58 years ago today Ghana’s Canadian-trained army overthrew leading pan Africanist President Kwame Nkrumah. After the coup 🇨🇦 High Commissioner in Accra C. E. McGaughey wrote “a wonderful thing has happened for the West in Ghana & Canada has played a worthy part” #CFPHistory ½
4 years ago today 🇨🇦 Embassy celebrated Canadians fighting in Israeli military. 33 Canadian “lone soldiers” serving in IOF participated in a “pizza party” organized by ambassador Deborah Lyons who told them “we at the embassy are very proud of what you’re doing” #CFPhistory
5 years ago today then foreign minister Chrystia Freeland announced that should Canada win a seat on the UN Security Council it would act as an “asset for Israel” on the Council #CFPhistory
50 years ago today Augusto Pinochet overthrew Salvador Allende. Ottawa was hostile to Allende’s elected govt & sympathetic to Pinochet. Canada’s ambassador to Chile described those killed by military after coup “the riffraff of the Latin American Left” #CFPhistory
58 years ago today began a slow moving US-backed military takeover in Indonesia that led to slaughter of 500,000 “communists”. Even though he was aware of Suharto’s killing Canada’s ambassador called this mass murderer “a moderate, sensible and progressive leader” #CFPhistory
69 years ago today social democratic Guatemalan President Jacobo Arbenz was ousted by the US. Ottawa helped isolate Arbenz, refusing a request to open mutual embassies. They also refused to acknowledge US involvement in the invasion of Guatemala #CFPhistory
4 years ago today Bolivia’s first Indigenous Pres was ousted. Hours after the military command forced Evo Morales to resign foreign minister Chrystia Freeland released a celebratory statement declaring “Canada stands with Bolivia and the democratic will of its people” #CFPhistory
70 years ago today the US & Britain overthrew Iran’s first popularly elected PM Mohammad Mosaddegh. Ottawa played a small part in destruction of democracy. It criticized Mossadegh for nationalizing oil & established diplomatic relations with Iran soon after the coup #CFPhistory
Today mark 3 years since Canada was defeated in its bid for a seat on the UN Security Council. The Trudeau government’s loss was an embarrassing rejection of its pro-Washington, militaristic and anti-Palestinian policies #CFPhistory
19 years ago today Paul Martin made the first ever trip by a Canadian Prime Minister to Haiti, offering diplomatic & financial support to a murderous coup government #CFPhistory
108 years ago today a brutal 2 decade long US occupation of Haiti began. The Royal Bank of Canada & Sun Life Assurance Company expanded into Haiti during US rule #CFPhistory
21 years ago today 🇨🇦 organized a meeting to discuss Haiti’s future. No 🇭🇹 officials were invited to the ‘Ottawa Initiative on Haiti’ where top US, 🇨🇦 OAS & 🇫🇷 officials decided the elected president “must go” & 🇭🇹 should be put under UN trusteeship #CFPhistory
On this day 21 years ago 10 million around the world, including 100,000 in Montréal, marched against US led invasion of Iraq. Antiwar activists stopped Chrétien govt joining “coalition of the willing” (though Canada quietly offered other forms of support to the war) #CFPhistory
53 years ago today General Idi Amin overthrew Milton Obote. Ottawa passively supported coup backed by Britain & US. In week after post-independence Ugandan leader’s ouster External Minister Sharp & PM Trudeau passed up many chances to denounce Amin usurpation of power #CFPHistory
20 years ago today Canadian special forces “secured” the airport from which Haiti’s elected president Jean-Bertand Aristide was bundled (“kidnapped” in his words) onto a plane by US Marines and deposited in the Central African Republic #CFPHistory
75 years ago today the UN Special Committee on Palestine was established. 🇨🇦 representative Ivan C Rand was lead architect of unjust partition plan that gave Zionist movement 55% of Palestine despite Jews owning 7% of land & making up less than a third of population #CFPHistory
14 years ago today Ottawa tacitly supported Honduran military’s removal of elected president Manuel Zelaya. Despite the coup, Ottawa refused to exclude Honduras from its Military Training Program & failed to sever any aid to the military government #CFPHistory
88 years ago today Italy invaded Ethiopia, only independent African country. Employing mustard gas, they killed 10 000s directly & more indirectly. Ottawa broadly opposed collective League of Nations action against Italy & ultimately recognized Italian sovereignty #CFPHistory
156 years ago today William Heneker was born in Sherbrooke. From 1897-1906 the RMC graduate fought in 12 campaigns in West Africa. “The great thing is to impress savages with the fact they are the weaker & enforce the will of the white man” noted his book Bush Warfare #CFPHistory
