A Lesson in Canadian Imperial Hypocrisy: Iran vs Honduras, Peru etc

5 posts / 0 new

Wed, 2009-07-01 09:04

NDPP

A Lesson in Canadian Imperial Hypocrisy

http://www.counterpunch.org/gordon06302009.html

"It's no accident that the Canadian government quickly and sharply condemns some instances of repression, such as that in Iran, while it ignores or tepidly responds to others. If it's good for Canadian business, then it's ok.."

Wed, 2009-07-01 10:18

M. Spector M. Spector's picture

^ ^
Excellent article by Todd Gordon!

Quote:

It's also worth noting here that Canadian involvement in Honduras and Peru (and many more countries besides) extends beyond investment interests and financing neoliberal reform. Canada has also trained Honduran and Peruvian military personnel through the Military Training Assistance Programme (MTAP). The MTAP provides language, officer and "peace support" operations training to roughly 1,300 military personnel from sixty-three different developing countries a year. According to its Directorate, the MTAP serves to "promote Canadian foreign and defence policy interests." It "uses the mechanism of military training assistance to develop and enhance bilateral and defence relationships with countries of strategic interest to Canada."

It happens to be the case that many of the participating countries are ones with which Canada has, or is hoping to develop, strong economic ties and which have troubling human rights records, including Peru and Honduras.

The reality of Canadian involvement in the third world is an ugly one, and deserves greater attention from the Canadian Left. The Honduran and Peruvian situations are not the exception to the rule of Canadian foreign policy. They represent the normal practice of the Canadian government defending Canadian business interests against the human rights of workers, poor communities, and indigenous peoples

I can't wait to read his forthcoming book on Canadian imperialism.

Thu, 2009-07-02 01:44

N.Beltov

M. Spector wrote:

I can't wait to read his forthcoming book on Canadian imperialism.

You might try The Black Book of Canadian Foreign Policy while you're waiting. It is a reasonably well organized litany of Canadian imperial entanglements and atrocities that pays particular attention to the patterns of abuse, etc., and the twin pillars of (a) Canadian corporate interests and (b)support for one
political Empire's interests (British, then American) or another. It would be particularly useful for exploding/enlightening liberal brains. I'm about halfway through it.

Thu, 2009-07-02 01:46

NorthReport

We have to protect Barrick Gold's foreign gold deposits, meanwhile back at the Canadian Mint a few gold bars seem to be missing.

Thu, 2009-07-02 02:00

N.Beltov

The Canadian Mint has had a string of problems and disasters over the years. Mostly crooked leadership I think. People I knew in Winnipeg who worked there had nothing but thinly veiled contempt for some of the bigwigs.