Canada needs to make a statement about Aung San Suu Kyi, Question easy loans from China, Working mothers are assets, not liabilities, Tourism bump is driven by North American economic growth, Tennis organizations should work harder to win against sexism
A roundup of global commentary for the Sept. 17, 2018 weekly magazine.
Serena Williams returns a shot to Anastasija Sevastova, of Latvia, during the semifinals of the US Open tennis tournament, Thursday, Sept. 6, 2018, in New York. Controversy has surrounded a recent ban on catsuits in the French Open as female tennis players face ever-stricter outfit rules.
Andres Kudacki/AP
The Star / Toronto
Canada needs to make a statement about Aung San Suu Kyi
“Six Burmese generals accused [recently] of ‘genocidal intent’ against the Rohingya people ... are walking free...,” states an editorial. “But the real outrage is that ... the slaughter ... continues unabated.... [T]his ethnic cleansing is taking place in a country whose elected civilian leader, Aung San Suu Kyi, is a Nobel Peace Prize winner and one of only six people to have been made an honorary citizen of Canada. Where does she stand on the massacre of her own citizens? Nowhere. She is silent.... No wonder some ... are calling on the Trudeau government to revoke Suu Kyi’s honorary Canadian citizenship. And so it should. Symbols matter.”
The Gleaner / Kingston, Jamaica
Question easy loans from China
“The new government of Malaysia, led by Mahathir Mohamad, has started a movement that the current Jamaican Government ... should view prudently...,” writes Carol Archer. “[T]he 93-year-old Mohamad was voted into office with a mandate to reduce the country’s debt[,] a good portion of which is owed to Chinese companies and government. The ... previous administration received easy loans for showcase projects and signed deals that were of strategic value mainly for the Chinese.... There is enough ... evidence from across the globe to suggest that governments and citizens of developing countries must seriously question Chinese investments in major infrastructure ... projects. Certainly, here in Jamaica, given our colonial and neo-colonial experiences, we should at least question whether the next generation should be indebted....”
South China Morning Post / Hong Kong
Working mothers are assets, not liabilities
“Some people believe having children will kill a woman’s ambition to succeed at work, or even ruin her career,” writes Luisa Tam. “The truth is: in most cases, it doesn’t. But when a woman’s career is ... adversely affected, it’s most likely caused by companies that hold discriminatory attitudes towards working mothers.... [A] working mother is a valuable asset. She is an effective manager, who is good at multitasking, and has good negotiation and conflict-resolution skills.... [T]he government must ensure companies are committed to equal pay and hiring for all, including working mothers. And we must change ... the perception that working mothers are less committed to their job than others without children.”
The Nassau Guardian / Nassau, Bahamas
Tourism bump is driven by North American economic growth
“[In August] the Ministry of Tourism reported that international arrivals to The Bahamas were up 10.2 percent for the year...,” states an editorial. “[T]he strong growth in the hemisphere’s two largest economies – the U.S. and Canada – are the real engines of this boom tourism market.... For all the fears of economic slowdown from the Trump administration’s trade wars ... thus far the good times continue.... With tourism being our number one industry, there is hope that good times are here again in The Bahamas.... Hopefully we are at the beginning of a sustained period of growth. We never fully recovered from the financial crisis a decade ago. Bahamians are ready for prosperity.”
The Times of India / Mumbai
Tennis organizations should work harder to win against sexism
“The Grand Slams seem to keep breaking into a sweat over women’s bodies,” states an editorial. “Serena Williams is being banned from wearing a catsuit at future French Opens and Alize Cornet has received a US Open code violation for changing her T-shirt on court.... The Cornet reprimand was such a brazen display of sexist double standards, that it has forced US Open organisers to clarify ‘this will not happen moving forward....’ [Novak Djokovic] took off his shirt during a break. As did other men.... All this dressing down is in the guise of ‘respect the game’. But that metric should only be concerned with the skills a player brings to the game. Criticising what she wears to it or doesn’t is just discrimination.”