PM pitches oil, mentions rights
Speech in China blasts ‘foreign’ influence in oilsands debate
GUANGZHOU, CHINA— Ping pong, pipelines and pandas.
Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s fourday trade mission to China has had a taste of it all, bouncing from Beijing, to Guangzhou, and on Saturday to the southwestern inland city of Chongqing.
Harper used a keynote speech here Friday to slam the “foreign money and influence” behind critics of Canada’s oil sands even as he welcomed Chinese investment in Canada’s energy sector.
Moments later, Harper tried to practice a little foreign influencing of his own.
On his third day in China, Harper publicly raised the issue of human rights here. Speaking to 600 Canadian and Chinese business people from Guangzhou and the Shanghai and Hong Kong chambers of commerce, he reminded China to respect human rights and be a “responsible global citizen.”
Canadians, he said, expect their prime minister to have a “good and frank dialogue on fundamental principles such as freedom of speech, freedom of assembly, and freedom of belief and worship.”
Speaking to human rights in public, albeit far from the capital of Beijing, meant Harper’s concerns would register clearly with China’s leaders. He had raised the issue only privately in meetings this week with President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao.
However, there is little likelihood the broader Chinese population would hear his message and caution to Chinese leadership, because media here are state-controlled.
Friday’s newspapers instead reported that central authorities have warned leaders in Tibet to “prepare for war” with what they call “splittists” within the “Dalai Lama clique.”
Harper’s main message to China, however, was heard loud and clear.
“We want to sell our energy to people who want to buy our energy. It’s that simple,” said Harper, prompting the only applause through his speech.
The Prime Minister said the Conservative government is keen to facilitate Chi- na’s bid to buy more energy from Canada because it no longer wishes to depend on one buyer — the United States.
At the same time, Harper made clear he does not equate Chinese foreign investment in oil sands development with the unwanted “foreign money” behind environmental groups, and that he sees no irony in the contradiction.
“We will uphold our responsibility to put the interests of Canadians ahead of foreign money and influence that seek to obstruct development in Canada in favour of energy imported from other, less stable parts of the world.”
Chinese state-owned oil giants like Sinopec, Petro China and China Investment Group are eager to purchase Canadian oil that could be one day shipped to Asian markets via an Alberta-b.c. pipeline project.
Enbridge Canada’s Northern Gateway
“We want to sell our energy to people who want to buy our energy. It’s that simple” STEPHEN HARPER PRIME MINISTER
project is now before National Energy Board hearings, and Harper has declared it a “national priority” to diversify energy exports in the wake of a U.S. decision to nix, at least for now, a north-south pipeline.
Harper concludes his visit in Chongqing on Saturday, with a long-awaited trip to a zoo, and a final meeting with an influential up-and-coming Chinese leader Bo Xilai.