Failing to communicate


The Prime Minister is not doing his job, informing Canadians about the Kandahar mission in Afghanistan. That's one of the observations in a report (pdf) from the pollsters at Angus Reid. They did a survey after the parliamentary vote to extend the mission until 2011. 58% of their respondents were opposed to the decision, and 61% say Harper and his government are still failing to effectively explain the mission.

The compromise resolution agreed to by the Conservatives and the Liberal opposition might have served as a "teachable moment" if say, Harper had used its passage as an opportunity to make a national address on the subject, perhaps even calling on Dion to give the Liberal party version of why the mission is so important. Instead he's left us with the impression that all that happened was an artful dance to take Afghanistan off the table in the next election.

The Manley report's last recommendation was that the government:

...must engage Canadians in a continuous, frank and constructive dialogue about conditions in Afghanistan and the extent to which Canadian objectives are being achieved.

The reason for that recommendation was on page 20:

While public support for Canadian troops is strong, Canadians have been uncertain about Canada’s evolving mission in Afghanistan. To put things bluntly, Governments from the start of Canada’s Afghan involvement have failed to communicate with Canadians with balance and candour about the reasons for Canadian involvement, or about the risks, difficulties and expected results of that involvement. Almost the only Government accounts that Canadians have received have come from the Department of National Defence.

The parliamentary resolution, and the Manley report, called for increased efforts on development and reconstruction, along with the training of the Afghan army. I learned last week, not from the Prime Minister, but from John Manley, that Canada only has 47 civilians in Afghanistan, compared to our military force of 2,500.

Last Sunday the CBC aired a documentary, Afghanistan: Between Hope and Fear. After viewing the show I was left wondering if CIDA, the Canadian International Development Agency, has the ability to work in the middle of an insurgency. The documentary was good at describing how difficult it's going to be to repair the country. But it wasn't an overview of Canadian efforts or plans.

The Prime Minister should tell us what he's going to do about CIDA. His government should get the message out that the mission isn't just the international equivalent of charity, that Canada's national interests are at stake, and that both our security and our influence in the world are in jeopardy if we fail.

One reassuring piece of news in the Angus Reid poll was that 59% of the respondents believe Afghans benefit from the Canadian presence in their country. It's not that we're indifferent to their plight. We just want to be sure we are doing the right thing.

Hat tip to Far and Wide and The Torch.

Posted: Sat - March 29, 2008 at 04:45 PM          

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