2002 - 2003 Season
April 10, 2003
A FIFTH ESTATE SPECIAL: INSIDE THE WAR ON IRAQ
The collapse of the Hussein regime is now certain. But that's perhaps the only certainty. Neighbours of Iraq like Syria and Iran wonder if they are likely to be targeted next by those in Washington who favour regime in countries perceived to be hostile to the U.S. And the Kurds of Iraq also wonder whether their dreams of autonomy will be realized or whether they will again be forgotten by the outside world.
In "
ACT OF FAITH" Linden MacIntyre looks at what George Bush and Tony Blair have in mind once Saddam is gone.
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Bob McKeown explores how the world has repeatedly abandoned the Kurds to their fate in "
THE FORGOTTEN PEOPLE."
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April 2, 2003
THE CAN'T MISS MISSILE
It was touted as the best defence money could buy against Iraqi Scuds and other deadly missiles. But as the fifth estate's Bob McKeown demonstrated on our February 5 programme, the Patriot missile turned out to be a bust in 1991. And now in the early days of the war in Iraq, it seems as if the Patriot has revealed one more fatal shortcoming. It is having trouble telling the difference between friend and foe. A whole new take on a cautionary tale about military hardware and military obfuscation.
March 26, 2003
THE FORGOTTEN PEOPLE
George Bush has properly criticized Saddam Hussein for his chemical weapons attacks on his own citizens- particularly the Kurds in Halabja. But did the west turn a blind eye to the suffering of the Kurds and might it do so again?
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ACT OF FAITH
Also Linden MacIntyre reports on the extraordinary coalition of George Bush and Tony Blair. In the months leading up to March 19, diplomats worked feverishly the UN to avert a war. Meanwhile the President of the U.S. and the Prime Minister of Britain had struck a deal that would ultimately lead to war, and possibly remake the Middle East.
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March 19, 2003
THE CALL OF THE WILD
Take one look at the majestic Rockies and their pristine snow - and you have no trouble imagining why people are drawn to back-country skiing. It's also easy to understand how it can be so dangerous -there are literally thousands of avalanches every year. But this year has been particularly deadly - nineteen people have been killed in avalanches this winter. Bob McKeown asks whether it's time to rethink safety and training practices.
THE WRONG SIDE OF HISTORY
The People's Mujahedin are a group of Iranian expatriates who have had but one ambition for the past two decades; to unseat the Ayatollahs in Iran. Once supported by the Americans in their quest, they made a fateful decision to base themselves in Iraq. Now no matter what they do, they face almost certain annihilation at the hands of the Americans, the Iranians or the Iraquis. Linden MacIntyre reports.
March 12, 2003
DEADLY HOLIDAY
A Caribbean holiday ends in a mysterious and violent death for a young Canadian.The fifth estate reconstructs what happened in the last few hours of the life of O'Neil Persaud.
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February 26, 2003
AFTER THE CAMERAS WENT AWAY
Not long ago the fifth estate received a letter from a young man who, when he first appeared on the program, seemed headed for an early death. And now he had turned his life around and wanted our viewers to know. That letter became the inspiration for a show that goes back to find out what happened to people whose lives flashed across our television screen over the years. These are not necessarily the headline makers, but instead are the people whose stories were so captivating that they could never be forgotten. They were ordinary people who had become fleetingly famous - or infamous-- on the fifth estate. Some had some pretty wild stories to tell…some had endured terrible misery. After The Cameras Went Away features five vignettes of change, redemption, and strange twists of fate.
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February 19, 2003
RETURN TO BOUNTIFUL
the fifth estate re-turns to the Bountiful story adding new interview clips from the community's most proinent member, Winston Blackmore.
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February 12, 2003
HELL TO PAY
The Martensville Saskatchewan "scandal" erupted in the first week of June 1992. Nine people, including police officers and private citizens had been accused of bizarre satanic crimes, arrested and charged with sexual abuse of children. Ten years after the satanic sex abuse panic swept Martensville, Saskatchewan, some of the falsely accused are seeking compensation. The fifth estate returns to find out how things could have gone so wrong.
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February 5, 2003
THE BEST DEFENCE
In 1991 the American military bragged they had the perfect weapon to neutralize deadly Scud missiles. But it wasn't true, and no one had even bothered to tell the President of the United States that their super-missile was way off the mark.
January 29, 2003
SPIRITUAL SHEPHERDS
As Catholics and Anglicans confront the sins of their fathers, the Jehovah's Witnesses have been less than forthright about their own alleged legacy of abuse. But this church, too, has had serious problems, and around the world, former members are beginning to break the silence. In 'Spiritual Shepherds', host Bob McKeown exposes how the Jehovah's Witnesses failed to deal appropriately with case after case of alleged abuse here in Canada.
January 22, 2003
DOWN FOR THE COUNT
Victims of injustice sometimes find comfort in numbers, but when they head to court they may risk being victimized all over again. That's what happened to thousands of Americans who were targeted by a man named Blair Down. Viewers of the fifth estate first met Blair Down 6 years ago, when his scheme to separate pensioners from their savings in a vast telephone fraud scheme came to light. Recently we caught up with Mr. Down, who continues to live the good life in B.C. while his former victims remain out in the cold. "
Down for the Count" follows the campaign to track down Blair Down's missing money - and a curious deal that seems to do more for the lawyers than the victims.
January 15, 2003
THE BISHOP OF BOUNTIFUL
Over the years there have been occasional news reports about a mysterious and secretive religious community in Bountiful B.C. They call themselves the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints - no relation to the mainstream Mormons - and they believe that not only does God condone polygamy, but the Canadian Charter of Rights does too. Never before has a news organization gained such privileged access to the community of Bountiful. Hana Gartner was granted a rare glimpse inside the FLDS - and an exclusive interview with one of it's most prominent citizens.
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January 8, 2003
A TOXIC COMPANY
They're one of the largest private corporations in America. They bullied their way into Canada and convinced competitors to hit the road. Thousands have been injured working in their North American plants...some Americans have died...and the company kept on growing here in Canada.
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December 12, 2002
A STATE OF DENIAL
In mid December 2000, word quickly spread around the foreign community in Riyadh that Canadian William Sampson had been picked up by Saudi police. The next time they saw him was on Saudi TV confessing to a bizarre crime. Looking haggard and sounding clipped, Bill Sampson uttered the following words; "I admit and acknowledge that I participated with Mr Alexander Mitchell in setting up an explosive device on the vehicle belonging to Christopher Rodway, a British national." Rodway had been killed in the blast which Saudi prosecutors claimed was the work of "foreign bootleggers." To those who knew William Sampson, the allegations sounded highly implausible. But if his friends were stunned, his father, James Sampson of White Rock B.C., was horrified.
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December 4, 2002
HOT AIR
It's little wonder that such confusion - and anger - surrounds the Kyoto Accord. Both sides have resorted to alarmist rhetoric, and both sides have used statistics creatively and selectively. Our story will examine the facts that both sides have been busy buryingincluding the probability that when all is said and done it will be consumers who pay the price for Kyoto.
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November 20, 2002
ADVANCING TO THE NEXT ROUND
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November 13, 2002
SPIES, LIES AND SECRET WEAPONS
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October 23, 2002
THE SECRET KILLER
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October 16, 2002
THE NIGHTMARE DRUG
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October 9, 2002
THE LRE TIRE
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