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Nutritious fast food Make dinner now, serve it later BUSINESS >B1
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1858–2008

www.timescolonist.com | Xxxxxxday,
Tuesday, March
Xxxxxxxxx
4, 2008
00, 2008 Victoria, British Columbia High 9. Details, D4 Grizzlies beat Burnaby 4-3, B4

New fleet of boats for UVic Sailing Club

DARREN STONE, TIMES COLONIST

Arel English and Erica Virtue work yesterday on one of six sailboats purchased by the University of Victoria Sailing Club and docked at the UVic Vikes Recreation Sailing Compound in Cadboro/Gyro
Park. The club bought the sailboats and a safety boat last month from the University of Washington. Club members have been raising money for the purchase since 2006. With their new fleet, they
will hold the inaugural Western Canada Cup, to be hosted in conjunction with the Royal Victoria Yacht Club. The regatta will take place May 10-11 in Cadboro Bay.

Homeless camping case makes it to court

Judge must decide if constitutional cation to deny the constitu-
tional challenge.
Lawyer Guy McDannold,
acting for the city, also argued
the homeless and demeans
their dignity.”
homeless activists’ case has
merit as a constitutional chal-

challenge to city bylaw will proceed Ministry lawyer Veronica

Jackson argued that the case
that people aren’t banned from
sleeping outdoors.
Her case claims that the
bylaw — even with the amend-
lenge — she will not cast judg-
ment on the bylaw, only on
doesn’t have a reasonable He said an amendment to ment from August — interferes whether the challenge can pro-
JEFF BELL ber 2005 for erecting tents in chance of success on constitu- the bylaw in August — to omit with homeless people’s security ceed.
Times Colonist Cridge Park, at the corner of tional grounds, pointing out the word “loitering” — effec- of person, a right guaranteed Yesterday’s proceedings
Blanshard and Belleville that the bylaw is meant to tively removes the provision under the Charter of Rights attracted a handful of home-
Can a group of homeless streets. ensure that parks and other against sleeping in public and Freedoms. less people, including David
activists argue they have a con- Last September, the case areas “are available for all places. “Our argument is that if you Johnston.
stitutional right to sleep on the briefly made it to court when members of the public to But there are rules against have no place to go, you have a A baker by trade but home-
streets? That was the question the city lost its bid to dismiss enjoy.” “temporary abodes” such as right to sleep in a public space less by conviction, Johnston
facing a B.C. Supreme Court the challenge, but it won an “The bylaw has general tents, large tarpaulins, boxes … with some shelter from the has been arrested repeatedly,
judge as a legal challenge to the adjournment to allow the Min- applications that apply to and other items, as well as the elements.” and even jailed, for his refusal
City of Victoria’s anti-camping istry of Attorney General to everybody,” she said. blocking of sidewalks or She said constitutional argu- to stop camping on public park-
bylaw finally made it to court join the case. She added that the case streets, McDannold said. ments are key to the case she land, particularly the grounds
yesterday. Yesterday, Justice Victoria would ultimately focus on what Catherine Boies Parker, one is putting together with col- of St. Ann’s Academy.
It’s been more than two Gray heard arguments from society should do in terms of of two lawyers representing league Irene Faulkner. His actions were the impe-
years since the challenge was the city, the province and the funding and programs for the the homeless in the case, coun- Arguments in the case con- tus for the group that camped
launched after a number of homeless as part of a two-day homeless, instead of just the tered that the bylaw “has a tinue today in court. At issue at Cridge Park.
people were arrested in Octo- hearing on the ministry’s appli- content of the bylaw. disproportionate impact on for the judge is whether the jwbell@tc.canwest.com

Old clothes get new life in Third World BlackBerrys blossom

B.C. LEGISLATURE

despite house rules

some benefit to Africans buy-
Castoffs from developed nations provide cheap ing the cheap clothes.
clothing for Africans. But charity has a downside: “Of course, those citizens
that lack the basic needs to sur-
African manufacturers can’t compete, TC reporter vive (while living on less than LINDSAY KINES constituent with a profanity-
Sarah Petrescu writes from Kigali, Rwanda. $2 a day) would likely benefit Times Colonist laced message.
from purchasing apparel for None of the BlackBerry
such a low price,” he says. Now that the Victoria Flower Five was involved in answer-

S
tacks of polo shirts, Dock- says Thierry Shakya, 27, a fab- However, the cheap second- Count is officially over, it’s on ing questions yesterday. The
ers pants and enough Gap ric vendor at the market. “It’s hand clothes sell for a fraction with another great capital city rule exists largely to prevent
castoffs to start a store shameful that people donate of the cost of locally made tradition — the annual Black- political staff outside the house
stuff the stalls of the these things [and] then we try clothing. Berry Festival. from feeding answers to min-
Kimironko Market on the out- to sell them. … I guess every- And because of that, as well We refer, of course, to that isters or questions to Opposi-
skirts of Kigali. body needs to make some as lower trade barriers, special time of year when tion members stuck inside.
“Lacoste. Nike. Sean John,” money.” African textile and clothing reporters keep a running tally But Barisoff later con-
a vendor calls out to no one in It works like this: People in industries have been all but of MLAs breaking the legisla- firmed that nobody should be
particular. These are some of rich countries, such as the U.S., destroyed, Valente says. ture’s rules and using their using the devices during QP.
the only English words he Germany, Canada and Bel- “They end up being cheap hand-held e-mail devices dur- In 2005, he reprimanded
knows. gium, donate used clothing to labour making clothes for the ing question period. Environment Minister Barry
It’s a common scene charitable groups. West — similar to China — but Normally, Speaker Bill Penner and Forests Minister
throughout sub-Saharan Africa, From there, it is sold to tex- can’t produce for their own Barisoff tries to keep track of Rich Coleman after the NDP
the world’s largest destination tile recycling plants, sorted, countries,” he says. the rule-breakers, but he has a spotted them using a Black-
for used clothing — most of graded and put into 45- to 80- In the mid-’90s, 41 textile less-than-strategic post, seated Berry.
which goes to brokers to be kilogram bales. Ones for Africa and clothing industries existed at the end of the chamber. NDP house leader Mike
sold in markets and street are generally sold for about in the West African Economic Not so the press gallery, Farnworth said yesterday that
stalls. $1.10 to $1.45 per kilogram. and Monetary Union. By 2004, which peers down from above it’s time for a refresher.
In Rwanda, the poorest They then go to a develop- there were six. and yesterday observed five “It’s clearly a violation of
spend more than half their ing-country importer, who sells Oxfam says 80,000 jobs have government MLAs — Premier the rules of this chamber and
clothing budgets on used items them to a local trader. been lost in the domestic tex- Gordon Campbell among them the Speaker needs to start
from the West, according to a “The biggest beneficiaries tile industry in the past 10 — checking their BlackBerrys enforcing it,” he said. “In
recent Oxfam study. The rich- are the western charities, since years, citing an influx of cheap during QP. To be fair, Solicitor essence, the government cab-
est spend about 20 per cent. they collect the clothing for used and Asian clothing as a General John Les just gave his inet is cheating.”
Across all socio-economic free, and then sell them. Every- major contributing cause. a quick peek, as opposed to, But Bennett is no longer in
groups, there is a major shift one else along the chain must spetrescu@tc.canwest.com SARAH PETRESCU, TIMES COLONIST say, backbencher Val Roddick, cabinet and therefore not
away from traditional dress to pay for the clothing,” says The Kimironko Market on the who appeared mesmerized by called upon during question
western fashions. Pietra Rivoli, author of The > TC reporter Sarah Petrescu was outskirts of Kigali is where hers for much of the 30-minute period. If he was using his
What started as charitable Travels of a T-shirt in the Global in Africa as part of the Seeing the locals go to buy fresh fruit, meat session. BlackBerry yesterday — and
handouts to clothe the desper- Economy: An Economist Exam- World through New Eyes fellow- and “Viety” — their word for The other offenders? he didn’t recall doing so — it
ately poor in the 1960s has ines the Markets, Power and ship for young journalists sup- used clothing from the western Liberal backbenchers Dave would only have been to get
turned into a billion-dollar-a- Politics of World Trade. ported by the Jack Webster world. Clothing donated to Hayer and Bill Bennett. The some work done during the
year industry. Mike Valente, a University Foundation and CIDA. Find out charities in Canada and other latter you’d think would steer partisan theatrics, he said.
“We call the clothes ‘Viety’ of Victoria business professor what else she discovered at developed countries is sold by clear of e-mails altogether “Honestly, sometimes it
because the Americans gave to who studies globalization and African second-hand clothing mar- the kilogram for resale in mar- after getting bumped from gets a little tedious.”
charity after the Vietnam War,” sustainability, says there is kets, on page C1. kets such as this. cabinet last year for flaming a lkines@tc.canwest.com

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Editor: Bruce MacKenzie > Telephone: 380-5346 > E-mail: features@tc.canwest.com the TC 10K and her goal of coming in last

RHONA RASKIN
Ask Rhona
rhona@rhonaraskin.com

How do I
keep feet
out of
mouth?
Dear Rhona: Over the past
year, I’ve been on the receiv-
ing end of an “accidental
pregnancy announcement.”
Three times I was informed
by either the girl or her
boyfriend. I have no idea
SARAH PETRESCU, TIMES COLONIST why this has happened to me
The Kimironko market on the fringes of Kigali is the place where locals go to buy fresh fruit, meat and “Viety” — used clothing from Canada and the U.S. so many times. And I never
know how to react. Saying
“congratulations” isn’t the
right thing to say given

The paradox of
those circumstances … but
what else can I say?
Wants to Be Polite

Dear WTBP: I guess it’s best

to avoid responses such as
“Can you spell birth con-

Kimironko market
trol?” and “So what do you
think of those new hybrid
cars?”
Sometimes the best thing
to say is nothing. If you
pause instead of filling in
the dead air, the news
announcer will inevitably
blurt out either, “Hey, this
KIGALI, Rwanda But they’d also like to see a home- could be an exciting turn of
grown fashion industry flourish. events” or “I don’t know

T
he open-air Kimironko Market Policy-makers want to promote the what we are going to do
on the outskirts of Kigali is the transformation of fibre into finished now.”
last place I expect to see the products to stimulate employment and If you really feel the
designer-fashion and develop- industry. Mali President Amadou pressing need to say some-
ing worlds collide. Toumani Touré recently said that while thing intelligent, go with
SARAH PETRESCU Endless narrow aisles overflow with Mali is the largest cotton producer in “How do you feel about this
Gap and Old Navy cast-offs, T-shirts, sub-Saharan Africa, it “does not pro- news? Is this a good thing?”
Ready to Wear shoes, purses, kids’ clothes and even a duce a single T-shirt.” That puts the onus on the
Sarah models the new 113 Jacket good selection of dusty ballgowns. Thierry Shakya, 27, tends his person with the new circum-
($195) and a silk print ascot ($55) A Rwandan friend in Victoria was the mother’s African fabric stall at the stances to outline the direc-
from Smoking Lily on Johnson first to let me in on the second-hand Kimironko market a few times a week. tion of the next few
Street. shopping in Africa. “Anything you want, The bright fabrics — patterned with sentences in the conversa-
spetrescu@tc.canwest.com any style, from all the eras, you’ll find everything from gazelles and elephants tion.
it at these markets,” she said. “And for to political figures — are emblems of And of course there’s the
cheap, cheap too.” the regions they come from. simple wow! which is fairly
Smoking Lily’s But when I find a pair of $200 Miss
Sixty jeans for $6, I have to wonder:
“The ones from Kenya are very
beautiful,” Shakya says. “They make
noncommittal and leaves
open the ability to shift in
fundraiser What’s the real cost of donated clothing
sold in a country where people can
very nice dresses.”
I take the large swath of maroon eye-
either direction — depend-
ing on whether the news
I thought lining up at 8 a.m. barely afford to eat? patterned fabric I buy from him for $2 flash is positive or not.
on a chilly Saturday for It’s a fascinating example of how to one of the many tailors working on
Smoking Lily’s annual actions — even charitable ones — can vintage sewing machines along the edge Dear Rhona: I’m in love with
garage sale at 10 a.m. was a have unintended consequences. of the market. They earn half the wages this guy and he says that he
shoo-in for first grabs at all Since charities started bringing of used-clothing dealers. isn’t the type to get involved
the sweet deals. donated clothes to sub-Saharan Africa For $4 a seamstress whips me up a because he isn’t good with
Silly me. The queue was 40 in the 1960s and ’70s, the second-hand boatneck top in less than an hour. When romantic relationships.
deep when I arrived. The clothing market has boomed into a bil- I gesture to ask if I can take a photo of I tried to tell him that you
annual sale by Victoria’s lion-dollar industry. the stylish empire-waisted A-line dress don’t date someone because
hottest independent design Each country has a different name she has made for herself in a similar you think it’s going to last
house is legendary for the for the cast-offs. In Rwanda, it is pattern, she shakes her head shyly. forever — you date someone
major mark-downs — and “Viety,” a reference to U.S. philanthropy “African fashion,” I say. They are the because at this time in life
serious scrapfests over $10 reaching overseas after the Vietnam magic words. In a flash she transforms you are attracted to them.
skirts, $5 tops and purses as War. In Zambia, they call it salaula — from suspicious to supermodel — proud But he won’t listen.
soon the doors open. which means to “rummage and pick.” to show off her stuff. I really like him and think
More than 230 people In Zimbabwe, it is mupedzanhamo That a top she designed and custom- we are both missing out on a
attended this year, raising (where all problems end). And in Kenya made on the spot costs no more than a great opportunity. He isn’t
$8,000 for Theatre SKAM, the and Tanzania, they’re called kafa ulaya pair of cast-off jeans at the market involved with anyone, so
Mustard Seed and The Land (dead man’s clothes) or mitumba (bun- shows me firsthand how hard it is for SARAH PETRESCU, TIMES COLONIST what’s the big deal? How do
Conservancy. dles). indigenous fashion to survive. This seamstress can design and make one- I get him to change his
Get on the mailing list for Western charities sell donated cloth- of-a-kind articles of clothing from local mind?
next year at www.smok- ing to recyclers, who sort and sell Reporter Sarah Petrescu was in Africa as part of fabrics — yet she commands only half the Tiffany
inglily.com packed bales to vintage boutiques at the Jack Webster Foundation and CIDA Seeing earnings of people who sell second-hand
home and developing countries abroad. the World through New Eyes fellowship for clothing donated from western charities. Dear Tiffany: What are you
Evoke at Element African brokers distribute the
clothes to market and street vendors
young journalists. trying to do? Wear him down
till he signs up for your
who hawk them for a range of prices. brand of logic? Prove that he
Fashion and dance will be “They used to be cheap so poor peo- is wrong by enticing him
highlighted in a Cirque du ple could afford clothes,” Manuel into your sphere of influ-
Soleil-inspired night at Miandica, 28, told me a week earlier as ence long enough to blitz
Element nightclub Sunday. we passed rows of Nine West shoes and him with your magic?
Veronica Hull, a Sidney H&M clothes in Beira, Mozambique, Perhaps he isn’t as smit-
designer who specializes in East Africa’s largest port for second- ten with you as you are with
PVC clothing and corsetry, hand clothes. “Now they know what’s him and he’s merely
created costumes for the trendy and jack up the prices.” attempting to let you down
event. Hull also designs for Menswear sells at a premium, as the in a way that isn’t embar-
the popular Cheesecake Bur- bulk of donated clothing is women’s and rassing for you.
lesque Revue. children’s. Hip hop lines like Sean John It is possible that despite
Adrien Castle of Zenith and FuBu are market gold, as are T- your lovely personality and
Dance Studio (pole-dance fit- shirts from winning sports teams. winning smile he simply
ness, burlesque fit and booty Though it might seem the markets are isn’t attracted to you. Or
camp) choreographs the per- full of the latter, Africa is a receptacle maybe he doesn’t want to
formance, based on the ele- for discarded T-shirts of losers. play with a female who is so
ments: Earth, air, fire, water. Major-league sports teams print forthright about being a
The event is at 9 p.m. at thousands of T-shirts and ball caps casual player.
Element (in the Strath-cona anticipating a winning season. Their I suggest you gather
Hotel). Tickets are $20. For leagues ban the loser’s swag on Amer- yourself together and plan a
more information, visit: ican soil and Ebay. Thus, the Cleveland foray in another direction.
www.zenithstudio.ca Indians won last year’s World Series — You can’t make someone fall
• We have two tickets to at least in Ghana they did. in love with you. You can’t
give away; e-mail Not that many Africans mind. Most beg or threaten. A relation-
spetrescu@tc.canwest.com seem happy for any access to the fash- ship requires two votes and
with your name and daytime ions from North America that dominate you only have one.
phone number. television and billboard ads in even the SARAH PETRESCU, TIMES COLONIST
– Sarah Petrescu most remote areas. Thierry Shakya sells traditional fabrics at the Kimironko market. Visit rhona.com to send your
questions or comments.