Foreign Affairs Committee on Feb. 14th, 2023

[Stephen Salewicz]

Maybe we should go back to the Turkish Red Crescent. The Government of Turkey has tremendous capacity. They are assisting already. They are distributing thousands of tents with heating and thousands of blankets. The distribution is going on, led by the Turkish government.

[Randy Hoback, Conservative, Prince Albert, SK]

If you can't get the blankets there in eight days, because you don't have the landing strip or the ability to land, aren't there alternatives to get those goods to those people? Does it have to go through the Red Cross and Red Crescent?

I'm a farm kid from Saskatchewan, so I'm looking at it from a very pragmatic point of view. If you drop a sleeping bag, I'm going to grab it and use it. Why do I have to wait for somebody from the Red Crescent or Red Cross to give it to me?

[Stephen Salewicz]

One of the most important parts of the response when we're faced by emergencies like this is that coordination is fundamental. Everyone showing up at the front door with something to offer can lead to a lot of inefficiencies.

We work through a system that's been established through lessons over the years. It seems slow sometimes and not as immediate. I can understand the frustration, but at the same time it allows for the efficient distribution of supplies and it's timely, as timely as we can be.

[Randy Hoback, Conservative, Prince Albert, SK]

I get efficiency. Efficient for us is one thing. Efficient for somebody on the ground who is freezing to death is something totally different. You can see where I'm coming from.

One of the other questions I want to get to is that $50 million is going through the Red Cross. Is that correct? Did you say $50 million in your presentation?

[Stephen Salewicz]

There's a $10 million matching fund. The $50 million is with partners already in northwest Syria. The money has been disbursed already.

[Randy Hoback, Conservative, Prince Albert, SK]

That money has hit the ground. How much of that $50 million went into administration? Did it all hit the ground?

[Stephen Salewicz]

It's all there. It's all disbursed. It's actively being used by our partners to pivot to the response and use those funds to distribute food, medical supplies and shelter supplies. It's active right now.

[Randy Hoback, Conservative, Prince Albert, SK]

What I get from other countries when it comes to the Red Cross is that they tend to take and hive off a certain portion of those funds for next year and the year after, when the funds were intended to be delivered that day or that year or that month. How much of the $10 million is being delivered this month or next month? How much is going to be delivered next year and the year after? How much is going to administration costs? That is an ongoing complaint I get about the Red Cross over and over again.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ali Ehsassi]

Mr. Salewicz, you have 10 seconds, essentially.

[Stephen Salewicz]

Those are a lot of questions. I'd be happy to put some of those answers in writing.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ali Ehsassi]

Thank you very much.

For our final questions, we will go to MP Oliphant.

[Rob Oliphant, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Thank you, officials, not only for being here today but for your work. I'm constantly impressed at the professionalism and agility.

I'm a midtown Toronto boy, and I don't pretend to know your work, so I trust you.

Thank you to the officials who moved on this so quickly, not only on behalf of Canada but as humanitarians. I think that sometimes coming to this committee is an abuse. You put up with the abuse well, and your work is appreciated greatly by Canadians. I want to thank you.

We recently looked at the flooding in Pakistan as an issue. What came into my head on that issue was that short-term crisis management is about recovery and trying to save as many lives as possible. The mid-term is to look at whether there's an outbreak of cholera or other things that happen in these disasters. There's a mid-term moment, and then there's a long-term moment. We're somewhere between that immediate first moment and the second moment. We're somewhere in that phase right now.

I know that you don't have a crystal ball and I know that it's a complex situation, but can you give us a sense of where we might be going and what might be demanded or required of Canadians to be supportive?

[Stephen Salewicz]

Indeed, this is a quickly evolving situation. Based on past experience, we will see, unfortunately, the establishment of large displacement camps. There's going to be a need for significant support in the medium term to just keep people in shelter and fed. The good news is that markets are working in Turkey, and we'll be able to move to cash operations shortly, in the near term, so that cash can be provided to beneficiaries and they can purchase goods themselves.

The needs in the medium term will continue. I point towards health care. That's going to be a significant one. As we think of the number of people who are dead, there are multiples of that number who are injured during a crisis like this. The requirements for recovery in that kind of situation are tremendous. I think there will be a lot of effort in the medium term to move from this life-saving more into recovery, and health recovery is going to be particularly important.

I expect that the World Bank and others will get involved in looking at that medium to longer term to provide guidance and planning around how best to respond.

[Rob Oliphant, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

I know we don't have officials here from IRCC, but I have spoken to a number of Kurdish Canadians who are requesting the possibility of fast-tracking family reunification applications that are already in process. Part of that displaced persons issue could be Canada's role in helping resettle not only Kurdish but particularly Kurdish people who are maybe doubly displaced, who had already been displaced once and have been displaced again.

Is there any advice you have for me or for our committee about how we could address that issue?

[Stephen Salewicz]

I'll turn to my colleague, Jess Dutton.

[Jess Dutton]

Certainly.

I think engaging with the minister and others will be critically important in that. Certainly I know that, as the government responds to these kinds of crises, we look at all avenues available to help alleviate suffering. Certainly that is one I imagine would be considered.

[Rob Oliphant, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

Let's consider it.

Thank you. I'm done.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ali Ehsassi]

Thank you very much.

Before suspending briefly to allow us to go to the second panel, allow me to echo the sentiments of all members of this committee in thanking you for the professionalism you have demonstrated under very difficult circumstances.

Thank you.

For those online, you can remain on this channel. We'll suspend for about three to four minutes.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ali Ehsassi]

Welcome back, everyone.

Pursuant to Standing Order 108(2) and the motion adopted by the committee on Thursday, February 7, 2023, the committee is holding a briefing on the humanitarian crisis following a series of earthquakes in Turkey and Syria.

It is now my pleasure to welcome our witnesses, most of whom are joining us virtually. From the Catholic Near East Welfare Association, we have Monsignor Peter Vaccari, president, and Adriana Bara, national director. From the Humanitarian Coalition, we have Richard Morgan, executive director. From Islamic Relief Canada, we have Usama Khan, chief executive officer. From Oxfam Canada, we have André Charlebois, humanitarian project manager, Oxfam-Québec.

First of all, thank you for being here. You will be provided with five minutes for opening remarks. After that, we will open it up to questions from the members. Once you're 30 seconds short of the allotted time, I will put up this sign. You can hopefully try to wrap it up in the remaining 30 seconds that you have available to you.

On that note, we will now go to Monsignor Vaccari.

The floor is yours, sir, for five minutes.

[Monsignor Peter Vaccari, President, Catholic Near East Welfare Association]

Thank you, Mr. Chair, vice-chairs and the rest of the committee, for the opportunity to be here this afternoon. I accompany Dr. Adriana Bara, who is the national director of CNEWA in Canada.

I will take the opportunity to offer some introductory comments to the Catholic Near East Welfare Association. I believe that Dr. Bara has already prepared and submitted to the committee a very specific report. We certainly welcome this opportunity to share our experiences with the committee and to answer any questions that the committee may have.

The Catholic Near East Welfare Association was organized, founded, by Pope Pius XI in 1926. Since that time, as we approach our centennial celebration now, the Catholic Near East Welfare Association has as its specific mandate to give humanitarian and pastoral assistance to the Catholic churches of the Eastern rites, the Eastern Catholic Churches, of which there are 23.

When we do this, the assistance that we give—be it humanitarian or pastoral—is given as we accompany the local church in a particular area that has been affected by some kind of very difficult situation. It's certainly similar to what we are all aware of right now with regard to the earthquakes in parts of Turkey and Syria.

We have recently given assistance to Ukraine and Lebanon over the last two or three years. We work with the local church and all of the representatives there in providing the kind of humanitarian assistance that the local people—especially where we are working with our offices on the ground—want us to provide with their very specific needs. In this case—

[The Chair, Liberal, Ali Ehsassi]

Monsignor Vaccari, I'm sorry. We're having some sound problems on our end.

Monsignor, could you kindly bring the mike closer to your mouth? The translators are having a difficult time. We'd be very grateful. Thank you.

[Monsignor Peter Vaccari]

Is that better, Mr. Chair?

[The Chair, Liberal, Ali Ehsassi]

I think it has improved things on our end. We'd be grateful if you could continue to do so.

Once again, the floor is yours. We did save you some time to make up for this interruption.

Thank you.

[Monsignor Peter Vaccari]

Again, I thank the chair and I thank the committee for this opportunity.

The Catholic Near East Welfare Association works with the local churches and with our offices on the ground. Particularly in the case of Syria, our office in Beirut is the office that is really responsible for and is in contact with the needs that develop in Syria.

We are cultivating partnerships, as we do in other places, particularly now with Caritas in Turkey, to be able to also request support from our donors to try to give assistance to those areas. It's primarily in Syria, through our office on the ground in Beirut, and through partnerships trying to give assistance in Turkey.

We began this emergency campaign shortly after learning, as the world did, of the earthquake that came into Turkey and Syria. The immediate needs we're now responding to are for blankets, food, milk, diapers, medication and mattresses. Again, I believe all of these are in the report, which was submitted to the committee. This is so you have a sense of where we go, at least initially.

We will continue as long as we can along those lines. In other instances, we have transferred as needs develop. Through contact with our office, particularly here in Beirut, we see where else we have needs and where else we must respond. In many other instances, that has included moving toward further humanitarian needs and, of course, at a certain point in time—we're not near that here—toward the psychological and social needs of a particular people.

Our aid comes because of the requests that we receive. Our aid, humanitarian especially, is distributed to everyone. There is no question about faith. There is no question about any other condition for someone who is in such a horrific situation as this. Our work is very much directed towards people of every faith and people who are in any kind of condition of need. That has been the purpose. That has been the work of the Catholic Near East Welfare Association for the areas where the Eastern Catholic Churches are located, which are in the Middle East, the Horn of Africa, India and in eastern Europe. We continue to work and be of service.

It's a great privilege for us to be able to answer a fundamental gospel mandate for us, which is the parable of the good Samaritan. We try to answer the question, “Who is my neighbour?”

Again, I thank the committee for the opportunity. I'm sure that you'll hear from Dr. Bara on the report that she submitted, which is a much more extensive and comprehensive view of what we are doing. Then we would both like to be available to answer any of the questions that any committee members may have.

I thank the committee.

[The Chair, Liberal, Ali Ehsassi]

Thank you very much.

We go next to the Humanitarian Coalition.

Mr. Morgan, you have five minutes, sir.