FAIT Committee Report
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Dissenting Opinion
SCFAIT Sub-Committee on Human Rights and International Development
Report on Colombia
Svend J. Robinson, MP
While I acknowledge and value the dedication and hard work of my Sub-Committee colleagues in holding extensive hearings and travelling to Colombia to witness first hand the tragic situation in that country, in a number of important respects I believe that the final Report of the Sub-Committee must be strengthened. In some cases I dissent from the conclusions drawn by my colleagues, in others I find that the conclusions of the Report do not accurately reflect the evidence heard by the Sub-Committee. Like my colleagues, I want to thank all of the witnesses who appeared before us, both in Ottawa and in Colombia. Their evidence, particularly that of Colombian witnesses, was powerful and moving. There is no question that the crisis in Colombia is by far the gravest in this hemisphere, as Jan Egeland has noted, from many different perspectives. I want to underscore the pride that I and other members of the Sub-Committee feel in the great contribution to protecting human rights and nurturing the peace process made by our respected Ambassador Guill Ryschinski. As well, I would pay tribute to the dedicated Canadian non-governmental organizations and individuals who have been working so long for peace and justice in Colombia.
The most important conclusion drawn by all members of the Sub-Committee is that a military solution to the conflict is "not viable", and that there must be a negotiated solution. It is essential that the dialogue for peace based upon economic and social justice not just involve the armed combatants of the guerilla and the state, but include broad representation from civil society, particularly from women and indigenous peoples. As the Sub-Committee notes as well, Colombia is a profoundly inegalitarian society, with huge gaps between the rich and the poor, and a comprehensive peace with justice must mean major economic redistribution of wealth and power and land reform. Indigenous peoples and Afro-Colombians must be particularly targeted in these areas…they are the poorest of the poor. Neo-liberal economic "reforms" such as structural adjustment and privatization and de-regulation have had a harsh impact on the Colombian people, leading to greater levels of poverty and concentrating the nation’s wealth in the hands of fewer and fewer people — a situation that only serves to fuel the armed conflict and undermine efforts to achieve peace. Colombian democracy has been lauded in the Report, but I would note that it is fragile indeed. The bloody experience of the Patriotic Union, with over 3000 killed, and the recent claims by paramilitary leader Salvatore Mancuso that many of the newly elected members of the
Legislature are AUC supporters are disturbing evidence of this. As well, the fact that the Legislature has to this day not debated Plan Colombia, and that the Human Rights Commissions are largely dormant, is further evidence of this weakness.
The following are the key areas in which I believe that the majority Report must be changed or strengthened:
- The report gives far too much credit to the Colombian government for its alleged achievements in establishing structures to protect human rights. While credit should be given where due, the evidence provided by many witnesses and the findings of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights provide compelling evidence that the main problem as regards human rights is not an absence of laws or institutions, but a repeated failure by the government of Colombia to use them and thus an absence of tangible decisions, actions and results.
- The Report is not tough enough on the Colombian government’s failure to actively combat paramilitaries, and grossly understates the well documented ties between the state forces and the AUC. Far from improving, as the Report suggests, the UN has documented that the situation is getting worse. The UN notes the sharp contrast between the Colombian government’s tough discourse against the paramilitary groups and both its actions and failure to assess the extent of public servants’ ties to these groups, describing the Colombian government’s commitment to counteracting paramilitary groups as "weak and inconsistent". Key military officers accused of complicity with the AUC remain in active duty and the security forces continue to promote soldiers and policemen whose conduct is being investigated for human rights violations and paramilitary activities, sending a contradictory message to civil society with regard to the manner in which the State fulfils its international obligations. Impunity reigns.
- A number of witnesses raised concerns about the role of the Canadian corporate sector in Colombia, including the North-South Institute, Canadian churches and both Canadian and Colombian trade unionists. As well, the role of the EDC in the Urra Dam financing was harshly criticized. The report glosses over much of this, and should be much stronger in calling for Canada to lead on monitoring and promoting corporate social responsibility. The Report should also be much clearer on the damning testimony of Kimy Pernia on the EDC role, and condemning the weak investigation into his disappearance.
- Canada should strongly condemn the military component of Plan Colombia, as urged by many witnesses and as been done by the European Parliament and others. The report is unacceptable in this area. As well, we should call for immediate suspension of all aerial spraying, at the very least until an independent inquiry has been conducted to show no adverse health impacts.
- The Report should call for an increase of the Canada Fund to $1 million.
These are the key areas in which I believe the Report should be strengthened.