Debates of April 12th, 1999

Kosovo

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister has said that the government is not considering committing Canadian ground troops to NATO action in the Balkans. Should that position change, will the Prime Minister commit to submitting that issue to a vote—not a discussion, not a debate, but a vote—in this Chamber?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we have developed a system that is working very well. We have consulted more departments. We have established this route. The member is asking the question “Should there be a vote if troops were to be sent to engage in combat?” That is the question. We are not there. When that question comes I will seriously consider the proposition of the Leader of the Opposition.

[Preston Manning, Reform, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, this is a simple question that requires a yes or a no from the Prime Minister.

In 1991 when the Conservative government committed troops to the war in the gulf the Prime Minister was on his feet demanding that there be a vote in this House and saying it was illegal when they did not get the vote.

I ask the Prime Minister again: Will the government agree to a vote in this House before committing Canadian ground troops to any action in the Balkans?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, it is a hypothetical question and I have replied as favourably as possible. We are not faced with that situation. I said, and I repeat, that if we are faced with that situation I will consider it positively and I will give the answer when confronted with the problem.

[Daniel Turp, Bloc, Beauharnois—Salaberry, QC]

Mr. Speaker, following the meeting of NATO's foreign affairs ministers in Brussels this morning, the French and Belgian ministers of Foreign Affairs stated that the idea of creating some kind of international protectorate for Kosovo was discussed among allies.

Could the Prime Minister tell us whether Canada intends to promote this solution, or will it continue reacting to events as it has been doing since the beginning of this conflict?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, in the search for a solution to this problem, we are not ruling out any option.

At this time, the priority is to get an agreement, to allow Kosovars to return home. This is the top priority. Then, there is the issue of Kosovo's political status. Kosovo enjoyed a high degree of autonomy until President Milosevic took it away in 1989. What will the political solution be? We are prepared to look at every option.

But the important thing is to ensure that Kosovars can safely go back home and live a normal life.

[Daniel Turp, Bloc, Beauharnois—Salaberry, QC]

Mr. Speaker, could the Prime Minister tell us whether he plans to finally take advantage of the fact that Canada sits at the UN security council by suggesting to the other members of the security council the creation of some kind of international protectorate for Kosovo?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, our ambassador to the United Nations is very active on this issue. However, we are well aware that the Russians and the Chinese do not want to debate this issue at the security council. Therefore, it would not be very useful at this time to put forward a proposal that would go nowhere.

All the suggestions that will be made will be reviewed by the minister and by the ambassador, and they will be discussed when there is a chance for a positive solution at the security council, which is something we all hope for.

[Monte Solberg, Reform, Medicine Hat, AB]

Mr. Speaker, just a minute ago we heard the Prime Minister refuse to commit to sending this issue to a vote in the House of Commons. We are talking about sending the sons and daughters of Canadian citizens into a possible combat situation. I do not understand what the problem is. This is the most democratic Chamber in the country. Why is the Prime Minister refusing to allow this issue to be considered? Why is he refusing to commit today that we will have a vote on this issue when it actually comes into being? Why is the Prime Minister refusing?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I said there would be a debate if we faced that question. I said that at the beginning and there will be a debate.

At this time I want to debate what is going on today because the priority of the government is to make sure that we have a peaceful situation there and that we will not need to send combat troops there. That is the goal of the government.

[Monte Solberg, Reform, Medicine Hat, AB]

Mr. Speaker, that is well and good, but the fact is that any responsible government would look down the road. A responsible government would show somehow that it is committed to democracy.

When we are talking about an issue that is this serious, I submit that the Prime Minister has a responsibility to declare right now that he will put this issue to a vote. Will he make that commitment?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I have replied very clearly that we are faced with a situation at this time that if we were to be in the position of having to send troops there, it is not something I wish, or any Canadian wishes, to have a debate.

We want at this time to make sure that the plan we have agreed to with the countries of NATO will work and that Milosevic will permit the people to go back to Kosovo and live in security. Of course if there is a peace agreement Canada will want to participate in a peacekeeping operation.

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, right at the beginning of his response to the first question, the Prime Minister stated that he was proud to have the support of all parties in this House. I think that, indeed, all parties support the government's actions, with a few reservations of course.

What we are quite simply asking him is this: in order to conserve this necessary support, can he commit today to holding a vote in this House, should we need to send troops to Kosovo, before a decision is taken?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, once again, we are having a debate today to discuss the situation in Kosovo. That is where the crisis is at the present time, and we must ensure that the Kosovars can return home under the best possible conditions.

That is the debate we are having today. I can see the members of the opposition do not want to debate that. What they want to debate is a situation we do not wish to see occur. The last thing we want to have to do is send land forces over.

Canada wishes to have a peaceable position, one which will enable Canadians to take part in peacekeeping operations.

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we are not refusing to allow such a debate and we do take it seriously. However, history has shown us that there has been significant division in Canada in the past when such decisions had to be taken.

There is a greater unity than ever here on this question at this time, a first, on the question of Kosovo. Could the Prime Minister not commit to telling us in advance whether indeed he would hold a vote to avoid a repetition of the ridiculous situation that occurred in 1991, when we were debating in the House whether we would go to Iraq, while the war was being shown on television.

We do not want to be in that situation again—

[The Speaker]

The right hon. Prime Minister.

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, what I said earlier is that there will be a debate in the House before we send any troops, but we hope not to have to send any. This is the objective and the wish of the government and, I hope, of all Canadians.

[Diane Ablonczy, Reform, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to remind the Prime Minister that it was our defence minister who put on the table the possibility of Canadian ground troops going into Kosovo.

We have a right in the House to know that Canadians' own representatives will give the go ahead before the lives of men and women are put on the line.

It is shameful to see the Prime Minister skating around this issue and doing everything he can to deny a rightful vote in the Parliament of Canada on this important issue. Will he not just say right now that, yes, there will be a vote?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, I have to repeat that they are asking a hypothetical question. I said that if I am confronted with that I will look at the question as positively as possible, but we are not there.

I want members of the House of Commons to debate what the operations of NATO are at this time and what can be done to improve the situation to avoid sending ground troops into combat in Kosovo.

[Diane Ablonczy, Reform, Calgary Nose Hill, AB]

Mr. Speaker, what has been done so far is that we get a chance after the fact to debate a fait accompli decision the government has already taken.

We are demanding in the House that we have the right to have a democratic debate and vote before the lives of Canadian men and women are put further at risk. The defence minister has put that possibility on the table.

On behalf of Canadians we want to be assured that the House will rule as to whether this goes ahead or not.

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, we have had more debate on the involvement of Canadian troops around the world than ever before. We have taken every issue to the House, every time we were confronted, since we formed the government. This was the technique that was chosen at this time to maintain the situation, where we consult the House of Commons. But the determination is the responsibility of the government.

If opposition members think the government is not doing its job, they can have a vote of non-confidence in the government.

[Monique Guay, Bloc, Laurentides, QC]

Mr. Speaker, during the past week, the parliaments of Albania and the Republic of Macedonia appealed to us for help in taking in, feeding and housing Kosovar refugees.

My question is for the Prime Minister. Has the government already made commitments in this regard and does it intend to use the $100 million set aside to take the refugees in here to add to the help provided the NGOs?

[Lucienne Robillard, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, immediately after we received the call from the UN high commissioner for refugees asking us to provide a safe shelter for the Kosovars, the Prime Minister made a commitment to take in 5,000 Kosovars here in Canada, as we all know.

The border situation has stabilized somewhat, and the high commissioner has halted all requests to countries to take people in temporarily. We have now been asked primarily to give consideration to family reunification and to respond to people with very special needs, which we are prepared to do.

As to financial aid, we will clearly continue to help Albania and Macedonia.

Nunavut

[Nancy Karetak-Lindell, Liberal, Nunavut, NU]

Mr. Speaker, last week all of Canada celebrated the creation of the new territory of Nunavut.

Science and traditional knowledge are both essential to building a solid base for the future of the people of Nunavut.

Can the Minister of Natural Resources tell the House what his department is doing to help the people of Nunavut in the area of research?

[Gerry Byrne, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to Minister of Natural Resources and Minister responsible for the Canadian Wheat Board]

Mr. Speaker, let me join with my fellow colleagues in congratulating the people of Nunavut and the hon. member, the great member for Nunavut, on the tremendous celebration. It was very well done indeed.

The process of building Nunavut has only just begun. Natural Resources Canada has just increased funding by $1 million this fiscal year to the polar continental shelf project, which is Canada's primary science logistical project in northern Canada.