Canada drops bid for UN Security Council seat

[CHIMO]

Canada has dropped its bid for a seat on the United Nations Security Council after coming behind Portugal in second ballot voting Tuesday in New York.

Canada dropped out of the race because it did not have the numbers on the second ballot — 78 to Portugal's 113. A two-thirds majority is needed to win a seat.

It is the first time that Canada has failed in its bid for a Security Council seat. Canada has been on the Security Council six times, roughly once a decade, since the 1940s. The country's last term ended in 2000.

Some observers believe the Harper government's foreign policy is largely responsible for Tuesday's outcome, including its pro-Israel stance on the Middle East, cutting foreign aid to Africa, and also the move away from UN peacekeeping and toward the Afghan mission.
http://www.cbc.ca/world/story/2010/10/12/un-vote012.html
Tuesday, October 12, 2010 | 12:46 PM ET

Canada withdraws from race for UN council seat

NEW YORK, N.Y.— Bruised on the second ballot by its Portugese rival, Canada called an abrupt halt to its bid Tuesday to rejoin the United Nations Security Council — the country’s second international black eye in as many days.

Canada’s concession came less than 24 hours after a diplomatic snub of the highest order on Monday, when a military plane carrying Defence Minister Peter MacKay and Chief of Defence Staff Gen. Walt Natynczyk was denied permission to land in the United Arab Emirates.
http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/873910--canada-withdraws-from-race-for-un-council-seat?bn=1

Someone will have sore shins tomorrow. They will probably need a cabinet maker in Ottawa tomorrow.

[shockedcanadian]

1. I am not surprised at all...

True human rights in Canada are almost non-existent; we are no longer a nation to follow in this regard. It is obvious the rest of the world (Including probably America and the U.K, our traditional allies) do not want us at the table. We have an absolutely altered "brand", one which took decades and many soldiers sacrifice to build.

It is laughable to hear Mr. Cannon state that we are supportors of Human Rights and democracy, meanwhile we have the highest number of complaints to the UN in the entire world since 2004, bar none. He continued to place blame on the fact that we did not have a "united front" in support for our seat...is this stand-up character? Ironically he talks about a lack of support from the opposition while the Conservatives have been the most divisive government in our history. He sounds alot like Vic Toews stand-up response when I contacted him about my own plight.

I am biased, because I have faced some of the ugliest Canadians in my plight for justice, I have had my life essentially destroyed by CSIS/RCMP. It has become so bad that after 2 years of fighting for my job at a bank which I was obviously being managed out of, I was finally put out of my misery 2 weeks ago. However, I know I am not alone in such battles, I just happen to have the courage and stomach (no choice?) to continue forward and express the facts so that people are aware of them.

So, for my own minute part in this, I contacted the UN many months ago and explained in great detail my situation, I also forwarded my complaint to each individual nation of the UN (per their suggestion), and I did, with great fervor, passion and honesty to each and every nation on the UN list. Now, I have to pursue my case to the UN against Canada, this battle is great for lawyers bad for democracy and our reputation.

Does Canada deserve a seat? Of course we do, and we should be demanding this from any government we have. As our politicians like to do in Canada, deny, complain and lay blame on others (countries, groups, parties, God etc.) instead of actually looking in the mirror and realizing that these morally bankrupt "leaders" have done it to themselves, and unfortunately we all pay for it.

[shockedcanadian]

2. Oh and one more thing....

The timing of Flaherty's economic announcement at the same time as the UN bid failure could not be a coincidence. This is not the Conservative party that I have always been supportive of. With all due respect to those in the party that do a great job and still do care about Canada; I am seeing a hell of a lot of politicizing and very little leadership and accountability.

[JBoy]

3. Didn't take long for Harper to blame the Liberals

http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/canada-abandons-un-bid-in-embarrassing-turn-for-harper/article1753222/

Mr. Harper's office wasted little time assigning blame for the disappointment, placing it at the feet of Liberal Leader Michael Ignatieff.

“I would say a big deciding factor was the fact that Canada's bid did not have unity because we had Mr. Ignatieff questioning and opposing Canada's bid,” Dimitri Soudas, Harper's communications director, told The Canadian Press.

“That was a factor that played ultimately against Canada because people outside of Canada were saying, ‘Well, Germany and Portugal have a united front, their opposition and their governments seem to be fully, 100 per cent behind this bid.’

“Canada did not have that required advantage. We had an Opposition Leader that opposed Canada and clearly was not in it for Canada on this one.”

-------------

Fuck you, Harper.

Two main reasons you failed:

1. Your policies smell too much like George W. Bush's. Of course you don't think so, but the rest of the world thinks so, and they vote accordingly.
2. You failed to provide the necessary leadership, and didn't put in the effort to win the bid for the seat.

[Spazito]

4. Good, I am actually glad...

we didn't deserve to get it, we did not earn it. The way the Harper government treated the UN with contempt until recently did not go unnoticed nor the very apparent will of the Harper cabal to do everything to emulate Bush.

As to their contemptible attempt to blame Ignatieff/the Liberals for this, the only Canadians who will come close to buying that crap will be the bare bones of their base, imo.

[JohnyCanuck]

5. Hurray! Canada loses security council seat -- and the world has Harper’s number

Stephen Harper's death bed repentance regarding his hostile attitude towards the UN apparently didn't fool enough delegations to get the suddenly coveted Security Council seat. (Teeny Portugal got 113 votes to Canada's 78.) This bodes well for the United Nations for if Canada, with its long list of offensive, reactionary and perverse stands on issues had been rewarded for its behaviour, one would have to wonder if the UN really is corrupt.

It is amusing to think back on the trajectory that this misanthrope of a Prime Minister has followed on the UN and the Security Council seat. Like so much else about government, Harper has a visceral hatred of everything about the social democratic and liberal state. His goal has always been to dismantle the activist state and turn it into a dumbed down, minimalist institution consisting of the military, the police (and prisons), CSIS, and the Bank of Canada. Everything else, in Harper's fantasy world, would be handled by the private sector.

But Harper's anger has always gotten the better of him. The man has little impulse control and if you want to accomplish anything in politics -- even dismantling the government -- you have to be strategic and you have to have good judgment. Harper has demonstrated time and again that he cannot abide compromise or biding his time. It has severely hampered his agenda and prevented him from achieving a majority government.

For virtually all of political life he has been openly contemptuous of human rights and showed little but disdain for the United Nations and everything it stands for -- peacekeeping, poverty reduction, health protection, bio-diversity, climate action. That was true of George Bush, too, but Bush (or his brain trust) finally figured out that it was much more effective to try to dominate the UN and use it for U.S. imperial goals than simply to rant and rave about it.

http://rabble.ca/blogs/bloggers/murray-dobbin/2010/10/hurray-canada-loses-security-council-seat-and-world-has-harper%E2%80%99

[CanSocDem]

6. Absolutely...

...spot on.

"This bodes well for the United Nations for if Canada, with its long list of offensive, reactionary and perverse stands on issues had been rewarded for its behaviour, one would have to wonder if the UN really is corrupt.

Not to mention the RCMP/CSIS.....

.

[Bragi]

7. I'm so proud of the rest of the world

Had Canada won a seat at the security council, I'm sure Harper would have used it to continue to pursue foreign policy approaches that most Canadians oppose.

Oddly, there is more likelihood that Portugal will reflect mainstream Canadian opinion than would have been the case with Harper.

[polly7]

8. You took the words right out of my mouth.

Hopefully, Canadians will wake up to the damage this arrogant, power-hungry fool is doing to a country that once held humanitarian causes and values as qualities to be proud of. We once were among leaders in the world in real 'peace-keeping'. I can't wait for the day Harper is out and we can get back to the values we fought so hard for.

[Lucy Goosey]

9. At first, it felt wrong to be happy about this...

...but I'm over it. :)

Really, I love any public Harper rebuke, and this is a big one. And I wouldn't a Harper-ruled Canada to be on the Security Council.

Nope, no feeling bad about this, it's definitely a victory.

[Toilet]

10. What a farce

"including its pro-Israel stance on the Middle East"

What Prime Minister isn't/hasn't been pro Israel? Um...all of them. But I guess the UN would rather we be pro Hamas? Neutral? Na, we'd be slammed for that as well.

"cutting foreign aid to Africa"

Well, don't know much about that.

"and also the move away from UN peacekeeping"

We haven't been "Peacekeeping" in years. All of a sudden, we've moved away from it.

"and toward the Afghan mission"

Which was UN endorsed. lmao.

[Spazito]

11. Darn, your guy didn't come out too well internationally recently, did he...

but.....it was ALL Ignatieff's fault, waaaaaaaaaaaa waaaaaaaaaaaaaaa.

[tuvor]

12. Funny, all this UN derision coming after Harper's loss, but none before. n/t

[tuvor]

13. No-show Harper rushing into the UN, an organization he's clearly not fond of, at the last minute...

...trying to sell a half-empty room on giving Canada a seat on the UNSC.

Now that's a farce.