Brexit – weird flex but ok

Is anyone still keeping up with the day-to-day proceedings of the inescapable, never-ending, altogether pretty boring breakup between the UK and the EU? This past week it appeared that even nudity in the House of Commons was accepted as part of the new normal of Brexit-era British political procedure.

One of the reasons we might all be getting a bit fed up is that there were yet more votes in this past week as Parliament attempted to find an alternative to Prime Minister Theresa May’s withdrawal deal. It all kicked off with a second round of indicative votes. The amendments voted on four alternative Brexit options including a commitment to negotiate a “permanent and comprehensive UK-wide customs union with the EU” in any Brexit deal, a public vote, and ‘common market 2.0’. None of the four options chosen by speaker John Bercow were backed by the MPs. None of MPs’ eight proposed Brexit options secured clear backing in a series of votes in the Commons either. In the aftermath of these failed votes, Tory MP Nick Boles resigned from his party’s whip on the floor of the House of Commons. He will sit as an independent “progressive Conservative” – whatever that means – and has been spilling the tea on the Tory party’s handling of Brexit on Twitter.

Nudity, failed votes and a resignation on the floor of the Commons, but somehow the weirdest thing that appeared to happen in this past week in British politics was that Theresa May reached out to Labour leader Jeremy Corbyn to break the Brexit impasse.

In a speech at Downing Street this past Tuesday the Prime Minister stated that she would be seeking a longer extension from the European Union to avert a no-deal Brexit on April 12. Corbyn responded saying that he would be “very happy to meet” May to find a cross-party path out of this Brexit crisis, although he didn’t seem too enthusiastic about it all.

Also this past week, footage emerged of British soldiers shooting a target in Afghanistan with Corbyn’s face on it. The British Army has opened an investigation into the incident, with Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson tweeting that the video was “completely unacceptable”. Unfortunately for the Prime Minister these cross-party talks have only resulted in Labour accusing the government of failing to offer real change or compromise during these talks to end the Brexit stalemate. For a lot of people it seems like these talks were just too little, far too late.

Meanwhile, in another aspect of our dystopian politics, on Thursday MPs voted by a majority of one (1) to force the prime minister to ask for an extension to the Brexit process, in a bid to avoid any no-deal scenario. The bill, named the Cooper bill after Labour MP Yvette Cooper who led the move, was promptly moved on to the House of Lords to be granted approval and thus become law. This is where things got messy (not that things weren’t already messy, but these things are relative). Although the Lords gave the bill initial approval, Labour’s deputy leader in the House of Lords accused Tory Brexiteers of organising a filibuster to try to halt the bill. (Filibustering means progress on a bill or motion cannot be made within the allocated time, halting its progress to becoming legislation.) As a result of the filibustering by peers, the bill is not expected to complete its legislative stages in the Lords until next Monday at the earliest.

And so it’s now official: Brexit doesn’t mean Brexit. Or at least, it probably won’t mean it on April 12. This past Friday Theresa May formally appealed to the EU for another extension of the UK’s departure date until June 30. Or maybe May 22. Or maybe 2020. Time is a social construct, after all. It’s also with gerat regret that I am writing that there is yet another strange term to add to the Brexit dictionary – ‘flextension’. This refers to European Council President Donald Tusk’s proposal for a year long Brexit delay to allow the UK to leave the EU on July 1 2020. Meanwhile Theresa May requested a second Brexit postponement until June 30 2019. French President Emmanuel Macron has expressed his concerns about the negative consequences of the UK’s departure from the EU dragging on interminably. You and me both, mon ami.

The prospect of a ‘flextension’ raises even more new problems for the Brexit process, as Tusk has suggested that the UK could have another year to think about Brexit provided that they join EU elections next month. The prospect of the UK electing MEPs for a 5-year term while it’s in the process of apparently leaving the EU raises some tricky legal questions, while the idea of voting in an election for a bureaucracy that the country actively voted to leave will likely create an even greater political existential crisis in the UK. One thing we can say for certain is that regardless of what extension – if any – is granted, Brexit is going to be a huge issue within both the UK and the EU27 for a long time to come.

Turkish local elections

Earlier this week, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan’s AK Party narrowly lost control of the country’s two biggest cities – Istanbul and Ankara – in local elections. The AK Party and its Islamist predecessor have controlled both of these cities for 25 years.

Results reported this past Tuesday showed the opposition candidate for mayor in Istanbul was at 48.79%, against 48.51% for Erdogan’s AKP. This is significant considering the fact that Erdogan first won the mayorship of Istanbul before beginning his 17 years in power, building his popularity through providing local services.

As Turkey’s economy falls into recession and Erodgan has assumed sweeping new executive powers (including abolishing the Prime Minister’s office) these losses for the AK Party have been interpreted by some as a weakening of the political strongman’s standing with voters. The Turkish lira lost 27% of its value in 2018 and continues to fall. Erdogan and has party have challenged the results, arguing that there were voting irregularities after the opposition party CHP won in Ankara and Izmir. Parts of the largely government-controlled media are reporting allegations that stolen ballots hindered the party’s performance.

Opposition party ‘winner’ Erkem Imamoglu in Istanbul has called the AKP “bad losers”, as the current recount shows that his party maintains the lead in the city’s municipal elections. The AKP maintain that there are more than 300,000 invalid votes in Istanbul and just under 110,000 in Ankara.

Canadians turn their backs on Trudeau – literally

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau appears to have fallen from grace after kicking Jody Wilson-Raybould, the former attorney general, and Jane Philpott out of the Liberal parliamentary caucus.

These two female MPs accused Trudeau of meddling in a criminal case involving the Canadian company SNC-Lavalin, and now they have been expelled from the Prime Minister’s party just months before a general election. Shortly after informing his caucus about the expulsions, Trudeau told the media that “the trust that previously existed between these two individuals and our team has been broken”, stating that it was “unconscionable” that Wilson-Raybould had publicised a secretly recorded conversation she had with one of Canada’s top civil servants.

The Canadian firm, SNC-Lavalin, is accused of bribing officials in Libya in order to win contracts under Gaddafi’s regime. Wilson-Raybould claimed members of Trudeau’s inner circle pressured her to cut a deal, and when she refused, she was removed from her position as justice minister.

This political controversy has resulted in multiple resignations within the Canadian government and has caused Trudeau’s popularity to drop sharply; especially among women who may feel they have once again been let down by a man making empty promises under the guise of using white feminism as a political marketing ploy. Trudeau faced some tough questions in the Canadian House of Commons from young women participating in a special event promoting political leadership this past Tuesday, while dozens of the 338 delegates turned their backs on the Prime Minister as he delivered his opening remarks. Trudeau’s decision to eject these two women from the Liberal parliamentary caucus has been harshly criticised partially due to his position as a self-described feminist who has talked up his 50-50 cabinet throughout his time in office. The Canadian Prime Minister is now facing accusations of hypocrisy regarding his equality agenda.

Slovakia’s new President

Zuzana Caputova, an anti-corruption activist, liberal environmental lawyer and political newcomer, was elected Slovakia’s first female President.

With 58% of the vote, Caputova comfortably defeated the EU energy commissioner Marcos Sefcovic, the candidate from the ruling SMER party. Caputova ran on the campaign slogan of “Stand up to evil”, and was inspired to run for office after taking to the streets with tens of thousands of her fellow Solvakians when  the investigative journalist Jan Kuciak was shot dead alongside his fiancee, Martina Kusnirova, in February 2018. Kuciak had written about a pattern of corrupt dealings associated with a prominent businessman in Slovakia. Many  protestors held the Slovakian governement and the ruling SMER party indirectly responsible for the killings. In the wake of these anti-government rallies the Prime Minister of Slovakia, Robert Fico, and other government officials resigned.

Caputova is a member of Progressive Slovakia, a new liberal party that has no representation in Parliament, although throughout the election campaign she stated that she would give up her party membership if she became President. Prior to her entry into politics, she was best known for blocking a planned landfill site in her home town in 2016. The success of a liberal and pro-EU candidate appears to counter the rising wave of populaism across Europe, and although the role of President is largely  ceremonial, Caputova has committed herself to a message of justice and transparency as she intends to reinforce the independence of the public prosecutor’s office and in the naming of judges.

Algeria’s old President

After 20 years in power and weeks of nationwide protests against him, Algerian President Abdelaziz Bouteflika announced he will step down before 28 April.

This news came amid protests driven by factors such as youth unemployment in the north African state, allegations of corruption, years of political repression and censorship, and Bouteflika’s poor health. The protests began after the 82-year-old launched his bid for a fifth term in office. Prior to the announcement Bouteflika stated that he would undergo a major cabinet resuffle, reportedly replacing 21 of the country’s 27 ministers in preparation for his resignation. The decision to resign followed soon after a call from a powerful army chief to “immediately” step down.

A day after saying he would step down, Bouteflika released a public farewell letter saying that he was “proud” of his contribution to the country, and urged the Algerian peopel to “stay united”. He also asked for forgivemeness for “any failing.” adding that he was “leading the political stage with neither sadness nor fear” for Algeria’s future. Abdel Bensalah, chairman of the upper house of parliament, is expected to become the interim president in the three months before elections.

Bouteflika’s decision to step down is unlikely to satisy the protestors, whose demands have now grown to encompass a rebellion against the regime around Bouteflika, as well as the President himself. In an official statement the protest movement stated that “Algerians will continue to protest for the overthrow of the regime, and for a transitional period led by personalities who agree with the principles of the protest movement… They are losing, but we haven’t yet won.” This past Friday protests continued for the seventh successive week in the country’s capital demaning a complete overhaul of the country’s political structure.