The opening ceremony of this year’s Asian Heritage Month, dubbed as “Asian Twitter,” was held on May 3 at the Indo-Canadian Arts & Cultural Centre (479 St. Mary’s Avenue). The well-attended festivity featured distinct delicacies, music, and performances by representatives of the participating ethnocultural groups.

OTTAWA – Passport Canada has abruptly discontinued its online application service. According to a notice posted by the agency on its Web site last month, its online service was “stepping aside” and would be unavailable after April 30.

WINNIPEG – Manitoba Liberal Deputy Leader Kevin Lamoureux demanded to know the actual wage increase of Brian Postl, the top bureaucrat of Winnipeg Regional Health Authority (WRHA). 

OTTAWA – Today, New Democrats took a major step forward for children and working families through the reintroduction of landmark legislation designed to build quality childcare for future generations.
New Democrat Childcare Critic Olivia Chow (Trinity—Spadina) reintroduced The Early Learning and Child Care Act in the House of Commons today.

Distinct performances by representatives of the participating ethnocultural groups highlighted the opening ceremony of this year’s Asian Heritage Month. Performers who graced the well-attended festivity included the following—Yellow River Chinese Association, which presented a booming and colorfully staged lion dance; Vanessa Singh and Nadira Bayney of the Guyanese Association of Manitoba Performing Arts, who performed a dance routine inspired by the 2007 Bollywood film Aaja Nachle, combining traditional and contemporary aspects of the East Indian culture of the South American country of Guyana; young members of Sikaran-Arnis Canada and Winnipeg Sikaran-Arnis Academy, who showcased a modified version of the Philippine traditional dance tinikling—incorporating sikaran/arnis martial arts routine into the dance; the equally talented brother and sister 15-year-old Moises Jr. and 12-year-old Mimosa Duot, each of whom rendered stunning renditions of both old and contemporary songs—Mimosa, singing Céline Dion’s “I Surrender” (2002) and “Wouldn’t It Be Loverly” from the soundtrack of the 1956 Broadway play My Fair Lady; and Moises Jr., singing Tom Jones’s “That Wonderful Sound” (1969) and performing with guitar Daughtry’s “Home” (2007); Dan Angelo Blanco provided Mimosa keyboard accompaniment on the “fair lady” song.