No evidence Canadian-made light-armoured vehicles were used against Saudi citizens: Freeland
Canadian Press
More from Canadian Press
Published:
February 8, 2018
Updated:
February 8, 2018 3:52 PM EST
A Canadian light armoured vehicle arrives to escort a convoy at a forward operating base near Panjwaii, Afghanistan on Nov. 26, 2006.Bill Graveland / The Canadian Press / Files
By Melanie Marquis, THE CANADIAN PRESS
OTTAWA — The federal government has not been able to determine with any certainty that Canadian-made light-armoured vehicles sold to Saudi Arabia were used by that country to suppress the Shiite minority in the eastern part of the country.
Foreign Affairs Minister Chrystia Freeland is expected to confirm Thursday that officials from her department did not find conclusive evidence that the Canadian-made vehicles have been used in human rights abuses.
That independent opinion from public servants was communicated to her after a “rigorous investigation” launched last August at her request.
Freeland said at the time she was deeply concerned by reports last summer in the Globe and Mail that Saudi Arabia had used Gurkha armoured personnel carriers, made by Newmarket, Ont., based Terradyne Armored Vehicles Inc., against its own people.
She vowed to “respond accordingly” if that was the case, but wanted to ensure a through investigation so as to act on credible, trustworthy information.
According to a report in Montreal’s Le Devoir last month, since opening the probe, a Global Affairs spokesman said Ottawa suspended all arms exports to the Saudi kingdom last summer.
Minister of Foreign Affairs Chrystia Freeland. (Michelle Siu/The Canadian Press)
That included a contract for armoured vehicles designed by General Dynamics Land Systems, which won a $15 billion contract in 2015 that the Liberal government honoured by issuing export permits a year later.
Freeland’s office did not respond to a query about whether Thursday’s finding meant the shipments have already resumed or would begin anew.
The government is being questioned about the issue of exporting arms to nations with spotty human rights records after another deal concluded between Bell Helicopter and the Philippines has raised concerns.
Freeland is expected to announce during testimony at the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development later Thursday that the government is proposing two amendments to Bill C47 on export and import acts when it comes to licensing weapons.
The toughest of the measures is the legal requirement for the Canadian government to consider human rights, peace and security risks in any pre-export licensing assessment.
In the future, if the government finds there is a “substantial risk” the conditions could be violated, the law will require that export be refused.
The proposed amendments, approved Tuesday in cabinet, are not retroactive and won’t apply to General Dynamics Land Systems, based in London, Ont.
On Wednesday, the government ordered a review of a 2012 deal between Bell Helicopter and the Philippine government after similar concerns surfaced.
The government is concerned about the use of the choppers by the government of President Rodrigo Duterte, who has been accused of extrajudicial executions in connection with a war on drug traffickers and terrorists.
The helicopters are manufactured in Mirabel, Que.
A senior member of the Philippine military said the aircraft would also be used in “internal security operations,” prompting a review.
On Thursday, the Philippine defence said Thursday that the military would not use 16 helicopters being bought from Canada to attack insurgents, as had been feared by Canadian officials.
Defence Secretary Delfin Lorenzana said the Philippine government could buy elsewhere if Canada decides to scuttle the sale of the Bell 412EPIs, which he said would be used to ferry supplies and troops, including those wounded in combat, and to respond to disasters.
The office of International Trade Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne said those comments do not change the government’s plan to order an assessment of the deal with Canadian Commercial Corp.
With files from The Associated Press.
No evidence Canadian-made light-armoured vehicles were used against Saudi citizens: Freeland | Toronto Sun
VULGAR WESTERN IMPORT: Pakistan warns media of Valentine's Day ban
Associated Press
More from Associated Press
Published:
February 8, 2018
Updated:
February 8, 2018 11:14 AM EST
A Pakistani vendor carries heart-shaped bouquets for sale ahead of Valentine's Day along a street in Islamabad on Feb. 13, 2017.AAMIR QURESHI / AFP / Getty Images
ISLAMABAD — Pakistan’s media regulatory authority, acting on a court order, has instructed all news channels, radio stations and print media to refrain from promoting Valentine’s Day.
A Pakistani court last year banned celebrations on Valentine’s Day, saying it was against Islam and promotes western culture.
Since then, the agency has taken steps to ensure a blackout on any Valentine’s Day promotions in print or electronic media. In a statement this week, it said it warned media organizations that the court order is still in effect.
Media officials confirmed they had received the order.
Pakistani Islamist and right-wing parties also view Valentine’s Day as a vulgar Western import.
VULGAR WESTERN IMPORT: Pakistan warns media of Valentine’s Day ban | Toronto Sun
OH DEAR ME! LIE-berals assure us that no Cdn made armoured vehicles will be used inn a bad way! And none of the helicopters being sold to Phillipine air force will be used to attack people? WELL DUH!
If you want attack helicopters you must buy them from Russians or Yankees!
And here is a FUNNY FACTOID: during the LIE-beral Chretien era, Canada was the worlds FOURTH LARGEST exporter of military hardware! And no, we did not sell jet fighters or artillery or anything like that- we just SOLD EVERYTHING ELSE! Like boots and helmets and back packs, radios, military grade phone gear, all sorts of electronics like radars and fire social workers with gear for ships and military aircraft and etc- a really LONG shopping list of background gear that was needed to keep the big toys running!
And the Trudope family never let scruples get in the way of military sales either! When Trudope LIE-berals bought those CF 18 Hornet jets, they SOLD OFF all the 100-odd CF 105 jets to the Turks- who were quite happy to get them at a bargain rate and use them to bomb the Kurds- who are now our heroes for being instrumental in destroying ISIS!
And....anybody recall the aircraft carrier Bonaventure? Sold by Pierre Trudope to the Indian navy at a fire sale price so Indians could use the last Canadian navy aircraft carrier to bomb Tamil Tigers using British Harrier jump jets!
And now Our idiot boy wants to send Cdn troops on some sort of peace keeping mission! Problem is there is NO PEACE to keep- but there ARE places where peace can be MADE- if you are tough enough! But Our idiot Boy thinks our military is set to serve up a combination of social workers and weird fitness club with guns!
Here is an older article illustrating how badly Our idiot Boy Justin is performing on the serious military part of the world stage. His socialist/anti Imperialist values are infuriating our allies and major trading partners. With some comments of my own in brackets):
Allies grow weary of Liberal waffling over UN peacekeeping mission.
THE CANADIAN PRESS. First posted: Friday, May 12, 2017 10:14 AM EDT | Updated: Friday, May 12, 2017 04:49 PM EDT
Liberals pledge up to 600 soldiers, $450-million for UN peacekeeping operations
Suspected jihadists kill 3 at U.N. base in north Mali
OTTAWA — Prime Minister Justin Trudeau shrugged off calls Friday for a decision on whether to send troops to Mali, saying his government will take the “appropriate” time needed to decide on a peacekeeping mission.
Diplomatic sources have expressed growing impatience and frustration with what they call foot-dragging by the government after the Liberals promised last August to make up to 600 troops available for peacekeeping.
(And here it is- 6 months later and idiot Boy is STILL waffling! With the added bonus that his removal of Cdn fighter jets from the fight against Isis and his insistence on training large numbers of Kurds in military methods is backfiring ias well! Removal of the fighters insulted our allies and let the war against Isis drag on longer. The training of large numbers of Kurds is now allowing for civil war in the region as Kurds set up an independent homeland at the expense of Iraq and using military training obtained from Cdns! Now that Isis has gone underground - other regional forces are on the march! I said it lat year that no sensible person would want to see large masses of Muslims trained in military tactics as that training would one day be used against Israel, Turkey and the West!)
The government was leaning toward a deployment to Mali, where the UN has been charged with stabilizing the country after the central government and Tuareg rebels signed a peace agreement in 2015.
(Our idiot Boy is certainly looking for some place to deploy our soldiers as peace keepers since he wants the selfies with smiling villagers relieved that Cdn aid is flowing their way. But the problem is there is NO peace to KEEP in any of the third world pest holes available!)
(Our idiot Boy does not want to see our troops go off to “MAKE PEACE” in some place such as Mali because that would OFFEND his anti imperialist sensibilities! He does not want to admit that western democratic nations can usually manage things better than the third world socialist despots Our idiot Boy admires! Nor does Our idiot Boy wish to admit that hard line socialist govt is too often grossly corrupt and ineffective since Our Boy IS a socialist himself!)
(Our idiot Boy does not want to embarrass Putin and Russia because it would promote Western/Yankee/NATO values and political position. Our idiot Boy does not want to condemn Iranian nuclear bomb makers because it might strengthen the Yankee position against hard line Iranian Mullahs. Our idiot Boy will not speak against the desperately corrupt socialist regime in Venezuela because Our idiot Boy is a hard line socialist himself and will not disparage his friends!)
The UN was hoping Canada would contribute transport helicopters as well as intelligence capabilities and even a force commander to the endeavour, considered the most dangerous peacekeeping mission in the world.
(And there is the heart of it- Our idiot Boy THINKS that benign talk and throwing money at problems will make them go away! He does not believe in shooting people who seek either victory or martyrdom! As he has said in the past: “if we kill our enemies then they win” Just how that works he has not explained- perhaps he is jealous of Jihadists winning those 72 virgins in paradise? The ones he cannot have because he is a Catholic?)
Several cabinet ministers visited the West African country last year, as did military planners, development officials from Global Affairs Canada and others to see how Canada could contribute to the UN mission.
But nine months after touting Canada’s return to peacekeeping, the government still hasn’t decided whether to send Canadian troops to Mali — or anywhere else, for that matter.
Two Western diplomats interviewed by The Canadian Press this week said their countries have not received any explanation for the delay, which they say has caused problems on the ground in Mali.
The UN had hoped Canada would replace a squadron of Dutch transport helicopters that one diplomat said had to be withdrawn from Mali because of technical issues.
(Technical issues? Like maybe the machines are worn out and need replacing and the Dutch cannot afford that due to their HUGE homeland anti Muslim terror security bills? And Our idiot Boy does not want to send our helicopters for that same reason- if they are worn out then he will have to divert gravy away from his civil service Hog supporters to buy more? And Our idiot Boy scorns the military!)
Canadian officials, meanwhile, asked the world body to hold off on announcing a commander for the UN mission, known as Minusma, until they could consult with the Trump administration.
(IN other words- as I have mentioned before- Trump is hitting at Trudope over his NATO slacker and sloppy on terror stance! The squabble over our hardwood and dairy business is a DIRECT result of Trudope indifference to national security and Muslim terror! So Our idiot Boy is seeking to cut deals with Trump- but what sort of trade prize will Trudope win if he does send a few helicopters? Problem is our allies figure we ought to be doing MORE AGAINST MUSLIM TERROR FOR OUR OWN SAFETY! Our allies think Our idiot Boy is a blinkered MORON!)
Germany and Belgium stepped into the breach when the Liberals continued to equivocate, committing both helicopters and a Belgian general to lead the UN mission, until Canada could make a decision.
“They bought time, so to speak,” one of the diplomats said of Germany and Belgium. The officials spoke on condition of anonymity to protect the relationship between Canada and their respective countries.
“We hope (Canada) will decide now after assessing all they needed to assess. There is a certain expectation that Canada will come back.”
The other diplomat put it more bluntly, saying: “Just make a decision. Even if it’s a no, we need a decision.”
(Sadly Our idiot Boy is such a publicity hound he enjoys simply having world leaders and military people hanging on his every word- waiting for his choice!)
Complicating matters is the fact the government sent invitations to different countries this week for a major peacekeeping event in Vancouver in November.
(AS previously mentioned- Trudope thinks TALK is a fine substitute for guns- hence his “ major peace keeping event”!)
Asked about the delay Friday, Trudeau reaffirmed his belief that Canada has “a strong role to play around the world in promoting peace, security and stability.”
But he sidestepped questions on whether Canada would send troops to Mali, and insisted the Liberal government would not be rushed into any peacekeeping mission.
“Any time we’re making a decision about sending the extraordinarily brave women and men of the Canadian Forces potentially into harm’s way, we have to make sure that it’s the right approach, that it’s the right mission, that they have the right training and equipment,” Trudeau told a news conference in Brampton, Ont.
(Yes- Trudope and his LIE-berals speak of the bravery of our military- and then quietly and privately sneer at them for being dumb enough to put on the uniform to begin with!)
“We are taking the appropriate amount of time to reflect on how best to engage Canadians in international peacekeeping operations.”
Various reasons have been cited for the government’s indecision, including uncertainty about the Trump administration’s priorities and concerns about the potential dangers to Canadian troops in Mali.
More than 100 peacekeepers have died in the country since 2013, many in terrorist attacks perpetrated by rebel forces as well as extremist groups such as Ansar Dine and al Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb.
(IN other words, Mali is a hotbed of Muslim radicals- the ones Our idiot Boy wants to engage in dialogue so he can understand their troubles- just as he wanted to talk to the Boston City bombers so he could tend to their hurt feelings and lack of `inclusion`! Our idiot Boy is a dangerous LOON!)
One senior government official said many Canadians don’t realize the nature of peacekeeping has changed, and that the increased danger is something that has to be publicly explained.
(If you are sending volunteers who genuinely believe they are doing a dangerous but useful job then there is not so much trouble! Many Cdns were distressed by the spectacle of 250 school girls kidnaped by Muslim terror group Boko Haram and turned into sex slaves and forcibly impregnated!)
The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, also linked the delay to the fact the Liberals’ new policies on both defence and international assistance are still under wraps.
(LIE-beral `defense policy`- such as it is- is still under wraps because they are hoping Trump will be dumped out of office BEFORE he can hold LIE-beral feet to the fire and force them to be more serious about national security and Muslim terror!)
