I think there are two factors here. One, again, is the debate in the United States, where it's not about whether or not the United States should have a free trade agreement with Colombia, but as Mr. Julian correctly pointed out, about the fact there is a great deal of hostility towards trade in the United States, for several reasons, including the current downturn and unhappiness in the past, etc. There are several reasons for this in the United States. We don't need to get into those reasons, but the Colombian agreement has been caught up in them.
Also, at one time, this was a serious issue in Colombia. The number of homicides of union leaders in the country was close to 200 per 100,000 people. It was also a time when the overall murder rate in Colombia was 78 per 100,000 versus the 36 it is today. The Colombians have made a great deal of progress.
You're correct when you say that if you look at the past you would have one picture, but that if you look at today, there's a difference in the trend lines or the progress that has been made and continues to be made. I would argue that rather than looking at one fixed point in time, be it 10 years ago or today, it's more important to look at the trend lines and the progress. That's what's been lost.
The arguments about Colombia are grounded in an era when the homicide rate in the country was 77 or 78 per 100,000. They are not grounded in the reality of today, where that's been cut in half, on average, where for union leaders it's been cut even more, and where the government has put in protections and done so much.
Again, the amazing thing about Colombia—and the free trade agreement speaks to this—is their openness and willingness to look at new ideas and to address issues. They've been very open and forthright in accepting help and seeking help to address issues. The agreement provides us another vehicle to do that in a more formalized mechanism. Of course, our ambassador, Geneviève des Rivières, is hard at work on these issues, as is the team from DFAIT. But this gives them another vehicle, another tool, to help them in the progress they're making.