15°c Clear
28°c Isolated showers
Winnipeg Free Press - ONLINE EDITION
Peace march for Syria moved to Sunday due to Santa Claus parade
Peace marches were set for cities around the world Saturday, in solidarity with the civilian victims of the brutal Syrian civil war, but not in Winnipeg -- where organizers said they gave way to the Santa Claus parade.
"Because of the Winnipeg Santa Claus parade we decided to do it tomorrow," says Dima Alsayed, a Walk 4 the Children of Syrian organizer.
Some 60,000 Winnipeggers were expected to crowd into downtown for the annual Santa Claus parade to see Santa, watch floats and take part in block parties that line Portage Avenue from Memorial Boulevard to Main Street. The parade, to start at 5 p.m. and wrap up with fireworks at The Forks, kicks off the holiday season and marks one of the city’s biggest events of the calendar.
On Sunday about 60 people are expected to turn out for the Syrian peace march at the legislature at 2 p.m., Alsayed said.
Around the world Saturday, thousands were expected to turn out in support of Syrian victims of the civil war. The event was organized by a Washington, D.C.-based non-profit group called the Syrian American Alliance, after the success of a similar walk in a series of American cities in September. Events were organized for most American and Canadian cities, and in Australia, Brazil, Europe and the Middle East.
Meanwhile in the latest news out of Syria, Reuters reported Saturday that rebel forces captured an airport near the Iraqi border that had been held by the Syrian military. President Bashar Assad’s forces were reported to have bombed the airport in retaliation.
The revolt, now into its 20th month, started after the Arab Spring revolutions that brought down regimes from Tunisia to Egypt. In Syria, they also started as peaceful protests but fast morphed into a civil war.
Assad’s struggle to put down the rebels with brutal bombings has consumed most of the country. Activists say the war has killed more than 38,000 people, according to news services.
Alsayed said she was born in Syria and moved to Canada 10 years ago where she settled down and is now raising a family in Winnipeg. Her daughter, 7, helped make some of the placards to be handed out to supporters in the Winnipeg march Sunday.
"She’s Canadian but we have so many relatives living there who have lost their homes and children who have lost their parents so I asked her to imagine what she would say if we were over there. She wrote a couple of them. They say things like 'I lost my home. I lost my father,'" Alsayed said.
The revolution sparked an exodus of exiles from Syria and some of the disapora now lives in Winnipeg.
A small Syrian community has grown from three families to about 50 people in Winnipeg.
Syrians here recently formed their own association, the Syrian Assembly of Manitoba, which co-ordinated the march with the Syrian American Alliance in Washington.
The event begins at 2 p.m. and march route will use the sidewalks. It is to move north on Memorial Boulevard, east on York Avenue, south on Garry Street and west on Broadway back to the Legislature.
More Latest News
- Back to Top
- Return to Latest News
More Latest News
(1 of 50 articles for this week)
'Shocking' half of First Nations kids living in poverty, new study finds
3:05 AM 0TORONTO - Half of Canada's First Nations children are living in poverty, triple the national average, according to a new ...
Poll
Most Popular Latest News
- Young girl found dead on railway tracks
- Child in critical condition after West End crash
- Court told driver hysterical after vehicle fatally hit highway worker
- Winnipeg man given 2-year sentence for coma-inducing 'sucker punch'
- Man convicted of drunk driving in Henderson pile-up
- Teen on train tracks from York Landing
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- HSC Home Lottery winners announced
- California 'Night Stalker' serial killer Richard Ramirez dies at 53
- At 55, I'm wise to what's real in life
- Young girl found dead on railway tracks
- HSC Home Lottery winners announced
- Winnipeg man given 2-year sentence for coma-inducing 'sucker punch'
- Child in critical condition after West End crash
- Court told driver hysterical after vehicle fatally hit highway worker
- RCMP say woman deliberately murdered her sister with her car
- Toronto woman dead in rural Manitoba ATV wreck
- Manitoba restaurant stops selling giant hamburger "for obvious reasons"
- Bomber fans wowed by new stadium
- Portage Ave. stretch re-opens after Friday-night bomb scare
- Young girl found dead on railway tracks
- Man dies after being pulled from vehicle submerged in Winnipeg retention pond
- Hailstorm wreaks havoc on Winnipeg garden centre
- 87-year-old woman tells jurors, 'Somebody had to stand up to' Donald Trump
- Two people killed in crash north of Winnipeg
- Two Winnipeg teens identified as victims of crash
- HSC Home Lottery winners announced
- Father, daughter seriously injured in ATV crash
- Chiropractor guilty of sexually assaulting, beating ex-girlfriend
- Filipino singer Charice comes out as lesbian; Catholic official says she's in identity crisis
- At 55, I'm wise to what's real in life
- Basic arithmetic back in class
- Craig Ferguson adds second show
- Make it look natural; companies work to make packaged foods appear homespun
- McMunn & Yates absorbs five McDiarmid locations
- Teens can join Let It Out Summer Rock Camp
- Daycare-subsidy rules bad for business
- City-wide average mosquito count drops
- Scientists meet to discuss weird British weather, say soggy summers likely for a few years
- New Flyer awarded Atlanta bus contract
- App could give Winnipeggers chance to report bad parking, get paid
- At 55, I'm wise to what's real in life
- Sobeys gobbles up Safeway
- Priest kept silent about accusations against Storheim, court hears
- Manitoba restaurant stops selling giant hamburger "for obvious reasons"
- Basic arithmetic back in class
- Geothermal heat coming to some Manitoba First Nations
- Spiralling cost of land raises new home prices
- Rogers and MTS announce new network sharing agreement
- $110-K worth of nickel plates stolen from Thompson mine
- New owner for lumber stores
- Chiropractor guilty of sexually assaulting, beating ex-girlfriend
- Grocer Joe Cantor dies at 88
- Door openers being used to break into garages, police warn
- Province formally opens Mental Health Crisis Response Centre
- Hailstorm wreaks havoc on Winnipeg garden centre
- New rules let customers cancel phone contracts without penalty after two years
- App could give Winnipeggers chance to report bad parking, get paid
- At 55, I'm wise to what's real in life
- MTS to sell Allstream to Egyptian investment group, focus on Manitoba market
Ads by Google
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
You can comment on most stories on winnipegfreepress.com. You can also agree or disagree with other comments. All you need to do is be a Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscriber to join the conversation and give your feedback.
Have Your Say
New to commenting? Check out our Frequently Asked Questions.
Have Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press print or e-edition subscribers only. why?
Login SubscribeHave Your Say
Comments are open to Winnipeg Free Press Subscribers only. why?
SubscribeThe Winnipeg Free Press does not necessarily endorse any of the views posted. By submitting your comment, you agree to our Terms and Conditions. These terms were revised effective April 16, 2010.