In the previous op-ed I talked primarily about Canada`s role in Afghanistan and how we have shifted our foreign policy away from the middle ground peace-keeping focus to active combat.
Another disturbing trend in our policy is our shift in Middle East thinking. For decades Canada has attempted to promote a balanced approach to the long-lasting conflict in the Middle East. It was in fact here, that Canada made its first contribution to peacekeeping in the Israel-Egypt war in late October 1956.
It is imperative that we work closely with both the Israeli and Palestinian people in all attempts we undertake to promote a long-lasting peaceful solution to this tragic conflict. Unfortunately, under the Harper regime, Canadian policy is sliding away from this approach. We remember the Prime Minister`s comments when Israeli forces attacked Lebanon in 2006 resulting in thousands of civilian deaths. He called this a “measured” response to Hezbollah missile attacks into northern Israel. And, there was no criticism of the fact that 9 innocent young civilians of the Gaza flotilla were killed when Israeli troops boarded their ship in international waters. While I understand the need for Israel to have secure borders I am also sympathetic to Palestinian citizens who have a great need for the medical and other supplies being denied them under the blockade. It would seem to me that Canada has much more to offer as a mediator in this prolonged conflict where so many lives on both sides have been lost, and passion and hate run high.
According to a report by Amnesty International “Canada and Human Rights in 2010: Time to Return to Leadership”, Canada has recently been voting consistently against UN resolutions that are critical of Israel`s human rights record. For example, in January 2009 Canada was the only state among the 47 members of the UN Human Rights Council to vote against a resolution condemning human rights violations during Israel`s military offensive in Gaza in November 2009. Canada was one of 18 countries at the UN General Assembly to vote against a resolution endorsing Richard Goldstone`s investigation of the Gaza conflict.
At one point in our history, Canada had an admirable goal of devoting 0.7% of the GDP to foreign development. Unfortunately, this target has never been realized and today our contribution is only 0.32 %.
Tied in with this is that under the current government, there has been a series of funding cuts to Canadian organizations that assist groups in Israel, the Palestinian Authority and Occupied Territories. The inter-church coalition KAIROS is one of the organizations affected by these ideological cuts.
A well-respected independent agency established to promote international human rights and democratic development, Rights and Democracy, has also been affected by the federal government`s decision to reconsider grants to well-known Palestinian and Israeli human rights groups. We have also learned that the Conservative government will be changing the funding for the United Nations Relief and Works Agency (UNRWA) for Palestinian refugees in the Middle East.
Observing the shift in foreign policy over the last 4-5 years it is clear that Canada is taking a very different approach to its foreign policy. I believe that we have, indeed, “lost our way”.