Art And Politics, Banksy Style: How He Funded A Mediterranean Rescue Ship, And Why It’s Stalled With A Load Of Refugees Off Malta Now - Forbes | Canada News Media
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Art And Politics, Banksy Style: How He Funded A Mediterranean Rescue Ship, And Why It’s Stalled With A Load Of Refugees Off Malta Now – Forbes

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The many NGOs operating to rescue African refugees from their criminally liable smugglers on the western Mediterranean — the world’s deadliest migration route — got a quiet boost in the last months as the puckish, irrepressibly imaginative Banksy, thought to be Bristol, England’s own Robin Gunningham, dreamed up the idea that he would add to the rescue fleet by buying and funding a new boat for German NGO veteran skipper Pia Klemp. Banksy’s art is nothing if not political, and he has dealt consistently over the years with the themes of war and refugees.

As reported on August 28, the former French navy frigate refitted and re-christened as the Louise Michel is not exempt from all the problems facing every NGO rescue ship on the Mediterranean. Currently loaded down off the coast of Malta with some 219 rescued migrants from Libyan waters, one of whom is reported to have died, the Louise Michel seems to have made the overnight run from the Libyan coast to Malta on the 28-29 August, but is reported to be running out of water for the refugees it has picked up. The feverish, ongoing negotiations for the acceptance of this group of people appear to have stalled. It is the paradigmatic conundrum for the NGO operators and the refugees alike, and it one of the many reasons that this route out of North Africa is so deadly. Even if refugees are rescued, they are not safe until they have been accepted by a southern European country, none of which are wanting waves of migration, especially now.

The boat’s path toward Captain Klemp was a characteristically twisted Banksy-ish one. Ms. Klemp thought that Banksy’s first email, sent in September 2019, was a joke. It reads breezily, with his trademark mix of brio, understated earnestness, and a dash of high comedy:

Hello Pia, I’ve read about your story in the papers. You sound like a badass. I am an artist from the UK and I’ve made some work about the migrant crisis, obviously I can’t keep the money. Could you use it to buy a new boat or something? Please let me know. Well done. Banksy.

It wasn’t a joke, rather, the announcement of a very special grant. We can fairly say that in this instance, the mercurial yet deadly serious Banksy is putting his money where his heart is: Some 19,000 refugees have died attempting to traverse the Mediterranean since 2014, not just refugees from the serial Libyan wars, but also from them.

The boat, named the Louise Michel, sails under German colors and is staffed by a largely female crew. With a blazing pink-and-white hull, its superstructure bears the Banksy mark: A portrait of a windswept girl attached to a heart-shaped rescue buoy has been stenciled along midships. Launched under a cloak of secrecy at midsummer out of Burriana, Spain, the Louise Michel has recently assisted the Medicins Sans Frontiers boat, rescuing some hundred-plus refugees and transferring them to the MSF’s Sea Watch 4. Captain Klemp is keeping her ship in the teeth of it: Presumably provisioning out of the relatively secure Tunisian port of Bizerte.

According to reports, by August 27-8, the Louise Michel had rescued 89 people whom it currently has onboard, including four children. Unclear is how many people were aboard before, or how many people were picked up, after that. By 11:00 a.m. on August 29 in Central Europe, the number of refugees reported onboard increased to 219, and apparently, the boat had made the crossing toward Malta. Clear is that the destination country for these refugees will be under the hottest form of negotiation, what with Spain’s and France’s SARS-CoV2 rates spiking.

It’s worth noting that — used or spanking new — seagoing expedition-kitted 90-plus-footers do not come cheap. The yachtsman’s unforgiving rule is one of ten percent: The annual maintenance for a $10 million yacht, of whatever dimension, is estimated at $1 million. Any $10 million ship purchase, or whatever multiple or fraction thereof Banksy has paid to put this significant rescue vessel on the water, is professionally regarded as the entry fee to the larger ongoing bonfire of expense that maintenance would demand. For a fast ninety-plus footer kitted out for medical and/or expeditionary action as the Louise Michel is, $10 million would be a low-to-mid-range price. Any way you look at the Louise Michel, it represents an admirably swift and wholehearted level of personal commitment that the presumed Mr. Gunningham has made.

For her part, as Banksy describes her, the “badass” Captain Klemp, who has rescued thousands, likes to work in critically close to the Libyan coast, thus sparing her clients the world’s deadliest crossing and possible re-capture by the Libyan Coast Guard, such as it is in the war-torn country. (When the Libyan Coast Guard apprehends the oft-failing or overloaded refugee craft, it returns the passengers to their uncertain fates in the refugee camps.) The top speed of the Louise Michel is 27 knots, which is very fast for a ninety-footer. Captain Klemp has stated that she hopes to be able to “outrun the Libyan Coast Guard” before they can capture the inflatables and other cobbled-together craft in which the smugglers send the unending stream of refugees and migrants off. It’s a very Banksy-ish notion: The Louise Michel’s mission is one of interdiction.

Bottom line: Ever-puckish as he may be on canvas and in his spectacular art-world pranks, such as shredding works as they are auctioned, in this area of philanthropic largesse, Banksy is absolutely no joke.

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‘Disgraceful:’ N.S. Tory leader slams school’s request that military remove uniform

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HALIFAX – Nova Scotia Premier Tim Houston says it’s “disgraceful and demeaning” that a Halifax-area school would request that service members not wear military uniforms to its Remembrance Day ceremony.

Houston’s comments were part of a chorus of criticism levelled at the school — Sackville Heights Elementary — whose administration decided to back away from the plan after the outcry.

A November newsletter from the school in Middle Sackville, N.S., invited Armed Forces members to attend its ceremony but asked that all attendees arrive in civilian attire to “maintain a welcoming environment for all.”

Houston, who is currently running for re-election, accused the school’s leaders of “disgracing themselves while demeaning the people who protect our country” in a post on the social media platform X Thursday night.

“If the people behind this decision had a shred of the courage that our veterans have, this cowardly and insulting idea would have been rejected immediately,” Houston’s post read. There were also several calls for resignations within the school’s administration attached to Houston’s post.

In an email to families Thursday night, the school’s principal, Rachael Webster, apologized and welcomed military family members to attend “in the attire that makes them most comfortable.”

“I recognize this request has caused harm and I am deeply sorry,” Webster’s email read, adding later that the school has the “utmost respect for what the uniform represents.”

Webster said the initial request was out of concern for some students who come from countries experiencing conflict and who she said expressed discomfort with images of war, including military uniforms.

Her email said any students who have concerns about seeing Armed Forces members in uniform can be accommodated in a way that makes them feel safe, but she provided no further details in the message.

Webster did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

At a news conference Friday, Houston said he’s glad the initial request was reversed but said he is still concerned.

“I can’t actually fathom how a decision like that was made,” Houston told reporters Friday, adding that he grew up moving between military bases around the country while his father was in the Armed Forces.

“My story of growing up in a military family is not unique in our province. The tradition of service is something so many of us share,” he said.

“Saying ‘lest we forget’ is a solemn promise to the fallen. It’s our commitment to those that continue to serve and our commitment that we will pass on our respects to the next generation.”

Liberal Leader Zach Churchill also said he’s happy with the school’s decision to allow uniformed Armed Forces members to attend the ceremony, but he said he didn’t think it was fair to question the intentions of those behind the original decision.

“We need to have them (uniforms) on display at Remembrance Day,” he said. “Not only are we celebrating (veterans) … we’re also commemorating our dead who gave the greatest sacrifice for our country and for the freedoms we have.”

NDP Leader Claudia Chender said that while Remembrance Day is an important occasion to honour veterans and current service members’ sacrifices, she said she hopes Houston wasn’t taking advantage of the decision to “play politics with this solemn occasion for his own political gain.”

“I hope Tim Houston reached out to the principal of the school before making a public statement,” she said in a statement.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Saskatchewan NDP’s Beck holds first caucus meeting after election, outlines plans

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REGINA – Saskatchewan Opposition NDP Leader Carla Beck says she wants to prove to residents her party is the government in waiting as she heads into the incoming legislative session.

Beck held her first caucus meeting with 27 members, nearly double than what she had before the Oct. 28 election but short of the 31 required to form a majority in the 61-seat legislature.

She says her priorities will be health care and cost-of-living issues.

Beck says people need affordability help right now and will press Premier Scott Moe’s Saskatchewan Party government to cut the gas tax and the provincial sales tax on children’s clothing and some grocery items.

Beck’s NDP is Saskatchewan’s largest Opposition in nearly two decades after sweeping Regina and winning all but one seat in Saskatoon.

The Saskatchewan Party won 34 seats, retaining its hold on all of the rural ridings and smaller cities.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 8, 2024.

The Canadian Press. All rights reserved.

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Nova Scotia election: Liberals say province’s immigration levels are too high

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HALIFAX – Nova Scotia‘s growing population was the subject of debate on Day 12 of the provincial election campaign, with Liberal Leader Zach Churchill arguing immigration levels must be reduced until the province can provide enough housing and health-care services.

Churchill said Thursday a plan by the incumbent Progressive Conservatives to double the province’s population to two million people by the year 2060 is unrealistic and unsustainable.

“That’s a big leap and it’s making life harder for people who live here, (including ) young people looking for a place to live and seniors looking to downsize,” he told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.

Anticipating that his call for less immigration might provoke protests from the immigrant community, Churchill was careful to note that he is among the third generation of a family that moved to Nova Scotia from Lebanon.

“I know the value of immigration, the importance of it to our province. We have been built on the backs of an immigrant population. But we just need to do it in a responsible way.”

The Liberal leader said Tim Houston’s Tories, who are seeking a second term in office, have made a mistake by exceeding immigration targets set by the province’s Department of Labour and Immigration. Churchill said a Liberal government would abide by the department’s targets.

In the most recent fiscal year, the government welcomed almost 12,000 immigrants through its nominee program, exceeding the department’s limit by more than 4,000, he said. The numbers aren’t huge, but the increase won’t help ease the province’s shortages in housing and doctors, and the increased strain on its infrastructure, including roads, schools and cellphone networks, Churchill said.

“(The Immigration Department) has done the hard work on this,” he said. “They know where the labour gaps are, and they know what growth is sustainable.”

In response, Houston said his commitment to double the population was a “stretch goal.” And he said the province had long struggled with a declining population before that trend was recently reversed.

“The only immigration that can come into this province at this time is if they are a skilled trade worker or a health-care worker,” Houston said. “The population has grown by two per cent a year, actually quite similar growth to what we experienced under the Liberal government before us.”

Still, Houston said he’s heard Nova Scotians’ concerns about population growth, and he then pivoted to criticize Prime Minister Justin Trudeau for trying to send 6,000 asylum seekers to Nova Scotia, an assertion the federal government has denied.

Churchill said Houston’s claim about asylum seekers was shameful.

“It’s smoke and mirrors,” the Liberal leader said. “He is overshooting his own department’s numbers for sustainable population growth and yet he is trying to blame this on asylum seekers … who aren’t even here.”

In September, federal Immigration Minister Marc Miller said there is no plan to send any asylum seekers to the province without compensation or the consent of the premier. He said the 6,000 number was an “aspirational” figure based on models that reflect each province’s population.

In Halifax, NDP Leader Claudia Chender said it’s clear Nova Scotia needs more doctors, nurses and skilled trades people.

“Immigration has been and always will be a part of the Nova Scotia story, but we need to build as we grow,” Chender said. “This is why we have been pushing the Houston government to build more affordable housing.”

Chender was in a Halifax cafe on Thursday when she promised her party would remove the province’s portion of the harmonized sales tax from all grocery, cellphone and internet bills if elected to govern on Nov. 26. The tax would also be removed from the sale and installation of heat pumps.

“Our focus is on helping people to afford their lives,” Chender told reporters. “We know there are certain things that you can’t live without: food, internet and a phone …. So we know this will have the single biggest impact.”

The party estimates the measure would save the average Nova Scotia family about $1,300 a year.

“That’s a lot more than a one or two per cent HST cut,” Chender said, referring to the Progressive Conservative pledge to reduce the tax by one percentage point and the Liberal promise to trim it by two percentage points.

Elsewhere on the campaign trail, Houston announced that a Progressive Conservative government would make parking free at all Nova Scotia hospitals and health-care centres. The promise was also made by the Liberals in their election platform released Monday.

“Free parking may not seem like a big deal to some, but … the parking, especially for people working at the facilities, can add up to hundreds of dollars,” the premier told a news conference at his campaign headquarters in Halifax.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 7, 2024.

— With files from Keith Doucette in Halifax

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