Today's guest host was Sheila Coles in Regina.

It's Friday January 16th.

For the first time ever the Vatican will allow the public a peek into its supersecret tribunal of conscience, a sanctuary where the gravest sins are confessed to...and where only the pope can give absolution.

Currently, Vatican officials say most of the requests for confessions are coming from Washington DC, and are post-dated for January 21st.

This is the Current.

Part 1: Just Say No Stimulus - Economist

In less than two weeks, Federal Finance Minister Jim Flaherty will introduce a budget ... one that will shape the future of a very troubled economy and one that could determine Stephen Harper's political fate. And as Minister Flaherty tours the country for consultations about what should be in the budget, one idea seems to be dominating the agenda -- stimulus.

But, the Conservatives aren't the only ones talking about big spending. NDP leader Jack Layton and Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff are also on board with the idea of spending in order to get the sluggish economy moving again.

So our politicians seem to agree that some kind of economic stimulus is necessary. But some economists believe that a stimulus package would actually take our country in the wrong direction. Niels Veldhuis is the Director of Fiscal Studies at The Fraser Institute. He took part in the finance minister's pre-budget consultation in Victoria earlier this week. And he was in Vancouver this morning.

Just Say No Stimulus - Politician

Economists aren't the only ones worried about the upcoming budget or what a large stimulus package would do to the country's finances. Barbara McDougall was a Progressive Conservative Member of Parliament for nine years and held several cabinet posts, including Finance. She is now an advisor at the law firm Aird and Berlis, and she was in Toronto.

Listen to Part One:



Part 2: Sri Lankan Journalist

Lasantha Wickramatunga had feared for his life for some time. The Editor of the Sri Lankan newspaper The Sunday Leader had already been the victim of two violent attacks. And his criticism of the Sri Lankan Government over its use of force against Tamil citizens had earned him some powerful enemies.

So he wrote an editorial ... one that anticipated his own death. He headlined it "And then they came for me." And then, last Thursday, someone did. Lasantha Wickramatunga was shot-to-death by two men on a motorcycle while he was driving to work in the capital, Colombo. We aired a reading from his editorial. It was published after his death in the Sri Lankan newspaper The Sunday Leader.

His death comes as the Sri Lankan military appears poised to defeat the rebel Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam -- or Tamil Tigers -- and bring an end to the country's brutal, 25-year-old civil war. The military is now closing in on the port of Mullaittivu, the only major town still held by the Tigers.

Our next guest knew Lasantha Wickramatunga personally. Charu Hogg is a former journalist who worked in Sri Lanka as a foreign correspondent for The Times of India and the Far Eastern Economic Review. She is now a South Asia researcher with Human Rights Watch, and we reached her in London.

Sri Lanka- Consul General

All over the world, groups working for human rights and journalistic freedom have condemned Lasantha Wickramatunga's murder. In Sri Lanka, the opposition is calling for an international investigation to determine who killed him. And because he was such a politically divisive figure whose death has come at such a crucial time for the country, the Sri Lankan Government is coming under a lot of pressure to find some answers. Bandula Jayasekara is Sri Lanka's Consul General and he was in Toronto.

Listen to Part Two:



Part 3: Inuit Reconciliation Documentary

Across Canada, many aboriginal people were hoping that 2009 would be a year of healing. Canada's Truth and Reconciliation Commission was going to be the starting point. But last fall, the commission's chair, Justice Harry LaForme, suddenly up and quit. There is still no word on who will replace him, though the commission's staff are continuing their work.

But for many of Labrador's Inuit, there's a bigger problem. The federal government still doesn't recognize the boarding schools they went to as "residential schools. Kate Kyle is a CBC reporter in Labrador who prepared a documentary about the story. It's called "Left Behind" and she joined us from Happy Valley Goose Bay, Labrador.

If you would like more information on the traveling exhibition mentioned in this documentary, contact the Legacy of Hope Foundation by phone at 613-237-4806 or by email at info@legacyofhope.ca.

Last Word

Stay with us on CBC Radio One. Q is next. And later today, on The Point, host Aamer Haleem is asking what you'd do with your time if money were no object. The Point is at 2 o'clock -- 2:30 in Newfoundland and parts of Labrador. And, tonight at 10 o'clock on CBC Television, The National will profile a Canadian choir that's on its way to Washington for the Obama inauguration.

Listen to Part Three:



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