PM right to want return on investment

Boycott of summit in Sri Lanka appropriate

Stephen Harper’s brand of diplomacy tends to use more vinegar than oil — notably, when he told barack Obama he wouldn’t take “no” for an answer on the Keystone pipeline. but his decision to be the first leader to say he will not attend the 2013 commonwealth Heads of Government Meeting in Sri Lanka this November over human rights concerns, as he did Monday, is entirely justified.

There will be accusations that the Prime Minister is playing domestic politics — dumping on the Sri Lankan government to win the support of the large Tamil constituency in canada.

but Mr. Harper has a longstanding ambivalence toward the commonwealth, for which canada pays $20-million a year and gets little back in return.

Its proponents argue it is the “club of the 21st century,” as evidenced by the number of countries like yemen and Sudan that want to join. Secretary General Kamalesh Sharma says the commonwealth imparts its values of good governance and democracy around the world, pointing out that seven of the top eight African countries in an index of good governance are commonwealth members.

but Mr. Harper knows how much value to place in that statement.

His baptism in commonwealth politics came in Kampala in 2007. ugandan strongman yoweri Museveni spent $150-million building white elephant hotels that have probably never been filled since. He swept the grime and prostitutes from downtown streets and sold the country as a haven for democracy and investment.

Meanwhile, outside the gleaming, cordoned-off core, opposition supporters were attacked by police wielding sticks and batons. One democratic reformer who had the temerity to run against Museveni found himself charged with rape and treason during the campaign. uganda is still flirting with a so-called “kill the gays” bill that would introduce the death penalty for “aggravated homosexuality.”

events in Sri Lanka are even more appalling. The government there claims it has made great strides towards reconciliation since 2009, when it defeated Tamil separatists after a 25-year civil war. but, as Mr. Harper’s statement makes clear, the Sri Lankan government has failed to uphold the commonwealth’s values — and there has been precious little condemnation from the organization’s Secretariat.

“canada noted with concern the impeachment of the Sri Lankan chief Justice earlier this year, and we remain disturbed by ongoing reports of intimidation and incarceration of political leaders and journalists, harassment of minorities, reported disappearances and allegations of extra-judicial killings,” the Prime Minister said, as he asked John baird, the Foreign Affairs Minister, to review canada’s financial contribution to the commonwealth.

Anyone who thinks the Prime Minister is exaggerating the level of abuse should read a report on the Human rights Watch website: We Will Teach you a Lesson: Sexual Violence Against Tamils by Sri Lankan Security Forces, which provides (graphic) accounts of 75 cases of alleged rape in official and secret detention centres throughout Sri Lanka.

As the united Nations High commissioner for Human rights, Navi Pillay, reported in September, the government of Sri Lanka has failed to investigate any of the allegations of war crimes. And as Human rights Watch noted, the commonwealth Secretariat has refused to discuss the human rights situation.

This resolve to see no evil, far less criticize it, has become characteristic of an organization that has forgotten why it came into being (or at least why it continued to exist, after Louis St. Laurent pushed for the admittance of republics in the London declaration of 1949).

The failure to speak out may prove to be the commonwealth’s undoing, as the rich countries that pay the bills tire of mixing with despots and tinpot dictators.

John Key, the New Zealand prime minister, made the point that if he only visited countries that had the same human rights record as the Kiwis, he wouldn’t get out much.

but this is an organization where fundamental changes are required if it is going to survive. before the last cHOGM in Perth, Australia, a report, Time for urgent reform, recommended all members sign a commonwealth charter and that a human rights commissioner be appointed to report on persistent violations of rule of law and human rights.

Hugh Segal, the conservative senator, was a member of the panel that wrote the report, which sounds like it is being used as a doorstop at the commonwealth Secretariat.

He supports Mr. Harper’s move and says there is clear evidence of back-sliding by the Sri Lankan government. “For [Harper] to say ‘I’m going to go along to get along’ would be out of character and inconsistent with our principles,” he said.