August 26, 2002
Prime Minister Jean Chrétien, who is in the last months or years or, okay, decades of his leadership, is desperately seeking a legacy. The last fitting legacy that was bantered about included expanding the Trans Canada highway in rural Newfoundland to four lanes. The Trans Canada will probably not be expanded and it will remain just another case of Liberal highway robbery, but I digress.
Chrétien would really like to be remembered for his work on Africa and a more fitting legacy could not be found. The PM is a big supporter of NEPAD (New Partnership for African Development), a program that is just as silly and flawed as its acronym. Under NEPAD developed countries, like Canada is at the moment, pour tons of money into African countries but this time theres a catch. African governments have to promise to respect human rights, encourage democratic governments, and fight corruption. The governments also agree to a peer review of whereby they hold each other accountable for rights violations and corruption. Its a program that only rights abusing dictators and Liberals could like.
The reason why Jean Chrétien loves Africa is that he, unlike real leaders like George Bush and Tony Blair, has a lot in common with some of that continents despots and dictators. Last week in Nigeria an Islamic court upheld the "death by stoning" sentence of a woman found guilty of adultery. And what is the position of President Olsegun Obansajo? Its the states fault (the states being the northern Muslim states that have adopted shariah law). Sound just like Jean and the Chretoonies, blaming all the countries problems on the provinces.
The African leader with whom the little guy from Shawinigan has the most in common with is Zimbabwe leader Robert Mugabe. One of Chrétiens most memorable feats on the world stage was when he lobbied the Commonwealth to avoid introducing sanctions against Zimbabwe. Chrétiens reasoning was that the elections were coming up and thats all that mattered. The fact that the rest of the world knew that the elections would be rigged didnt faze our fearless leader. It didnt matter that white farmers were being beaten, murdered and driven off their land by government thugs. It didnt matter that judgements from the Zimbabwean courts were being ignored or basic freedoms were suppressed. All that mattered was that people got to put a ballot in a box. And thats the way Chrétien feels. Once his government has been elected, thats all that matters. There is no need to listen to the people, or Parliament or his cabinet. After all, he has a mandate. Bobby Mugabe couldnt have said it better himself.
Now its true that Chrétien doesnt send thugs to drive mostly white western farmers off their land. Thats not his style. And even if he wanted to, rumour has it that most of the party thugs are in Paul Martins camp. Instead Chrétien just waits for droughts and floods and then his government refuses to help them. The end result is much the same. Its all because our farmers, much like their Zimbabwean counterparts, dont vote for the right guys.
The reason that Mugabe seizes farms is so that he can give the land to his friends. Were too sophisticated for that; we have government grants instead. And what respectable Liberal hack wants to live on a farm in middle of Saskatchewan?
And Chrétien, like his similarly thinking counterparts in Africa, says absolutely nothing about the human rights abuses that are currently taking place in Zimbabwe. There is no doubt about it--Jean Chrétiens legacy should be Africa.
But the only thing that Chrétien will likely end up getting recognition for is mention in the Guinness Book of Records for participating in the longest leadership race. Unfortunately, Paul Martin will be right there with him.
Arthur Weinreb can be reached at: aweinreb@interlog.com
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