Fausta's Blog

American and Latin American Politics, Society, and Culture

December 18, 2007 By Fausta

Gaddafi’s big-tent politics… in Spain

He came, he pitched a tent, he conquered, and now he’s in Spain.

The EUropean’s favorite tyrant du jour arrived in Spain, along with 300 attendants. 30 bodyguard babes and a camel, and pitched his tent at the Palacio del Pardo, but first he stopped by Hacienda La Boticaria hotel, 11 miles southeast of Seville, smack in the heart of Al-Andalus.

Apparently some in France were relieved to see him go, particularly after

Gaddafi also took a boat trip down the Seine, after insisting that all the capital’s bridges be closed to traffic and pedestrians. On Thursday his bodyguards came to blows in the lobby of the Ritz Hotel with security personnel accompanying former Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu.

Never mind that pseky torture lawsuit; Muammar’s been immune from prosecution in France since 2001.

It’s not clear whether the French deals involved 10 billion euros, or 3 billion euros. What’s interesting is that this tour is part of a planned “Mediterranean Union”, one of Sarko’s pet projects:

To Sarkozy Libya is a linchpin in his plan for a “Mediterranean Union” to defuse tension with Muslim countries.

But back to Gaddafi/Gadhafi/Kadhafi, or however you spell it, he pitched his tent in the King’s back yard, so to speak:

He visited France last week and paid a private visit to the Andalusia region of southern Spain over the weekend. On Monday he held talks with Prime Minister Jose Luis Rodriguez Zapatero and King Juan Carlos and on Tuesday he is scheduled to meet business representatives. It is the Libyan leader’s first official trip to Spain.

He was greeted at Madrid airport by Defense Minister Jose Antonio Alonso. He then traveled to El Pardo palace on the Spanish capital’s outskirts where he was greeted by the king.

In keeping with the desert tradition of his region, Gadhafi has had a green Bedouin tent set up in the gardens of the Pardo to receive guests. The Pardo palace is the official residence for dignitaries visiting Spain.

Borrowing a page from Hugo, Gaddafi’s danging the oil money carrot:

Spanish firms could also secure bids for 10 billion of the 50 billion dollars which Libya plans to spend to develop its infrastructure, the statement added.

As Aquiles reminds us, Dealing with ex-pariahs is a ticklish business.

We’ll see how this 3-ring circus turns out.

1988 is a century away…

UPDATE
Via the Baron, it turns that Gaddafi’s a champion of women: FRANCE-LIBYA: I WANT TO SAVE THE EUROPEAN WOMEN, GADDAFI (I took the liberty of highlighting how much of an Alan Alda he is)

PARIS, DECEMBER 13 – Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi showed himself as champion of women’s rights, including of European women, denouncing their “tragic condition” during a conference in Paris yesterday.

On the third day of his controversial visit in France, the Colonel spoke of the ‘Situation of the Women in the World’ in front of one thousand women, almost all of African origin and almost all veiled, in a luxury hall of the Gabriel palace on the Champs-Elysees. “Welcome, Your Excellency,” hundreds of women said in chorus when Gaddafi entered the hall.

“Gaddafi wants the French women to rise at his arrival,” warned Khadija Khali, president of the French Union of Muslim Women and of a pro-Libyan association, who organised the meeting.

Applauded when he denounced “the injustices” towards the African women, the Libyan leader received softer applause when he criticised the “tragic conditions of the woman in Europe, forced sometimes to do work which she refuses”, such as mechanic or bricklayer. “I want to save the European woman who is struggling,” assured the leader of the Libyan revolution.

The audience were invited to ask questions, but without making Gaddafi “angry”, Mrs Khali reminded.

After the end of the conference, France Presse collected some critical opinions. “I came here to see what he had to say,” commented for example Catherine Chastenet, president of the association ‘Femmes et libertes’. “How can he say he has done much for women in the world when he tortured the Bulgarian nurses?” she asks herself. (ANSAmed).

Digg!

Share on Facebook

Share

Filed Under: France, Libya, Spain

Tweets by @Fausta
retirees_raise-2015_300x250

Pages

  • About
  • Email

Meta

  • Register
  • Log in
  • Entries feed
  • Comments feed
  • WordPress.org

Previous Posts

  • Mrs. Maisel goes full Alinsky on Mrs. Schlafly
  • Venezuela: Did the Minister of Defense back out at the last minute?
  • You need to unfriend me
  • Go ahead and Kiss the Girl, if you dare
  • Ashamed

Recent Comments

  • John on Mrs. Maisel goes full Alinsky on Mrs. Schlafly
  • Today’s hot topics: Democrats’ collusion shift, tax-return rift, Venezuela drift, and more! – PoliticalWitchDoctor.com on Venezuela: Did the Minister of Defense back out at the last minute?
  • Today’s hot topics: Democrats’ collusion shift, tax-return rift, Venezuela drift, and more! - AmericanTruthToday on Venezuela: Did the Minister of Defense back out at the last minute?
  • Did Venezuela’s Minister of Defense Back Out At The Last Minute? on Venezuela: Did the Minister of Defense back out at the last minute?
  • Roseanne Not Back, Khan not Invited, Operaman’s back, Jobs back, Fausta’s back (but not here yet) Thoughts under the fedora – Da Tech Guy Blog on Venezuela: Did the Minister of Defense back out at the last minute?

Archives

  • 2019
    • December 2019
    • May 2019
    • January 2019
  • 2018
    • December 2018
    • October 2018
    • July 2018
    • June 2018
    • April 2018
    • March 2018
    • February 2018
    • January 2018
  • 2017
    • December 2017
    • November 2017
    • October 2017
    • September 2017
    • August 2017
    • July 2017
    • June 2017
    • May 2017
    • April 2017
    • March 2017
    • February 2017
    • January 2017
  • 2016
    • December 2016
    • November 2016
    • October 2016
    • September 2016
    • August 2016
    • July 2016
    • June 2016
    • May 2016
    • April 2016
    • March 2016
    • February 2016
    • January 2016
  • 2015
    • December 2015
    • November 2015
    • October 2015
    • September 2015
    • August 2015
    • July 2015
    • June 2015
    • May 2015
    • April 2015
    • March 2015
    • February 2015
    • January 2015
  • 2014
    • December 2014
    • November 2014
    • October 2014
    • September 2014
    • August 2014
    • July 2014
    • June 2014
    • May 2014
    • April 2014
    • March 2014
    • February 2014
    • January 2014
  • 2013
    • December 2013
    • November 2013
    • October 2013
    • September 2013
    • August 2013
    • July 2013
    • June 2013
    • May 2013
    • April 2013
    • March 2013
    • February 2013
    • January 2013
  • 2012
    • December 2012
    • November 2012
    • October 2012
    • September 2012
    • August 2012
    • July 2012
    • June 2012
    • May 2012
    • April 2012
    • March 2012
    • February 2012
    • January 2012
  • 2011
    • December 2011
    • November 2011
    • October 2011
    • September 2011
    • August 2011
    • July 2011
    • June 2011
    • May 2011
    • April 2011
    • March 2011
    • February 2011
    • January 2011
  • 2010
    • December 2010
    • November 2010
    • October 2010
    • September 2010
    • August 2010
    • July 2010
    • June 2010
    • May 2010
    • April 2010
    • March 2010
    • February 2010
    • January 2010
  • 2009
    • December 2009
    • November 2009
    • October 2009
    • September 2009
    • August 2009
    • July 2009
    • June 2009
    • May 2009
    • April 2009
    • March 2009
    • February 2009
    • January 2009
  • 2008
    • December 2008
    • November 2008
    • October 2008
    • September 2008
    • August 2008
    • July 2008
    • June 2008
    • May 2008
    • April 2008
    • March 2008
    • February 2008
    • January 2008
  • 2007
    • December 2007
    • November 2007
    • October 2007
    • September 2007
    • August 2007
    • July 2007
    • June 2007
    • May 2007
    • April 2007
    • March 2007
    • February 2007
    • January 2007
  • 2006
    • December 2006
    • November 2006
    • October 2006
    • September 2006
    • August 2006
    • July 2006
    • June 2006
    • May 2006
    • April 2006
    • March 2006
    • February 2006
    • January 2006
  • 2005
    • December 2005
    • November 2005
    • October 2005
    • September 2005
    • August 2005
    • July 2005
    • June 2005
    • May 2005
    • April 2005
    • March 2005
    • February 2005
    • January 2005
  • 2004
    • December 2004
    • November 2004
    • October 2004
    • September 2004
    • August 2004
    • July 2004
    • June 2004
    • May 2004
    • April 2004
    • March 2004
Content Copyright Fausta's Blog

Site Developed and Managed by 300m.com