They Just Keep Coming: David McGuinty

Here's a Letter about Darfur from David McGuinty, the incumbent candidate for Ottawa-South:

October 11, 2008

Dear Stand Canada,

I appreciate having the opportunity to meet with you to discuss the tragedy in Sudan. The brutality in Sudan has reached staggering proportions. Civilians have starved, been beaten and raped, and hundreds of thousands have died of malnutrition, disease, neglect or violence. Millions more have been displaced. We must work to end this crisis.

Upon re-election I will work with my Liberal colleagues to try to mitigate an all-party caucus to address the crisis in Darfur. Many Liberal Caucus members, myself included, have already called for a comprehensive policy for Darfur. Among these measures is the appointment of a high-level regional coordinator. We have also called for an increase of Canadian aid to Africa.

I will lobby for increased resources and support to the UNAMID mission. Deployed January 2008 the UNAMID mission is mandated to protect civilians and uphold the Darfur Peace Agreement. Canada has a duty to ensure this mission succeeds, and a Liberal government will ensure Canada does its part. As a first step, a Liberal government will contribute badly needed resources for the mission, so it can contract the tactical and heavy lift helicopters it needs. I will also encourage our United Nations ambassador to re-energize the Darfur peace process through the US-Norway-Canada UN contact group, and also to re-engage China.

I will push to send more Canadian expert staff to the region for professional capacity building. I have spent much of my life designing and teaching programs for mid-career legal professionals throughout the developing world. By training mid-career professionals in key areas, such as education, law, and governance, Canada can play a crucial role in fostering local civil society and stability. We need to train the leaders of Sudan for tomorrow, so they can gain the expertise they need to succeed.

I look forward to continuing to work with you on these issues in the future.

Kind regards,

David McGuinty