to give people in Kenya better economic prospects.

In the photo I am standing with Sheila - and she is showing me necklaces made in Kenya.

The Africa Pavilion

At the Africa Pavilion, on Friday evening, there was a rich assortment of dancing from various parts of Africa, as well as energetic and vigorous singing and music in which drums were an important feature.
The Ghanaian dancing, was particularly lively.

Thank you to the Ambassadors Chinyere Asagwara, Temesghen Ghebreziabber, Patricia Kumbakisaka and Kweku Paul Matthews, to the pavilion coordinator Elizabeth Luzige and to all the volunteers.

The Brasilian Pavilion

This is the first time Brasil has had a pavilion - and the Manitoba community who have come from Brasil have done it with style and panache. Congratulations on a suberp effort.

The display of copoeira artistry - coupling dance, music, acrobatics and martial arts in one form - was breath taking.

Metis traditions - the sash

The sash is an important part of the Metis costume and of Metis culture. It originated in Quebec, and has been used by Metis in Manitoba since before confederation. In the photo, Brian Cyr is showing Mary Lou Bourgeois how to knit a Metis sash at the Metis Pavilion.

Gull Lake - Lessons about emergency alerts and cell phone access

There was much talk about the need to give people in Gull Lake much more warning about the possibility of severe weather and tornados. There was even mention of a system which might provide an alert through cell phones. The problem in Gull Lake is that cell phone access is not dependable. When I was there, I could talk on my cell phone from some areas, but not others. George Harbottle's experience with his cell phone was similar. Emergency alerts over cell phones will not be of much use if there is no cell phone access. It is time to look more closely at existing cell phone access in Manitoba, and to see the best approach to getting beter coverage to areas like Gull Lake.

Once again, I push for more accountability in Manitoba's health care system

Thursday this week, I formally called for the audit of corporate management being conducted in the Burntwood Regional Health Authority to be made public.

There have been allegations of major corporate mismangement in the Burntwood Regional Health Authority. The Chief Executive Officer and two Vice Presidents have been dismissed. We are told this is based in part on results of a preliminary audit. The final audit is due soon. In early July as reported in the Thompson Citizen by Blake Ellis we were told at the time "these reports are not made public".

To me it is unacceptable that basic details of the audit will not be made public. The Regional Health Authority exists through a public mandate and uses public, taxpayers, dollars for almost everything it does. Making the audit public is about accountability. Making the audit public enables us as taxpayers and citizens to learn how public dollars are being spent. Making the audit public protects innocent people from being falsely accused as well as making sure that everyone understands that when they use public dollars there must be a high standard of accountability.

After my call for better accountability, Manitoba Health is now saying some parts of the audit will be made public. This is a step forward - we need to learn the nature of the problems and to see the recommendations for improvement.

The India Pavilion

Wednesday evening, I was at the India Pavilion. We received an excellent tour of the cultural display thanks to Ambassador Subah Chhibba (shown in photo with Pritam Brar). We also enjoyed the excellent Indian dancing.

Architecture, design and the Gull Lake Tornado

One striking aspect of the Gull Lake Tornado, was the fact that there were many homes with little or no damage, even while many trailers were badly damaged including being rolled over or being completely destroyed.

As an example, we saw a trailer with a roof over top, and with the roof anchored to the ground. The posts holding the roof are attached to concrete slabs in the ground to give firm support. This trailer was essentially untouched, while all around it trailers suffered extensive damage.

In my short review of the situation with George Harbottle, it was apparent that virtually no homes which were permanantly built on the ground were badly damaged, while many, many trailers were extensively damaged. It was also apparent that some of the damage to trailers resulted from their being rolled over and tossed around. Fixed permanent homes could not be tossed around in the same fashion.

Attention is often paid to the fact that trailer courts seem to "attract" tornados. But, observations at Gull Lake would suggest that trailers are much more susceptible to tornado damage, and that some design modifications (like anchoring trailers) might make them much less susceptible to tornado damage. This aspect needs to be better investigated, because it may be that guidelines or standards could be developed to significantly reduce the susceptibility of trailers to tornados.