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655,000 Dead in iraq: Lancet Journal Report

U.K. Study on War Casualties Sparks Debate Nicole Burton, OP News Editor

\ccording to a new study released last week, more than 655,000 people have been killed in Iraq since the U.S. Armed Forces invaded the country three and a half years ago.

Other estimates, including those of both the U.S. and U.K. militaries, have varied between 10,000 and 40,000.

The authors of the report published in the Lancet Journal, a periodical of the John Hopkins School of Public Health in Britain, compares statistics of death by violence in Iraq before the 2003 war began, and after. Their studies have found that the likelihood of death in “post-invasion” is 58 times higher than “‘pre-invasion” for Iraqi civilians.

The study points to “poor planning, air strikes by U.S. Coalition forces, and a ‘climate of violence” in the country as the main causes leading to the current situation.

The controversial findings of the report have been met with skepticism from both the Bush and Blair Administrations.

“The report gives a figure which contains orders of magni- tude different from any other source... nobody else has come up with figures on this scale... the report has been criticized by the Iraqi government as unreasonable”, said British Foreign Secretary Margaret Beckett.

UK foreign secretary Jack Straw said his government will be examining the report “with very great care”.

When asked about the report at a press conference last week, Bush replied that he doesn’t consider it a credible report. Similar responses have come trom U.S. military offi- cials in Iraq.

Professor Gilbert Burnham, one of the report’s authors and an epidemiologist at John Hopkins, said, “We're very con- fident with the results.” Les Roberts, another of the report’s authors, said, “It may not be extremely precise, but it gets us into the ball park.”

The Brooking Index, reiving on the United Nations (which gets figures trom the Iraqi health ministry) and “Iraq Body Count” a database published online collecting all media- reported deaths in Iraq (www.iraqbodycount.org), estimates

an ceath toi) berween 43,000 and 62,000.

4 THE OTHER PRESS OCTOBER 19 2006

Ottawa Slashes Equality Support for Bilingualism increasing, Study Shows

Even Prairies, traditionally showing the lowest support, see ris Jeanette Stewart, CUP Central Bureau Chief

I like my coffee... bilingual

REGINA (CUP)—Bilingualism is a hotly contested Canadian towards French and French immersion,” said Karen Pozniz policy—especially in the West—but a recent study shows sup-__ executive director for the Saskatchewan branch of the CPF

port for it is on the rise. “The younger people have a much more positive attituc Opinions on official bilingualism run the gamut from towards French immersion and the need for bilingualism.” “official language skeptics” to “irrepressible optimism,” said Pozniak points out the economic benefits having know! Emmanual Aito, head of the department of French at the edge of French may bring, She says that people are being University of Regina. paid more for those language skills. “It opens up doors pet Historically registering the lowest levels of support for sonally, professionally, economically. Economically it makes bilingualism, Manitoba and Saskatchewan have shown a large _ sense,” she said. increase in support over the last three years, according to a This is a point that Aito raised in his speech. “I now liv study released by the Office of the Commissioner of Official in Saskatchewan and I wonder how many people do speak Languages in September. French . . . not just fluently but in a way that can actually b The study shows a 16 per cent increase in support since functional in it,” he said. 2003 for Canada as a whole. “Do we have to be in the federal government? Do we In Manitoba and Saskatchewan, almost seven in 10 people _ have to learn French and be bilingual only because there is now support bilingualism, as compared to just 40 per cent in financial incentive, because of where we work?” 2003. Amy Braden, a fourth-year education student at the U : Support for bilingualism in the Prairies dipped below 30 R, is majoring in French immersion education. She says th: per cent in the late 1980s, making the two provinces the most while French has opened up a lot of opportunities for her, unsupportive of the policy historically. she isn’t sure if an increase in support goes beyond the pri In a recent lecture in Regina, Aito discussed the varying ise of a higher paycheque. degree of support bilingualism holds in the West. “My parents chose to put me in French immersion I th Aito pointed to a speech made by Stephen Harper in for opportunities. I don’t think here in Saskatchewan it’s as 1997, in which “he pointedly disputed the notion that Canada culturally encouraged . . . it is really for that extra dollar on is a bilingual country.” your paycheque,” she said. fi He recalls Harper saying Canada is “basically an English- Paul Quinn is a grade 12 French-immersion student wl speaking country,” especially in his home in the West. recently moved from New Brunswick, a province where b “The important part is that Canada ts not a bilingual gualism traditionally holds more support. country,” said Harper in the speech. “It is a country with two Quinn said he hasn't experienced any French culture in languages and there is a big difference.” the province, beyond what he is exposed to at school. In The Canadian Parents tor French (CPF), a lobby group New Brunswick he chose French immersion because of tk that supports French education across Canada, says that while job opportunities available for bilingual people there. there is still resentment towards the language in Western “T didn’t really think of bilingualism in school as much Canada, younger people are increasingly supportive of bilin- a controversy myself,” said Quinn. “I just thought it was gualism. something that people just chose.”

“I think there is a generational shift in terms of attitudes