From: CILA / ICAL National Office, [EMAIL PROTECTED] CILA / ICALáááááááááááááá Defending Canada's Heritage ---------------------------------------------- After days of speculation, Lloyd Axworthy has confirmed his intention not to run for office again. This is wonderful news for the world firearms community. Axworthy's United Nations firearms initiatives have been a major crisis for firearms owners everywhere. See story below. ---------------------------------------------- Axworthy to join former colleagues at university think-tank Douglas Quan - The Ottawa Citizen Foreign Affairs Minister Lloyd Axworthy will be surrounded by many familiar faces when he assumes the head position of a new University of British Columbia international relations think-tank known as the Liu Centre. Over the last few years, the ivory towers on the West Coast campus have been painted Liberal red: the university is teeming with many of Mr. Axworthy's ex-Liberal colleagues and associates. "He's a close friend," said UBC law professor Ivan Head yesterday. Mr. Head, who founded UBC's new Liu Centre for the Study of Global Issues, served as special assistant to prime minister Pierre Trudeau and put in three terms as president of the International Development Research Centre in Ottawa. The chairman of the Liu Centre's international advisory council is Maurice Strong, under-secretary general of the United Nations and special adviser to the president of the World Bank. Gordon Smith, a senior fellow at the Liu Centre, is former deputy foreign affairs minister. UBC political science professor, Brian Job, the chairman of the Liu Centre's steering committee, sat on the foreign minister's advisory board. "The Liu Centre would be looking for someone able to bridge the academic and policy worlds," Mr. Job said yesterday. "It suggests a figure like Mr. Axworthy." Another UBC political science professor, Barbara Arneil, is Mr. Axworthy's former senior policy adviser, and UBC fund-raiser Chris Brown is a former foreign service officer. UBC graduate Jonathan Oppenheim, who gained national notoriety as one of the key complainants in the APEC inquiry, questioned the university's motives yesterday. "UBC has been cosy with the Liberals for a while," he said. "In order to attract funding, they've been attracting politicians. "(The university) is basically being forced to schmooze to get funding and support. It's shameless." The way UBC officials accommodated APEC organizers in 1997 demonstrates how careful they are not to "ruffle" the government's feathers, he said. Outspoken UBC political science professor Phil Resnick said while Mr. Axworthy's appointment will be viewed as a "coup" for the university, he doubts that he'll make that significant of an impact. "(As foreign affairs minister), Axworthy's heart was in the right place, but I don't know whether he made a punch in the corridors of power. He was respectable, but dull." While Mr. Axworthy hasn't signalled when he will assume his new post, it is possible he will time it to coincide with the official opening of the $5.1 million Liu Centre in September. The Liu Centre is made up of the institutes for international relations and sustainable development research, and a centre for human development. Just two months ago, Mr. Axworthy visited the UBC campus to give a speech on North Pacific security issues. Mr. Head pointed out that Mr. Axworthy's "human security" agenda dovetails with the Liu Centre's objectives. In a 1997 speech, Mr. Axworthy stressed that the "work of academic and non-governmental organizations is key," and praised the efforts of UBC to create the Liu Centre. Mr. Axworthy, 60, who has served five terms in the Liberal government, has been foreign minister since 1996. He has a master's and PhD degree from Princeton University in international relations. His departure is considered by some political observers as a blow to the Chretien government because he is one of the few western representatives with a senior cabinet position. The prime minister's office declined to comment. -30- Cybershooters website: http://www.cybershooters.org List admin: [EMAIL PROTECTED] ___________________________________________________________ T O P I C A The Email You Want. http://www.topica.com/t/16 Newsletters, Tips and Discussions on Your Favorite Topics
