Questions for Paul Dewar, NDP leadership candidate
October 11, 2011 - 5:59pm
This thread is for questions specific to Paul Dewar's leadership campaign and all that the success of which would entail. Over the next few weeks and months, we will invite each NDP leadership candidate to answer your questions in a moderated discussion.
Please confine your contributions to the leadership candidate threads to questions directed at the individual candidate named in the thread title. Discussions and comments can be posted in any of the several other federal NDP threads.
Why did Dewar heap praise on Stephen Harper for announcing that Canada would boycott the 2009 United Nations World Conference Against Racism (informally known as Durban II), along with Israel, the United States, and other right-wing governments sympathetic to the racist policies of Israel?
What would a Paul Dewar run NDP offer to NDPers in the West? How well does Paul Dewar know NDPers in Atlantic Canada?
What would a Paul Dewar run NDP offer to NDPers in the West? How well does Paul Dewar know NDPers in Atlantic Canada?
I think you could add Quebec to that list and ask that question, in one from or another, to all the candidates.
There is a sense amongst NDP activists in Hamilton that, instead of rushing in to pick and back our individual choices for leader, we should work together to celebrate Jacks life and legacy and "Build the party" show it is "Ready to govern". One way we want to do that is to hold a highly successful leadership candiates debate in Hamilton. with outreach to thousands of people and media coverge that reaches hundeds of thousands. We've done such before and are confident we can do it again. Are you willing to work with us, the local activists, the party centre and the other leadership campaigns in this work? More broadly, are you wiling to work. during this leadership race and beyond, with local activists, the party centre and the other leadership campaigns to "Build the party" and show we are "Ready to govern"? and how do you see us accompishing these joyous tasks?
"My Friends, love is better than anger. Hope is better than fear. Optimism is better than despair. So let us be loving, hopeful and optimistic. And we'll change the world." - Jack Layton (1950-2011)
The struggle continues. R.I. P. Jack
As I asked Brian Topp who has publicly defended this policy here on rabble:
Will you maintain the policy of empowering head office staff to blacklist (i.e. prohibit from seeking a federal nomination anywhere in Canada) members in good standing for simply expressing dissatisfaction or disagreement with the party? If so, do you plan to create an appeal process or will the unelected staff continue to retain total authority to blacklist party members at will and without accountability or review?
Another question:
The NDP has never won more than one seventh of the seats in English Canada. And certain regions like PEI, Anglo New Brunswick, Eastern Ontario, the 905 region and the vast swath of territory lying between Lake Winnipeg and Kootenay Lake are regions where the party struggles for any kind of representation or relevance. How do you plan to make the party relevant in these parts of the country?
1. Do you recognize Québec's right to secede from Canada based solely on a 50% + 1 vote on a referendum question determined by the Assemblée Nationale?
2. Do you support the amendment of the Canada Labour Code to incorporate the same anti-scab provisions as the Québec code?
3. Do you support the application of Bill 101 to enterprises under federal jurisdiction in Québec?
4. When you and Wayne Marston issued that release praising the Harper government for boycotting Durban II, who ordered it pulled from the ndp.ca website after a couple of days?
Why did you initially support Canada's participation in the invasion of Libya when you, in your capacity as Foreign Affairs Critic, had access to all kinds of information indicating:
Furthermore, Libya will not be the last conflict that Canada will have to decide on whether to support militarily or not. How will the NDP formulate its position on such conflicts in the future?
When I wrote to you and several Members of Parliament expressing opposition to bombing Libya, I received what appeared to be a pre-written letter written in anticipation of backlash from the membership. What avenues will you open to us as members to have meaningful input into NDP foreign policy, especially as it relates to foreign military deployment?
What criteria do you think should be considered in deployment of Canada's military in foreign interventions?
My Question for Paul Dewar.
In the last few weeks, we have seen the "Occupy Wall Street" movement spread from New York to many cities in the U.S. and Canada. Is this not an indictment of polical parties, in that many people no longer see them as agents of change, but rather part of the problem?
To Paul Dewar,
Will you remove those spots from your website?
If you are elected as leader, who would you recommend as your replacement in the shadow cabinet?
And of course, my list of questions here.
To Paul Dewar,
How come I can't see the spots on your website like everyone else?
Should I get my eyes checked?
1) Should representation in the House of Commons reflect the principle of “one person, one vote” as embodied by representation by population? (Currently 7 provinces are over-represented, and 3 are under-represented)
2) Some M.P.s and federal parties have suggested that the current representation formula for the House of Commons should be changed to ensure that Quebec receives representation by population. Will this unify Canada by making us more equal or will this further marginalize the lower status of Canadians living in Ontario, BC and Alberta who continue to be under represented in the House of Commons and the Senate?
3) Given that BC, Alberta and Ontario are all dramatically under-represented in the Senate, is there any action that opposition M.P.s can take to stand up for the rights of people living in those provinces for fair representation in the Senate before the chamber is filled by “elected” senators?
Why did you offer to lobby for the added clout and prestige of a Harper seat on the security Council?
Which is to say, do you see no significant difference between the foreign policy agenda of the Conservatives and the interests of Canada and Canadians?
Can you please upload some video or audio of yourself speaking French on your website? It is important to me that the next leader be bilingual and a proactive communicator in both official languages. I want to get a sense of your skills rather than rely on the appraisals in the media.
Will your foreign policy be any different at all from Stephen Harper's?
Why do you seem to be so committed to the idea that the NDP MUST be just as militarist as the Tories?
There has been a lot of controversy within the party over its foreign policy. The NDP was once committed to withdrawing from NATO. Jack Layton argued that NATO should be made relevant to the 21st Century. The position on pulling out of Afghanistan and negotiating with the Taliban has been popular with the NDP's grassroots. The decision to join the NATO airstrikes on Libya has not. There was many in 2011 convention that would have liked to have seen the Gaza Flotila resolution reach the floor, but it died in committee. Brian Topp has argued that Palestine should be recognized by the UN while other members have stayed silent. As a candidate that stresses he is trying to connect with the grassroots, are you committed to having the NDP seriously review its foreign policy with a discussion among members in a way that promotes discussion and debate without resorting to heated attacks by both sides? Will you accept these foreign policy positions voted on by rank and file NDP members even if they conflict with your opinions or previous party policy?
1) What are your feelings in general about the antiwar movement?
2) Do you accept that opposition to militarism is a legitimate moral and political stance, whether or not you agree with it, and how would you react if, as prime minister, you got Canada into a war and a massive protest movement against that war emerged?
3) Would you be willing to listen to a large movement that opposed a war you were involved in as prime minister or would you simply dismiss it as a Tory or Liberal government would? Would you try to suppress NDP involvement in such a movement?
As a candidate that stresses he is trying to connect with the grassroots, are you committed to having the NDP seriously review its foreign policy with a discussion among members in a way that promotes discussion and debate without resorting to heated attacks by both sides?
Nice softball. Naturally, Dewar's response would be favourable to "discussion and debate" as opposed to "heated attacks"!
And if he were really honest, he'd point out that whether one or the other of those alternatives prevails is quite beyond the control of the party leader or anyone else.
As a candidate that stresses he is trying to connect with the grassroots, are you committed to having the NDP seriously review its foreign policy with a discussion among members in a way that promotes discussion and debate without resorting to heated attacks by both sides?
Nice softball. Naturally, Dewar's response would be favourable to "discussion and debate" as opposed to "heated attacks"!
And if he were really honest, he'd point out that whether one or the other of those alternatives prevails is quite beyond the control of the party leader or anyone else.
I didn't mean for it to be a soft ball actually, but thanks for pointing that out. Yes I should have said will you accept the decision even if you disagree with it? I'm going to edit it. But my point is that Dewar talks a lot about the grassroots but I've seen long time NDP members almost foaming at the mouth over Palestine and Libya. I also heard a story from the 2011 convention and this comes from a trusted source that wants to see the party be more pro-Palestinian. Anyway during the committee discussions when the Gaza Flotila would come up people would jump on their blackberries and the room would fill up with anti-Gaza Flotila supporters... That is another issue on conventions but really if Dewar wants to talk grassroots and gain their support he will have to promote issues the Federal NDP has avoided dealing with or outright had a different position on.
It was a perfectly good and clear question like it was.
The grouch just wanted to make HIS point instead.
I want to address the issue of income and tie it to homelessness because I rarely see it addressed from the perspective that I think is becoming fairly common. My father lived through the Depression and then fought in WWII. As a result of this he never had a regular job until he was 31. Despite this and despite never earning even the average salary at any time in his life, he owned and sold three houses as he moved from job to job in different cities. I was able to buy a house in Vancouver 25 years ago in Vancouver during an economic downturn with an above average income that is now worth more than $750,000. My two university-age children are highly unlikely to ever own their own house in this city even with well-above average incomes because of current housing prices. Already, many thirtyish professionals are leaving the city because they cannot ever own a home and the latest survey of immigrants states that one third of them are paying more than 50% of their income for housing. Of course, the number of homeless is also mushrooming exponentially. We need a major housing program that addresses homelessness, housing for young adults and immigrants, even for ones with above average incomes. This is not impossible. Afterall, my father's generation, at least from the 1950s until the 1970s were able to find either rental or cooperative housing or achieve home ownership in a country that had relatively little homelessness in a much smaller economy. What is your plan to overcome these generational trends?
Given that you joined the NDP caucus in supporting the Libya mission, what do you see as the role for the Canadian military, particularly in Canada's foreign affairs?
Seeing as how there's a new Dewar thread, maybe bumping this is a good idea. Is Dewar going to be around to answer these questions - or has he already?
Mr. Dewar:
In supporting sanctions against Iran, you stated:
I was wondering whether: 1) you would also support sanctions against Israel aimed at eliminating its nuclear arsenal; and 2) whether you also support the democratic aspirations of the Palestinian people, in particular their bid for U.N. recognition of their state?
Bump!
Mr. Dewar, Paul Wells has written that your "French is worse than Stéphane Dion's English." Do you understand how a lack of French ability in a would-be Prime Minister is offensive to many Canadians?
How do you propose to have the NDP gain the 140 seats it would need to form a government in 2015 - once you subtract the 50 odd seats that would be lost in Quebec as a direct result of having a leader who cannot communicate in French and is guaranteed to be a total turn-off to Quebecers?
Mr. Dewar,
On April 27, 2010, the Speaker of the House held the Harper government in contempt of Parliament for refusing to hand over all the Afghan detainee documents.
As in the case of many other such scandalous actions, Harper emerged unscathed, and the issue disappeared from the radar.
What is at stake is Canada's possible complicity in torture and other war crimes and crimes against humanity.
Are you prepared to demand that all the documents be released to Parliament now - failing which, that you will publish them immediately when the NDP forms the government?
Mr. Dewar,
Since you've been the MP for Ottawa-Centre since 2006, and lived in Ottawa for even longer, why isn't your French fluent yet? What assurances can we get that it will become fluent shortly?
Mr. Dewar:
In supporting sanctions against Iran, you stated:
I was wondering whether: 1) you would also support sanctions against Israel aimed at eliminating its nuclear arsenal; and 2) whether you also support the democratic aspirations of the Palestinian people, in particular their bid for U.N. recognition of their state?
I'd like to ask Mr. Dewar a followup question on trade and other sanctions.
What, in your opinion Mr Dewar, would be a positive role for sanctions in encouraging democracy in countries like Iran? Are sanctions not just a form of outside political interference which utlimately cause undue hardships for million of people more than pursuading a handful of people at the top to integrate their economies(and make their natural resources available to supranational corporate interests) with those of Atlantic Alliance countries?