Canada

Canada's seal hunters hit by falling prices, demand

New York  - Shrinking demand for furs is translating into a loss of income for Canada's seal hunters.

Canada's seal hunters hit by falling prices, demandThey can expect to be paid 15 to 30 Canadian dollars (12 to 24 US dollars) per pelt, compared with a price of 100 dollars two years ago, leading many hunters to consider whether it was worth it to head out onto the pack ice in the traditional seal hunt at the end of winter in eastern Canada, Canadian media reported.

Canada surgeons stop baby heart transplant; donor breathed on own

Canada surgeons stop baby heart transplant; donor breathed on own New York/Toronto  - The parents of a two-month-old baby wanted to donate the heart of their severely brain-damaged daughter for another baby, but physicians in Toronto cancelled the transplant at the last minute.

The reason was the strength of Baby Kaylee's heart and lungs. The baby continued to breathe without the respirator, the Toronto Star reported on Wednesday.

US slaps tariffs on Canadian lumber

US trade representative Ron Kirk Washington  - The United States on Tuesday slapped import duties on Canadian lumber, the latest twist in a long-running trade dispute between the two neighbours.

US trade representative Ron Kirk said that the US would impose a 10-per-cent customs duty on one of Canada's key exports until the United States has collected 54.8 million dollars it is owed under the terms of a 2006 trade deal.

Canada calls new Afghan family law "very alarming" for NATO

Canada calls new Afghan family law "very alarming" for NATO Strasbourg, France  - A controversial new law reportedly approved by Afghan President Hamid Karzai that makes it illegal for Shiite women to refuse their husbands sex is "extremely alarming and troublesome" for NATO allies, Canadian Foreign Affairs Minister Lawrence Cannon said Friday in the French city of Strasbourg.

BlackBerry maker opens online applications store

BlackBerry maker opens online applications store New York  - Research In Motion (RIM) Ltd has opened an online software store for its BlackBerry phones as it seeks to take on Apple Inc, the pioneer of the trend.

The online store opened Wednesday and is initially available to customers in the United States, Canada and Britain.

BlackBerry App World would offer about 1,000 programs in its first week, including games, music applications, Facebook, Myspace and transmissions from the Bloomberg financial news agency, The New York Times and the music channel MTV.

Canadian MPs outraged over Afghan rape law

Ottawa (Canada), Apr. 2 : Several Canadian lawmakers and the general public have expressed growing outrage over a controversial legislation in Afghanistan that would restrict the rights of minority Shia women and make it illegal for them to refuse sex to their husbands. The proposed law would also make it illegal for a Shia woman to leave her house without her husband''s permission.

The proposed Shia family law has cast a shadow over an international conference in Europe on Afghanistan''s future.

According to the Globe and Mail, Canadian Defence Minister Peter MacKay said he would use this week''s NATO summit to put "direct" pressure on his Afghan counterpart to abandon the legislation.

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