Immigration.ca - Canada Immigration News - June 2009
As more immigrants arrive in Canada, the face of Canadian foreign policy has been changing toward what political experts are calling Diaspora politics.
Until recently, the Canadian Government has traditionally been perceived on the international stage as a peacekeeping force, rarely speaking out formally against particular nations to denounce their actions.
However, as the Government is becoming increasingly reliant upon the vote of certain ethnic factions in the country, foreign policy has shifted toward a more outspoken stance supporting the major ethnic communities in the country.
A 2008 collection of essays “The World in Canada: Diaspora, Democracy and Domestic Policies,” co-edited by Carleton University’s David Carment and military historian David Percussion, notes that the increasingly employed tactic has been traced back through recent governments to its incarnation under Stephen Harper’s government today.
Examples of Diaspora politics include the government’s official recognition of the alleged genocides against Armenians by Turkey and Ukrainians by the former Soviet Union.
Harper has turned against the Canadian tradition of neutrality by supporting Israel’s 2006 bombing of Lebanon in response to Hezbollah’s attacks. He has taken a hard-line approach to the human rights issue in China, refusing to attend the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing.
Critics, however, argue that despite any gains made by such maneuvers on the domestic front, are endangering Canada’s political position internationally.
Paul Heinbecker, former Canadian Ambassador to the United Nations, said that the Government is in danger of alienating enough nations to lose its potential 2010 seat at the U.N. Security Council.
“My guess is that we’re still going to get elected,” said Heinbecker “but there is an argument to be made that there’s a limit to the number of people you can disappoint.”
Bercuson argues that the Government’s hard-line position toward Soviet treatment of Eastern European nations may win over Canada’s Ukrainian and Polish voters, but could alienate a helpful ally in the Afghanistan War.
Publicly, Government spokespeople argue that the Harper foreign policy is simple a reflection of Canadian values of freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law.
Source: CanWest News Service
