Darfur vs. Afghanistan?

Gordon O'Conner's recent comments have added an interesting dimension to the Afghanistan "debate." He tells us that we have the military resources to remain in Afghanistan indefinitely (somewhat chilling rhetoric) but are unable to commit any ground troops to a humanitarian intervention in Darfur. We are now presented with a tangible cost that our foriegn policy must sustain if we are to continue in Afghanistan. That is, of course, beyond the human cost of loss of life that we already face .

It feeds into an already existing debate on activism in Darfur, as well. Today's London Free Press dug up some relevant comments made by failed rookie Liberal candidate Glen Pearson. Glen Pearson - if I may sidetrack for a moment - is one of the great living Liberals. His CV includes serving as a firefighter for 28 years, founding the London Food Bank, consulting with all levels of government on poverty issues, and founding the organization Canadian Aid for Southern Sudan. Pearson travelled often to the Sudan. He build a YM/YWCA nearbye and was personally involved in freeing slaves - one of which he adopted as a daughter.

He was defeated in London-Fanshawe by New Democrat Irene Mathyssen, whose CV includes 'good at being po-mo cynical about stuff' (paraphrased).

Pearson has argued that the presence of Western/UN troops in the Moslem country would generate a tremendous deal of ill will. He questioned the willingness of either Russia or China to allow the Security Council to initiate such an intervention with an appropriate number of troops. Instead, he suggested that Canada and other Western Nations become active in promoting health care, in policing, and in providing technical support for thhe troops of the African Union.

So can effective aid reach Darfur if it isn't shuttled in militarily? If not, does this affect the way we conduct our foreign policy elsewhere. It'll be interesting to see how some leadership candidates respond to this challenge. Ignatieff, for example, has been vocally supportive of the Afghanistan mission. However, a human security agenda seems also to be central to his platform. How, then are the two reconciled?

- Mike (SCG)