I have to smile.
IreneQ sent me an email last night asking if I would mention that Malaysians are going into an election in a few weeks. I saw her post about covering politics on her blog yesterday and it was on my to-do list.

Most people don’t know where the country is and the difficulties it faces.
This election is critical, and it is probable that the current government will maintain power. Although Malaysia has one of the most successful economies in the region, laws are strict and there is potential for violence as issues move from class and race, to religion.

The head of Malaysia’s election commission says he is concerned that violence could mar the country’s general election campaign that starts on Sunday. Abdul Rashid says the fear prompted the decision to limit campaigning to just seven days - the shortest election period in Malaysia’s history.

Both government and opposition are focusing on the role of Islam in Malaysia.

Religion has been at the centre of this campaign since leaders of the conservative Islamic party, Pas, made this election a choice between heaven and hell.

A vote for their opposition party was the mark of a person bound for paradise, they said - a vote for the government that of someone heading to damnation.

Malaysia’s Prime Minister, Abdullah Badawi, has now contrasted that vision with his own - Islam as a religion of development where hard work, hunger for knowledge, science and technology are all encouraged.

Fears that the two sides could clash have led the country’s election commission not just to keep the campaign short but also to warn politicians they face arrest if they launch character attacks on opponents.

For the next few weeks, I hope IreneQ turns pundit on her blog, and gives us an idea of what it is like to go through the tenseness of a snap election. She posts about the ‘ticket to heaven’ campaign by PAS, the opposition party.

Canada
It appears the Prime Minister has decided not to call a May election.
So, if that is the case, we’ll be going to the polls in June, July or in the fall.
Public confidence is low because of the sponsorship scandal and Martin has said he wants some time to recover public confidence and show some results from the hearings.
The Hamilton East-Stoney Creek nomination meeting this past weekend between Sheila Copps and Tony Valeri and the ensuing fallout is also a factor.

In preparing for a June election, sources also say Martin is determined to heal the internal wounds left from bitter Liberal nomination fights this past weekend, particularly the embattled Sheila Copps who lost by only 311 votes Saturday night to Transport Minister Tony Valeri in Hamilton East-Stoney Creek.

Copps has filed an official appeal, and also filed a complaint with the RCMP alleging phone and computer tampering.
Given that Copps is holding a news conference later today, I suspect the PMO made sure the election waffling got out first, with the best spin possible.

Belinda Stronach won her Conserative nomination in the riding of Newmarket-Aurora last night.
The new party will chose it’s leader March 20th.

Sanctuary
An Algerian who sought sanctuary in a Montreal church. Mohamed Cherfi was arrested at Église Unie St. Pierre and sent to the US, his point of entry six years ago. Protesters say this is an immigration issue, human rights groups and ministers aren’t too happy.

Robert Gervais, a spokesman for the Canadian Border Services Agency, said Tuesday that Canada has tolerated sanctuary until now but no one is above the law.

He says federal legislation doesn’t prevent immigration officials from entering churches or religious institutions to go after people who have already been ordered to leave Canada.

Gervais said Cherfi was arrested on a criminal charge and not an immigration warrant.

I know nothing of sanctuary in Canada’s churches, and I’m not sure what to think about this particular case. To me it highlights the problems that the 2002 Immigration and Refugee Protection Act was supposed to address and hasn’t.
Giving sanctuary is a form of civil disobedience and is not that common.
There were six known individuals and families in sanctuary in the summer of 2003. I don’t know if his arrest paves the way for deportation.
A North Korean father narrowly avoided certain death last month when his case became public. The outcry caused the government to revoke it’s order.
The system is a mess. Refugee claimants wait years.

NHL
It’s kind of hard to believe Vancouver Canuck Todd Bertuzzi’s statement that he didn’t mean to cause harm to Avalanche forward Steve Martin.
It was payback for last month when Moore hit the Canuck team captain Markus Naslund. I didn’t see the game, I’ve seen the clip of the sucker punch several times.