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CTV News
3 days ago
- Business
- CTV News
Sikh groups say Ottawa should not invite India's Modi to G7 summit
Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi arrives for a ceremonial reception for visiting Angolan President Joao Lourenco at the Indian presidential palace in New Delhi, India on Saturday, May 3, 2025. (AP Photo/Manish Swarup) OTTAWA — Sikh organizations are calling on Ottawa to break with a five-year tradition by not inviting Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi to the G7 summit. Canada is hosting the G7 leaders' summit next month in Kananaskis, Alta. with the leaders from those nations expected to attend — France, United Kingdom, Germany, Italy, Japan, the United States, along with the president of the European Commission. But Ottawa has been tight-lipped on which leaders it has invited outside that core group of like-minded liberal democracies. The South African high commission told The Canadian Press Canada invited President Cyril Ramaphosa to attend the summit. Ramaphosa, who is hosting the G20 summit this November in Johannesburg, has not confirmed if he will attend. Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese said on May 4 that Canada invited him to the summit and he will attend. Canada also has invited Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy to attend and he confirmed again this week he will be there. Modi has been invited to every G7 leaders' summit since 2019 and Canada and India have signalled recently a possible thaw in relations after months of tensions. But the Toronto-based Sikh Federation said this week that Canada should withhold any invitation 'until India substantially co-operates with criminal investigations in Canada.' They point to Canada's allegation that New Delhi played a role in the assassination of a Sikh activist near Vancouver in 2023, and in numerous other violent crimes. The Sikh Federation and the World Sikh Organization have expressed concerns about the federal Liberals seeking deeper ties with India. Foreign Affairs Minister Anita Anand said recently she had a 'productive discussion' with her Indian counterpart on May 25 on 'deepening our economic co-operation and advancing shared priorities.' The Sikh groups argue this suggests the federal government is putting economic concerns ahead of human rights. The Liberals originally made India the focus of their Indo-Pacific strategy in late 2022, describing the country as a democratic nation with strong trade potential. That all changed after the June 2023 assassination of Sikh activist Hardeep Singh Nijjar in British Columbia. Months later, the government accused India of involvement in his death. The RCMP says it has evidence that New Delhi is behind numerous crimes targeting Sikh-Canadians. India claims Canada is enabling a separatist movement that calls for a Sikh homeland — called Khalistan — to be carved out of India, and calls that a violation of its sovereignty. Ottawa has long held that it allows free speech that doesn't call for violence. Prime Minister Mark Carney said during the election campaign he wants to pursue trade with India. He said India could play a key role in ending the trade wars if it shows 'mutual respect' in light of 'strains on that relationship that we didn't cause.' India's high commission referred an interview request on the bilateral relationship to the country's foreign ministry in New Delhi. Global Affairs Canada hasn't released the names of every leader Ottawa has invited to the G7 summit next month. Department spokeswoman Camie Lamarche said the names would be 'made available in due time.' Mexican President Claudia Sheinbaum said this week that Canada had invited her nearly two weeks prior but she had not yet decided whether she'll attend. Since the April 28 federal election, Carney's office has published readouts of discussions with his counterparts from the G7 countries, along with Australia, Ukraine, Mexico, New Zealand, Denmark, Spain, the Netherlands, Poland, Norway and Jordan. G7 hosts in recent years have invited four or more guests. Canada invited a dozen when it last hosted the summit in 2018, including Haiti, the Seychelles, Norway and Argentina. This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 30, 2025. Dylan Robertson, The Canadian Press
Free Malaysia Today
24-05-2025
- Politics
- Free Malaysia Today
Gabon's ousted leader and family released from detention
Ali Bongo Ondimba had been under house arrest in the capital Libreville since 2023. (EPA Images pic) LUANDA : Gabon's former leader Ali Bongo Ondimba, who was detained after being ousted in a 2023 coup, has been released and has arrived in Luanda with his family, Angola's presidency said today. Bongo, whose family ruled Gabon for 55 years, had been under house arrest in the capital Libreville since being overthrown in August 2023. His wife and son had also been in detention, accused of embezzling public funds. A statement on the Angolan presidency's Facebook page announcing the arrival of the Bongo family in Luanda was accompanied by photographs showing the former leader being welcomed at an airport. The 'Bongo family has been released and has just arrived in Luanda', it said. The release of the family followed talks between Angola President Joao Lourenco and Gabon's new leader, Brice Clotaire Oligui Nguema, the statement said, without giving details. Oligui, a former junta leader, seized power in the oil-rich country in the August 2023 coup that ended the 55-year rule of the Bongo dynasty. The general was sworn in earlier this month after winning 94.85% in an April 12 vote in which international observers signalled no major irregularities. Oligui's main rival, Alain-Claude Bilie By Nze, who was the last prime minister under Bongo, said the family's release demonstrated that their detention 'did not respect the framework of law and justice'. 'President Oligui Nguema did not show clemency: he had to bow to international demands after what everyone understood to be an abuse of power,' he said. Lawyers for Bongo's French-born wife Sylvia, 62, and son Noureddin, 33, alleged they suffered torture while in detention. Several Gabonese media reported recently that they had been moved from cells in an annex of the presidency to a family residence in Libreville. Member of the transitional parliament, Geoffroy Foumboula Libeka, said the move of the family 'in the middle of the night and in total silence' was 'a real disgrace for the first days' of the new government. 'Where is Gabon's sovereignty?' he asked on social media, charging the Bongo family's release was 'the price to pay' for Gabon's reintegration into the African Union, which is currently headed by Lourenco. The African Union announced on April 30 that it had lifted sanctions against Gabon, which was suspended from the organisation following the coup. The country of 2.3 million people has endured high unemployment, regular power and water shortages, and heavy government debt despite its oil wealth. The Gabon presidency announced on social media on May 12 that Lourenco had met Oligui in Libreville for talks focused 'on strengthening bilateral cooperation, the smooth running of democratic elections marking the end of the transition in Gabon'. They also discussed the lifting of sanctions following Gabon's reintegration into the AU. The 66-year-old Bongo, who is suspected to be in poor health, came to power in 2009, taking over from his father, Omar Bongo Ondimba, who ruled for 41 years. In 2016, he was narrowly re-elected for a second term by a few thousand votes, beating opposition challenger Jean Ping after a campaign marred by bloody clashes and allegations of fraud. He suffered a stroke in October 2018 while on a visit to Saudi Arabia and there was speculation about his health and fitness to govern when he returned home. His public appearances were rare, and the times when he spoke live outside the confines of the presidential palace were rarer still. Bongo ruled for 14 years until he was overthrown moments after being proclaimed the winner in a presidential election the army and opposition declared fraudulent.
Zawya
14-05-2025
- Business
- Zawya
IMF cuts Angola's 2025 growth forecast to 2.4% on emerging risks
NAIROBI: The International Monetary Fund has cut Angola's preliminary growth outlook for 2025 to 2.4% from an initial 3%, it said after an assessment mission to Luanda, citing lower prices of oil and tightening external financing conditions. The Southern African oil exporter had to pay $200 million as extra security for a $1 billion loan from JPMorgan during the height of the selloff of risky assets last month, exposing the challenges faced by small, open African economies. "This downward revision to the outlook also poses risks to fiscal performance," the Fund said in a statement, adding that the findings will be discussed by its board in July. The team, was however, reassured by the government's determination to contain emerging risks, and to put in place mitigating measures, it said in a statement late on Tuesday. The IMF officials were on a mission known as Post Financing Assessment, which is reserved for nations with outstanding credit above their quotas that do not have an IMF-supported programme or a staff-monitored programme. The Fund sent a separate statement saying its head of Africa department, Abebe Aemro Selassie, had met with Angola's President Joao Lourenco in Luanda, to discuss the situation. "I emphasised the IMF's readiness to continue supporting Angola's efforts," the statement quoted Abebe as saying after the meeting.
Business Recorder
14-05-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
IMF cuts Angola's 2025 growth forecast to 2.4% on emerging risks
NAIROBI: The International Monetary Fund has cut Angola's preliminary growth outlook for 2025 to 2.4% from an initial 3%, it said after an assessment mission to Luanda, citing lower prices of oil and tightening external financing conditions. The Southern African oil exporter had to pay $200 million as extra security for a $1 billion loan from JPMorgan during the height of the selloff of risky assets last month, exposing the challenges faced by small, open African economies. 'This downward revision to the outlook also poses risks to fiscal performance,' the Fund said in a statement, adding that the findings will be discussed by its board in July. The team, was however, reassured by the government's determination to contain emerging risks, and to put in place mitigating measures, it said in a statement late on Tuesday. The IMF officials were on a mission known as Post Financing Assessment, which is reserved for nations with outstanding credit above their quotas that do not have an IMF-supported programme or a staff-monitored programme. IMF talks begin today The Fund sent a separate statement saying its head of Africa department, Abebe Aemro Selassie, had met with Angola's President Joao Lourenco in Luanda, to discuss the situation. 'I emphasised the IMF's readiness to continue supporting Angola's efforts,' the statement quoted Abebe as saying after the meeting.
Bloomberg
14-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Angola's Fight Against Corruption Is Losing Momentum, IMF Says
Angolan President Joao Lourenco's anti-corruption drive is losing steam, threatening the country's economic growth outlook, according to the International Monetary Fund. The oil-producing African nation's progress on fiscal transparency has stalled, high-profile investigations are languishing and some opinion surveys are reporting rising corruption perceptions, the IMF said in a report on Tuesday.
