Normally, I would keep quiet on certain issues I am not so familiar with. But there comes a time when one simply have had enough. I have reached that point today, thus this rant.
This morning, I was interviewed at CBC’s Ottawa Morning show. Here is a link to that interview, if you are interested to listen: http://www.cbc.ca/lis…/shows/ottawa-morning/segment/14803332.
Also, I had a TV interview last night with Carole McNeil, an award-winning television journalist with the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, who had a news special focusing on Trudeau’s attendance to the ASEAN summit where President Duterte of the Philippines is the chairperson. Unfortunately, I was unable to record or get a link of the recording of that particular show where I was pitted against two panelists who were in my opinion were not fans of Mr. Duterte, the lady host herself included. The topic of both interviews: Trudeau discussing Human Right issues particularly the alleged extra judicial killings (EJK) Duterte’s critics accuse him of orchestrating.
During the evening TV interview, McNeil asked if Trudeau should discuss with his host (President Duterte, the summit’s chairman) EJK and alleged human right violation of the thousands dead as a result of the government’s anti-illegal drugs campaign. I stated that it would be improper and disrespectful to bring that topic with the president considering the polluted sources of the allegations and that there exists no proof linking Duterte to the reported mortalities other than his ominous warnings. Likewise, the fact that Trudeau is an invited guest to a sovereign nation should prove as a deterrent. Note: Trudeau is the first Canadian head of state to ever attend the East Asian Summit, thanks to ASEAN chairman Duterte who went out on a limb to invite the Canadian PM. I even went to the extent of invoking “delicadeza” or the sense of propriety to potentially offend the host in discussing such a sensitive issue under the circumstance. I tried vainly to explain with this simple analogy ” would you appreciate somebody you’ve invited over to your party to lecture you on how to run your home?”
As most of us who follow the news are aware of, Canada’s Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, met briefly with Philippine President Rodrigo Duterte at the tail of the ASEAN summit. In an after event media scrum, and responding to an expected question from a CBC reporter about EJK (extra judicial killings) PM Trudeau said he ‘mentioned’ human rights during his meeting with the summit’s host. President Duterte, as the typical hospitable Filipino host, could look past that, but media, particularly those owned by manila’s elite who are adversely affected by Duterte’s clamping down on their excesses particularly of non-payment of taxes for decades now, will play that slanted announcement from Trudeau to make it appear favorable to him. He has to satiate the over bearing but shallow demands of Duterte’s critics but, like any savvy politician, Trudeau threads lightly to not offend the approximately 837,000 documented Filipino-Canadians most of whom support Duterte’s drive for meaningful changes in the country. But Trudeau, or whoever is advising him, played the fool’s role and in the ensuing moments after the initial lame statement of having “mentioned” EJK to Duterte has been blown by media into having discussed lenghtily and with Duterte even taking the criticism nicely. Hmmm that to me sounded fishy, Duterte allowing a minor leaguer (compared to Trump, Japan’s Abe, China’s Jin Ping and Putin) to lecture him on human rights? Trudeau can’t even deliver on his two year promise to address the garbage issue brought to his attention during his Philippine visit and now this? As I write this piece, Trudeau has been getting flak over this incident from many quarters now except from the yellowtards (term to describe the minimized opposition and their cohorts) and the left-leaning partisans noisily egging the youthful Canadian PM to do their bidding. Ahh, the folly of trying to be somebody you are not!
One must always bear in mind that Pres Duterte’s approval ratings has been consistent at 80%plus, meaning 8 out of every 10 Filipinos like what he is doing for the country. Visible and palpable changes have been reported being experienced now by many on the streets of the Philippines, e.g., just like in Davao City where Duterte was mayor for many years, many are saying they can now walk at night in many of Manila’s streets and not worry of being mugged by goons, public service particularly the frustrating red tape pervasive in the bureaucracy seems to have abated, tangible proof of government infrastructures such as highways are completed or started with no reports of the endemic corruptions of the past, etc. These results, as reported by unbiased citizenry, are part of what Duterte promised to do if elected president. He is now delivering his promises but mainstream media is hardly picking up and heralding those positive developments. If social media has not been invented, the Filipino people would know nothing of these developments. What better proof that the noise generated by the opposition and the losing leftist about Duterte’s ‘killing spree’ is exactly that, NOISE, empty rhetoric.
So, why don’t we stop talking about the circus surrounding Trudeau and Duterte’s alleged EJK as presented by these politicos and talk with real concern the heart wrenching plight of the Rohingyans, a stateless Muslim minority in Myanmar whose number is estimated at 1 million people. Myanmar (formerly know as Burma, does not recognize them as citizens or one of the recognized ethnic groups in the country. The Myanmar government regards them as illegal immigrants. To date hundreds of thousands of them have been displaced and now seek refuge in neighboring Bangladesh under almost inhuman conditions. Tragically, Aung Suk Yi, hailed as an icon of democracy and a human rights champion, is Myanmar’s de-facto leader Aung San Suu Kyi and does not seem to be doing something to stop what many are now saying to be an act of genocide against defenseless people.
That, I think, is where the human rights activists’ should expend energy and resources to help and alleviate the actual suffering of human beings, not imagined nor grey areas to debate about. A sickening number of dead bodies of children, the elderly and innocent victims of religious and political conflicts are photographed and splashed all over the internet. Note: I have pasted a few pictures of the Rohingyans belowshowing their subhuman predicaments. Surely, there is much more the concerned parties can do to address this scourge of these modern times. As for Trudeau, well he can always pull the Magnitsky Act trick he pulled against Russia and Venezuela but elections are due soon. After his infamous Khadr move, the Tories are making him pay for this new faux pas.
And there goes my rant for today! 
