"Tunisian president flies to Malta under Libyan protection" – no doubt which camp we're in, according to perception
Published:
January 14, 2011 at 11:08pm
Here’s The Financial Times’ new site, Tilt, reporting on developments (www.tilt.ft.com) under the heading Generation Riot: globalization’s discontented set to reprice political risk
“The protests have proved a watershed for the president Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali. On Friday, the president fled to Malta, under Libyan protection, leaving Tunisian prime minister Mohammed Ghannouchi in charge, bringing an end to Ali’s twenty-three year autocratic rule.”
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According to La Stampa, France has refused Ben Ali refuge, and his plane is currently grounded at Cagliari in Sardinia, where it is surrounded by police.
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http://www3.lastampa.it/esteri/sezioni/articolo/lstp/384366/
Now you can hardly blame this perception lingering on because of Mintoff can you?
More likely to be the shameful way Gonzi has remained silent on the atrocious Berlusconi/Gaddafi agreement on illegal immigrants. Ah, but I forget, Gonzi does not want divorce because he is a good practising Catholic.
Of course, being a good Catholic does not extend to the protection of immigrants. But then again, that is what you get from a poor leader.
So is Dr Tonio Borg an explemenary practising Catholic. Again, pity that being a good practising Catholic does not extend to standing up for our repressed Tunisian neighbours. Now wonder the world is going to the dogs… has anyone seen a leader?
exemplary
This was published BEFORE the reports of Ben Ali’s arrival in Malta.
http://www.reuters.com/article/idUSLDE70D2AO20110114
Sarkozy refuses Ben Ali entry to France
PARIS Jan 14 (Reuters) – French President Nicolas Sarkozy has refused to give Tunisia’s ex-President Zine al-Abedine Ben Ali permission to enter France, French media said, citing government sources.
@jean
You’re looking out for hypocrites? Here they come … A plethora of commentators in the West lauded Tunisia as an example of success.
Tunisia was supposed to be heaven because people when people tasted western freedom & lifestyle they abandoned Islamic religious backwardness that hampered economic progress.
The US and France were in love with Ben Ali. They were impressed with his persecution of the Islamists, his economic agenda was touted as a brilliant model that could be replicated in North Africa. and he proved to be a staunch US ally actively involved in the controversial rendition programme.
For these reasons, the US tolerated Ben Ali’s long record on human rights abuses. and when young people were killed in the recent protests, Washington and Paris chose to stand by their ally.
Who cares what the US, France etc did/do? I’m interested in what our supposedly Catholic leaders do. Unfortunately, when one does not distinguish between religion and state affairs this is what you get; massive inconsistencies. Divorce no but hardline immigrant policy yes, debatable contracts yes, ministers jetting around the world with businessmen yes, tweaking of their own pay yes etc etc.
Instead of criticising our leaders (for them to hopefully get a kick in the arse and improve) we (including Daphne, Lou, Peppi etc) enter into a relative exercise of how fortunate we all are as the others are worse. We always need to justify. I’m sick of this parochial attitude. Read my lips, we have lousy leaders in government, and just because the opposition is crap does not make me feel better.
[Daphne – I don’t think we have lousy leaders in government. On the contrary, I think our prime minister is excellent. His only flaw is the very one pointed out indirectly by Eddie Fenech Adami in a recent interview, that he tolerates too much insubordination and horrible rudeness and bad behaviour among some of his backbenchers. The situation in Malta was comfortable throughout the last two years. But then you would have had to know what the situation was and still is like practically everywhere else to know that.]
Ironic isn’t that Gonzi seems to be going through the same fate of another disastrous leader, Sant. Both seemingly hampered by the backbench when in reality it’s their leadership that’s questionable.
[Daphne – How is Gonzi a disastrous leader? Leaders are assessed by the results. And by results I don’t mean five backseat drivers who think they deserve the wheel.]
With all his massive failings, Sant stood up to his backbench in a more significant way then Gonzi will ever have the balls to do (and please spare me the usual tirade about how fortunate we are that Sant’s government was brought down etc – I’m with you there). I’m discussing leadership.
And you don’t have to be condescending either; I’m very well aware of whatis going on around the world. The fact that we have not been hit as others can’t be attributed to some Gonzi prowess. If anything, it’s down to our strong financial services industry, something that has not just happened in 2005. It was thanks to strategic thinkers like Eddie and no nonsense loyal generals such as RCC were the basis of the success lie. You don’t really believe that it is thanks to our pretentious Finance Minister do you?
[Daphne – Here is the flaw in your argument (and forgive me if you think me condescending, but I really have no time for illogical reasoning rooted in prejudice and personal resentment): it was the strategic thinker you call Eddie who thought (correctly) that Gonzi would make the best leader, while the person you call by his initials remains as loyal and would never dream of behaving as crassly as some other people I could mention. The problem is not with the leader; it is with an envious and unforgiving John Dalli who is setting himself up as an alternative leader to a coterie of spiteful backbenchers who think they are the solution when they are actually the problem. A government backbencher who not only doesn’t care whether he sinks the ship but deliberately contributes towards sinking it is beyond words. It’s our fault, not Gonzi’s. We elected them and many of us are now truly sorry for doing it. I can safely say that we’ll be voting for the same party but different people. ]
They might have asked Godfrey for information. Daqs mus tal- lehja jaqta.
It seems that he is holed up in Saudi Arabia after all.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-africa-12198106
I have not as yet read any news item in the Maltese press referring to the fact that there are a number of Maltese workers stuck in Tunisia and unable to get out of the chaos, including Malta’s ambassador to Tunisia Vicky Anne Cremona.
Why on earth would our ambassador want to flee Tunisia? An embassy is evacuated only in the most dire of circumstances, such as the embassy receptionist’s head being paraded on a pike and such. But then we always thought ambassadorships were a sort of extended “weekend break b’hin ghal shoppink” to be given away.
Here, see this:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YgTGJkVafeo