Tag: Prime Minister

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Editorial // Standing in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en people

We often hear the word “reconciliation” and think of positive connotations: restoring relationships between people, or trying to make certain views more compatible.

But it seems that this word is losing its power and its positivity, as Prime Minister Justin Trudeau uses it as a buzzword when speaking about the relationship between the government and Indigenous Peoples in Canada. Of course, we have to realize that this word comes up so often because of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission. Yet, Trudeau very cunningly uses the word to satisfy settlers who don’t follow Indigenous issues too closely, but vaguely know that some compensation is in order.

We believe that, in the background, reconciliation is low on the Canadian government’s list of priorities. At least, it is below economic gain. This has been evident in abundant clarity by the government’s response to recent protests by the Wet’suwet’en people and allies in British Columbia against the TransCanada Pipeline. We at The Concordian strongly stand with the Wet’suwet’en people and their protest against the pipeline being built on their territory.

A court order from Dec. 14, 2018 granted TransCanada an injunction that allows them access to the construction site and to remove the blockade, according to The Guardian. Dozens of protestors gathered on Jan. 7 to block the construction of the Coastal GasLink, a natural gas pipeline, which is a $40 billion project by TransCanada, according to CBC. The RCMP arrested 14 protestors at the pipeline blockade last week.

TransCanada has said that they have the support of Indigenous leaders along the proposed route. On Thursday, Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs came to an agreement, after three days of meetings with the RCMP, but this is not a decision that reflects their true wishes. “We are adamantly opposed to this proposed project and that will never change, but we are here to ensure the safety of our people,” said Chief Na’Moks, who was present at the meetings, according to CBC.

We at The Concordian think it’s clear that this is another case of Indigenous Peoples’s voices being ignored. It’s another occurrence of Indigenous land being taken, despite laws and agreements being put in place to protect that very land. Trudeau himself stated multiple times during his campaign that he would not allow projects on Indigenous Peoples’s land without their explicit consent.

When we hear Trudeau bring up reconciliation and partnership between Indigenous Peoples and the Canadian government, we can’t help but feel skeptical. Constructing a massive pipeline on stolen land in the first place is wrong––how can our leader “work alongside” Indigenous Peoples while simultaneously taking what is rightfully theirs? It’s evident that there is not a clear and honest dialogue taking place. In fact, these recent events that have transpired highlight just how far we have left in order to truly reach reconciliation with Indigenous Peoples. Oftentimes, when we think of reconciliation, we only focus on the context of past colonial violence. These events are showing us that that is not enough––injustice towards Indigenous Peoples is not isolated to the past; it is ongoing.

Enforcing the submission of Indigenous Peoples to the interests of colonisers is in fact the reason that the RCMP was created in the first place. John A. MacDonald established the then-named North-West Mounted Police in 1873 to enforce laws created by the Department of Indian Affairs, such as confining Indigenous Peoples to reserves or outlawing their religious ceremonies. The RCMP’s website says their origins lie in “implementing the law in Canada’s newly acquired western territories.” Obviously, that’s not the whole story. In fact, one of the earliest tasks of the mounties was to help negotiate treaties with Indigenous Chiefs, getting them to sign by promising only good will––a promise that Indigenous Peoples soon saw was not, in fact, made in good will.

It’s no surprise that today, Indigenous Peoples are being coerced out of their land rights by our government in favour of highly valued (and highly toxic) construction projects. It would be foolish to trust the government to respect Indigenous rights—and beyond foolish to trust their supposed desire for reconciliation. This is why we at The Concordian commend the many protestors that are opposing the pipeline, and encourage you to stay informed about Indigenous issues and rights, and participate in direct action as much as possible.

Graphic by @spooky_soda

 

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No electoral reform for Canadians

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will not be restructuring the Canadian voting system. Photo by Andrej Ivanov

Canadians respond to Trudeau’s decision to abandon electoral reform plans

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s recent decision to scrap plans for electoral reform has disappointed many voters, Concordia students included.

The Liberals will not go forward with this pledge due to the lack of consensus on the kind of electoral system Canadians would prefer, stated Trudeau in an interview aired on Global News.

The announcement garnered mixed reactions, including mobilization from those in support of electoral reform. A National Day of Action for Electoral Reform took place on Parliament Hill and in various cities across the country on Feb. 11.

In Montreal, protesters gathered outside Jarry metro station then took to the streets to express their disappointment on the retraction of the Liberal’s campaign pledge. The crowd marched to Trudeau’s constituency office on Crémazie Boulevard East, according to the Montreal Gazette.

“We created the Facebook event [for all electoral reform events]  shortly after the 2015 election as a reminder to follow up on Trudeau’s promise that his government would bring forward electoral reform legislation within 18 months,” said Caitlin Urguhart, the organizer of National Day of Action for Electoral Reform. “The event quickly went viral, with more than 10,000 people responding as interested in attending.”

“Members [of the Facebook group] were outraged and wanted to do something about it. I saw the opportunity to mobilize people across the country and started to organize [the event],” Urguhart said.

“We are demanding a fairer, more collaborative and more representative democracy,” she said. “No path worth walking is easy, so we’re asking this government to do right by Canadians and walk the hard road to electoral reform.” Urguhart said now is not the time to give up on our democracy. “Now is the time to get to work.”

According to CTV News, during Trudeau’s election campaign, he pledged to voters “that the 2015 election will be the last federal election using the first-past-the-post” system.

First-past-the-post, or single member plurality (SMP), is when voters cast one vote and the candidate who receives the most votes in a constituency wins the riding and a seat in the House of Commons.

SMP is credited to be most successful when there are two political parties, however, as the number of parties increase, the less it is said to reflect voter wishes.

In the 2015 federal election, the Liberal government won a majority in the House of Commons with only 39 per cent of the vote. As a result, the Trudeau Liberals have held Town Hall meetings across Canada where electoral form was discussed. They created an all-party parliamentary committee to review a wide variety of reform options, such as proportional representation, ranked ballots, mandatory voting and online voting.

Some within the Concordia community weighed in on Trudeau’s decision to abandon electoral reform.

“I think that it is really telling of the Trudeau government of their broken promise on electoral reform,” said Alex Tyrrell, a Concordia student and leader of the Quebec Green Party.

Tyrrell recommended a preferential ballot electoral system, where voters would rank their preferences from most to least favourable candidate, to better represent citizens votes.

However, one student understood Trudeau’s decision to maintain the current electoral system.

“Although I support the Conservative Party, it seems to me that Trudeau shows maturity and political savvy in abandoning electoral reform,” said André Grant, a Concordia political science student. “Instead of slavishly sticking to campaign promises, he’s realized many of them are unrealistic. That takes maturity.”

“Whether you agree with his policies or not, Trudeau did this because he believes it’s good for Canada,” said Grant.

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Trudeau’s language gaffe

Photo by Andrej Ivanov

The sun barely emerges through the grey clouds, as darkness covers the entire city. Pale creatures with chalky skin wander the streets, seeking shelter from the frigid elements.

Let’s face it, January is a tough month and everyone’s morale is usually running low. Luckily, our university offers psychological services to help students get through these troublesome times. Many individuals on our editorial team have utilized these services and the councillors have helped many of us.

We don’t realize how lucky we have it though, considering we have access to all these services in English. The same can’t be said for the rest of Quebec, where many health services are solely offered in French.

This issue came to the forefront at a town hall meeting last week in Sherbrooke. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau descended on the small city located 150 km outside of Montreal to answer questions from the public, in an attempt to boost his public appearance.

During this meeting, a woman named Judy Ross stood up and brought this issue to the forefront and asked Trudeau, in English, why it was so difficult for anglophones to get access to mental health services in their native language, according to CBC News.

Following Ross’ question, Trudeau answered her question in French. He said: “Because we’re in Quebec, I’ll answer in French.” This response infuriated many from the anglophone community in Quebec.

Now we don’t want to ignite a language debate, but considering Concordia is an English university, we have to stand up and say something.

Trudeau, who openly defends bilingualism, made a giant hypocritical misstep at this town hall meeting.

Here at The Concordian, we are upset to say the least. It appears Trudeau is not concerned about the plight of anglophones in Quebec and even had the audacity to insult Judy Ross by responding in French. How can we trust the PM when his missteps create these giant ripples that divide our society?

In Quebec, language has always been at the forefront of debate. Bill 101 and language laws are something that every Quebecer knows all too well. As anglophones, and even as francophones, Quebec can be a very difficult province to navigate.

For example, according to CTV News, in 2012, the parents of a two-year-old girl in Vaudreuil made a complaint against the province’s ambulance service because a paramedic refused to speak English while treating their daughter who had just suffered a seizure. When the ambulance arrived on scene, the paramedic said, “Non, moi je parle français.” It is instances like this that prove how problematic the language issues are in this province.

By not answering that question in English, Trudeau has ultimately contributed to language tensions that have been tearing this province apart since the rise of sovereignty. Anti-Anglo sentiment is very real in Quebec and to see it from our own prime minister, who is supposed to represent all Canadians, is utterly appalling.

So The Concordian demands for the government to offer mental health services in English, because these services are absolutely vital for the English-speaking community and for the Concordia student body, if they seek help outside of our campus.

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Resistance forms against Trudeau’s approval of two pipelines

More than a hundred people gathered in Phillips Square to protest the Liberal government's recent approval of Trans Mountain and Line 9 pipelines. Photo by Adrian Knowler.

Mobilization erupts against Liberal government’s approval of Kinder Morgan and Enbridge pipeline projects

A crowd gathered at Phillips Square in Downtown Montreal Saturday afternoon to oppose Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s approval of two out of three pipeline projects: the Trans Mountain expansion and Line 3.

Roughly just more than 100 people cheered in solidarity as various speakers took to the stage to call for unity and mobilization against the decision made by the Liberal government to expand and construct two pipelines. The event was initiated by Montreal community member Shane Thompson, who organized the protest by creating an event page on Facebook.

“We see what’s happening, we see the injustice and we get angry,” event speaker Jamie Nicholls said to the crowd. He said while the approval of the two pipeline projects has made people upset and aggressive, we must look to our neighbours to the south of us as a good example of strength.

Event speaker Jamie Nicholls discusses mobilization against pipelines. Photo by Savanna Craig.

“We look at our brothers and sisters in Dakota––every time the police come they’re not taking up arms, they’re not fighting,” said Nicholls. “They’re standing there strong like a mountain, like a rock in front of this power,” Nicholls shouted as the crowd cheered.

“We have to go in love, we have to be strong, but not aggressive,” said Nicholls. “We are going to change this country and we are going to build a better momentum for our children––together we’re going to do it,” Nicholls said, concluding his speech.

Protesters resist Liberal government’s approval of Trans Mountain and Line 3. Photo by Adrian Knowler.

The Trans Mountain Pipeline was built in 1953. The proposed expansion involves a twinned pipeline adjacent to the original pipeline carrying crude oil between Strathcona County, Alta., and Burnaby, B.C., according to the Trans Mountain website. This expansion will allow the Trans Mountain pipeline to transport 890,000 barrels of crude oil per day, an increase from its current amount of 300,000 barrels, according to the same website.

The newly approved Line 3 project by Enbridge intends to replace line segments between Hardisty, Alta. and Superior, Wis., including construction of associated facilities, according to Enbridge’s official website.

The group of people cheered on as speakers expressed their disapproval of the pipelines, followed by a performance of traditional indigenous drumming.

Concordia Socialist Fightback Association participated in Phillips Square. Photo by Savanna Craig.

“The liberals are, in our view, a ruling class party––a party of the rich, a party of the oil barons, the party of wall street, bay street––just like the conservatives are,”  said Nick Payne, Concordia computer science student and member of Concordia’s Socialist Fightback Association. He said many people have compared Trudeau’s first term as an extension of Stephen Harper, former Conservative Prime Minister.

“There’s truth in that expression because when you serve the interest of capital, you have to carry out its economic and political program––which is to exploit and oppress working people and indigenous people and exploit the land without a plan,” said Payne.

“We’re here to talk to people who are radicalized by these events and trying to draw the connections to the system that produces environmental destruction,” said Payne.

“People are fundamentally coming to terms with the limits of capitalism as a system––it’s inability to care for the environment, it’s inability to avoid war, it’s reliance on racism and sexism––all these struggles are connected,” said Payne.

Jed Lenetsky has been very active over the past month towards Kinder Morgan protests in Montreal. Photo by Adrian Knowler.

“Even though Justin Trudeau has approved the pipeline, it doesn’t mean anything,” Jed Lenetsky, spokesperson for the event and organizer with Divest McGill told The Concordian.

Lenetsky said when the National Energy Board (NEB) approved the Northern Gateway Pipeline, many thought it was a finalized deal, however, many indigenous peoples went to court and won their cases, resulting in the rejection of the Northern Gateway Pipelines.

The Northern Gateway Pipeline, imposed by Enbridge, proposed to build a line running from Bruderheim, Alta., leading to Kitimat, B.C., according to Energy BC.

“If Canada is serious about being a climate leader and taking climate change seriously then the bottom line is that we cannot be building any tar sands infrastructure,” said Lenetsky.

Photo by Savanna Craig.

“The Kinder Morgan pipeline is going to lock us into more increased tar sands expansion for the next 30 years,” said Lenetsky. “We need to be moving off fossil fuels in that time and not burning more and sending them to other countries.”

“It’s also important to stand up against these pipelines because they are directly violating the rights of indigenous peoples who are concerned about their water and the health of their land,” said Lenetsky. “That should be an important issue for all Canadians.”

In Trudeau’s announcement approving the two pipeline projects, he said indigenous peoples were consulted, said Lenetsky. “What is the value of consulting people if you’re not going to listen to them?” said Lenetsky.

“As privileged people living in urban areas it’s our duty to show up and stand up in every way we can to support people on the front lines,” said Lenetsky. “This fight is not over, people are going to put their bodies on the line to make sure it doesn’t get built, people will go to court to make sure it doesn’t get built.”

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The mighty emperor wears no clothes

Why the media focuses more on Trudeau’s image rather than politics

In the eyes of the international media, Canada has always been considered America’s dorky, progressive neighbour to the north and relegated to obscurity as a result. The image of a barren cultural wasteland, populated by hockey enthusiasts drinking Molson has dominated Canada’s foreign reputation.

Until 2015, that is. Canada went through a complete cultural makeover. Suddenly, Canadian musicians were everywhere. Artists like The Weeknd, Drake and Justin Bieber released new music and dominated the Billboard charts, pleasing their legions of loyal fans. Quebec-based director Xavier Dolan emerged as new icon in the film industry, winning the Grand Prix at the Cannes Film Festival as well as directing Adele’s spectacular Hello video.

The height of this phenomenon came with the election of Justin Trudeau in October, 2015. The young, good-looking, progressive prime minister was the antithesis of the arduous Harper Decade and breathed a sense of life and excitement into Canadian politics. Something that has not been seen since the election of his father into office some 47 years prior.

The Guardian newspaper in the UK even dubbed this moment in time as Canada’s very own “cool Britannia,” harping back to the “British Invasion” of the 1960s. By some anomaly, for once when the word ‘cool’ was used to describe Canada, it was not in reference to its climate.

Photo by Andrej Ivanov.
With the international media fawning over our sparkling new hunky PM, or ‘PMILF’ (Prime Minister I’d Like to Fuck) as he has been dubbed by social media, national media soon followed suit. According to a report by Quebec-based media monitoring firm Influence Communication, generally after a PM is elected in Canada, media coverage typically drops off. Harper’s fell off by 79 per cent and Brian Mulroney’s by 69 per cent one month after they won their election.

Since 2015 however, the coverage of Justin Trudeau in the national media has increased by 40 per cent, according to the same report. And, unlike his predecessors, the coverage has been overwhelmingly positive.

The reason for this increase in positive coverage is mainly due to “the [tabloid] magazine style reporting” of Justin Trudeau, said Jean-Francois Dumas, president of Influence Communication, as quoted in Maclean’s magazine.

Throughout Trudeau’s time in office, national news outlets including the The Toronto Star, Vice Canada, and La Presse have opted to publish an abundant amount of fluff pieces about the Prime Minister. His many summer shirtless sightings, photo-ops with pandas, and his luscious locks has reduced many of Canada’s most prestigious publications to the same level as menial celebrity gossip mags.

It would seem as though “Trudeaumania” part II has firmly rooted itself in Canadian media’s prime-ministerial commentary, baring resemblance to a communist state’s media coverage of their glorious leader.

Graphic by Thom Bell.

Many could argue that this harmless ‘fluff’ is exactly that, and I would tend to agree, so long as this ‘fluff’ does not inhibit the process of meaningful conversation in the media. Since his election, it seems as though the Trudeau administration has been covered with a cloak of invincibility and has been seemingly impervious to any scandal.

Take the 2016 “Three Amigos Summit” for example. It is the annual meeting of the heads of government of Canada, Mexico and the United States, which took place in Ottawa in June. The important issues discussed during this year’s summit included national security, human rights and the environment.

However, much of the coverage centered around a fan fiction-like narrative of the bromance between three relatively good looking leaders, with many articles—such as Vice—reporting on the awkward three-way handshake between the commanders. This is particularly shocking considering the fact that Mexican President Enrique Peña Nieto was accused of ordering the execution of eight peaceful protesting teachers’ union members and that Barack Obama had criticized Canada’s involvement in NATO, according to Reuters. Both of these issues did not receive a lot of coverage on a national level.

Canadian news outlets are severely failing their audiences. The job of the media is to be critical and journalists play a crucial role in the democratic process by holding politicians accountable and keeping them honest. Recently, however, it seems that news outlets are more concerned with sharing the latest shirtless Trudeau meme than offering a meaningful, in-depth analysis of this government’s policies and actions.

While we may all be enjoying Canada’s fleeting moment in the sun, it is my hope that we don’t wake up burned because of it.

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There’s no such thing as bad press

Graphic by Phil Waheed.
Graphic by Phil Waheed.

Since Harper has been Prime Minister of Canada he’s been accused many times of having a lack of transparency in office; and his administration has often been called the most private government that Canada has ever seen. Despite various complaints demanding information, Harper hasn’t changed his ways.

This time, however, his actions have crossed the line.

The Toronto Star recently learned through an access-to-information request that the Harper administration has been working for over a year now on a government owned media organization worth over $2 million. The project was called the “Shoe Store Project”. According to the Star, the new centre may be located in a former shoe store in an Ottawa mall.

Harper going through with this project is a slap in the face to the democracy a country like Canada values so much. We, as a people, deserve to know the inner workings of our government. I believe the information coming from this media outlet, if it does go through, will be absolutely useless.

Harper’s government-controlled media centre is said to “put in place robust physical and information security measures to protect the prime minister and cabinet.” According to the Star it would also be able to give the government control over which journalists attend news conferences and to do their own filming, as well as provide the filming to journalists.

This is absolutely ridiculous when you think of the changes Harper has already made regarding media relations since his election in 2006. Considering he ran on a campaign based on an open and accountable government, this is wrong.

So what exactly is Harper’s problem? Why does he have such a shaky relationship with the media? According to Centre for Constitutional Studies, by managing what is said to the press “Harper is also able to manage communication between his government and the Canadian public, limiting the possibility that the media will run off in a direction that has little to do with the message that Mr. Harper wishes to send.” Oh please.

Needless to say, many journalists in this country have been extremely frustrated since Harper’s election. This new government-owned media centre will only go further to push Canada away from democracy. Sandra Buckler, the Prime Minister’s director of communication, said that “when the government has something to say, Canadians are going to hear it.” I don’t think I need to explain what’s wrong with that statement.

As citizens, we have the right to hear what goes on during Harper’s public addresses and be able to make our own conclusions on our government. Besides, no leader should have the right to control which questions are asked of him because he is accountable to all of us.

As journalists, it is our job to inform the people. However, our job becomes extremely difficult when our calls aren’t answered, when most of us are excluded from press conferences and when what the government says is controlled by an enormous team of image-management professionals.

“It’s a privilege to govern and our duty as the press in a free society is to pick and choose the issues that we cover…by restricting access to cabinet ministers, it amounts to restricting the issues that we can cover properly,” said Emmanuelle Latraverse, Radio-Canada reporter and Press Gallery president.

Harper has been on thin ice for a while concerning his relationship with the media. We journalists have one of the most important jobs— to inform the people. Obviously, with Harper in power, it’s nearing impossible. It’s time to demand change and get projects like the “Shoe Store” taken to the curb.

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