Is Canada Failing to be an International Leader?
(This piece is in response to an article in the 15 June edition of the Daily Yomiuri -ed.)
Bill Graham, Foreign Affairs Minister of Canada, recommends that the UN take immediate action to prevent crimes of humanity and the death of millions of more Sudanese people — or should I say “genocide”? The situation in Sudan is a genocide, but no one, including Canadian leaders, wants to use that word because it would require intervention under international law.
It’s great that Mr. Graham is concerned about Sudan, but what about demonstrating leadership and demanding immediate intervention, and what about committing aide for immediate relief work? What about demanding compensation from Talisman Energy, a Canadian Oil Company that was in Sudan and gave profits to the Sudanese government — the same regime that has killed, enslaved, raped, terrorized and displaced its own people. I hope that Bill Graham can live up to his own words and that he will not fail to uphold Canada’s international reputation for humanitarian aide.