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St. Petersburg, a city known for hosting numerous international delegations, was the venue for the Russia-Africa Forum summit. Amidst the event, propagandists sought to demonstrate that Moscow was not as isolated as commonly believed. President Vladimir Putin made efforts to persuade the new partners that Russia takes an anti-colonial stance, setting itself apart from Western nations. However, not only the ultra-conservatives but also many Russian oppositionists resorted to sarcasm, drawing inappropriate comparisons between the levels of backwardness of African residents and Russian officials. This behavior contrasts with their claim to uphold liberal values and be the hope for saving Russia from dictatorship and colonialism.

Colonial Noise

The second summit of the Russia-Africa Economic and Humanitarian Forum took place in St. Petersburg on July 27-28, 2023, with official delegations from 48 countries in attendance. The forums slogan centered on peace, security, and development, highlighting these three components as essential for any countrys successful future, according to the organizers.

The official declaration issued after the summit emphasized the historically established friendly ties between Russia and African countries. It also addressed the fight against neo-colonialism, double standards, and neo-fascism, while underscoring Russias commitment to a fair world order and respect for sovereignty. The Russian authorities have been explaining the link between these postulates and the so-called special military operation in Ukraine for a year and a half. Once again, President Vladimir Putin reiterated this idea, expressing concerns about Western countries.

The heart of the [Russian-Ukrainian] conflict lies in creating threats to Russias security from the United States and NATO. They, once again, refuse to negotiate on ensuring equal security for all, including Russia. Ukraine itself, or rather the current Ukrainian regime, also refuses to negotiate, stated the president.

The most discussed aspects of the forum could center around the attempts of African leaders to convince Vladimir Putin to stop the conflict or at least resume the grain deal. Social media jokes may arise due to the presidents efforts to portray Russias new anti-colonial role and commitment to sovereignty, though the reality revealed a different perspective.

Of notable interest were the news surrounding the potential visit of the recent rebel, the head of Wagner PMC, Yevgeny Prigozhin, to the summit, as well as the verbal reservations expressed by Patriarch Kirill of Moscow, who mistakenly addressed the president as Vladimir Vasilyevich instead of Vladimir Vladimirovich. However, the primary subject of discussion remained focused on the guests skin color, outfits, and the standard of living of African inhabitants. Some members of the liberal elite also participated in verbal aggression.

Lack of Civilization

In St. Petersburg, there is a grandiose meeting of African tribes. Russia is now a full participant in this celebration. The city is covered with proud slogans Russia is Africa, noted the eminent reporter, publicist Alexander Nevzorov, who moved to Israel in 2022 and subsequently became a defendant in a criminal case in Russia due to criticism of the authorities. Apparently, the search for a peculiar geopolitical path of the Russian tribe is over. It has found its place in the company of real cannibals, voodoo fanatics, and lovers of raw cow blood.

Alexander Nevzorov, a flamboyant oppositionist, is renowned for his forthright remarks. His eloquence as a journalist captivates a vast audience, who often overlook the occasional touch of sarcasm and anger, as they have become his signature style.

The most conscientious civil servants of St. Petersburg sew plates into their lower lip. The National Guard battalion is learning the Maasai dance of the jumping warriors. The party nomenclature of the [ruling party] United Russia does not crawl out of the solariums, hoping to turn black in order to feel at home at the all-African get-together Putin, yearning for international life, wants to push a speech before the tribes, Alexander Nevzorov said. Later, however, he added that African leaders, following the results of the summit, nevertheless showed a civilization index significantly higher than that of the host sides.

On social networks, users also pointed out alleged absences of certain Western features of civilization (apparently Western). The internet was flooded with memes featuring newfound black friends with inscriptions like Wakanda forever. Bloggers posted photos from the summit, showcasing individuals with gold teeth, copper rings around their necks, and dressed in long folk costumes, encouraging commentators to playfully mock the forum guests.

The economic situation on the continent was not spared from sarcasm either.

Africa is a bottomless barrel: throw something into it then say goodbye forever It will be the same now. Billions [of money] will be sent to these wild African dictatorships, which will be immediately stolen there. And they will ask for more. And they will give more. Just so that Putin can talk about friendly Africa, wrote Rustem Adagamov, one of the most famous Russian bloggers from the heyday of LiveJournal.

In the realm of liberal media and Telegram channels, particular attention was devoted to whether Russia would feed Africa, and to which leaders of African countries bore the nickname Crocodile or offered to ingest their political opponents.

Salvation of Russia

In the contemporary Russian discourse, little consideration appears to be given to the diversity of political regimes and income levels across African countries. Instead, local traditions are subjected to ridicule, and the relationship between Russia and Africa is often portrayed as a form of benevolent sexism, where the stronger entity is expected to support the weaker one.

Research on racism and colonialism in Russia remains limited, although studies on attitudes towards migrants have received more attention. Many believe that the suppression experienced at all levels of society serves as a diversion from the countrys underlying socio-economic issues. However, this point is just one aspect of the issue.

Experiencing racism is part of everyday life for migrants living in Russia. Whether this is in interactions with the state, fear of persecution on the street by the police or in the workplace, it is a constant factor A fundamental cause of attitude theses is the post-colonial relationships Russia has with other former members of the USSR, researchers Irina Kuznetsova and John Round wrote back in 2019.

The majority of Russians were entrenched in a system that disregarded individuals with different skin colors, traditions, and values. This may explain why racism and the colonial mindset persist in todays democratic environment, even among those who champion equality and human rights. Some believe that liberals will rescue Russia from dictatorship, but before that can happen, they must confront and eliminate the vestiges of colonialism within their own beliefs and attitudes.

The views expressed in this article belong to the authors alone and do not necessarily reflect those of Geopoliticalmonitor.com.

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Liberals Can't Save Russia Without Shedding Their Colonial Mindset - Geopoliticalmonitor.com

It's now been more than six months since Canada has had a federal ethics watchdog.

Mario Dion retired in February after serving as the last permanent ethics and conflict-of-interest commissioner.

A longtime staffer in that office, Martine Richard, took on an interim role in April but she resigned within weeks amid controversy around the fact she is the sister-in-law of Intergovernmental Affairs Minister Dominic LeBlanc.

Investigations that would normally be conducted by a commissioner are on pause until a permanent replacement is found.

Dion says the vacancy also means people can go unpunished and violations can go unnoticed until a new person is appointed.

Dion, who is helping with the hiring process, says it's not surprising that a candidate hasn't been chosen yet because the field is narrow and few people would qualify for the job.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Aug. 15, 2023.

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Federal Liberals have gone more than six months without ... - CHVN Radio

Ottawa, ON Statistics Canada announced today that inflation is on the rise, just two weeks after Trudeaus Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland declared that the Liberal plan to tackle inflation is working.

After declaring victory in July, its now clearer than ever that the Trudeau Liberals have failed to bring home lower prices for Canadians. Inflation has again risen to 3.3 percent, and the cost of groceries has gone up by 8.5 percent since last year. The price of housing also continues to skyrocket, with mortgage costs up by over 30 percent. Just ten days ago, the Trudeau Liberals claimed they were making real progress, but struggling Canadians are still feeling the pain.

Despite this, Trudeau continues to pour billions of dollars of fuel on the inflationary fire with his reckless debt and deficits. He hit Canadians with a double tax hike this year by raising the cost of his first carbon tax and imposing a new second carbon tax on Canadians. In fact, Nova Scotians saw a 14% increase at the pump between June and July.Trudeaus tax grabs are directly increasing the cost of gas and groceries, driving inflation higher.

After Trudeaus Finance Minister declared mission accomplished on inflation, Statistics Canada has proven that Trudeaus policies continue to increase the cost of everything.It goes to show how out of touch he is to the suffering of Canadians, said Jasraj Singh-Hallan, Conservative Shadow Minister for Finance. Only Conservatives willbring home lower pricesby axingTrudeaustaxeson gas and groceriesand ending inflationary Liberal deficits.

After eight years ofJustin Trudeau, Canadians cant afford the costof his inflationary governmentanymore.

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Inflation Spikes After Liberals Declare Real Progress - Conservative Party of Canada

On May 2, 2011, Stephen Harper and the Conservatives won a majority government. That was what happened, but in the days following election day, it wasnt really the dominant narrative. Instead, commentary tended to focus on related phenomena. There had been an orange wave, with the NDP scooping up dozens of seats in Quebec and forming the official opposition in Parliamenttheir leader Jack Layton was a star. The Liberals had cratered, plummeting to only 34 seats in the House of Commonstheir leader Michael Ignatieff was a dud.

Sure, there was passing reference to the success of the Conservatives. After all, Stephen Harper had converted their minority into a majority and would have four more solid years to govern, virtually unopposed to start. But the overarching takeaway was not that the Conservatives had built meaningful public support for an ambitious political agenda and delivered on it with a resounding electoral victory. It was almost as though Conservatives landed a majority government by accident, through a combination of NDP success, Liberal foibles, and good luck. It didnt help that Conservative voters tended to be quieter and that if you ran in certain circles, the kinds of circles analysts, pundits, and other public commenters live in, they were almost impossible to find. It was hard to track down Conservative voters, and even harder to understand where they were coming from.

I was reminded of 2011s analytical incuriosity over the past couple weeks as various serious pollsters released data showing Pierre Poilievres Conservatives with a nine-ish percentage point lead. A number of analysts have sought to explain whats going on, focusing on a few different factors, since it seems clear that no one big event is what has shifted opinion. People are finally growing tired of the Liberals, they sayits just taken a long time. People are finally feeling the negative impacts of inflation, they sayits justtaken a long time. People are really starting to dislike Trudeau, they sayits justwell you get the point. Where commenters do address the leader and the party experiencing favourability gains, they bend over backward to avoid acknowledging his appeal. In fact, they inexplicably jump to analyzing areas hes struggling, describing what a challenge it will be for such a radical, scary figure to actually convert his opponents losses into his own gains. This despite most modeling showing that Pierre Poilievre and the Conservatives popular vote share means they would win a majority of seats were the election called today.

You wouldnt know it from last weeks analysis, but something else happened recently in Canadian politicssomething rather major. Almost a year ago, Conservatives elected a new leader in Pierre Poilievre. Is it possible thats had some effect? Is it possible people who cant afford a home arent just frustrated the prime minister said the problem is not his responsibility, but that they think Pierre Poilievre would fix it? Is it possible theyre not only ticked off about the ever-increasing carbon tax but also now convinced the Conservatives would scrap it? Is it possible that since Poilievres been talking about inflation for literally years longer than anyone else, voters think he might be the guy who would bring spending in line and fix it? Is it possible Poilievres plan not to focus narrowly on mythical LPC/CPC vote switchers as virtually every analyst suggested he should, but to expand his voter universe by targeting NDP voters, LPC voters, PPC voters, lapsed CPC voters, and non-voters by focusing on defending fundamental freedoms, producing more goods in Canada, and improving the cost of living isworking?

We dont have to speculate as to whether Poilievre and the Conservatives are succeeding (instead of the Liberals merely failing). There is a serious third party in Canada in the NDP. If the movement in the polls had so little to do with Poilievres political success, surely, they would be the primary beneficiary. Indeed, we do have a counterfactual in Quebec, where waning Liberal popularity has benefited the Bloc Quebecois. Across the rest of Canada, including in Atlantic provinces, Ontario, and British Columbia, the Conservatives message is resonating. So why the reluctance to concede this point? What explains this unwillingness on the part of otherwise smart analysts to explore Conservative political success? Why side-step reasonably clear explanations, groping instead for any way to rationalize what, to them, is seemingly irrational?

Because when you dont know anyone who votes Conservative, its hard to put yourself in the shoes of someone who did or plans to. Understanding requires empathy and empathy is hardparticularly as our polarization and online thought bubbles mean people of different culture war tribes and political persuasions barely interact. This might be fine if our thought-leading institutions were populated with a diversity of viewpoints, but theyre not. Our analysts tend to be liberal, progressive elites who socialize with other liberal, progressive elites. Theres nothing wrong with being a liberal, progressive elite, many of them are among my dearest friends. But when youre in the business of explaining political outcomes, it helps if you know people to whom the front-runner is appealing. At least its helpful if you have any interest in trying to understand whats going on.

Political public opinion shifts for all kinds of reasons, and winning seats in the House of Commons is a zero-sum game. By definition, for one party to be winning, another party needs to be losing. But when it comes to analyzing the factors contributing to Conservative political success, our commentariat has a massive blind spot.

The good news for Conservatives is this is a sure sign that Liberals (and their ideological brethren in the commentariat) are stricken with their infamous kryptonite. Only arrogance, the kind for which our countrys self-described natural governing party is famous, can explain the unseriousness with which theyre confronting the strongest competitor theyve faced in a decade. Only arrogance can explain why theyve opted not to try to define Pierre Poilievre in the public consciousness before hes had the chance to define himself. Only arrogance can explain why our countrys analysts refuse to entertain the notion that the Conservatives might just have a plan and that it might just be working. Historically, when Liberal arrogance has peaked, Conservative electoral success has followed.

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The Liberals arent just losing, the Conservatives are winning - The Hub

Manitobas Liberals are counting on a growing number of women to carry the partys flag into the fall election campaign.

Announcing six women expected to be nominated as candidates to the five already confirmed to run in the Oct. 3 provincial race Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont said Monday the party has not set a target for gender parity, but is trying to reduce barriers to female participation in the political system.

They already know how the systems work and what needs to change, he said at a news conference outside the Canadian Museum for Human Rights.

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

Liberal Leader Dougald Lamont said the party has not set a target for gender parity, but is trying to reduce barriers to female participation in the political system at a news conference outside the Canadian Museum for Human Rights Monday.

At this point, 44 per cent of the Liberals 25 confirmed or expected candidates are women; Lamont said the party will nominate people to contest all 57 provincial ridings.

Of the 44 candidates nominated so far for the provincial NDP, 18 are women or non-binary candidates (41 per cent). The Progressive Conservatives have nominated 51 candidates so far, out of which 16 are women (31 per cent).

Lamont pointed to high provincial rates of violence against women as the most pressing equality issue in Manitoba, saying the party has introduced policies aimed at providing safe shelter, reducing recidivism and enforcing restraining orders. He suggested the party would work to reduce systemic discrimination in medical research and in the health system, as well as supporting nursing and teaching, two fields dominated by women.

When you think about how we made it through the pandemic, it was overwhelmingly education and health systems that bore us through, and they are overwhelmingly run by women. And they have faced freezes, cuts and, really, contempt, he said.

Rhonda Nichol, who retired from her Grace Hospital nursing career in February after 37 years working in the health-care system, spoke about why shes running in Kirkfield Park.

There was no question in my mind I needed to get involved in politics, she said. As a nurse working in the system, I can only say so much. Now that Im out of the system and retired, I am at more liberty to speak, to speak up for people working in the system and also to speak up for the public.

Winnipeg Free Press | Newsletter

Eddie Calisto-Tavares, who ran for the Liberals in 2019, was outspoken early in the pandemic about horrible conditions inside Maples Personal Care Home, where her 88-year-old father Manuel Calisto resided prior to his death in November 2020. She recalled donning personal protective gear and going into the residence as an example of her willingness to get things done.

MIKAELA MACKENZIE / WINNIPEG FREE PRESS

Rhonda Nichol, who retired from her Grace Hospital nursing career in February after 37 years working in the health-care system, is running in Kirkfield Park.

I can fight hard until I get what I need done, said Calisto-Tavares, who is running in Maples.

A lot of us dont want to be politicians. We want to get into community and do what we need to do, she added.

The nine others are Alvina Rundle in The Pas Kameesak; Katherine Johnson in Fort Rouge; Cyndy Friesen in Steinbach; Monica Guetre in La Verendrye; Nellie Monias in Keewatinook; incumbent MLA Cindy Lamoureux in Tyndall Park; Michelle Budiwski in Spruce Woods; LeAmber Kinsley in Riel; and Shandi Strong in Fort Garry.

katie.may@freepress.mb.ca

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Liberals add more women to candidate ranks Winnipeg Free Press - Winnipeg Free Press