Stephen Harper talks trade, human smuggling
in Thailand
BANGKOK,
Thailand — Canada is contributing $12 million over two years to crackdown on
human smuggling and illegal migration in Southeast Asia and other parts of the
world.
Prime
Minister Stephen Harper announced the funding during a visit to a Thai police
outpost where he toured two military-style vessels and received a briefing on
efforts to prevent asylum seekers from arriving on Canada's shores by boat.
Canada established
a task force in Bangkok, comprised of RCMP officers and other officials, after
a ship called the MV Sun Sea bearing 492 Tamil asylum-seekers arrived off the
shores of British Columbia from Thailand in August 2010.
"Since
the fall of 2010, intensified co-operation between the RCMP and the Royal Thai
Police, has thwarted the activities of human smuggling gangs," Harper told
task force members and Thai police officers
"Several
illegal operations have been blocked and boats have been stopped before they
can sail for Canada's shores."
Ward
Elcock, the prime minister's special adviser on human smuggling, told reporters
Thai police have not actually seized any ships.
Rather,
he said a number of operations had been disrupted, with passengers assembling
at staging areas but unable to secure transport to Canada.
In
addition, Elcock said one shipload of Tamils was seized in Indonesia last July
that was bound for Canada.
Passengers
on the MV Alicia claimed they were bound for New Zealand.
Elcock
could not say how large or small the problems of human smuggling and illegal
migration are in the region, but Tamils from Sri Lanka are the main focus.
About
$7 million has been set aside specifically for training and equipping police
throughout the Southeast Asian region, including $2.5 million specifically for
Thailand, which has emerged as Canada's primary partner for tackling the
problem of human smuggling and migrant boats.
Harper
thanked the Thai security officials "for their energetic pursuit of some
of the world's worst criminals — people who profit from exploiting the miseries
and the aspirations of some of the world's most vulnerable people."
Elcock
believed two years would be enough to train-up security forces in the region to
tackle the problem themselves.
However,
he felt changes to Canada's immigration and refugee systems would also help.
Since
the MV Sun Sea appeared off the coast of British Columbia, and the MV Ocean
Lady carrying about 100 Tamil asylum seekers before it in 2009, the
Conservative government has worked to prevent more such boats from doing the
same.
In
addition to establishing the task force in Thailand, the government also
introduced a bill aimed at strengthening Canada's anti-human smuggling laws,
targeting both those who ran the boats and those who travelled on board, whom
the government accused of trying to jump the queue and take advantage of the
country's refugee system.
The
effort, however, has been a source of controversy as refugee groups have
complained the government is unfairly targeting genuine refugees fleeing war
and discrimination in their home countries, which would go against Canada's
international obligations.
Harper,
who has been in Thailand since Thursday, will now fly to Japan, where he is
expected to announce free trade talks with the third-largest economy in the
world.
On
Friday, a giant red sign in front of Bangkok's palatial Government House
greeted Harper a "warm welcome" during his first visit to Thailand.
It's a
reception the prime minister is hoping to receive throughout the booming
Asia-Pacific region, where Canada has been lagging behind its competitors.
Since
coming to power in 2006, the Harper government has completed free trade talks
with nine countries. However, none of them are in Asia, which is seen as key to
Canada's future prosperity.
Negotiations
with Singapore were launched in 2001 but have gone nowhere. Discussions with
South Korea have also been stalled for several years, while Canada has had a
difficult time breaking into the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a major trading
bloc that includes the U.S. and a number of other important economies on both
sides of the ocean.
The
only real progress for Canada has been with India, and while completing a deal
with the second-most-populous country in the world would be a major boon, no
agreement is on the horizon. In contrast, the U.S., European Union and others
have inked numerous agreements in the region.
Harper
and his Thai counterpart, Yingluck Shinawatra, announced with great fanfare the
launch of a study into whether a free trade agreement between the two countries
makes economic sense.
This is
considered the first step to full-fledged negotiations and an eventual
agreement, which the federal government is hoping will serve as a springboard
into the broader Southeast Asian region.
After
officials toasted the announcement with champagne — Harper drank white grape
juice — the Canadian prime minister declared the study "yet another part
of Canada's ambitious trade agenda."
Harper,
who is also expected to announce the launch of trade talks with Japan during a
stop in Tokyo on Sunday, added that his government has made great strides on
free trade in Asia and other parts of the globe.
"Obviously
we have and are in the process of launching agreements throughout this region
and around the world," he said, "and I'm confident some of these
agreements will continue to move forward."
Shinawatra,
for her part, welcomed Canada's interest in exploring the possibility of a free
trade agreement with her country, and its "re-engagement with Asia and
Southeast Asia, in particular" — a telling remark on what many perceive as
Canada's absence from the region in recent years.
This is
Harper's second visit to Asia in as many months following a high-profile tour
of China in February, but the first state trip to Thailand by a Canadian prime
minister since Jean Chretien was here in 1997.
The
three-country tour, which includes stops in Japan and South Korea, is intended
to reiterate Canada's interest in the continent after the Conservative
government spent years focusing on the U.S.
Officials
have privately said Canada's limited number of trade negotiators are being
overworked and under a great deal of pressure, and the addition of two more
major negotiations will only add to the load.
Asia-Pacific
Foundation of Canada president Yuen Pau Woo said he senses an
"urgency" in the Conservative government's efforts to complete a deal
in Asia, particularly given the number of competitors already in region and
Canada's failure to land an agreement. But simply announcing talks isn't
enough.
"At
the end of his current Asian tour, Canada could have as many as five Asian free
trade agreements in various stages of negotiation, not including the
Trans-Pacific Partnership," Woo said.
"What
matters, however, is not the number of negotiations but Ottawa's ability to
close deals and the quality of those agreements. On that measure, we have yet
to make the scoreboard."
"It
is important that Canada demonstrate its ability to negotiate with Asian
trading partners," said trade consultant Peter Clark. "Every deal
Canada concludes will enhance our reputation for being able to close. Too much
effort goes into these negotiations to join them unless there is a good chance
of reaching a mutually beneficial conclusion."
One
potential advantage is Canada's energy and resource stocks, which are emerging
as key focal points of interest throughout Asia, with countries like China,
Japan, South Korea and even Thailand looking to power their fast-growing
economies.
Harper
acknowledged the role energy could play in Canada-Asia economic relations —
which is why the government is pushing major projects like the Northern
Gateway, which is designed to facilitate the shipment of oil and gas across the
Pacific.
"Our
government believes it's essential that we be able to sell our energy products
outside North America, to partners and countries other than the United
States," he said.
"Obviously
that will require some significant infrastructure projects to go forward, and
we're obviously, as we've indicated, looking at taking steps necessary to make
sure we can get timely regulatory decisions on those kinds of projects."
In
addition to the free trade study, Harper and Shinawatra announced the
completion of a youth exchange agreement that will let individuals from each
country between the ages of 18 and 30 obtain work visas.
Friday
was Harper's first full day in Thailand and he started it by visiting the
hospital where the country's beloved but ailing 84-year-old monarch, King
Bhumibol Adulyadej. Harper did not meet the king, but signed a book wishing him
well and passing along a vase of flowers.
Harper
then travelled to Thailand's Government House, where he was warmly greeted by
Shinawatra and inspected an honour guard in the sweltering heat before retiring
for a private discussion with the Thai prime minister.
He also
visited the Royal Palace before ending the day at a Canadian and Thai business
roundtable and reception.
LEE
BERTHIAUME
vancouversun.com
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