Nineteen years ago today the Canadian government hosted a meeting that significantly impacted two decades of Haitian politics. Jean Chretien’s Liberals organized an international gathering to discuss overthrowing Haiti’s elected government, re-creating the Haitian military and placing the country under UN trusteeship. Thirteen months after the “Ottawa Initiative on Haiti” meeting President Jean-Bertrand Aristide and most other elected... Continue Reading →
Honesty needed in media coverage of Canada-Haiti relations
Media coverage of the Trudeau government’s recent conference on Haiti was appalling. To start with, despite official pronouncements, Ottawa is not an ally of Haiti. On Friday Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, foreign minister Mélanie Joly and international development minister Harjit Sajjan hosted a meeting of foreign ministers “to find sustainable solutions to challenges faced by... Continue Reading →
Shame on NDP for supporting imperialism in Haiti
Which is the Canadian political party most likely to stand up to the world’s rich and powerful? Which is willing to help the poorest of the poor gain a semblance of dignity and respect? Which can proudly proclaim, we stand for what is right, not just what is easy and expedient? Unfortunately, the answer is... Continue Reading →
Canada out of Core Group
Canada is a major player in a coalition shaping the fate of 11 million Haitians, yet few citizens of this country have even heard of the Core Group. Recently, the Core Group (representatives of the US, Canada, France, Spain, Germany, Brazil, UN and OAS) published a note saying Ariel Henry was the prime minister of... Continue Reading →
Haiti petition challenges foreign policy apparatus
While it may seem to be a simple call to release documents, Solidarité Québec-Haïti’s House of Commons petition is an indictment of Canada’s entire foreign policy/media apparatus. In my research about Canadian foreign policy I have come across no equivalent to the “Ottawa Initiative on Haiti”. In early 2003 the federal government organized a private... Continue Reading →
Trudeau government’s blackface in Haiti
Justin Trudeau recently apologized for dressing up in blackface. He acknowledged that it was a racist act. But he has continued the much more significant racism of his government’s actions towards Haiti, the country that delivered the greatest ever blow to anti-blackness. In an example of racist double standards, the government recently put out a... Continue Reading →
US says Trudeau adopts “America First” foreign policy, media ignores it
Wouldn’t you think the corporate media would be interested in the US embassy’s reaction to the appointment of a new Canadian foreign minister? Especially if that reaction was to claim Ottawa had decided to adopt an “America First” foreign policy? Wouldn’t some big newspaper or TV station, dedicated to telling the truth about what our... Continue Reading →
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