HERE'S A little question
for you. Perhaps even a big
one. |

If you emigrated to Japan and
wanted to drive a car, would you
expect to be able to take your
driving test in English?

I know. It’s a dumb question.
Being racially conscious, the Jap-
anese don’t accept immigrants.
That’s why they have no minister
for immigration. ~

And they would laugh all the

. Way to the next saki bar if you
said you wanted to take the test in
English or in any language other
than Japanese.

The same principle applies i in
every other jurisdiction in the”
world except one.

~ British Columbia is that one.

_ As has been disclosed in the
, news pages, driving tests can be
‘taken here in Punjabi and Chinese
.. (by which is probably meant
Cantonese).

‘s,. Whatever is meant, it’s the pits
and was instituted by the Motor

“i One standard is

‘for the multicults,

. the other for the
_rest of us. 99 -

Vehicle Branch (MVB) as a sop to,
“the hordes from India, China,
Taiwan and Hong Kong. Not that
» they call it a sop.
|. Whey didn’t call it anything at:
“Calle It was introduced “‘quietly.”’

: In other words, on carpet slippers. |

“Which is par for the course.
It must have been your ever-!

- friendly NDP government that

“told the MVB to put this one over

‘on us, and it’s my guess that Moe

‘ Sihota and other multicults in,

Victoria were. the ones that applied

ithe pressure. :

But the rule is not univers

‘you are Polish, German, Italian or

/ of any. other racial origin you have
to savvy the lingo, which in; ‘Spite '

‘of-all efforts to the contrary is still

English.

An immigrant from Poland:
failed to get through the iest
’ becdusé her. English wasn’t good
enough. That’s how the matter :
-surfaced, os wees

F

oug
Collins

ON THE OTHER HAND

In issues like this, of course,
our politicians always apply dou-

ble standards. That’s because you °

don’t hurl thunderbolts at those
dudes, although it is my hope that
you'll do so in the federal elec-
tion. :

One standard is for the
multicults, the other for the rest
of us. Both provincially and fed-
erally.

It’s reverse discrimination, also
known as ‘fair policies,’’ affir-
mative action, employment equity,

_and other fancy names.

But they never call it by its real
name — racism of the politically
correct, officially approved kind.

This tnalarkey is merely a fresh
twist on an old theme. And it’s
getting worse.

Consider what has come my
way from a source in the federal
civil service.

. & senior consultation officer’s
job paying up to $66,729 a year
was advertised in the Indian and
Northern Affairs Department.
Anyone could compete — except
little old Whitey.

The form announcing the selec-

: tion process stated baidly that the
’ position was open to:

“Status or non-status Indians,
Metis, or Inuit people...’’.

My source could hardly believe.
it but a verbal query produced

confirmation. It was ‘open to

natives only.’
It was the first time in 20 years

’ of service, he said, that he had

seen anything in the department
that so dlatantly discriminated on
the basis of race, even though
26% of all the jobs are held by
Indians.

To accommodate native appli-

‘Ne a iy Centre fewellers

on all regular priced items
Try our convenient
layaway plan for your
Christmas shopping
988-8258

t

cants, other jobs coming open
called for lower standards than
usual, For the first time, univer-
sity degrees in some categories are
not mandatory.

If an applicant doesn’t have one

then ‘‘a combination of some
post-secondary education or di-
rectly related experience’’ will do.

if you can’t write, grunt or
make signs, sort of thing. Or send
smoke signals.

But back to the glories of those
driving tests.

If they are being given in
“Chinese” and Punjabi, who are
the testers?

If the testers are themselves
Chinese and Punjabi, how does
any supervisor who is himself not
Chinese or Punjabi have tke
remotest idea that the tests are
being honestly conducted?

Not that 1 am accusing anyone
of fixing things, of course.
Wouldn’t dream of it.

But look’at ‘it this way. If the
Japanese allowed driving tests to
be conducted in English and I
were taking a test in Tokyo and
the testers were Canadians | might
be tempted to go the nudge-
nudge, wink-wink, and would-
you-like-to-come-out-to-dinner
route.

People in Canada who can’t
take the test in English shouldn’?
get a licence at all.

If they don’t know the language
they can’t read warning signs.
That’s why I saw a Chinese dame
charging down the centre lane on
the Second Narrows Bridge when
the Jane was closed.

Another item relating to lan-
guage comes from Statistics

' Canada, which reported that in
June 1991 there were 309,000
adult immigrants who know no
French or English at all.

But probably they are all driv-
ing cars.

Asa friend commented, ‘When
this country goes the way of
Yugoslavia, the liberals will
wonder why.”’

KEN BAXTER j
LAWYER en

[24 Years
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