Thank you very much, Madam Chair.
I made a written submission to the committee a couple of weeks ago, and possibly it has been shared with everyone, so I will just repeat very quickly the three points I tried to make.
First, we need to reject the mantra that Canada does not negotiate with kidnappers. It's not helpful and it's not true. Replace that slogan with a clear commitment to the safety and security of Canadians abroad. That's a better starting point for better consular service.
Second, legislation may not be the most promising approach to getting good consular service. A broad legislation that frames the problem is fine. That's probably a good idea, and it would help to straighten out the legal ambiguity of where consular services reside.
The real issue is how to mandate Global Affairs Canada with the authority to deal with all consular cases, including ones that have an interdepartmental aspect to them.
In the case of kidnappings, as I mentioned in my brief, the RCMP should be removed from line responsibility—and possibly from all involvement in kidnappings abroad—if for no other reason than its inherent conflict of interest, given its law enforcement mandate.
Third, I urge that Canada's diplomatic representatives be given more latitude to have a full range of contacts abroad, with minimal inhibitions, especially with organizations that on the face of it could have links to problems abroad, ranging from insurgencies to kidnappings. When issues arise, contacts are part of the solution. Without those contacts, we are disarming ourselves to no particular advantage.
Having made those points in the written part, a couple of other points are also worth emphasizing. It's remarkable how many of the difficult consular cases arise as a result of the issue of dual nationality. This concept needs to be communicated much more effectively to Canadians, especially to Canadians who have a second nationality and who travel to the state of their other nationality on a regular basis, sometimes using the passport of their other nationality.
It should be emphasized that the Canadian government of course has a responsibility to all Canadians abroad, including those with a second nationality. The simple realities of international politics mean that the government—the Canadian government, that is—may be limited in its practical ability to act in some situations where dual nationality is either not accepted by other states or is accepted only to a limited extent.
The warnings in Global Affairs consular materials aren't enough. Much more should be done through outreach and communications, including in ethnic newspapers.
I'm also dubious about an approach to consular services that can be described as rights-based. Asserting that someone has a right to consular service may be valid as a starting point, and I don't doubt that it's true, but it doesn't get very far when other countries in which Canadians are in trouble don't co-operate or don't read international law the same way.
Instead, I'm attracted to greater policy codification that establishes what Canadian embassies can offer in the way of consular services and what the respective rights and responsibilities of Canada, the person affected, and the host country are likely to be in practical terms.
The discussion on consular issues then shifts to service standards, or how to offer to all Canadians an approach to consular services that meets expectations. At the present time, there is a lack of clarity across the board on many of these issues. The starting point should be a new corporate mantra in Global Affairs, which is more or less “service to Canada at home and abroad”. This would emphasize the expectations that Canadians have for good consular service.
At the top of the list of problems to be addressed is having a foreign service with experience in consular issues. Most Canadians with problems abroad will be served initially at Canadian embassies by locally engaged staff members. They are mainly the nationals of the host country, hired by the Canadian government to serve in Canadian embassies. The LES, as they are called in the local jargon of Global Affairs, are the backbone of consular affairs. We boast some of the finest LES consular officers in the world.
Staff reductions have taken their toll, training is not where it should be, and some embassies don't give the LES the latitude, respect, and support they deserve. I hope the committee emphasizes the centrality of locally engaged staff to getting the consular job done abroad.
What of Canadians who serve Canada abroad? There was once a tradition when virtually all foreign service officers, on their first few postings, shared consular duties. That has been lost in the current configuration of Global Affairs, with consular affairs now part of a specialized consular administration stream of the department. That specialization is warranted. It builds capacity, expertise, and leadership, but it also has a tendency to limit latitude and experience in Global Affairs. I would hope the department would review how Canadians' missions abroad assist the consular function so that greater numbers of foreign service personnel share consular duties and understand the work and its importance.
This would have a spillover effect in the long term as those foreign service officers come back to Ottawa and gradually move up the line into more responsible positions.
Related to this issue, of course, is the broader question about Canada's foreign service, which is now in a state of crisis. I have blogged a few times on this issue, yet it bears repeating that Canada is now losing its foreign service. If we keep going on the current suicidal course, minimal recruitment, few promotions, no emphasis on experience, languages, or international law, lateral entries blocking the promotion path, etc., the Canadian foreign service will be gone within a decade.
We will then be left with few people within the Government of Canada who understand the international system and how to make it work for Canada. There are obvious implications here for consular affairs, but they apply across the board to other international activities from Arctic legal claims to responding to the challenges of security in eastern Europe.
The committee may also wish to look at this issue, given the centrality of a vital foreign service in providing the type of international service that Canadians need and that Canadians expect when consular issues hit.
Thank you very much.