Robillard | Gare au militantisme qui verse dans le dogmatisme, l’intimidation et la violence

2024/12/06 Leave a comment

Absolument. I attended UQAM during the 1980 referendum and it was very activist and left-wing then:

J’ai été membre de l’Association facultaire étudiante des sciences humaines (AFESH) de l’Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) de 2008 à 2011. Durant ce temps, j’ai participé activement à ses instances, respecté ses mandats de grève, fait du piquetage, cuisiné des repas populaires et milité pour un monde plus égalitaire et plus juste. J’en gardais jusqu’à maintenant, avec cette nostalgie bien spéciale que l’on peut avoir envers ses années universitaires, d’excellents souvenirs de camaraderie, de débats et de solidarité.

La récente sortie de l’exécutif de mon ancienne association étudiante a fait remonter dans ma mémoire certains aspects peu glorieux du militantisme : le dogmatisme, l’intimidation et la violence.

Des exemples de dogmatisme : vouloir expulser de l’université un député bloquiste venu donner une conférence sur sa tournée en Palestine sous prétexte que son appui à la cause palestinienne n’incluait pas un appui au Hamas. S’opposer aux plans de cours de professeurs dont les positions ne correspondaient pas à une certaine vision militante de l’université.

Des exemples d’intimidation : avoir connaissance de manoeuvres pour empêcher des étudiants opposés aux éternels mouvements de grève de s’exprimer. Appel à d’obscurs règlements adoptés en catimini pour appuyer des groupuscules supposément révolutionnaires, mais qui veulent surtout faire taire ceux qui ne sont pas d’accord avec eux, tel que l’heureusement défunt Hors d’oeuvre, ce collectif anarchiste financé par des associations étudiantes et mettant en avant des méthodes militantes violentes.

Des exemples de violence : participante à la baston annuelle censée s’opposer à la brutalité policière, l’AFESH vivait très bien avec la présence de Black Blocs dans ses activités. L’auteur de ces lignes se souvient avec clarté d’avoir été agressé par un militant alors qu’il exprimait son désaccord avec une journée de grève en soutien au régime failli de Hugo Chávez, au Venezuela, dont les crimes contre les droits de la personne sont largement connus. Il se souvient également d’avoir dû quitter la veillée funéraire d’un ami, car les menaces de certains militants devenaient trop pressantes envers les modérés dans la salle.

Ma formation en histoire à l’UQAM a été exemplaire et la variété des orientations de mes camarades de classe et professeurs a été un enrichissement précieux.

Je refuse de laisser ces gens qui se disaient anarcho-gangsters nuire encore plus à mon alma mater. De l’anarchie, ces gens ne retiennent que la violence et jamais ils n’oseraient tenir tête à de vrais gangsters.

Je tiens à remercier publiquement Pauline Marois pour son engagement envers l’éducation du Québec réel. Celui-ci est à mille lieues de l’enfer colonialiste, patriarcal et illégitime du « soi-disant Québec » dont l’AFESH parle dans sa lettre réclamant la « destitution immédiate » de l’ancienne première ministre de son nouveau poste de chancelière de l’université.

Aux étudiants de l’UQAM, ne laissez pas votre nécessaire association étudiante et vos fonds être détournés par ceux qui rêvent en rouge et noir.

Tenez bon, Madame Marois, l’UQAM a besoin de vous.

Source: Libre opinion | Gare au militantisme qui verse dans le dogmatisme, l’intimidation et la violence

I was a member of the Association facultaire étudiante des sciences humaines (AFESH) of the Université du Québec à Montréal (UQAM) from 2008 to 2011. During this time, I actively participated in his instances, respected his strike mandates, made pickets, cooked popular meals and campaigned for a more egalitarian and just world. I kept until now, with this very special nostalgia that one can have for one’s university years, excellent memories of camaraderie, debates and solidarity.

The recent exit of the executive of my former student association brought back to my memory some inglorious aspects of activism: dogmatism, intimidation and violence.

Examples of dogmatism: wanting to expel from the university a Bloc deputy who came to give a conference on his tour of Palestine on the pretext that his support for the Palestinian cause did not include support for Hamas. Oppose the lesson plans of professors whose positions did not correspond to a certain militant vision of the university.

Examples of intimidation: having knowledge of maneuvers to prevent students opposed to the eternal strike movements from expressing themselves. Call for obscure regulations adopted in secret to support supposedly revolutionary groups, but who above all want to silence those who do not agree with them, such as the unfortunately deceased Hors d’oeuvre, this anarchist collective financed by student associations and highlighting violent militant methods.

Examples of violence: participating in the annual baton supposed to oppose police brutality, AFESH lived very well with the presence of Black Blocs in its activities. The author of these lines clearly remembers being assaulted by an activist while expressing his disagreement with a day of strike in support of the failed regime of Hugo Chávez in Venezuela, whose crimes against human rights are widely known. He also remembers having to leave a friend’s funeral vigil, because the threats of some activists became too urgent towards the moderates in the room.

My history training at UQAM was exemplary and the variety of orientations of my classmates and teachers was a precious enrichment.

I refuse to let these people who called themselves anarcho-gangsters harm my alma mater even more. From anarchy, these people only retain violence and they would never dare to stand up to real gangsters.

I would like to publicly thank Pauline Marois for her commitment to the education of real Quebec. He is a thousand leagues away from the colonialist, patriarchal and illegitimate hell of the “so-called Quebec” of which the AFESH speaks in its letter calling for the “immediate dismissal” of the former prime minister from her new position as chancellor of the university.

To UQAM students, do not let your necessary student association and your funds be diverted by those who dream in red and black.

Hold on, Mrs. Marois, UQAM needs you.

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Canada failing to address rising complaints about foreign intimidation of rights activists, Amnesty International says

2020/08/14 Leave a comment

Significant issue and more concrete action warranted:

Foreign Affairs Minister François-Philippe Champagne said Ottawa will not tolerate the intimidation of human rights activists in this country by foreign governments after a democracy activist told a parliamentary committee she and her family have faced threats from Beijing over the past year.

But Amnesty International said Wednesday that Canada’s response to rising complaints about bullying by pro-China forces has been hapless, muddled and ineffective.

Parliamentary hearings on Canada-China relations this week in Ottawa included testimony from Canadians of Hong Kong origin, who described threats they’ve received on Canadian soil during the course of their advocacy for democratic rights in the former British colony.

Cherie Wong, executive director of Alliance Canada Hong Kong, told the Commons committee on Canada-China relations that she has been the target of “death and rape threats,” as well as talk of harming her family, over the past 12 months. At rallies – even on Parliament Hill – pro-Beijing supporters have harassed and threatened those demonstrating in support of Hong Kong. Afterward, the personal information of pro-Hong Kong demonstrators – cellphone numbers, e-mail addresses, photos, class schedules – was published online.

Her experience echoes a May report by Amnesty International Canada and other groups warning that Chinese government officials and supporters of the Communist Party of China are increasingly resorting to “threats, bullying and harassment” to intimidate and silence activists in Canada, including those raising concerns about democracy and civil rights in Hong Kong, and Beijing’s mistreatment of Uyghurs, Tibetans and Falun Gong practitioners.

This intimidation includes threats of sexual violence and other physical violence against targets in Canada, as well as their family members in Hong Kong and China.

Conservative foreign affairs critic Leona Alleslev asked Mr. Champagne on Wednesday in the House of Commons about testimony such as Ms. Wong’s, and whether the government would introduce legislation to fight foreign interference.

“Witnesses at the Canada-China committee stated the People’s Republic of China is actively threatening Canadians on Canadian soil who seek to expose China’s authoritarian agenda. These individuals have been subjected to everything from physical threats, commercial blacklisting and state-backed cyberhacking with no protection from Canada. When will this government introduce legislation to combat foreign influence and protect basic human rights in Canada from aggressive actions of the Chinese Communist Party?” Ms. Alleslev asked.

Mr. Champagne told the Commons that Canada does not allow such intimidation and said Ottawa has been swift to address it.

“Let me be very clear, the safety and protection of Canadians is paramount to this government. We will never allow any form of foreign interference in Canada by state or non-state actors,” the Foreign Affairs Minister said.

He said Canada has acted whenever complaints have arisen. “Every time there have been allegations … we have taken action with the Minister of Public Safety,” he said, and advised Canadians to contact the police if they are being threatened.

“We invite any Canadians who might be subject to any form of such actions that have been described to contact law enforcement authorities and we will always defend the freedom and liberty of Canadians in Canada from foreign interference.”

But Alex Neve, secretary-general at Amnesty International Canada, said the response from Canadian authorities to such complaints has been unco-ordinated and disappointing. He said that in 2017 and again in May this year, Amnesty and other groups in the Canadian Coalition on Human Rights in China published reports on the intimidation and threats, as well as recommendations to address it – but these have received little response.

He said targets of harassment end up discouraged. “Individuals have often found they turn to one agency only to be told to go to another, and yet another, and at the end of the day told, ‘Well, we share the concern, but there’s not really anything that can be done here because it’s not a clear criminal offence,’ or, ‘You don’t have enough evidence.’ ”

The Amnesty-led coalition has recommended establishing a point person and hotline to handle complaints, talking to China about the harassment, and the consideration of a law to counter foreign interference as other countries such as Australia have enacted.

Mr. Neve said the response from the Canadian government, from security agencies and from police “lacks coherence and at the end of the day therefore is entirely ineffective.”

“Individuals experiencing these instances of interference and of threats, including threats of sexual and other physical violence and threats against family members in Hong Kong or in China, are largely left without effective recourse, often unsure where to turn and what to expect,” he said in recommendations provided to the Canada-China committee this week.

“It may be a considerable challenge to counter China’s influence on the world stage, it may be difficult to exert pressure for human rights reform on the ground in China, but there is no excuse for a failure to take robust and decisive steps to counter human rights abuses that may be linked to or backed by Beijing – connected to what is happening in Hong Kong, but taking place here in Canada.”

The Chinese embassy in Ottawa did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Source: Canada failing to address rising complaints about foreign intimidation of rights activists, Amnesty International says

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ICYMI – Douglas Todd: China’s long surveillance arm thrusts into Canada

2019/03/14 2 Comments

Chinese students understandably do not wish to be openly critical of the Chinese government. But it is another matter when they try to shut down or intimidate persons critical of China or Chinese policies:

….

The only hope is this culture of watchfulness doesn’t always work. A University of B.C. professor who specializes in Asia tells me how an apparent culture of subjugation is playing out on campus.

The majority of the many students from China that the professor comes across are self-censoring.

They don’t go to possibly contentious events about China. They don’t speak out in classes. A few patriotic ones feel it’s their duty to criticize the professor for exposing them to material that does not hold the world’s most populous country in a positive light. A few very privately offer the faculty member their thanks for the chance to hear the truth.

“Mostly, however, I find my undergrads in particular to be profoundly uninterested in politics and proud of their country’s rise,” said the professor, who, like many academic specialists on China these days, spoke on condition of anonymity. Metro Vancouver campuses host almost 50,000 of the more than 180,000 students from China in Canada.

Mandarin-language students in Canada are “the major beneficiaries of the rise” of China, said the professor. “They don’t want to rock the boat and the more aware ones are discreet about their critiques. They have decided to tread carefully, which suggests a consciousness that they could be under surveillance.”

If that is the look-over-your-shoulder reality for students from China in B.C., imagine how it is for those on some American and Ontario campuses, which have had high-profile outbreaks of angry pro-China activism.

National Post reporter Tom Blackwell has covered China’s recent interference in Canadian affairs. He’s dug into how University of Toronto student president Chemi Lhamo was barraged with a 11,000-name petition from people with Chinese names, demanding she be removed. Raised in Tibet, which China dominates, Lhamo was also targeted by hundreds of nasty texts, which Toronto police are investigating as possibly criminal threats.

A similar confrontation occurred in February at McMaster University in Hamilton, where five Chinese student groups protested the university’s decision to give a platform to a Canadian citizen of Muslim Uyghur background. Rukiye Turdush had described China’s well-documented human-rights abuses against more than a million Uyghurs in the vast province of Xinjiang in China.

The animosity and harassment is escalating. Even longtime champions of trade and investment in Canada from China and its well-off migrants are taken aback. Ng Weng Hoong, a commentator on the Asian-Pacific energy industry, is normally a vociferous critic of B.C.’s foreign house buyer tax and other manifestations of Canadian sovereignty.

But Ng admitted in a recent piece in SupChina, a digital media outlet, that Chinese protesters’ in Ontario “could shift Canadians’ attitude toward China to one of outright disdain and anger at what they see is the growing threat of Chinese influence in their country.”

It certainly didn’t help, Ng notes, that the Chinese embassy in Ottawa supported the aggressive protesters. “The story of Chinese students’ silencing free speech and undermining democracy in Canada,” Ng said, “will only fuel this explosive mix of accusations.”

Some of the growing mistrust among Canadians and others has emerged from multiplying reports of propaganda and surveillance in China.

China’s president, Xi Jinping, is attempting to control followers through a dazzling new app, with which China’s Communist Party members are expected to actively engage. The New York Times is reporting China has been swabbing millions of Uyghur Muslims for their DNA, with human rights activists maintaining the genetic samples could be used to track down those not already sent to “re-education” camps.

China’s pressure tactics are also coming down on journalists. The Economist reports students from China trying to enrol in Hong Kong’s journalism school are being warned against it by their fearful parents. They’re begging their offspring to shun a truth-seeking career that would lead to exposing wrongdoing in China, which could result in grim reprisals against the entire family.

Within the Canadian media realm there are also growing private reports that Mandarin-language Chinese journalists at various news outlets across this country are being called into meetings with China’s officials, leading some Chinese reporters to ask editors to remove their bylines from stories about the People’s Republic of China and its many overseas investors.

It’s always wise to be wary of superpowers. But China’s actions are cranking suspicion up to new levels. Compared to the flawed United States, which somehow still manages to win grudging admirers around the world, China’s surveillance tactics are making it almost impossible for that country to develop soft power with any appeal at all.

While some observers say many of the people of China are primed for more reform, openness and media freedom, it’s clear the leaders of China have in the past year been going only backwards, intent on more scrutiny and repression.

Source: Douglas Todd: China’s long surveillance arm thrusts into Canada

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