Friday, December 31, 2004
Forty Million Dollars in Aid
The grim facts are by now all too familiar. At least 125,000 have already perished, and that tally is likely far too conservative. Over 80,000 of those souls are concentrated in Indonesia, where some analysts say the death toll could reach 350,000 before too long. At least four Canadians are among the dead, while another 78 remain missing.
The survivors endure massive hardships. According to some estimates, there may be anywhere between 5-6 million made homeless, lacking the most basic of necessities. And the immediate future promises only more anguish, with disease expected to exact even more from the vulnerable populations. It was a Boxing Day tragedy, one of the most intense earthquakes unleashing a tsunami, impacting the lives of millions in at least 14 countries bordering the Indian Ocean.
By 30 December the government of Canada pledged 40 million dollars in aid. Ottawa also says it will donate a dollar for every dollar given by citizens to recognized relief agencies. And there’s more, with the federal authorities adding that effective immediately there is a moratorium on debt collection from the countries impacted. Canadian civilian and military experts are now on the way to southeast Asia, tasked with assessing damages and advising on what ought to be done. On the morning of 31 December Prime Minister Paul Martin spoke with President George Bush and now agrees to join in coalition with the US, Japan, India and Australia so that “the group will work together - with the United Nations - to ensure rich nations are not competing against each other in the delivery of aid” [CP, 31 December 2004]. But was Canadian generosity too slow to come, prompted by something apart from altruism?
Many journalists noted in the immediate aftermath of the horrors most of official Ottawa was conspicuous by its absence. Indeed, neither the Prime Minister nor the Foreign Affairs Minister could be made available for comment, presumed on vacation. It was left to Minister of National Defence Bill Graham to greet the press and announce an aid package of four million dollars. Canadian disaster relief and engineering expertise, among the finest in the world, was not pledged, opening wide the door to speculation that such services were either too costly to make available or simply, as a matter of policy, not meant for deployment outside the country, no matter what the circumstances. Then the vast, byzantine Canadian foreign affairs bureaucracy remained mute, signaling that either the entire staff was away enjoying the season or directionless and adrift, too new to what was unfolding, unsure of what powers were granted by which job descriptions.
No sooner had Paul Martin become Prime Minister than he began to promise a greater role for Canada in world affairs. Aid was and supposedly remains among his principal concerns. With balanced and surplus budgets, it appears a greater level of commitment would be no problem. As one report noted, right after Martin went to the polls earlier this year and secured his minority, “His address [in New York on 7 July 2004] also touched on Canada's solid financial position, its balanced federal budgets... He called for increased foreign aid budgets and an emphasis on rebuilding public institutions in troubled countries.” [CBC news online, 20 July 2004. Posted at http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/martin_paul/]. Yet what Canada’s response during the first 48 hours of this crisis reveals is that no commitment was made in case of natural disasters, beyond, that is, the rhetoric of public diplomacy. How the unfolding crisis impacts Ottawa’s diplomatic strategy remains unclear, though it is possible to suspect the effect will be short-lived, likely limited to the present situation, with Ottawa’s policy capital eventually refocused on the crises presented by failed states rendered so by man-made adversities.
Stan Markotich
Submit comments to stanmarkotich@yahoo.com
¶ 11:14 AM
The grim facts are by now all too familiar. At least 125,000 have already perished, and that tally is likely far too conservative. Over 80,000 of those souls are concentrated in Indonesia, where some analysts say the death toll could reach 350,000 before too long. At least four Canadians are among the dead, while another 78 remain missing.
The survivors endure massive hardships. According to some estimates, there may be anywhere between 5-6 million made homeless, lacking the most basic of necessities. And the immediate future promises only more anguish, with disease expected to exact even more from the vulnerable populations. It was a Boxing Day tragedy, one of the most intense earthquakes unleashing a tsunami, impacting the lives of millions in at least 14 countries bordering the Indian Ocean.
By 30 December the government of Canada pledged 40 million dollars in aid. Ottawa also says it will donate a dollar for every dollar given by citizens to recognized relief agencies. And there’s more, with the federal authorities adding that effective immediately there is a moratorium on debt collection from the countries impacted. Canadian civilian and military experts are now on the way to southeast Asia, tasked with assessing damages and advising on what ought to be done. On the morning of 31 December Prime Minister Paul Martin spoke with President George Bush and now agrees to join in coalition with the US, Japan, India and Australia so that “the group will work together - with the United Nations - to ensure rich nations are not competing against each other in the delivery of aid” [CP, 31 December 2004]. But was Canadian generosity too slow to come, prompted by something apart from altruism?
Many journalists noted in the immediate aftermath of the horrors most of official Ottawa was conspicuous by its absence. Indeed, neither the Prime Minister nor the Foreign Affairs Minister could be made available for comment, presumed on vacation. It was left to Minister of National Defence Bill Graham to greet the press and announce an aid package of four million dollars. Canadian disaster relief and engineering expertise, among the finest in the world, was not pledged, opening wide the door to speculation that such services were either too costly to make available or simply, as a matter of policy, not meant for deployment outside the country, no matter what the circumstances. Then the vast, byzantine Canadian foreign affairs bureaucracy remained mute, signaling that either the entire staff was away enjoying the season or directionless and adrift, too new to what was unfolding, unsure of what powers were granted by which job descriptions.
No sooner had Paul Martin become Prime Minister than he began to promise a greater role for Canada in world affairs. Aid was and supposedly remains among his principal concerns. With balanced and surplus budgets, it appears a greater level of commitment would be no problem. As one report noted, right after Martin went to the polls earlier this year and secured his minority, “His address [in New York on 7 July 2004] also touched on Canada's solid financial position, its balanced federal budgets... He called for increased foreign aid budgets and an emphasis on rebuilding public institutions in troubled countries.” [CBC news online, 20 July 2004. Posted at http://www.cbc.ca/news/background/martin_paul/]. Yet what Canada’s response during the first 48 hours of this crisis reveals is that no commitment was made in case of natural disasters, beyond, that is, the rhetoric of public diplomacy. How the unfolding crisis impacts Ottawa’s diplomatic strategy remains unclear, though it is possible to suspect the effect will be short-lived, likely limited to the present situation, with Ottawa’s policy capital eventually refocused on the crises presented by failed states rendered so by man-made adversities.
Stan Markotich
Submit comments to stanmarkotich@yahoo.com
¶ 11:14 AM
