On the dangers of Social Media
New technologies and social media platforms have advanced the way we communicate but it has also caused some pause for concern. All too often, careless posts or tweets have serious repercussions that were not contemplated by the originators. Case in point – Foreign Affairs Minister, Chrystia Freeland’s tweet that the Government of Canada was gravely concerned about the arrests of civil society and women’s rights activists in Saudi Arabia, including Samar Badawi, and called for their immediate release.
As a result of this rather innocuous tweet, during the week of August 6th, Saudi Arabia announced that it would suspend new trade and investment with Canada, in addition to giving the Canadian ambassador twenty four hours to leave the country and recalling its own ambassador to Canada.
The Saudi government has also directed the selloff of all Canadian assets and purchases of Canadian wheat and barley which will be of serious consequence in Western Canada. They have also given Saudi students enrolled in Canadian universities four weeks to leave the country, stopped all medical treatment programs in Canada and are working to transfer all Saudi patients from Canadian hospitals. The recall of the primarily medical students, will negatively impact the Canadian economy as this will remove approximately $2 billion in annual investment.
