Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - March 20, 2024, Winnipeg, Manitoba W o r t h the wait! Your generosity has meaningful impact in our community. For Good. Forever. Scan above for our 2023 annual highlights Canadian Navigable Waters Act Manitoba Hydro hereby gives notice that a submission has been added to the Common Project Search (online registry) pursuant to the Canadian Navigable Waters Act described herein and its description. Pursuant to paragraph 4(1) of the said Act, Manitoba Hydro has deposited a notification of a minor work in accordance with the requirements set out on the External Submission Site, on the online Common Project Search Registry (http://cps.canada.ca/) and under registry number 10239, a description of the following work: • Install a 25 kV distribution line utilizing existing poles over Sturgeon Creek at Summit Road in between Saskatchewan Avenue and CentrePort Canada Way. Posted at Winnipeg, Manitoba this 20 th day of March, 2024. Available in accessible formats upon request. TOP NEWS A3 WEDNESDAY MARCH 20, 2024 ● ASSOCIATE EDITOR, NEWS: STACEY THIDRICKSON 204-697-7292 ● CITY.DESK@FREEPRESS.MB.CA ● WINNIPEGFREEPRESS.COM U.S. vows to defend Philippines M ANILA, Philippines — Secre- tary of State Antony Blinken underscored Washington’s “ironclad commitment” Tuesday to help defend the Philippines in case of an armed attack against its forces after clashes between Chinese and Filipino coast guards in the disputed South China Sea recently turned more hostile. Blinken, the latest high-level offi- cial to visit the United States treaty ally, met his Philippine counterpart Enrique Manalo on Tuesday before separately meeting President Ferdi- nand Marcos Jr. in Manila. President Joe Biden will host Mar- cos and Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in a White House summit in April. The three are like- ly to discuss growing concerns over increasingly aggressive Chinese actions in the South China Sea and North Korea’s nuclear program. “We stand with the Philippines and stand by our ironclad defence com- mitments, including under the Mutual Defense Treaty,” Blinken said in a news conference with Manalo. “We have a shared concern about the PRC’s actions that threaten our common vision for a free, open In- do-Pacific, including in the South China Sea and in the Philippines’ exclusive economic zone,” Blinken said, using the abbreviation for the People’s Republic of China. He cited “repeated violations of international law and the rights of the Philippines: water cannons, blocking manoeuv- res, close shadowing other dangerous operations.” The Chinese coast guard blocked and used water cannons against Phil- ippine vessels in a confrontation two weeks ago that slightly injured a Fili- pino admiral and four of his sailors near the disputed Second Thomas Shoal. The March 5 faceoff in the high seas also caused two minor collisions between Chinese and Philippine ves- sels and prompted Manila’s Depart- ment of Foreign Affairs to summon China’s deputy ambassador to convey a protest against the Chinese coast guard’s actions, which the Philippines said were unacceptable. The Chinese coast guard said then that “it took control measures in ac- cordance with the law against Philip- pine ships that illegally intruded into the waters adjacent to Ren’ai Reef,” the name Beijing uses for Second Thomas Shoal. The Second Thomas Shoal, which is occupied by a small Philippine navy contingent but surrounded by Chinese coast guard ships and other allied vessels, was the site of several tense skirmishes between Chinese and Phil- ippine coast guard ships in the past year. But Filipino officials said the confrontation earlier this month was particularly serious because of the in- juries sustained by its navy personnel and damage to their vessel. Blinken renewed a warning Tues- day that the U.S. is obligated under a 1951 Mutual Defence Treaty to de- fend the Philippines if Filipino forces, ships or aircraft come under an armed attack anywhere in the South China Sea. In Beijing, Chinese Foreign Min- istry spokesperson Lin Jian rejected Blinken’s comments on Chinese ag- gression in the South China Sea. “The U.S. is not a party to the South China Sea issue and has no right to intervene in maritime issues between China and the Philippines,” Lin said. “China will continue to take neces- sary measures to firmly defend its territorial sovereignty and maritime rights and interests and maintain peace and stability in the South China Sea.” Both Blinken and Manalo described their countries’ treaty alliance as being on “hyper-drive,” but acknow- ledged that more could be done. They said efforts to shore up defence ties were not aimed against any country. Beijing has repeatedly said that Marcos’ decision to allow the expan- sion of American military presence in the Philippines under a 2014 defence pact could undermine the security of China and the region. U.S. and Philippine forces plan to hold their largest annual combat exer- cises in April in the Philippines. The area would include a northern region just a sea away from Taiwan, which China claims as its own territory. “We reaffirmed our shared view that a strong and capable Philippines would make a formidable ally for the United States,” Manalo said. Blinken said that “the alliance has never been stronger, but we not only have to sustain that, we have to con- tinue to accelerate the momentum.” Outside the presidential palace in Manila, dozens of left-wing activists tore a mock U.S. flag in a noisy rally Tuesday to oppose Blinken’s visit and Washington’s involvement in the long-simmering territorial disputes. Aside from China and the Philip- pines, Vietnam, Malaysia, Taiwan and Brunei also have overlapping claims in the resource-rich and busy water- way, a key global trade route. Beijing claims almost the entire South China Sea. In the past decade, China has turned barren reefs into seven islands that now serve as mis- sile-protected island bases — includ- ing three with runways — that have bolstered its capability to fortify its territorial claims and patrols. In response, Washington has been strengthening an arc of military alliances and security ties in the In- do-Pacific, including with the Philip- pines, Vietnam and other countries at odds with China in the disputed sea. After China effectively seized an- other disputed atoll — the Scarbor- ough Shoal off the northwestern Phil- ippines — in 2012, Manila brought its disputes with Beijing to international arbitration and largely won. China, however, rejected the 2016 ruling of the United Nations-backed tribunal that invalidated its expansive claims on historical grounds, and continues to defy the decision. — The Associated Press Blinken underscores ‘ironclad’ support in clash with China over disputed sea JIM GOMEZ EVELYN HOCKSTEIN/POOL PHOTO U.S. Secretary of State Antony Blinken departs the Philippines en route to Saudi Arabia, at Ninoy Aquino International Airport in Pasay City, Metro Manila, Philippines. VEEJAY VILLAFRANCA / BLOOMBERG Philippines President Ferdinand Marcos Jr. will visit the White House with Japanese Prime Minister Fumio Kishida in April. MTS chair doesn’t rule out search for leaks MANITOBA Teachers’ Society exec- utives have not ruled out an investiga- tion to hold whistleblowers accountable for exposing employee concerns about the head office’s “toxic” environment, related departures and capacity to sup- port members. “I honestly can’t say at this point in time which direction things will take; we’ll have to see how things play out,” said president Nathan Martindale, who represents upwards of 16,600 public school teachers. Martindale chairs the union’s prov- incial executive — a governing board made up of 13 elected teachers, all of whom received a letter earlier this month urging them to launch an “in- quiry.” Executives from eight locals signed a March 7 letter requesting provincial executive members probe how confi- dential information about MTS head- quarters was leaked last month via so- cial media and reporters. The Free Press obtained the findings of a spring 2023 survey that yielded re- sponses from 65 per cent of the support and clerical staff who run day-to-day operations for the society out of its Por- tage Avenue campus. The poll found the majority of work- ers — members of Teamsters Local Union 979 — had a negative perception of the psychological health and safety of their office. There was also a nota- ble absence of trust and confidence in the senior management team among respondents. Nearly a dozen sources, including experienced staff members and repre- sentatives from the political side of the organization, have corroborated those results in separate interviews in recent weeks. Insiders flagged concerns about the short-lived tenure of a human resour- ces director who was investigating MTS employee concerns, the abrupt cancellation of a third-party probe into management and service-delivery lev- els. More than 20 per cent of employees have gone on a leave of absence or left the organization permanently over the last year. Martindale broke his silence on the situation Tuesday. “We’ve heard the concerns. We’re working on solutions. We’re committed to making things better, and it’s going to take time but we’re going to do it,” he said, adding he appreciates local executives’ worries about confiden- tial memos going “further than the in- tended audience.” Interim executive director Roland Stankevicius, who came out of retire- ment when his successor went on leave late last year, will serve until Danielle Fullan Kolton returns or another leader takes her place on a permanent basis, he said. The president did not disclose exact- ly when he first became aware of the Teamsters survey results. “MTS, as an organization, and leader- ship, specifically, has been trying to solve problems and address problems for quite a while now,” he said. Teamsters 979 president Paul Frias shared the poll results with members on Sept. 25. In a followup bulletin, Frias said re- quests to meet with Fullan Kolton about the findings on “several occasions” were declined. maggie.macintosh@freepress.mb.ca MAGGIE MACINTOSH ;