Wow!! Vladimir Putin speaks out!

[Class316]

RUSSIAN President Vladimir Putin sparked uproar yesterday by saying Africans had a history of CANNIBALISM.

He lashed out at the continent’s past after being challenged about his human rights’ record.

In an astonishing outburst, Mr Putin said: “We all know that African countries used to have a tradition of eating their own adversaries.

“We don’t have such a tradition or process or culture and I believe the comparison between Africa and Russia is not quite just.”

Tony Blair, who had just finished talks with Mr Putin, was left squirming with embarrassment as the former KGB boss let rip.

Minutes before the outburst, Mr Blair had hailed reaching a deal with the Russian leader on aid and debt relief for Africa.

But Mr Putin’s remarks about cannibalism will be greeted with astonishment in Africa and the wider world, as he will succeed the PM as G8 president next year.

Commission for Racial Equality chief Trevor Phillips said last night: “What a preposterous thing to say. He is at best insensitive and at worst a downright racist.”

Mr Putin had invited Mr Blair to his country residence for talks about the Prime Minister’s drive to wipe out third world poverty before next month’s G8 summit at Gleneagles.

The pair struck a deal after Mr Blair agreed to Mr Putin’s demands that aid was linked to Africa’s move towards democracy.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/article/0,,2-2005270254,00.html

It is amazing how the truth hurts

Also, it's rather humorous talking about how White man is evil due to stuff that happened 60 years ago or 200 years ago or 500 years ago or whatever. But slamming the past of non-Whites, that's un-pc and racist no matter how true

Putin, while far from ideal, is MILES ahead of Bush, Blair, Chirac, Schroeder etc! He says and does things that no other western "leader" would ever think about.

I officially make this thread dedicated to all things related to Putin! So in the future I will be posting all Putin related news links here!

[RabidYak]

I saw this in the rag a couple of days ago and thought it was hilarious.

I like Putin, he's got exactly the sort of dodgey edge and no-nonsense attitude that you need to do a reasonable job of running a place like Russia. He looks like the sort of bloke who could quite easily kill or have you killed without even trying or having a second thought.

[Class316]

Russia moves to ban foreign groups

MOSCOW, Russia (AP) -- Russia's lower house of parliament on Wednesday took the first step toward approval of a bill that would prevent foreign-funded rights groups from operating in the country -- a move sure to heighten criticism of President Vladimir Putin's commitment to democracy.

"The express purpose of this law is to emasculate the NGO community," said Holly Carnter, regional director of the U.S.-based Human Rights Watch. It would "eviscerate" civil society in Russia.

The measure, which received 370-18 approval in the 450-seat State Duma on its first reading, has been widely criticized by non-governmental organizations.

http://www.cnn.com/2005/WORLD/europe/11 ... index.html

Good on them!!

[Class316]

In other news:

Rabbi can’t come back

Russia is not allowing Moscow’s chief rabbi to return to Russia at the current time, the country’s Internal Affairs Ministry said.

In a letter publicized Tuesday, the ministry said Pinchas Goldschmidt would not be allowed to return to Russia for now. The letter cited an article in Russian legislation that prevents foreigners who are deemed threats to Russian national security from entering the country.

On Sept. 26, Goldschmidt, a Swiss national who’s been leading Moscow’s central synagogue for nearly 15 years, was denied re-entry to Russia and had his visa annulled at a Moscow airport. Until this week, authorities had not explained their reasons for the move.

http://jta.org/page_view_breaking_story.asp?intid=94