Health & Wellness
 

Dual Citizenship for Goans born in Goa From: Miguel Reis <miguel-reis@lawrei.com> Date: Sun, Jun 1, 2008 at 11:00 PM Subject: Dual citizenship Sent by Dr. Kevin Saldanha Dear Sir: We are a Portuguese law firm, who assists, in Portugal, lots of Goan persons, from all the world. Our lawyers have studied the problem of nationality concerning Goans and analyzed the difficulties posted by the Portuguese authorities. We think that Portugal must respect their own laws and the compromises from the treaties. About these matter, I join you a small reference, because II think that this matter is interesting for all the Goans. Procedures of inclusion in the Portuguese Civil Register Office of the birth of the citizens that were born in the former Portuguese State of India The interpretation that we make from the Portuguese Law is that all those people that were born in the former Portuguese State of India before 25th April 1976 and their descendants until the third generation are Portuguese, even that the descendants were born abroad. The theories we support regarding to this matter are summed up in the following content published in our website.   The main reason why is so difficult to include the Birth Certificate of those citizens in the Portuguese Register Office is the huge amount of forgery of documents that happens in India. The Portuguese authorities have been adopting a pathetic attitude by requiring documents issued by the Old Portuguese Administration, in other words, expired documents. The aforesaid documents are insusceptible, by nature, to prove the facts that establish the right to include the birth in the Portuguese Civil Register Office.   According to our interpretation of law, because Portugal has re-established the diplomatic relations with India in 1974 and also has given to it the full documental assets of those territories, the only suitable means to prove that someone was born in the former Portuguese State of India are the Certificates issued by the competent Indian department, preferably with copies of the Certificates that were drawn up by the Portuguese Administration in accordance with Indian Law and International Law. Usually people submit their applications with these documents legalised by the Portuguese Consulates in India. However, the departments of the Portuguese Civil Register Office (specially Conservatória dos Registos Centrais) are always challenging their authenticity which, by the way, is absolutely justified, taking into account that we are facing departments of the same Government. In the end of the day, the doubt is thrown over the posture of the Portuguese Consulates that have legalised documents, and in this system there are no efficient arguments against the Portuguese Civil Register Office. Nevertheless, if instead having their documents legalised by a Portuguese Consulate, the Applicants gets their documents authenticated with the Apostille of Hague, once that India has signed the Convention of 5 October 1961 Abolishing the Requirement of Legalisation for Foreign Public Documents, there will be no arguments left to the Portuguese Civil Register Office to challenge the authenticity of the documents. All relevant explanation relating to the Apostille of Hague may be seen at the website of the Office of the Solicitor General of the Portuguese Republic. The Republic of India is one of the subscribers of the above mentioned Convention as you can verify at the website of the Conference, and has started to issue apostilles in August 2007. It can also be found relevant information regarding this subject at the website of the Ministry of External Affairs of India. The documents must be originally authenticated by the agencies informed at the website and then sent to the Ministry of External Affairs that is going to affix the Apostille of Hague. Related to the pending procedures in which were requested our interference, we request to our clients and partners to send us new documents with the Apostille of Hague once that we are convinced that is going to be easier and faster to process the registration. And the new procedures are going to follow the same instructions.   In our point of view it is not relevant to submit documents of identification of the Applicant to have the Birth Certificate included at the Portuguese Civil Register Office since their descendants (and even others) may have interest in the registration. Notwithstanding we understand that we do not need to transform this matter into a source of litigation.   The Powers of Attorney given to the lawyers do not need to be notarised. Therefore we are going to use simple Powers of Attorney to submit the applications without being notarised in order to save costs with taxes. We are going to adopt the following model of Powers of Attorney: Mod. 11. Yet, for our own safety, a second Powers of Attorney, notarised and legalised with the Apostille of Hague must be sent to us.   Regarding to those citizens that were born until 25th April 1976 in territories that were part of the former Portuguese State of India, according to the Portuguese Law, but were not under Portuguese jurisdiction, the Certificates issued by the Indian authorities and legalised with the Apostille of Hague are all valid.   The rules of article 1st of the Portuguese Civil Register Code that establish the facts that need compulsorily to be registered by the Portuguese citizens are also fully applied to the citizens that were born in the former Portuguese State of India.   It is indispensable that the applications are well prepared and bring all the necessary elements to perfectly promote its normal course through the legal channels.   In respect to the citizens that were born in the former Portuguese State of India, among other relevant aspects, the following must also be taken into account: If the citizen is single [A] You prepare the application for the inclusion of the Birth Certificate, you are going to require: a. Birth Certificate with the Apostille of Hague; b. Powers of Attorney Mod. 11 c. Copy of an identification document certified with the Apostille of Hague   If the citizen is married [A] You prepare the application for the inclusion of the Birth Certificate, you are going to require: a. Birth Certificate with the Apostille of Hague; b. Powers of Attorney Mod. 11 c. Copy of an identification document certified with the Apostille of Hague [B] You prepare the application of the registration of marriage, you are going to require: a. Birth Certificate of both betrothed with the Apostille of Hague; b. Marriage Certificate with the Apostille of Hague; c. Powers of Attorney Mod. 11   If the citizen is divorced he/she is going to apply for the review and confirmation of the decision of divorce before a Portuguese Court;   If the citizen is a widower/widow he/se is going to apply for the registration of the death. Best regards Miguel Reis MIGUEL REIS & ASSOCIADOS - SOCIEDADE DE ADVOGADOS (PORTUGAL) Rua Marquês de Fronteira, 76 - 5º, 1070-299 Lisboa - Portugal Tel: (+351) 21 385 21 38 Fax: (+351) 21 386 36 63 - lisboa@lawrei.com Av. D. João IV, 1- R/c, 2070-299 Montijo - Portugal Tel. (+351) 21 231 40 18 - Fax: (+351) 21 231 40 18 - montijo@lawrei.com MIGUEL REIS ADVOGADOS ASSOCIADOS (BRASIL) Avenida da Liberdade, 701 - 2º Cj 25 CEP 01503-001 - S. Paulo-SP - Brasil Tel: (+55 11) 3207-8083 / (+55 11) 3208-1546 Fax: (+55 11) 3207-8083 - saopaulo@lawrei.com Av. Santos Dumont 2727, Sala 806 CEP 60150-161 - Fortaleza/CE - Brasil Tel/Fax: (+55 85) 3224-4956 - fortaleza@lawrei.com www.lawrei.com

You May Never Look At Your Grandparents The Same Way Again TORONTO, May 26 /CNW/ - Today, The Globe and Mail launches "Senior High," a series that shatters stereotypical views of retirement homes as peaceful, quiet places where people go to spend their last days. As the series reveals, there is much more going on than meets the eye. While residents are elderly, they're still very much involved in the messy business of living. Retirement home living turns out to be a lot like going back to high school, complete with cliques, gossip and a dating scene. Globe and Mail Life section reporter Rebecca Dube and Globe photographer and videographer Kevin Van Paassen spent more than two months with residents at The Terraces of Baycrest, a retirement residence in North Toronto. Through articles, photographs and film, they chronicle the lives of residents as they adjust to the transition of moving into a retirement home, find love and companionship, deal with health issues and come to terms with the deaths of friends and loved ones. "By 2026, one in five Canadians will be 65 years or older. We hear a lot about changing demographics, but we don't hear much from old people themselves," said reporter Rebecca Dube. "As medical advances make it possible for people to stay healthy into their 90s, this generation is redefining the way we think about old age. I was surprised and moved by what I learned." The five part special series will run daily from May 26 to May 30 in the Life section of The Globe and Mail and at www.globeandmail.com/seniorhigh, which will feature four intimate video documentary portraits in which residents share personal stories about the issues they are grappling with. Interactive brain teaser exercises and an online discussion with an expert on dealing with aging parents will also be featured on the site. The series launches with an overview of Canada's aging population and the cultural implications of this reality - including a retirement home building boom across the country. Industry experts say the province of Ontario alone could use 80,000 new retirement spaces over the next 20 years. And while retirement homes offer a compromise for seniors between living on their own and going to a nursing home, it's a change that requires a huge adjustment - and some unexpected social terrain to navigate. Over the course of five days, the series explores other aspects of life in a retirement home, including the social dynamics of senior communities, looking for love at age 77, living conditions and dealing with death as a constant visitor. The Globe and Mail, Canada's national newspaper, is a division of CTVglobemedia, a dynamic multimedia company, which also owns CTV Inc., Canada's number-one private broadcaster.

Ontario Home Care Association welcomes home care funding announcement to address ER wait times TORONTO, May 30 /CNW/ - The Ontario Home Care Association (OHCA) applauds today's announcement to enhance home care coverage in order to reduce wait times in emergency rooms and improve patient satisfaction. Increased funding to the home care sector will mean that more Ontarians are able to receive care after leaving the ER; and through enhanced care prevent the need for emergency room presentation. It is vital that this increased funding be directly targeted to patient care and OHCA recommends that the McGuinty government encourage innovative and flexible approaches to home care programs, including expansion of the eligibility requirements and the increase of hours available to individuals. "Home care is key to improving wait times in emergency rooms because these services will assist people and their families to go home safely and with confidence" said OHCA Executive Director, Sue VanderBent. New and innovative delivery home care options that include electronic point of care documentation; digital wound photography; telephone support and specialized clinic-based care will relieve the hospital burden for those who are able to stay in the community. A sustainable home care system that truly provides support for people in their homes is the only way to effectively break the cycle of non-acute utilization of emergency departments. OHCA will continue to work with the OHA and other health system partners to advance solutions to provide "the right care at the right place" and ultimately increase Ontarians confidence in their health care system. About OHCA The OHCA, the voice of home care in Ontario, is a membership association representing providers of quality home care services from across Ontario. OHCA is dedicated to promoting the growth and development of the home and community health care sector by helping to shape health care policy, supporting members to excel, and being a leading source of information on home and community care. OHCA members are accredited through the Canadian Council on Health Services Accreditation (CCHSA) and/or the International Standards Association (ISO). For the latest in news and information about the home care sector in Ontario, subscribe to the Ontario Home Care Association's 'House Call' at www.homecareontario.ca.

South Asian Food Guide For Diabetics http://www.awic.org/default.aspx?tabid=10000053 Friday, 30 May 2008 AWIC Community and Social Services hosted the South Asian Diabetes Expo, held a free day long community event, on Saturday, May 24 at James Cardinal McGuigan Catholic Secondary School, North York. This expo, hosted as part of AWIC's South Asian Diabetes Awareness Project, was funded by the Ontario Trillium Foundation. The most striking feature of the expo was the release of AWIC's culturally sensitive South Asian Food Guide and Cookbook by the keynote speaker, Ms. Yasmin Ratansi, M.P. Don Valley East. This expo also offered presentations on diabetes management, healthy eating and active living, healthy cooking demonstrations, vendor booths offering health related products and interactive workshops.

No Sleep 'Renders Brain Erratic' Story from BBC NEWS Scientists have shown relying on the sleep-deprived brain to perform well is potentially fraught with danger. They found that even after sleep deprivation, people have periods of near normal brain function in which they can finish tasks quickly. However, this is mixed with periods of slow response and severe drops in visual processing and attention. The study, by Duke University and the National University of Singapore, appears in the Journal of Neuroscience. The researchers said the findings had implications for people who have to struggle through night work, from long distance lorry drivers to on-call doctors. Lead researcher Professor Michael Chee said: "The periods of apparently normal functioning could give a false sense of competency and security when, in fact, the brain's inconsistency could have dire consequences."

Yes To Creative Accountants, No To Creative Accounting MONTREAL, June 2 /CNW Telbec/ - This week, the certified management accountants (CMA) launched a brand new media campaign whose theme is "creative accountants." "We have to take back the word 'creative,' which is central to the training and role of CMAs and associate it in a positive way with our profession," says Richard Désy, FCMA, President of the Bureau of the CMA Order. "In other words, we must remind people of the true meaning of the word 'creative' when talking about accountants, who are in fact asked to show imagination, boldness and innovation in order to ensure the growth of their companies." Accordingly, the goal of this campaign is to challenge the stereotype that associates creativity and accounting with fraudulent practices. Why are the practices that gave us the Enron and Norbourg scandals called "creative," when they were really just criminal behavior? That is the question CMAs are asking. According to Richard Désy, creativity is probably the most important ingredient for success in today's business world. Many leaders and famous authors also acknowledge that we are leaving the information era for a conceptual era and see the class of creative managers reaching the top. "CMAs think that it is now time to change the perception in recent years that accounting and creativity are connected with financial scandals." To launch their campaign and capture the public's imagination, CMAs will broadcast a public service announcement on television and the radio. This public service announcement will be followed by advertisements that will show how the distinctive expertise of CMAs makes them creative accountants who play a key role in all organizations.