Foreign Affairs Committee on April 29th, 2009

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Good afternoon, colleagues. This is meeting number 15 of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, on Wednesday, April 29, 2009. Today we continue with our review of key elements of Canadian foreign policy. We are hearing from the Department of Foreign Affairs and the Canadian International Development Agency for their latest updates on the situation in Sri Lanka.

As our first witness in the first hour, we have, from the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, Ken Sunquist, assistant deputy minister and chief trade commissioner; Greg Giokas, acting director general of the Southeast Asia and Oceania Bureau; and Leslie E. Norton, director of the Humanitarian Affairs and Disaster Response Group.

From the Canadian International Development Agency, we have Syed Sajjadur Rahman, director general, Asia; and Stephen Salewicz, acting director, International Humanitarian Assistance Directorate.

I will also tell you that we have Melanie Alton, assistant director of planning for the India, Nepal, Sri Lanka division.

On your agenda it doesn't specifically make note of the Sri Lanka issue, but that is certainly why we have called the departments to come to our committee today.

Our intention is that if we have time we will go to committee business. I say that jokingly; we will have time and we will go to committee business at roughly 5:15 p.m. or 5:20 p.m.

Welcome to both departments. Thank you for amalgamating. I think we can all stretch this thing out a little longer rather than cutting off one department at 4:30 p.m. We appreciate you doing that. We also look forward to your comments on it. We apologize for being late, as we had votes in the House of Commons.

I will welcome our first to appear on the agenda, the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade.

[Ken Sunquist, Assistant Deputy Minister (Asia and Africa) and Chief Trade Commissioner, Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade]

Thank you, Mr. Chair. It is truly a pleasure to be here today with old friends and colleagues.

Mr. Chairman, I'm here to provide you with an update on the current situation in Sri Lanka and the conflict between the Government of Sri Lanka and the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam. I'll use the acronym LTTE throughout my presentation.

Canada is deeply concerned about the continuing combat operations in the northeast corner of the country and by the dire humanitarian situation, not only for those who are displaced by the conflict but also for those who remain trapped in the conflict zone. Canada is concerned as well about reported increases in civilian casualties.

I appreciate this opportunity because, as you know, although I was supposed to be here today, I was to speak about Africa. In fact, with a small smile on my face, I can say to Mr. Dewar that I was looking at the press comment about Congo calling and whether anyone was listening, and I was going to start my speech with “I'm here on the phone and we're ready to listen.” We'll come back to that.

As the chairman mentioned who the team is, let me just say that this is an integrated presentation from the two groups and that we've probably brought more officials than is usual here, for the simple reason that we want to be prepared to answer as many questions as you might have. That's why we have a large group. At the conclusion of my remarks, my colleague will provide insights on humanitarian and development assistance.

Where does one start in a 26-year war? Let me just start in the last month. On April 11, Minister Cannon issued a statement expressing concern about the safety of civilians trapped in the conflict zone. It called on both parties to implement a pause to ensure full, safe, and unhindered access for humanitarian workers to those in need. The Government of Sri Lanka unilaterally put in place such a pause on April 13 and 14. However, the LTTE prevented many civilians from leaving the combat zone.

On April 19, Minister Cannon issued a statement calling on both parties to work toward a rapid political resolution and to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law. On the same day, he spoke with the UN Secretary-General and raised our humanitarian concerns, which included access to food, water, sanitation, and medical support. He also conveyed Canada's support in responding to the humanitarian crisis. We'll talk about that a little later.

The UN Security Council has voiced deep concerns about Sir Lanka, and on April 22 the UN demanded that the LTTE lay down its arms.

Canada is very concerned about reports of LTTE suicide bombings. Canada calls on the LTTE to allow civilians to leave the territory still under its control and to allow the safe and free movement of civilians under its control. The Government of Canada continues to demand that the LTTE lay down its arms. As you know, Canada listed the LTTE as a terrorist organization under the Criminal Code in 2006.

Since the Sri Lankan military reportedly broke through the LTTE defensive earthworks, many civilians have escaped the conflict area. However, credible reports indicate that ongoing fighting has killed or wounded thousands of civilians, who have only minimal access to medical care. The U.S. State Department reports continued firing from both sides into the conflict zone.

Minister Cannon spoke with the UN Secretary-General, the U.K. Secretary of State for Foreign Affairs, Australia's Minister for Foreign Affairs, U.S. Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and India's Minister of External Affairs to register our grave concerns about the April 20 resumption by the Sri Lankan military of a ground offensive in the conflict zone and to seek support in ensuring the adoption of a humanitarian pause.

On April 22, Mr. Cannon again spoke with Sri Lanka's Minister of Foreign Affairs to call for a halt to the current offensive in order to allow safe and voluntary movement of civilians from the combat zone and to ensure full, safe, and unhindered access for humanitarian workers to those in need. Minister Cannon expressed our concerns about civilian casualties and stressed the need for UN surveillance of the evacuation of civilians and of the camps for internally displaced persons, the IDPs. Canada has also offered Canadian humanitarian assistance for the displaced persons once their needs have been assessed.

Canada's greatest concern is the safety of civilians still trapped in the conflict zone. However, it remains very difficult to determine how many civilians remain there. The UN estimates some 50,000 to 100,000 are still captive in the conflict zone. We have been calling on both parties to the conflict to respect their obligations under international humanitarian law to ensure the safety of civilians, which includes clearly distinguishing civilians from combatants and ensuring that civilians are not attacked.

Canada holds the Government of Sri Lanka to a higher standard for its actions and obligations than it would the terrorist organization it is fighting.

Our high commissioner in Colombo, Angela Bogdan, is continuing Canada's engagement with the Government of Sri Lanka at the highest levels and on the need for assistance to IDPs. Canada and our high commissioner are taking a leadership role. She is chairing meetings of like-minded ambassadors and the United Nations to coordinate our humanitarian efforts and is using her networks to provide information and policy advice. Canada leads the bilateral donor group that includes all countries with aid programs in Sri Lanka. Indeed, the U.K. and French foreign ministers are in Sri Lanka right now, and our high commissioner has just finished a meeting with both of them. The U.K. foreign minister will be speaking to Minister Cannon as quickly as possible, possibly this evening.

Canada supports the co-chairs of the Tokyo Donors Conference on reconstruction and development of Sri Lanka. The co-chairs currently include Norway, Japan, the United States, and the European Union, although the role of Norway is somewhat up in the air. The co-chairs issued a statement on April 26 calling for the Government of Sri Lanka and the LTTE to end hostilities and for UN staff to be allowed into the conflict zone to facilitate relief operations and the evacuation of civilians. Canada calls for the government to show leadership in building the confidence of the people of Sri Lanka, which is necessary to support a lasting peace.

On April 25, Minister Cannon joined his G-8 colleagues in issuing a statement to express our deep concern about the mass civilian casualties and deteriorating humanitarian situation in northern Sri Lanka. The plight of the civilians still trapped by the fighting and who remain at extreme risk from the ongoing hostilities is our primary concern. The ministers strongly condemned the use of civilians as human shields by the LTTE, the killing of civilians, and terrorism in all of its manifestations, and they called on all parties to take all necessary action to avoid further civilian casualties. They support the decision by the UN Secretary-General to dispatch a UN humanitarian assessment team to the no-fire zone. It is time for the conflict to end now. The G-8 foreign ministers support all relevant international efforts to bring about such an end and will keep monitoring closely the situation in Sri Lanka.

The conflict has already caused much suffering over the last 26 years. We want to see it end immediately. Canada has reiterated that this conflict cannot be resolved militarily and continues to call for a new, meaningful, and durable political solution that will address the legitimate aspirations of all the people of Sri Lanka. We will continue to engage with like-minded countries at the highest levels in working for urgent progress to ensure the safety and security of all the people of Sri Lanka.

Canada has joined with the co-chairs, the G-8, the Commonwealth, the EU, and the UN in seeking a lasting peace and reconstruction of the country.

The situation in Sri Lanka remains fluid, and events on the ground are unfolding at a rapid, almost chaotic pace. Humanitarian aid workers are citing increasing problems among the internally displaced persons of overcrowding, malnourishment, lack of transport to move the sick to hospitals, and a shortage of medical personnel.

The UN emergency relief coordinator, John Holmes, recently travelled to Sri Lanka on April 26 and 27 to meet with the Government of Sri Lanka representatives, the UN country team, civil society, and the donor community. He also sought to negotiate access for a UN humanitarian assessment team to travel to Sri Lanka's north as well as to the conflict zone. Despite previous assurances by the President of Sri Lanka to the Secretary-General's chef de cabinet that access to the conflict zone would be given, Mr. Holmes has been unable to secure such agreement. According to the UN, the government is citing safety and security concerns for the assessment team as a reason to disallow entry into the conflict zone. The UN has also indicated that the Government of Sri Lanka made it clear that the UN must stop making such requests given that they will not be accepted.

There's been an increase of some 40,000 displaced persons over the past few days, bringing the total to more than 160,000 people in camps in northern Sri Lanka, according to the United Nations. Some 10,000 children now suffer from malnutrition and more than 1,500 infants need urgent medical attention.

Access to affected populations by humanitarian organizations remains a key challenge. Despite calls for humanitarian assistance, the Government of Sri Lanka is still not issuing visa requests for replacements of international humanitarian staff.

Mr. Chairman, Canada is actively engaged in responding to the affected populations through our trusted humanitarian partners, such as the Red Cross, the UN agencies, and Canadian NGOs. My colleagues from CIDA will provide more details.

Further, we are in the final stages of our 85-million-dollar tsunami efforts, mostly in the northeast. Our efforts are to, and I put quotes around this, “build back better”, so build it back to where it was, but even better.

The future of this beautiful country cannot be foreseen when the present situation is such a shambles, yet long-term efforts towards devolution of power to local areas will be necessary. Our efforts will be to help Sri Lankans reclaim their lives and their land with sustainable development.

Mr. Chairman, we'd be happy to answer any of the committee's questions on the situation in Sri Lanka, but I would first like to turn to my colleague from CIDA for his statement.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Welcome, Mr. Rahman, and we look forward to your statement as well.

[Dr. Syed Rahman, Director General, Asia, Canadian International Development Agency]

Thank you, Chair.

Mr. Chair, I'm pleased to provide to you today information about Canada's humanitarian and development assistance programs in Sri Lanka. Let me begin with humanitarian assistance provided by CIDA in addressing the plight of the people most affected by the recent conflict.

Humanitarian support has been significant this year. In February 2009, Minister Oda announced a total of $4.5 million for Canadian humanitarian assistance for conflict-affected people in Sri Lanka. This included $1.75 million for the International Committee of the Red Cross, $750,000 to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees, and $500,000 each to Oxfam Canada, World Vision, CARE, and Médecins Sans Frontières. An additional $350,000 of CIDA-funded projects with Médicins Sans Frontières is also operational in the north. Combined, these funds are contributing to the efforts of trusted humanitarian partners to assist up to 250,000 people displaced by the conflict with much needed medical care, emergency shelter, protection, clean water, and sanitation services.

Between October 2008 and January 2009, Canadian funding for the World Food Programme operations has, among other things, helped send 11 convoys into the Vanni region and distribute 10,619 metric tonnes of food assistance via land and sea. In order to monitor the progress of our funded humanitarian partners and to get first-hand understanding of the situation, a CIDA team is now on the ground in Vavuniya, in the north.

Let me now turn to CIDA's longer-term bilateral assistance to Sri Lanka. Canada and Sri Lanka have a long-standing development relationship since the 1950s and since the launch of the Colombo Plan, with a total to date of over $800 million in Canadian assistance. Over the past 15 years, CIDA's bilateral assistance has helped to address the root causes of the conflict and to mitigate the impact on affected communities. Annual funding levels have been $5 million to $6 million. Recently, the focus of the program has been to support economic well-being. The majority of CIDA's projects support productive activities to improve the livelihoods of Sri Lankan youth, women, and vulnerable groups. Other projects aim at reintegrating conflict-affected groups into economic life. Canada has also been active in the area of governance, concentrating on human rights, specifically child rights and language rights.

CIDA's explicit approach is to work through Canadian NGOs and civil society organizations and to maintain a geographic and ethnic balance by supporting projects in the Sinhalese, Tamil, and Muslim areas of the country. In addition to the bilateral program, CIDA has been providing around $3 million annually to Canadian organizations working in Sri Lanka. Their programming with local Sri Lankan partners focuses largely on technical training and economic growth for poverty reduction. Finally, during the past five years, CIDA provided additional assistance of $118.7 million in response to the December 2004 tsunami to fund relief and reconstruction activities.

Mr. Chairman, we'd be happy to answer the committee's questions on Sri Lanka.

Thank you.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Thank you very much.

We'll move to our first round of questioning.

Mr. Kania.

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

Thank you.

I'm not a member of this committee, so I'm not as well versed on this issue as some of you, perhaps, but really I've come here today to report and to ask questions in terms of what happened yesterday, because yesterday, under the leadership of Ms. Minna, Ms. Minna, Rob Oliphant, and I had a meeting with the High Commissioner of Sri Lanka.

We discussed with him the potential.... I gave an idea to him that he actually said he liked and would speak to his government about. I want to share that with you and see what we can do to try to further it and actually accomplish the number one goal at this stage, which is to save lives. There are other points, obviously, including reconstruction and a long-lasting peace. We all agree with that and we all know that has to be done, but right now we're just talking about saving lives. I realize that some of you may not think this is realistic, but I think we should try. The idea is as follows.

There's a ceasefire on both sides. The government says the Tamil Tigers are keeping the civilians from leaving. I said to the commissioner, fine, let's assume you're right, so let's do something about it. Send in international persons. It doesn't matter what that's under, but I think Canada should take a leadership role. There's no reason why we can't go back to the Lester Pearson days and try to go in, deal with the Tamil Tigers, liberate as many people as possible from that area, and essentially have them come out.

We will then know, through the involvement of the international persons who are on the ground, whether or not the Tamil Tigers are actually holding the people. If they're not, people can come out. If they are, then we will simply get as many people out as we can. But either way, we'll find out what's going on.

As the people come out, they will come out in the form of a funnel so that the government can search for weapons, take care of the people, give them food and shelter, and make sure they're all right in the short term. Assuming this takes place, either we'll see that the people are being held against their will, or they'll be liberated and out of the area, and the combatants would be left. The people who choose not to leave, obviously, would mainly be combatants. At least, that's the assumption.

He said he liked the idea. He said he would speak to his government. Assume for the moment that it's possible. There's no harm in trying when we're talking about lives.

What I would like to know is what Canada can do and what you'd recommend, whether it's the foreign affairs minister or somebody else taking the initiative of dealing with the United Nations, taking an emergency trip there, and formulating an international plan for how long it would take to do that now, so that if they actually say yes two days from now, we would have something in place, as a leader, to fulfill it.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Thank you, Mr. Kania.

Mr. Sunquist, would you like to respond?

[Ken Sunquist]

Sure, I'll take the first crack at it. Let me preface this by saying that this will be a quick reaction, and I think it obviously requires a lot more discussion with you and others.

First, I think we're all in agreement that the biggest issue is how to save lives. There are two parts to that. There are the lives of those who are already displaced and in the camps, and there are the lives of those in the conflict zone. Any effort that Canada can do, or that even internationally we can do, to bring a pause to the fighting and to get as many civilians out of the area is to be applauded, and we need to do it.

We have our high commissioner and we have the CIDA team on the ground right now. They've been looking at it. It's an assessment mission, in a sense. They're taking a look. As for how long it would take to put in place, I would look to my colleagues to see if anybody would have a better idea than I of how to put something on the ground there.

But clearly the issue is whether the Government of Sri Lanka would accept such a mission. As I mentioned, Minister Cannon has spoken to their foreign minister, three days ago now, I guess. These are issues that can be brought up by our minister and others. The first step is how to get the pause that both sides will accept. The second issue is how to get international groups in there. Up to now, the Government of Sri Lanka has refused on the UN assessment teams going in. That would probably have to be the starting point.

But I take your point on board. I would just ask if anybody else here at the table has any comments they would wish to make. If not, we'd follow up with you.

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

So I assume you agree that we could certainly contact the government through our government and see if they would accept a tentative agreement. If our government actually instructed you to formulate a plan, if they asked you to start it tonight, how long would it reasonably take to get something done?

[Ken Sunquist]

There are several different assessment things.

We have people on the ground right now. In fact, this evening, Colombo time, our high commissioner is meeting with the foreign minister and others. So it's not a case of contacting them; we're in daily contact. The issue is getting their approval that allows us on the ground in the conflict zone. That is the determining factor, because after that, as I said, we do have some people who are there now.

Leslie, anybody, do you want to talk about a kind of assessment to move forward?

I would get back to you on that one. You want a really good answer. I need to give that to you.

[Andrew Kania, Liberal, Brampton West, ON]

So the sooner, the better, obviously.

[Ken Sunquist]

Oh, yes.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

We have about 30 seconds. Do you want to just make a statement? We have to leave time in that 30 seconds for them to answer as well.

[Maria Minna, Liberal, Beaches—East York, ON]

I'll try to be as quick as I can.

Just very briefly, Canada has started discussions with Sri Lanka with regard to where we go from here, the political solution of tomorrow, rather than waiting, because the war may end. But the war is only just starting, in a sense, in the sense that there could be ongoing violence. I think the sooner the government takes a stand on where it's going in terms of its evolution, or minority rights, all of that, with its people, and choosing a good cause, it would be great. Is Canada discussing this to see if the Government of Sri Lanka is moving on as fast as possible?

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

In 30 seconds or less.

[Ken Sunquist]

The answer is yes. We're looking at the immediate humanitarian issues that have already been raised, but you cannot solve this by short-term steps. The short term is only to make sure that people survive. The long term is what kind of life they're going to live.

At all levels, we have been working with the Government of Sri Lanka. We have been working with moderate Tamils here and elsewhere on exactly that same kind of issue, as to how do you move forward. Given that we know there will never be reconciliation between the two warring groups right now, what kinds of groups can you move forward to? As I put in my comments to start off, it's a devolution of authority of power that has to come.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Thank you.

Mr. Dorion, you have seven minutes.

[Jean Dorion, Bloc, Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC]

Mr. Sunquist, Canada seems to be calling for a new, meaningful and sustainable political solution that will accommodate the legitimate aspirations of the entire population of Sri Lanka.

Can you elaborate, and perhaps even suggest what such a solution might be? Is part of that solution to recognize the right to self-determination for both of Sri Lanka's groups, that is, recognizing their right to decide their own future, regardless of what that decision may be?

[Ken Sunquist]

Thank you for the question. But perhaps there is another side to that issue.

You used the word “self-determination”; we believe the situation has gone beyond an internal situation. The nations of the world, the diaspora around the world...many people have an interest in what the future of this country is going to look like. Having said that, we believe there will have to be moves toward a decentralized form of government.

I know that some members of this committee have previously suggested alternatives around federalism, how you engage different peoples. I hope this committee, through your work over the next while in looking at the situation, could look at the political question here as to how peoples can live together in the future.

Whether ethnic or religious, there are a number of different dividing factors in the current country. There are so many issues here. It's birth rates in one part of the country compared to others and people feeling they're going to be overwhelmed. There are issues of rural versus urban. There are issues of prosperity in some regions and not in others. All of these are going to have to come together in terms of a lasting solution or any one of them could unravel it.

Perhaps on the political solution side it's a question of how we move people from 26 years of warfare to trying to work together for the betterment of their country. That's why I said moderate groups on both sides probably have the key to the future.

I can't say which form of government that should take. I was ambassador in Indonesia when East Timor, Timor-Leste, happened. You could see a country emerging but deciding that they were going to take a different path than anybody else in the region. It may well be that Sri Lanka will choose a path that looks different from the one we would necessarily choose or that others in the region would hope to impose upon them.

You raise a fundamental question, which has to be answered by the Sri Lankans before they can move forward.

[Jean Dorion, Bloc, Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC]

Thank you. I gather from your paper that Sri Lanka's government does not seem to be very receptive to our advice. Are sanctions possible, particularly at Commonwealth level?

[Ken Sunquist]

I don't think we're at the step of sanctions as yet within the UN or within the Commonwealth, or with anybody. We see a country that is close to ruins, and it is going to need assistance at the other end to get them to the state, as you said in your first question....

While we always look at where you may eventually end up in terms of a public policy issue and a government policy issue, I think it is too soon to say that this is the appropriate action that will get you somewhere.

On the other hand, I have participated in phone calls. The minister has discussed this with his G-8 foreign ministry contacts, and I can tell you they are looking at the whole slate of issues you can do in Sri Lanka, or around the world. While we're not on the UN Security Council, there are discussions ongoing there as well as to what kind of uniform international action will take place. That's why the foreign minister is there. That's why people are travelling there. That's why we are engaging with them on a daily basis, to change behaviour and to look after the civilians.

As you know, we have sanctions in place in several countries of the world because of their political or human rights records, or other records. We've had them in different places at different times.

In this case we want to make sure that before we do anything--I'm not talking about sanctions, I'm talking about before we do things--it's in the best interests of the people who are suffering the most.

[Jean Dorion, Bloc, Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC]

Mr. Chair, I have another question for Mr. Rahman, from CIDA.

The Red Cross has asked Canada to significantly increase its aid to Sri Lanka, and, more specifically, to begin by doubling its contribution in the short term.

Will the Canadian government be responding to that request, perhaps through the minister?

[Stephen Salewicz, Acting Director, International Humanitarian Assistance Directorate, Canadian International Development Agency]

Thank you for your question.

I'm not aware of this specific request. What I can say is that the Canadian response to date, $1.75 million, is quite significant against the 30 million Swiss francs requested by the International Committee of the Red Cross. My information currently is that the 30 million Swiss francs that they have appealed to the international community for has been close to fully received by them. There have been 100% pledges, just about.

My understanding is there is no funding debt from the ICRC side, so to the extent that you have information about the specific request, I'd be interested. From our understanding, the International Committee of the Red Cross has adequate resources.

[Jean Dorion, Bloc, Longueuil—Pierre-Boucher, QC]

Thank you very much.

[The Chair, Conservative, Kevin Sorenson]

Thank you, Mr. Dorion.

Mr. Obhrai.