Evidence of meeting #106 for Foreign Affairs and International Development in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was humanitarian.
A video is available from Parliament.
5:15 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Ali Ehsassi
I'm afraid we're a minute and a half over.
For the last question, now we go to MP McPherson.
May 6th, 2024 / 5:15 p.m.
NDP
Heather McPherson NDP Edmonton Strathcona, AB
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. Thank you to the officials for remaining today and answering our questions. It's useful.
I'll comment very quickly on a question that my colleague, Mr. Bergeron, asked with regard to ODA. It's at 0.38%, which is about half of what we have committed to. I was a bit shocked to hear the officials mention that we have not committed to 0.7%. I think we all know that it was, in fact, Prime Minister Pearson who actually put that 0.7% benchmark in place. Many of our allies meet and exceed that amount, so to hear the minister talk about the importance of international development while continuing to underfund international development from Canada is worrying, and particularly so when we see that the Conservative leader has said that, if he was to make government, he would cut international development spending.
This is not Canada being back on the world stage. This is not where we should be. We should be much more ambitious in our goals with regard to international development.
In the questions I have to start with today, first of all I'd like to request something. Could you please share with the committee, in writing, the legal evaluations your department has conducted over the war in Gaza, including legal advice you have received regarding the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice and arms sales, please. That's the first request I have for you.
The second one is with regard to humanitarian access. Right now we know there are incredible conflicts happening in Sudan, in Haiti, in the DRC, in Ethiopia, and of course in Gaza and Ukraine. We want to understand, or I would like to understand, what your government is doing to better ensure humanitarian access to some of these very challenging places to work. In particular, what is the government doing to ensure the safety of humanitarian workers in these places?
5:15 p.m.
Deputy Minister, International Development, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development
The Government of Canada has used every platform available to it to call for access and humanitarian access and respect for humanitarian law. At every possible opportunity we have done that. We work through our partners, such as the International Committee of the Red Cross. We work through the United Nations. What we can do is work through the system that has been put in place to respond, and, when possible, sometimes use our privileged chairs that we get to sit in to make these demands.
As an example, very recently the minister took part in an international conference in Paris on Sudan. That was, as you have noted, one of the key things that everybody noted. Really, what was required was a peaceful resolution of the conflict, but, in the interim, access and the funding of the appeals that the United Nations had made for Sudan was what was most needed.
5:15 p.m.
NDP
Heather McPherson NDP Edmonton Strathcona, AB
Thank you.
I would press the government to continue to do this important work because, of course, the challenge is that you will have to be nimble. You will have to be able to work with non-traditional partners to be able to provide the urgently needed humanitarian access in many of these conflicts. Honestly, we don't have some of those relationships right now, and the government needs to do that work much better.
I also wanted to ask: With the expected end of the Middle East strategy, is there a new Middle East strategy in development to respond to the changing situations that we see in the region? We know that the original strategy was a response to the Syrian crisis and to other crises in the area. This all looks very different now. The needs are massive. The crises continue to build and grow.
Is there consideration of a broader strategy that would encompass the foreseen changes, including in Israel, Palestine, Lebanon and other countries, knowing that the current strategy ends in 2025?
5:15 p.m.
Deputy Minister, International Development, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development
That's right. That is a part of this year's main estimates, as you note.
As you noted, the previous Middle East strategy, which had been in place since 2016, was built very much on a different problem set and a different platform. The decision was made that it was time to ramp down that strategy. Of course, since October 7, everything has changed again in the Middle East.
As everybody has noted, everybody hopes for a ceasefire as soon as possible. At that point, when we see what the situation is, whether it be the political situation on the ground, the humanitarian assistance situation on the ground, the development needs of the region or, finally, as you have noted in previous questions, the reconstruction needs in Gaza, it will require the Government of Canada, obviously, to reflect on and review our current footprint in the region. We will be coming forward with advice to government when it is appropriate.
5:20 p.m.
NDP
Heather McPherson NDP Edmonton Strathcona, AB
My final question for you is with regard to sanctions.
In December we sent a letter asking that there be sanctions on extremist settlers in the West Bank. This was violence that was supported by extremist ministers in the Israeli government.
We asked in February. It's now May, five months after we asked for this. Why is it taking the government so long, when other countries have already figured out how to put those sanctions in place? Is the delay, from your perspective, political or administrative?
5:20 p.m.
Deputy Minister, International Development, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development
I'll pass it to my colleague Alexandre, as I'm not an expert on sanctions.
5:20 p.m.
Alexandre Lévêque Assistant Deputy Minister, Europe, Arctic, Middle East and Maghreb, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development
Thank you. I'll be very brief, Mr. Chair.
All I can say is that all these options continue to be on the table and are considered actively by the government. The advice continues to be provided by officials.
I wouldn't say, to the point of the honourable member, that it's due to any deliberate delays. All of these are under active consideration currently.
5:20 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Ali Ehsassi
Thank you very much, Mr. Lévêque. We even had five seconds to spare. I'm very grateful.
At this point, I would like to thank all of you. It has been almost two hours. We're going to be going into committee business.
Thank you very much, Mr. MacLennan, Ms. Urban, Ms. Carruthers, Mr. Lévêque and Mr. MacDougall. We're very grateful for your time and for your insights.
We're going to suspend the meeting for a couple of minutes, because we have two members who are joining us virtually for committee business.
[Proceedings continue in camera]