Iftar Timings Mar 19 - Ramazan 8

Lahore
LHR
06:14 PM
Karachi
KHI
06:43 PM
Islamabad
ISB
06:19 PM
Peshawar
PWR
06:23 PM
Quetta
QTA
06:43 PM

News

Canada nominates Mahmud Jamal as Supreme Court judge

June 18, 2021 09:39 AM


Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Thursday nominated the first person of color to the top court in Canada, a country in which nearly one in four people identify as a minority.

Mahmud Jamal has been an Ontario Court of Appeal judge since 2019, after having previously taught at two of Canada's top law schools and worked for decades as a litigator -- including appearing in 35 appeals before the Supreme Court.

"He'll be a valuable asset to the Supreme Court -- and that's why, today, I'm announcing his historic nomination to our country's highest court," Trudeau said on Twitter.

Jamal must still be vetted by the House of Commons justice committee, but this is a formality.

He was born in 1967 into an Indian family in Nairobi and raised in Britain before moving to Canada in 1981.

Canada is a multicultural nation with almost one quarter of its population of 38 million identifying in the last census as a member of a visible minority group.

But recent attacks on Muslims, its historical treatment of indigenous peoples -- labeled by a commission as "cultural genocide" -- and police brutality against Black people and other ethnic minorities have highlighted the ongoing legacy of racism in Canada.

Trudeau, who last year took a knee in solidarity with US protestors marching against racism, said many white Canadians had awakened "to the fact that the discrimination that is a lived reality for far too many of our fellow citizens is something that needs to end."

"Systemic racism is an issue right across the country, in all of our institutions," he said.

In a job questionnaire Jamal said that his hybrid religious and cultural upbringing and his experiences in Canada -- along with those of his wife -- "exposed me to some of the challenges and aspirations of immigrants, religious minorities, and racialized persons."

"I was raised at school as a Christian, reciting the Lord's Prayer and absorbing the values of the Church of England, and at home as a Muslim, memorizing Arabic prayers from the Quran and living as part of the Ismaili community," he wrote.

"Like many others, I experienced discrimination as a fact of daily life. As a child and youth, I was taunted and harassed because of my name, religion or the color of my skin."

His wife, he said, immigrated to Canada from Iran to escape the persecution of the Baha'i religious minority during the 1979 revolution.

"After we married, I became a Baha'i, attracted by the faith's message of the spiritual unity of humankind, and we raised our two children in Toronto's multi-ethnic Baha'i community," he said.

Jamal will replace Justice Rosalie Abella, the nine-person court's longest serving justice who is due to retire on July 1.



Most Read

  1. Google invites Pakistan’s youngest vlogger Shiraz and sister Muskan to USA Google invites Pakistan’s youngest vlogger Shiraz and sister Muskan to USA
  2. Well-known builder Asif Razaq Deenar arrested at Karachi airport Well-known builder Asif Razaq Deenar arrested at Karachi airport
  3. Islamabad players celebrate victory with Palestine flag Islamabad players celebrate victory with Palestine flag
  4. Ahmed Baig delivers Pakistan's first International Golf Victory in more than 25 years Ahmed Baig delivers Pakistan's first International Golf Victory in more than 25 years
  5. Religious Brotherhood: Tharparkar’s Hindu facilitiates Muslim in Ramazan Religious Brotherhood: Tharparkar’s Hindu facilitiates Muslim in Ramazan
  6. Caught in the act: Corrupt cops fired as video goes viral Caught in the act: Corrupt cops fired as video goes viral

Opinion

  1. 1947 TO FORM 47
    1947 TO FORM 47

    By Dr Asif Channer

  2. Beijing wants to further highlight industrial sector in its country and take scientific innovation to new heights....
    Beijing wants to further highlight industrial sector in its country and take scientific innovation to new heights....

    By Ali Ramay

  3. Global race: China will reduce its unnecessary expenses
    Global race: China will reduce its unnecessary expenses

    By Ali Ramay

  4. Channer Pir: The Great Saint of Cholistan
    Channer Pir: The Great Saint of Cholistan

    By Dr Asif Channer

  5. Literate the Religious Illiterate
    Literate the Religious Illiterate

    By Dr Asif Channer

  6. From White Elephant to Success: BRI Project Witnesses Surge in Ridership
    From White Elephant to Success: BRI Project Witnesses Surge in Ridership

    By Ali Ramay