Jagmeet Singh Issues Statement On Venezuela

Singh's come out today with a more equivocating statement, much like his first one, which makes it look like Laverdiere maybe went rogue in the absence of leadership. Whatever the story, it's a complete disaster entirely of the party's own making.

Gutless.

..smells like a power struggle. the third way vs the more leftish aspects of the caucus.

eta: svend coming forward may have paniced some third wayers.

..nothing changes without a struggle. this could develop into a situation that will require membership engagement.

JeffWells wrote:

Mighty Middle wrote:

NDP Pundit Kathleen Monk is on CBC now and has blasted the reporter calling this a "gotcha" question, saying the more appropriate question should have been "How should we help Venezuela?" and not something as trivial as "Who is the president of Venezuela?"

That's an awful remark. Who we recognize as the President of Venezuela is what this is about. If the leader of a federal party struggles to answer it it's not the fault of the question. While "How should we help?" sounds like fishing for a humanitarian pretext to abet a coup. We're hearing it all the time from those who unabashedly are.

Agreed. Monk is establishment NDP and betraying a lack of principles. This is the real problem in the NDP. Sorry to say.

Ken Burch wrote:

I'd say this makes a clear argument for dumping Singh as leader even if he does win the by-election.  If he's pandering to old school Cold Warrior types-a dying breed in Canada-what's he ever going to be able to say or do after that could possibly reflect any sort of progressive vision?

No. We still haven't paid the debts from the last leadership campaign. There is not enough time to engage the membership, elect a leader, run campaigns, and introduce the leader to the public. The other route of appointing an interim leader is going to be hard for grassroots NDPers to stomach, and they will not be behind the NDP. Either way, that new leader would lead the NDP to disaster, and would only be scapegoated for the loss and we would be stuck with another leadership race anyways.

JeffWells is right. The federal NDP is crashing and burning. Let that process play itself all the way out. Once the dust settles, there will be plenty of time to assess and figure out where to go from there.

alan smithee wrote:

I highly doubt that Canada will be involved in any intervention in Venezuela. It's the same old lip service to the US. If we weren't attached physically, Canada would not even entertain such an idea. You know Canada is going to back the Americans. They are no longer one of our allies but what can you do? Canada is the USA's endentured slaves because of trade. And Canada will always be that way until we find closer allies in which we can shore up a trade relationship which excludes the US..

LOL! Ya ok if you say so?

Check and compare:

UK Labour MP Chris Williams (and vid)

https://twitter.com/DerbyChrisW/status/1093555958339514370

"The British public are tired of war and foreign meddling. Venezuela is no different. They disdain politicians that let people sleep  on streets, while pushing regime change overseas. So do I. It's why I'm a socialist."

And quite clearly why the NoDifferenceParty is not. 

'It's time for a new politics...'

Disgusting.   I wonder how we are going to "ensure that available aid can enter the country".   How oh how?

ETA -- this recent statement is especially disappointing given the clear headed and progressive reaction to the Venezuala crisis by much of the Canadian labour movement.  

I mean, seriously, once you can support NATO and Apartheid Israel you can support pretty much anything as we see  here. This is no problem because it's all pretend politics...

It must be all the fault of that new NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh eh Unionist!

Unionist wrote:

The NDP is sinking deeper in the cesspool, with no lifeguard in sight.

New Democrats Condemn the Lifting of Parliamentary Immunity for Mr. Guaido

Quote:

NDP Foreign Affairs Critic, Guy Caron, issued the following statement:

"The NDP strongly deplores the Venezuelan constituent assembly’s decision to remove parliamentary immunity for Juan Guaido.

New Democrats are deeply concerned about politicizing judicial systems, the reversal of democratically-made decisions and the deterioration of human rights.

Only free and fair elections can bring a sustainable resolution to this political crisis, which is seriously impacting everyday life for people in Venezuela.

The Canadian government must work with its counterparts and partners to provide unconditional humanitarian aid, and ensure that available aid can enter the country and bring help to civilian populations.

The NDP reiterates its opposition to the use of force and military interventions in Venezuela; they will never be an appropriate response and will not foster political, social or economic stability.

We call on the Canadian government to show leadership and arrive at a diplomatic and peaceful solution."

Co-signed by Chrystia Freeland and Donald Trump.

NorthReport wrote:

It must be all the fault of that new NDP Leader Jagmeet Singh eh Unionist!

Strange comment. It's absolutely not the fault of Jagmeet Singh. Jagmeet actually responded to pressure from NDP ranks (Niki and others) and walked back from the late unlamented Hélène Laverdière's usual rah-rah-pro-intervention statement. That showed flexibility and principle on his part.

How could you forget that so quickly? Too busy posting articles?

Now Guy Caron is stepping into Laverdière's shoes, where he has always found a comfortable fit.

My hope is that if enough people (Niki? Svend? rank-and-file members?) stop having orgasms over the NDP long enough to remind it of its principles and duties, then maybe, just maybe, it can get back to a decent stand on this issue. The NDP has been too complicit in too many U.S.-led regime-change interventions and invasions - but not all of them. Let's keep up the pressure and stay optimistic.

What do you think, NR? Make sense? Or do you perhaps support Guy Caron's statement? 

I know it is not as sexy but I think the NDP needs to focus primarily on Canadian bread and butter issues Issues like decent jobs housing the health system including  dental care pharmacare Skills and training reducing the gap between the rich and poor transportation seniors parks and camping and climate change and diversifying our trading partners so we are not too dependent on any one particular country reconciliation right wing extremism and northern Canada 

Quote:

Try reading a little more carefully, my friend.

I read it again, more carefully, but it still only mentions the Constituent Assembly, which is not the same as the National Assembly.

So to borrow a page from, well, your book, I'll ask again:  how was the Venezuelan Supreme Court able to lift Guaido's parliamentary immunity without the support of the National Assembly, if the Constitution requires that?

NDPP wrote:

NDP: 'A party of the working class led by the middle class in the interest of the ruling class.'  But on babble: 'Jagmeet Singh: David taking on neoliberal Goliath.' The NDP is part of the neoliberal Goliath. A place where liberals go to pretend they're left. But as we see, their true nature is always revealed to be what it actually is.

If you're going to argue that people should switch from voting NDP to voting for a party to the NDP's left, you SHOULD be trying to build a party to the NDP's left which has a living, participatory, radical and democratic socialist tradition, as opposed to the CPC and the CPC-ML, both of which are permanently frozen in time in their support of dictatorial and extinct models of socialist development.  

Unionist wrote:

Pondering wrote:

Is it that he hasn't condemned Juan Guaido and supported Maduro unconditionally? 

No, not at all. It's his (Caron's - NOT Singh's) support and demands for interference in the sovereign affairs of Venezuela. Hope that distinction isn't lost on you.

No it isn't lost, but I feel that Guy Caron is high level enough to assign responsibility to the party and by extension Singh. Otherwise it is a sneaky way for a party to signal a message without taking responsibility for it. 

I am disappointed because I want to be supportive of Guy Caron because I am hopeful his economist background will help the NDP create a strong costed platform. 

It would be so much simplier if people would just wear black and white hats. Compromise is unavoidable but there are some things that can't be compromised on. Racism, LGBTQ rights, etc. Life and death situations as well so our involvement in Libya and Syria etc. 

The situation in Venezuala is life and death. We are judging forced statements in the sense that they are asked questions that must be responded to. It isn't necessarily indicative of positions they would take once in office concerning international affairs. It could be this is being judged as not worth getting into a battle over and being accused of supporting a dictator. Maduro is not doing himself any favors. As long as we don't invade nobody gives a shit what Canada says much less what the leader of the 3rd party says. 

Choosing between Trudeau, Scheer, and Singh, I still pick Singh. Choosing between Singh and any other of the NDP leadership candidates of the day I still pick Singh. 

I agree with everything you have said except that the NDP supports the current approach. They have not said so and they do not support any form of military involvement and do not want aid politicized. Short of saying rah rah Maduro I don't see what you expect him to say. 

Venezuela is not a critical portfolio for Singh to take a stand on. It won't win him votes.  Canadians are only vaguely aware of Venezuela. Nothing he says is going to change anything. Given that Guy Caron issued the statement it seems like this was a joint decision by the party seniors. 

I know you want the NDP to be more radical but not everyone agrees with that even within the membership. 

Pondering wrote:

Venezuela is not a critical portfolio for Singh to take a stand on. It won't win him votes.  Canadians are only vaguely aware of Venezuela. Nothing he says is going to change anything. Given that Guy Caron issued the statement it seems like this was a joint decision by the party seniors.

If it makes no difference in votes then why does the party not take the only honourable stand and insist this is a problem for Venezuelans to solve. They criticized a foreign governments actions on cue with the imperial propaganda; "politicizing judicial systems, the reversal of democratically-made decisions and the deterioration of human rights." The NDP statement is an affront to the people of Venezuela. Who the fuck does the NDP think they are to preach to another country and what are they using as justification for these claims?

Imagine if the federal NDP dared to say that they strongly deplored a decision of the NAQ involving its internal rules of procedure and were concerned with the politicizing of judicial systems and the reversal of democratically-made decisions because it changed its rules. Does the NDP now believe that parliament can no longer reverse its own decisions or that a sovereign legislative body's procedures are set in stone and it is wrong for that elected body to change them?

The NDP strongly deplores the Venezuelan constituent assembly’s decision to remove parliamentary immunity for Juan Guaido.

New Democrats are deeply concerned about politicizing judicial systems, the reversal of democratically-made decisions and the deterioration of human rights.