Foreign Affairs Committee on April 19th, 2007

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

I call the meeting to order.

We do have a quorum, but we do not have any guests here.

I would ask the committee to very quickly take their steering committee report. We will go into committee business.

This is meeting number 49 of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development on Thursday, April 19, 2007.

I am going to ask the committee members to pick up their 10th report from the subcommittee steering committee.

The steering committee met on Tuesday. We brought forward these matters, and we would ask that this committee ratify this. It would help our researchers and our clerk to prepare for witnesses to come in the future.

The first point is that the first report of the Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development be referred back to the subcommittee until such time as they have finished their discussions on this issue.

This first report was on the production of documents. This was the issue over the Burton report. The Burton report was given, and our subcommittee made a request to get the unedited version with the classified information affixed to it. The department came back to say they would provide the report but not the classified information. There was some concern as to the security of some of the names of those in China, so they refused. The subcommittee is still dealing with this, as far as I know.

Because the committee is still dealing with this--they had Foreign Affairs there and they had legal counsel there--at that time it was the steering committee's recommendation that we send this report back to the subcommittee.

Do we have a consensus on that? It is agreed.

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

The second point is that the committee should seek a legal opinion on the best course of action before considering further the second report of the Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development. This was the report on a motion that we proceed with some kind of criminal investigation into the lead prosecutor in the Zahra Kazemi case and that we try to bring forward charges against the lead prosecutor. Our committee is asking that we seek a legal opinion.

Is that agreed?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

The next point is for the draft report on democratic development to be distributed to members on Monday, April 23, and that the committee meet to study this draft report beginning on May 1 and May 3.

Is it agreed?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

The next recommendation is that the committee meet with the President of the Assembly of Portugal on May 3 between 11 a.m. and 11:30 a.m.

Is that agreed?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

The next recommendation is that the committee invite Mr. Paul Meyer, Canada's ambassador for disarmament, to appear before the committee at the earliest opportunity.

Is that agreed?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

The next recommendation is that the committee invite witnesses from civil society organizations to appear concerning the annual report on operations under the Bretton Woods and Related Agreements Act of 2005.

Is it agreed?

[Some hon. members]

Agreed.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

All right.

We still do not have our guests.

Madam McDonough, please go ahead.

[Alexa McDonough, NDP, Halifax, NS]

Mr. Chair, I may not have properly understood number two. I'm not asking to revisit it, but I thought there was also going to be a report back about further information being sought on the comfort allowances issue before we deal with it.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

That's not number two. Number two is strictly the Iranian report.

At that time I think we mentioned that we would put it off until the next subcommittee steering committee and deal with it then.

[Alexa McDonough, NDP, Halifax, NS]

But was it not agreed that we'd get further information?

[Deepak Obhrai, Conservative, Calgary East, AB]

It was agreed you were going to provide it, and we are in the process of gathering the information right now. You will get it Friday.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

All right. So this is adopted.

Now, still no guests?

[The Clerk of the Committee, Mrs. Angela Crandall]

No, we've called his office and he's not at his office, so we're hoping he's on his way.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

We're going to suspend until we decide what we're going to do.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

In the spirit of cooperation, we're going to move to committee business. We are going to deal with a number of motions that have come forward and we're going to deal with them in the order in which they've been put on the order paper.

First of all, we have a motion from Madam McDonough, and you have the motion before you:

That pursuant to Standing Order 108(2), the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development invites the appropriate minister(s) and/or officials, to appear before this Committee once the government has responded to the Advisory Group Report: National Roundtables on Corporate Social Responsibility and the Canadian Extractive Industry in Developing Countries, and to present its plan for implementing the report’s recommendations.

Madam McDonough, would you speak to your motion, please?

Just before you do that, I want to thank you, and I mean it, for this has been put off and off and off, and I apologize. It's just the way some of these meetings have gone, as you know. But you can speak to your motion.

[Alexa McDonough, NDP, Halifax, NS]

There's no need for apology, Mr. Chair. Probably the timing is about right for us to really deal with this because the corporate social responsibility report was tabled a few weeks ago. It's perfectly reasonable that the government would need a few weeks, and I think the government itself said at the outset that it felt it would be ready to respond within a couple of weeks. A couple of weeks have passed. Maybe it was overly optimistic, but I would think it would be important for us to pass this motion today. That indicates our strong continuing interest, and obviously we have a continuing interest.

It was a very good piece of work in the first place by the international human rights subcommittee in endorsing their recommendations, and the government really engaged around this issue in I think a very positive way. So I think it's an important motion for us to pass today, signalling that we are anxious for the government to come back with that plan as soon as possible and have an opportunity to discuss it further. I would urge all members to support it in the spirit of consensus building, which really characterized the whole process at the committee level as well as across the country with the round table.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Thank you, Madam McDonough.

Mr. Obhrai.

[Deepak Obhrai, Conservative, Calgary East, AB]

Thank you. Let me start by saying that the government supports the intention behind this motion. We understand this was from the report of the previous committee, and the government supported it at the round table. The round table conference has submitted its report, as you already pointed out. There is absolutely no problem with the motion, but I am suggesting you defer this motion until the government has made a response. As soon as the government has made a response, resubmit this motion, and at that time we can ask those who have made the motion to come back.

We are not stalling; all we are saying is let the government make its response. As soon as it has made its response, resubmit this motion. I'm not saying take it out or work against the motion. Just suspend it until the government has made a recommendation, because you're asking the government to make a recommendation. The problem is if the officials come to the committee, they will have nothing to say because they'll say they are waiting for the response. So let's just have the response from the government, and then we'll follow up.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Mr. Obhrai, I'm wondering if Madam McDonough would consider an amendment to the motion that would state that we invite the ministers to come before this committee following the response from the government, rather than.... This response will be forthwith. It will be coming, I would imagine, fairly soon. I'm wondering if we could make a friendly amendment to that.

Mr. Patry, and then Madam McDonough.