​​​Jerin organized a team of students and virtually connected with student groups around the province and other parts of the country to encourage them to come forward to voice their concerns and file petitions to the authorities. They also worked with Social, cultural organizations, and community and political leaders including Dolly Begum MPP, and worked closely with them to press for the needs of those students affected. Dolly begum MPP and her NDP counterparts wrote a letter to Minister Mendoccino and stood firmly with the International student community from the very beginning. ​

​Jofin Lawrence came to Canada in 2017 on a Student Visa to study at Centennial College. When he completed his 2 years academic program, he was offered a 3 years Post Graduate Work Permit (PGWP) which was meant to acquire substantial work experience in the field of his studies. It was stipulated that the permit holder should complete the required minimum hours within the validity period making him qualify for applying for permanent residence (PR) in Canada. When Covid 19 hit hard, in March 2020, Jofin’s work was affected, and eventually, he lost his job, making it impossible for him to gain the stipulated Canadian work experience and apply for PR. Along with Jofin, Anu Shinto (Durham College graduate), Madonna Sebastian (Seneca College graduate), Jeril Jose (St Lawrence college graduate) are among the thousands of International youth across Canada who are affected but thankful to the Prime minister and immigration minister for the timely decision to support their future prospects in this country.​

International Students in Canada. Image credit: immgration.ca ​

Teachers who are also parents are overwhelmed with tasks of trying to teach students while also attending their own kids learning from home.

A spokesperson for Ontario Education Minister Stephen Lecce said to keep students safe, the government will continue to follow the advice of the chief medical officer of health and medical experts to guide decision-making. 

"As the numbers in the community increase, we have to kind of adjust our recommendations, but at that same time, I do know that kids do need to be in school ... so we have to balance that. I think that, at least for January, it's going to be a tricky balance," said Dr. Sumon Chakrabarti, an infectious disease specialist at Trillium Health Partners in Mississauga, Ont., west of Toronto and added that any decision regarding opening or closing schools will require consideration of many factors.


Although schools have not been a driver of COVID-19, rather they are more a reflection of what was happening in the community, said Chakrabarti on Monday and added,

"when you get to a point where you have such high amounts of transmission, all in the community, that can certainly change. I think that this is part of what is underlying us having an extra week of online learning. Maybe it might be even a bit longer." 

he World Press Freedom Conference 2020, which began on Wednesday, features interactive panels and discussions covering issues such as investigating the killings of journalists, online violence against women journalists, and the media’s response to the COVID-19 pandemic. 

“Not only are journalists conveying vital information during the pandemic, they also help us distinguish all manner of truth from falsehood, which is fundamental to our social contract”, said Audrey Azoulay, the UNESCO Director-General. 

“Yet, journalists continue to be targeted, harassed and attacked. In recent years, threats against them have grown because they disrupt, because they tell the truth. Or, to put it simply, because they do their job.” 

No ‘press’ without ‘freedom’ 

Between 2010 and 2019, nearly 900 journalists were killed in the line of duty, according to UNESCO data; crimes that mainly go unpunished.  Women journalists have faced harassment, including physical or sexual threats, whether online or in real life, while the pandemic has added to the already precarious financial situation of the media industry. 

There can be no “press” without “freedom”, the Dutch Foreign Minister, Stef Blok, stressed, acknowledging how he counts on the media to keep him informed about what is happening at home and around the world. 

Mr. Blok said he had spoken earlier on Thursday with young journalists from Ethiopia and Libya “and I really could tell them from the bottom of my heart: We need you. We need you to know what is happening in your country, and to do what we have to do as ministers.” 

Corrosion and contagion 

During the first panel, Elisabeth Bumiller, Washington Bureau Chief of the New York Times, spoke of the “rough four years” American media had to weather, covering the Trump administration. 

“He has called us ‘the enemy of the people’, he’s used the term ‘fake news’, which has been repeated by 50 Presidents, Prime Ministers and other government officials around the world”, she said.  

Although these attacks have had what Ms. Bumiller described as “a corrosive effect” on the media in the United States, she reported that The Times has nonetheless seen record levels of readership and digital subscriptions. 

However, Sudanese-born journalist Nima El Badir, a Senior International Correspondent with CNN in London, was wary that the “contagion” of populism is still spreading across the globe. 
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“I worry that we are taking a breath and kind of exhaling a little too early”, she said.  “The sense that we get is that there is a contagion; that the lessons of the populist leadership, of the populist wave – whether in the US, the UK, or Europe – has been learned very well by leaders around the world.” 

Democracy in danger 

Ms. El Badir pointed to the situation in Ethiopia, where a communications blackout has been imposed in the north since the start of the Tigray crisis a month ago.  

“How can President Trump, how can Prime Minister Johnson, how can any of the many leaders within the European Union, speak out about lack of access when they themselves would love to nothing more than exactly the same? If they could shut us down, they would”, he claimed. 

For Maria Ressa, Editor-in-Chief of the Philippines online news website Rappler, the rise of populism, and attacks against journalists, have been enabled by technology. 

Ms. Ressa, who has been arrested nine times, believes people must give consideration to their news sources.  Social media penetration in the Philippines is high, she said, describing it as “Facebook country.”  

“Well, our dystopian present has now hit many democracies around the world, and we’ve got to do something about this”, she warned.  

“And that is to make sure that news reaches you; that the platforms, the social media platforms, because of their business model, that they do not insidiously manipulate us to tear democracy down.”

“What we have learned about schooling during the time of COVID is clear: the benefits of keeping schools open, far outweigh the costs of closing them, and nationwide closures of schools should be avoided at all costs”, Robert Jenkins, UNICEF Global Chief of Education, said in a statement. 

Closing schools did not help in the fight against COVID-19, but simply removed a system that provides children with support, food and safety as well as learning, UNICEF said. Instead of shutting them, governments should prioritize school reopening and make classrooms as safe as possible.

Don't scapegoat schools 

“Evidence shows that schools are not the main drivers of this pandemic. Yet, we are seeing an alarming trend whereby governments are once again closing down schools as a first recourse rather than a last resort. In some cases, this is being done nationwide, rather than community by community, and children are continuing to suffer the devastating impacts on their learning, mental and physical well-being and safety”, Mr. Jenkins said. 

November saw a 38 per cent jump in the number of children affected by school closures, UNICEF said, after a big wave of re-openings the previous month. 

“In spite of everything we have learned about COVID-19, the role of schools in community transmission, and the steps we can take to keep children safe at school, we are moving in the wrong direction - and doing so very quickly”, the top education official added. 

Expanding access

Reopening plans must include expanded access to education, including remote learning, and rebuilding education systems to withstand future crises, UNICEF said.   

The agency cited a recent study using data from 191 countries, published by the independent non-profit foundation, Insights for Education, which showed no association between school status and COVID-19 infection rates in the community.  
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The UN agency, together with the UN educational agency UNESCO, the refugee agency UNHCR, the UN World Food Programme and the World Bank, has published a Framework for Reopening Schools, with practical advice covering areas such as policy reform, financing requirements, safe operations and reaching the most marginalized children, who are the most likely to drop out of school altogether.

The guide “Skills Development and Lifelong Learning: Resource Guide for Workers’Organizations” , published by the ILO’s Skills and Employability Branch and Bureau for Workers’ Activities (ACTRAV) addresses key challenges facing workers’ organizations, including best practices, key priorities and main challenges. It also outlines why trade unions should be involved in skills development and lifelong learning.

According to the guide, building the capacity and engagement of workers’ organizations in skills development and lifelong learning, based on a human-centred approach and International Labour Standards, will help build a ‘better normal’ in the post-COVID-19 World.

“What matters in the end, is that ALL workers can acquire the skills of their choice to get jobs and to keep jobs, and to be equipped to face the transitions they will be confronted with over the working life. Skills development and lifelong learning are essential to enhance workers’ capabilities to participate fully in decent work, to contribute to human development, active citizenship and the strengthening of democracy,” said Maria Helena André, Director of the ILO’s Bureau for Workers’ Activities.

The guide is designed for workers’ organizations, trainers, facilitators and ILO officials. It is part of a comprehensive programme of support for workers’organizations in preparation for the 2021 International Labour Conference (ILC), which will discuss skills and lifelong learning. It also paves the way for the general discussion on standing setting for apprenticeships, which takes place at the ILC in 2022 and 2023.

“If the lifelong leaning notion has to become a reality, the link between the world of education and the world of work needs to be very strong, bringing these together, through a process of social dialogue where governments, employers, and workers organization jointly formulate policies and programmes,” said Srinivas Reddy, Director of the ILO SKILLS Branch.

A Global webinar  bringing together workers’ organizations, technical experts, academics and senior ILO officials was held on the November 18th 2020 to launch the guide.