A One-note “strategy”? Mr. Harper Goes to Latin America

What message is Canada sending to Latin America? And what does Prime Minister Harper’s visit to the region in August tell us about the state of Canada’s “Americas Strategy”?

When first announced by Mr. Harper in July 2007, the Americas Strategy promised to make Latin America and the Caribbean a top priority for Canadian foreign policy, and committed Canada to playing a “bigger role in the Americas… for the long term.” The three priorities established in the Strategy were to promote democratic governance, prosperity, and security in the region.
Since the strategy was announced, supporters of stronger Canadian engagement with the Americas have signalled their disappointment with Foreign Affairs’ lack of sustained attention to the region. An expected strategy document that might have laid out a more visionary approach apparently stalled in Cabinet and was never released. A recent internal evaluation done by the Office of the Inspector General in Foreign Affairs and obtained by Canadian Press under access-to-information legislation found that the strategy had suffered for lack of funds, focus, and co-ordination.

In the absence of a clear, comprehensive strategy, we were left with a series of flawed trade agreements and the country’s high-profile role in Haiti. The Canadian government signed trade deals with Colombia, a country notorious for high levels of human rights violations, Peru, Costa Rica, and Panama, despite a clear lack of enthusiasm among most Latin Americans for free trade policies. Canada has been pursuing other trade deals, with less success, with the other Central American countries, the Caribbean Community (CARICOM), and Brazil.

Harper’s six-day trip has reinforced the idea that the government’s real priority is Canadian prosperity, not sustainable development in the region. During the first stop on his trip, he did his best to repair some of the rips in the Canada-Brazil relationship, which has ranged from hostility to indifference in recent years. Canadian exports to Brazil have increased dramatically over the last five years, despite a lacklustre bilateral relationship. Harper and Brazil’s new president, Dilma Rousseff, announced some minor initiatives, like the formation of a Canada-Brazil CEO Forum, and other agreements to boost trade.

Harper next visited Colombia to celebrate the entry into force a week later (August 15th) of the Canada-Colombia free trade agreement. During his trip to Costa Rica, he continued the narrow focus on trade by announcing the decision of the two governments to begin negotiating a new trade agreement dealing with difficult areas not covered in the first agreement, such as government procurement, agriculture, and trade in financial services. Harper and Laura Chinchilla, the Costa Rican president, also committed to increase cooperation in security, tax collection, and air transport. Harper also sent a rather odd message by visiting a hockey rink at a wealthy country club outside of San José that is modelled on a European castle.

Finally, the visit ended on a sour note in Honduras. Harper is the first foreign leader to visit the country since the Organization of American States readmitted the country after its former president, Manuel Zelaya, was overthrown in a military coup. The current government led by Porfirio Lobo came to power in a controversial election, but widespread human rights violations continue. Harper boasted that the deal would help rid the country of poverty and violence: “Trade does, of course, raise people from poverty… Protectionists are selfish and short-sighted in their perspectives”. Meanwhile, demonstrators kept outside the gates at the event begged to differ: they claimed that the deal would contribute to the attack on workers’ rights and line the pockets of Canadian businesses.

In order to win respect in the Americas, the Harper government needs to recognize that there is much more to the relationship than the signing of trade deals which may be perceived as primarily benefitting Canadian corporations. While there well may be benefits to Canada from greater commercial relations with the region, a more sensitive approach is required to address the fact that the image of Canada has become more tarnished in recent years. Canadian companies operating in Latin America, particularly mining companies, have become increasingly the targets of criticism by environmental and human rights organizations and indigenous activists. For example, in May 2011, a delegation from the Wixárika people of northern Mexico presented a letter to the annual shareholders meeting of First Majestic Silver in Vancouver, expressing concerns about the impact the company’s proposed silver mine will have on a sacred site of their people, located in the state of San Luis Potosí. The Inter-American Commission on Human Rights has ordered the government of Guatemala to suspend operations of Canadian corporation Goldcorp’s Marlin mine to prevent imminent harm to communities living near the mine, an order which the Guatemalan government has failed to comply with. In El Salvador, local human rights organizations charge that deaths of four anti-mining activists are linked to the presence in the region of Vancouver-based Pacific Rim Mining company.
Overall, at a time when Canadian business is increasingly subject to criticism over labour and environmental practices associated with Canadian mining operations, Harper’s trade-focused visit failed to convey the idea that Canada has interests that are higher than the bottom line.

Meanwhile, one country the prime minister missed during his tour was Canada’s “strategic partner” Mexico. Instead, Mexicans had to make do with a visit from foreign minister John Baird, who accompanied Harper on the rest of the tour. The lack of a Mexico stop by Harper seemed to be another snub to our NAFTA partner. Canada’s relationship with Mexico has suffered as a result of the 2009 imposition of the requirement that Mexicans obtain a visa to Canada, and trilateral relations have suffered from the exclusion of Mexico from the recent “perimeter talks” with the United States. Baird and his Mexican counterpart, Patricia Espinosa, discussed such themes as security cooperation, labour mobility, cooperation against transnational organized crime, academic exchanges and scientific cooperation. Baird also told journalists that he had a “significant” discussion about improving security for Canadians visiting Mexico and ensuring effective treatment for cases involving Canadians. None of these discussions signalled that Canada would be taking on a more important role to address security and human rights issues facing Mexicans. Canada could be doing much more to promote democracy, security and human rights in Mexico.