(04-22-2005) Bono 'annoyed' with Paul Martin - National Post*

[HelloAngel]

Bono 'annoyed' with Paul Martin

Sue Bailey
Canadian Press


OTTAWA (CP) -- If being mired in scandal and threatened with imminent defeat weren't enough, Prime Minister Paul Martin capped off a brutal week by striking a sour note with his most famous fan.

Rock superstar Bono is irked by Martin's refusal to meet a long-stated standard for foreign aid increases.

"I'm annoyed," the U2 frontman says in an exclusive interview to be aired Saturday on CBC Radio's The House.

"I'm bewildered, really. I'm disappointed.

"I can't believe that Paul Martin would want to hold up history."

Bono was interviewed from Vancouver as his band's world Vertigo tour landed on the West Coast.

Martin recently said he won't commit to spending 0.7 per cent of gross domestic product on foreign aid by the year 2015 because he's not convinced the country can afford it.

But Bono, showing a keen knowledge of Canada's domestic prosperity, would not let the prime minister's contention go unchallenged.

Ottawa has racked up successive multi-billion-dollar surpluses, and countries such as Britain, France and Germany commit to the 0.7 benchmark.

"There is a blessing on this country, on Canada," Bono said.

He also said Martin's political problems were no excuse for failing to increase foreign aid.

"It's a time for real leadership. I understand there's problems at home. I understand it's hard to get time to focus on this."

The Irish phenomenon has long lent his star power to Third World causes.

He was also there to add much-needed glitter to the Liberal leadership convention in November 2003 when Martin was crowned.

In return, Bono beseeched the party to share more of Canada's wealth with the world's poor.

The globe-trotting superstar fended off suggestions at the time that he'd been co-opted as Martin's political pawn.

"I'm going to be the biggest pain in his ass," he vowed at the time, before adding with what has turned out to be sharp foresight: "About a year from now he's going to regret tonight."

Canada now commits less than 0.3 per cent of its annual gross domestic product for foreign aid -- about $3.3 billion.

That's rising each year, including an eight per cent hike in the most recent federal budget, said Martin spokesman Scott Reid.

"The prime minister has great respect for Bono, and Canada remains committed to the 0.7 per cent target," Reid said.

"Rather than set an artificial deadline, the prime minister has focused on real increases measured in real dollars each and every year."

It's not enough, Bono said.

"We were looking for Canada to lead rather than be a laggard."

Still, Martin deserves some credit for doubling contributions to the global fund on AIDS, tuberculosis and malaria, he added.

There's also been progress on forgiving Third World debt.

But the needs are acute, Bono stressed.

"Six and a half thousand Africans dying every day of a preventable disease like AIDS is not a cause, it's an emergency.

"I implore this prime minister. I think he's a good man, and I think this is the moment to be a real leader."
© Canadian Press 2005

http://www.canada.com/national/nationalpost/news/story.html?id=b2559a32-af4a-43cb-b2e6-bc7e6fe0912f

Thanks to Nathan!

 

[anitram]

Yeah, well, get in line, Bono.

Half the country seems "annoyed" with PM, to put it politely.

 

[ladywithspinninghead]

You tell him Bono!

 

[reneedo]

Oh boy. Paul's done it now. Let's just see how fast his response time will be!! This will make the Ottawa concert more interesting.

 

[Elvis]

Politics.

 

[Jamila]

This turn-around by Paul Martin on his commitment is EXACTLY the reason why it is of UTMOST IMPORTANCE that everyday people, you and me, GET INVOLVED in the struggle to "make poverty history".

It's not enough to wear a white band to concerts, or post our concern on forums, but to ACTIVELY JOIN those organizations in our countries to PUT THE PRESSURE on our governments to KEEP THE PROMISES that they make to us, to people like Bono and, most importantly, to the children in Africa who will go to bed tonight with hungry bellies.

Yes, it may be politics, but politics can either save people's lives - or allow them to die.

I choose to get involved in this struggle to save people's lives.

 

[sniggirb]

"Martin recently said he won't commit to spending 0.7 per cent of gross domestic product on foreign aid by the year 2015 because he's not convinced the country can afford it."


Yet he and the Liberals can waste tonnes of money in the sponsorship scandal.

 

[angelordevil]

I heard Bono this morning on CBC radio (Canadian Broadcasting Corporation).

Anyone who doubts his intentions or sincerity would have been converted this morning. He actually sounded more like a Prime Minister than the "official" one we have in Paul Martin.

Bono phoned the radio station himself and gave a lengthy interview before the Vancouver show...pretty impressive.

The station tried to reach Martin for his take on not fully jumping into the Africa crisis, but he didn't return their calls.

Bono also gave out the Prime Mininter's phone number and urged all Canadians to let Martin know how they feel.

By the way, the number is (613) 992-4211...it's the main switchboard at the PM's office.

I'm calling right now....

 

[Shaliz]

Thanks for the number, angelordevil! I was listening this morning, but missed the last four digits. I think it's time to make a call.

 

[Zoomerang96]

bono can fuck right off.

our country is poised to elect the worst group of fanatics ever seen in canada. yes folks, the alliance are on sussex's front drive waiting for martin to pull out.

not that any of you would have a clue, as most of you listen to bono as the biblical truth.

paul martin is easily the best politician to run our country and has done SO much for us and others abroad. now all this shit from past liberal leaders comes out to surface, and now he's about to take the fall. that's awful.

and bono, timing is everything, and you couldn't have come at a worse time.

if any of you think the alliance will be an improvement in foreign aid, you've got another thing coming.

blind wankers, i thought us canadians were smarter than this.

george bush the third we'll call him...

 

[Eliv8]

Why would Bono be annoyed with the lead singer of Coldplay?

 

[Teta040]

Hm.

Too bad there isn't a Washington date on the first leg. I wonder if Bono would ever have the guts to reply in kind on a radio station to George W Bush. Not in that language. I'll bet not, b/c he will not want to alienate his friends in Congress.

I wonder what he thinks of his longtime buddy Bill Frist now?

SO as one of the clueless Yanos when it comes to Canadian politics, (OK, no, I know the basics, which is a lot more than most here do), clue me in on who will take Martin's place. They are, it sound slike, a Candianm copycat of the American neocon jihadists who are currently trying to smear the last remaining branch of government not in their paws (the Courts?)

 

[Shaliz]

bono can fuck right off.

our country is poised to elect the worst group of fanatics ever seen in canada. yes folks, the alliance are on sussex's front drive waiting for martin to pull out.

not that any of you would have a clue, as most of you listen to bono as the biblical truth.

paul martin is easily the best politician to run our country and has done SO much for us and others abroad. now all this shit from past liberal leaders comes out to surface, and now he's about to take the fall. that's awful.

and bono, timing is everything, and you couldn't have come at a worse time.

if any of you think the alliance will be an improvement in foreign aid, you've got another thing coming.

blind wankers, i thought us canadians were smarter than this.

george bush the third we'll call him...

While I do agree that the timing isn't great from the perspective of the government, I don't think anyone can argue that Canada is in a position to take a significant leadership role in the area of foreign aid. This is the moment to make a stand that will affect millions of lives and affect history itself. Unfortunately, our government has chosen to put the brakes on. I'm not denying that Paul Martin and the Liberals have taken steps forward in the foreign aid arena, and neither did Bono, I might add. In fact, he took the time during the radio interview to praise the Martin government for what they have done to help battle AIDS and poverty up to this point. I realize that the prime minister has a lot on his plate right now with the sponsorship scandal and everything surrounding that, but that doesn't mean that we shouldn't let him know that we would support a greater contribution by our country to foreign aid. All things considered, it's within Canada's means to give 0.7% GDP to this, and I, for one, would whole-heartedly support such a commitment. I'm not going to get into the whole business of the Conservative/Alliance party versus Liberal party because there is far more to that than this one issue, but regardless of anyone's personal political views, this is one area that we can hopefully agree on. Taking action doesn't have to be a negative thing. This government has done a decent job with aid to this point, but that doesn't mean there isn't room for improvement.

So, just for the record, we're not all "blind wankers".

 

[anitram]

Bono's barking up the wrong tree at the wrong time.

He can have a fabulous time discussing foreign aid with Harper. For him, that will be priority #849329402.

 

[Batman]

Bono should shut his fricking face.

Nuff said.

 

[ladywithspinninghead]

Right. We're not supposed to criticize the International Policy Statement's position on development because of the sponsorship scandal. Because Lord knows our politicians can't do more than one thing at a time. Please.

Sponsorship scandal or not, Paul Martin does deserve to be criticized for failing the developing world. And criticism of this kind is not going to drive people into the arms of the Conservatives, it will be the NDP who will reap the benefit.

 

[anitram]

I think it's kind of assumed the NDP will benefit, but I've seen this trend for a decade almost of voting and it always turns out not to be true, except maybe marginally.

The government should be able to walk and chew gum at the same time.

But honestly, I don't think any of them are listening to Bono right now nor do they think what he's saying is resonating with the public at this moment. Maybe it's cynical, but I really feel strongly this way.

 

[ladywithspinninghead]

I think it's kind of assumed the NDP will benefit, but I've seen this trend for a decade almost of voting and it always turns out not to be true, except maybe marginally.

You might be right but it seems like there's assumptions being made in this thread (not your posts I don't think) that somehow if we criticize Paul Martin for THIS, his government is going to fall and the Tories are going to win. (or that's what one would infer when reading posts here saying we ought not to criticize Martin because of the likelihood of the Tories gaining power)

Criticizing Martin over the government's failure to set a target date of delivering 0.7% of our ODA is not going to have any bearing whatsoever on whether a Conservative government is voted into power or not.

I doubt Bono's remarks will have any affect on voting tendencies but his criticism is definitely making news - here in Ottawa, it's on the front page of the Sun. Kudos to him for keeping it a front-page story, as it deserves to be.

 

[oceane]

You might be right but it seems like there's assumptions being made in this thread (not your posts I don't think) that somehow if we criticize Paul Martin for THIS, his government is going to fall and the Tories are going to win. (or that's what one would infer when reading posts here saying we ought not to criticize Martin because of the likelihood of the Tories gaining power)

Criticizing Martin over the government's failure to set a target date of delivering 0.7% of our ODA is not going to have any bearing whatsoever on whether a Conservative government is voted into power or not.

I doubt Bono's remarks will have any affect on voting tendencies but his criticism is definitely making news - here in Ottawa, it's on the front page of the Sun. Kudos to him for keeping it a front-page story, as it deserves to be.

EXACTLY. It's not going to have the slightest influence on who will get elected, but it does bring attention to the issue, which is crucial. Plus, the best time to have a politician do what you want is when he's vulnerable, just like Paul Martin is right now. I think Bono's timing is perfect, actually.

 

[anitram]

Oh, I don't think that anybody (in their right mind anyway) is going to vote for Harper because Bono is disappointed in PM. That makes no sense and no sentient being could possibly be thinking along those lines.

My point was more along the lines of the fact that Bono's statement now is useless in my eyes because nobody is listening to him anyway. His opinions about Africa are valid (and IMO, correct), but the government, all parties included, are just not going to change ANYTHING regarding our GDP policy at this time, nor are they going to engage in a debate. So that's why I said he's barking up the wrong tree at the wrong time, it's almost like he's talking to a blank wall at the moment.

I just really don't see what he thinks he will accomplish at the moment. PM and the Liberals are trying to save their own hide, the NDP is more interested in gaining more seats and the Conservatives care about as much about Africa as I do about professional rugby.

It's a topic that should be at the forefront. Realistically speaking, it just isn't and will not be at this point in time. And IMO, this would get no kind of coverage in Canada were it not for the media's mentality to "kick somebody while they are down" so they are piling as much shit on PM as possible. The rest of the time, the media is interested in Africa, yarite.

(And please nobody accuse me of loving PM - I've not voted for the Liberals in any provincial or federal election, so there is no love lost between myself and that party.)

 

[YusufZ]

I've had the good fortune of meeting both Bono and Paul Martin. In a nutshell, they're both good men.

Bono has a mission. However, he might be a little short-sighted in this respect considering that Harper is about to swoop in and if he succeeds, foreign aid will be off the list.

Martin, on the other hand, should have kept his promise in providing the full amount of aid. Decreasing the percentage is a useless cut in costs, especially since we're a pretty wealthy country.

All in all, Bono has the right to be "angry" at Martin, but he should take a more far-sighted view and consider the negative consequences of having Harper in office.

 

[reneedo]

Why would Bono be annoyed with the lead singer of Coldplay?

Don't know if you were being serious there or not, but the lead singer of Coldplay is Chris Martin. Paul Martin is the Prime Minister of Canada.

 

[Eliv8]

Don't know if you were being serious there or not, but the lead singer of Coldplay is Chris Martin. Paul Martin is the Prime Minister of Canada.

 

[sue4u2]

in a JAM newsletter received this morning:

Bono,
"Not honouring commitments is like "renegotiating your deal with God downwards," he said.

Full article here: http://jam.canoe.ca/Music/Artists/U/U2/2005/04/23/1009155.html

Edited to say: He did tell Martin he was going to be a pain in the arse. Bono lives up to his commitments.

 

[Zoomerang96]

bono's annoying, and if he becomes even more so, people are 7ust going to switch him off.

that is if they're even really listening to now.

lwtsh, i understand what you're saying, and yes i was being overly dramatic. but my point is that bono couldn't have picked a worse time.

and again, it can't be stressed enough how bad it would be for canada if the alliance came into power. anyone who really think they're genuinely concerned about the millions lost in the sponsorship scandal should perhaps reflect on the cost one election costs...250 million dollars.

do we need one of those every year? no.

 

[Needle_Chill]

I think Bono should stick to music right now. Seriously.

 

[Zoomerang96]

agreed. 100 per cent.

 

[jammin909]

Hm.

Too bad there isn't a Washington date on the first leg. I wonder if Bono would ever have the guts to reply in kind on a radio station to George W Bush.

He wouldnt and I lose respect for him bc of it. We all have seen the pics with him and Bush all buddy buddy waving, if you cant stand up to him, dont go picking on Canada.

 

[Zoomerang96]

thank you.