In the space of a few years, the international perception of Canada has changed dramatically. Under the Harper Conservatives, Canada has become a country identified with the unilateralism of George W. Bush (even though America has moved beyond Bush), a climate change pariah that has withdrawn from Kyoto and is playing an obstructionist role in attempts to negotiate a new climate change agreement. The growing mistrust toward Canada amongst international bodies was evidenced when Canada failed to get a rotating seat on the UN Security Council.
More recently, the Harper government quietly eased the ban on the export of assault weapons to Colombia. (Such weapons are banned in Canada. Colombia -- while experiencing significant economic growth -- is still plagued by severe violence (including the killing of union leaders) and has been accused of major human rights violations. The country may therefore be a new market for Canadian firearms merchants, but exploiting that market is an irresponsible move.
These actions seem out of character for the Canada that once had a reputation as a peace-keeper and honest broker -- the Canada that was seen as a humanitarian voice on the world stage. This is out of character for the Canada of Lester Pearson, who played a key role in the creation of the UN peace-keeping forces. This is out of character for the Canada of Pierre Trudeau who attempted -- even though unsuccessfully -- to play a mediating role between the United States and the Soviet Union when tensions were high during the Cold War.
The foreign policy of the Harper Conservatives seems a contrast also to that of Progressive Conservative Prime Minister Brian Mulroney, who emphasized human rights and took a strong stand against apartheid in South Africa when Britain's Margaret Thatcher and America's Ronald Reagan wanted to thaw relations with the country. Meanwhile, as leader of the opposition, Stephen Harper protested Jean Chrétien's refusal to join George W. Bush in the disastrous invasion of Iraq.
The current state of Canadian foreign policy makes the mission of a particular organization, the Group of 78, especially worth heeding today. This organization aims to promote a humanitarian vision of Canada's role on the world stage. The group's stated aims are to "promote global priorities for peace and disarmament, equitable and sustainable development [including combating poverty in the developing world], and a strong and revitalized United Nations system."
The name of the organization derives from a 1981 letter to then-Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau, which had 78 signatories, including writer Margaret Atwood, broadcaster Pierre Burton, international human rights advocate John Humphrey, and former NDP leader Tommy Douglas, among others. The letter called for the principles of peace and security to be central to Canadian foreign policy.
The Group of 78 has since organized conferences and put out policy papers advocating its stated goals in relation to pressing international issues.
Among the conferences the group has organized, one worth noting is the 2006 annual policy conference -- held in the early months of the Harper government -- which dealt with the potential role for Canada in promoting African stability. Africa is a too-often neglected continent in international affairs, receiving comparatively little attention in the North American media, despite ongoing and pressing issues of poverty, political mismanagement, and violence.
As a few examples, Mali faces violence from insurgents in the north; rebel groups in the Democratic Republic of Congo have been found by the UN High Commissioner of Human Rights to be responsible for human rights violations and are faced with UN security council sanctions; and refugees from the violence in war-torn Somalia were numbering 1.3 million as of October 2012 (with Kenya and Ethiopia being the top recipients of Somali refugees). Other toubled spots in Africa include the Central African Republic, which has been plagued with relentless rebellion and coups, and which remains poor despite being rich in resources such as diamonds and gold. In Zimbabwe, the people continue to suffer under the oppressive regime of Robert Mugabe.
The 2006 Group of 78 conference called on Canada to play a constructive and humanitarian role in Africa and pursue the strengthening of international legal protection of human rights, including: a strong role for the International Criminal Court, adoption of legislation in Canada to prohibit businesses from profiting from crimes against humanity (presumably including weapons exports), securing market access for African goods, and implementing in Canada an anti-corruption framework concerning the activities of Canadian companies abroad.
A further recommendation of the conference was for Canada to fulfill a commitment of 0.7% of GDP to international development aid by the end of the decade. Canada never reached this target and the Harper Conservative government earlier last year embarked on a planned cut to international aid over three years.
The conference also emphasized military intervention as a last -- not first -- resort, a painful lesson learned in the aftermath of wars in Afghanistan and Iraq.
In the past, Canada has been a constructive player on the international stage, emphasizing values such as peace-keeping and international cooperation, taking bold moves such as being key in the creation of the UN peace-keeping force, promoting peace during the Cold War, standing up against South African apartheid, and refusing to join George W. Bush in Iraq. The Harper Conservatives have removed Canada from this role, and from this perception, favouring a more unilateralist approach on issues such as climate change.
We need to heed voices seeking to promote an international role for Canada that emphasizes humanitarianism and peace-keeping. The message of organizations such as G-78 is all the more relevant in this light.
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United States
The <a href="http://www.reuters.com/article/2011/01/10/us-usa-shooting-guns-fb-idUSTRE7096M620110110" target="_hplink">U.S. Constitution</a>'s Second Amendment affords Americans the right to "bear Arms," but each state has its own regulations.
<em>Photo credit: Whitney Curtis/Getty Images</em>
United Kingdom
Only licensed gun owners can <a href="http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/united-kingdom" target="_hplink">buy and possess weapons</a> in the UK. Hunting, target shooting or collecting are considered valid reasons to acquire a license, but <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-06-26-2026227487_x.htm" target="_hplink">self-defense is not</a>. Civilians can't possess semi-automatic or automatic firearms, handguns or armor-piercing ammunition. <a href="http://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/uks-gun-laws-are-among-the-toughest-in-the-world-1990075.html" target="_hplink">Criminal offenders</a> who have been in prison for more than three years are banned from having a gun.
<em>Photo credit: Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images</em>
Australia
Australians can only possess a firearm with a license, and<a href="http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/australia" target="_hplink"> licenses are only granted</a> for hunting, target shooting, historical collection, pest control, and occasionally for occupational reasons. Civilians can't keep semi-automatic rifles or shotguns, and <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-06-26-2026227487_x.htm" target="_hplink">gun ownership for self-defense</a> is not permitted.
<em>Photo credit: Ian Hitchcock/Getty Images</em>
Mexico
Mexican law allows civilians to possess handguns and semi-automatic assault weapons, but <a href="http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/mexico" target="_hplink">only with a license</a>. Valid reasons to request a license are hunting, target shooting, rodeo riding, collection, personal protection, or employment. Applicants must pass a background check and renew their licenses every two years.
<a href="http://articles.cnn.com/2012-04-26/us/us_mexico-crime-guns_1_mexican-crime-scenes-gun-sales-gun-dealers" target="_hplink">Nearly 70 percent</a> of weapons found at Mexican crime scenes can be traced back to the United States, according to CNN.
<em>Photo credit: LUCAS CASTRO/AFP/Getty Images</em>
Russia
Russians <a href="http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/russia" target="_hplink">must prove</a> that firearms will be used for hunting, target shooting, historic collection, personal protection or security in order to get a license.
License applicants must be 18 years old and pass a background check. Licenses need to be renewed every five years.
<em>Photo credit: DMITRY ASTAKHOV/AFP/Getty Images</em>
China
Chinese citizens are <a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-04/21/content_856308.htm" target="_hplink">not allowed to posses firearms</a>. Exceptionally, the government issues permission to own a firearm for hunting, sports shooting and animal control. <a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2007-04/21/content_856308.htm" target="_hplink">Penalties for illegal selling of weapons</a> ranges from three years in jail to the death penalty.
<em>Caption: Police display guns they seized from illegal traders at Chengdu Municipal Public Security Bureau on January 26, 2005 in Chengdu of Sichuan Province, China. (China Photos/Getty Images)</em>
Canada
Canadians can possess handguns, but need authorization to carry them. Possession of automatic weapons is prohibited (except when the <a href="http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/canada" target="_hplink">weapon was bought before 1978</a>) and semi-automatic weapons are tolerated in exceptional cases. Applicants for a license must <a href="http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2011/jan/10/gun-ownership-laws-around-the-world" target="_hplink">pass background test</a>, must follow a safety course and be certified by a firearms officer. Licenses are up for renewal eavery 5 years.
<em>Caption: Rifles are lined up as athletes prepare to compete in the women's Biathlon 4x6 km relay at the Whistler Olympic Park during the Vancouver Winter Olympics on February 23, 2010. (FRANCK FIFE/AFP/Getty Images)</em>
Brazil
Brazil has <a href="http://www.foxnews.com/world/2011/04/09/brazil-debates-gun-laws-deadly-school-shooting/" target="_hplink">strict gun laws</a>. Gun holders need to be 25, have no criminal record and attend safety courses. Licences are granted for reasons of hunting, target shooting, personal protection and security and must be renewed every three years.
<em>Caption: A policeman holds a seized machine gun at Morro do Alemao shanty town on November 28, 2010 in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. (JEFFERSON BERNARDES/AFP/Getty Images)</em>
Japan
As the <em>Atlantic</em> notes, <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/07/a-land-without-guns-how-japan-has-virtually-eliminated-shooting-deaths/260189/" target="_hplink">few Japanese own a gun</a>. Civilians in Japan are only allowed to have a firearm <a href="http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/japan" target="_hplink">for hunting and with special permission for target shooting</a>. License applicants need to pass <a href="http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2012/07/a-land-without-guns-how-japan-has-virtually-eliminated-shooting-deaths/260189/" target="_hplink">a shooting range class and a background check</a>. Licences have to be renewed <a href="http://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/japan" target="_hplink">every three years</a>.
<em>Caption: A soldier of Ground Self Defense Forces' Central Readiness Force (CRF) walks past rifles prior to the inauguration ceremony of the CRF at Asaka camp in northern Tokyo, 31 March 2007. (TOSHIFUMI KITAMURA/AFP/Getty Images)</em>
Germany
German civilians <a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2008-06-26-2026227487_x.htm" target="_hplink">need to have a license</a> to buy and hold firearms. Applicants need to be 21, pass a background check that assesses reliability and suitability and applicants under the age of 25 need to pass a psychological exam. Licenses are up for renewal every three years.
<em>Caption: A gun lies outside a branch of Postbank bank after an attempted robbery that left one guard dead October 29, 2007 in Berlin, Germany. (Sean Gallup/Getty Images)</em>
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Well, as an Canadian ex pat who travels extensively around the world, and has so for well over 2 decades, people do care about Canada wandering off its once praised moral path. Don't kid yourself, present yourself as a Canadian today in many places around the world and you're often questioned about a number of issues for which Canada seems to be pursuing, against its once perceived historically progressive and peaceful nature. Certainly, there is still a great deal of respect for Canada, because Canadians are still seen as generally polite, educated and well mannered while traveling or at home (although I think Harper is starting to bring out the worst in Canada, and they are getting more vocal) but to say people don't follow issues as they unfold in Canada from other parts of the world is simply wrong. Sure, it's not the argument starter like the US, but your naive to think people haven't noticed a change. Ya, to ignorant yobs Canada will always be America lite, but those who come to such simplistic ideas you tend not to spend much time conversing with, because its wasted effort.
Move somewhere else. Leave us alone in our Northern paridise.
NATO was founded as an anti-Soviet group to thwart Soviet expansion in Europe. We were hardly a mediator between the US and the USSR during the cold war!
This article is a supreme farce! Be honest next time and simply write: "I hate conservatives and I hate free enterprise."
Until recently, Canada seemed to have this reputation throughout my life, one that has seemed very consistent my contacts with Canada and Canadians. I am at a loss to see why, while seeing that things did not go so well in the years of the GW Bush administration, Canada has chosen that direction. I vaguely understand that the parliamentary system divides the opposition, but the future hangs in the balance.
Its one thing for the US to play world bad guy - its at least consistent with reputation. Plus, President Obama restored a sense of reason and decency. But when a highly trusted nation pulls the Bush games for short-term political gain, it is a huge loss of moral standing.