Letters to the editors

Darfur deserves debate

Dear Editors,

During the federal election, virtually no attention has been given to the genocide in Darfur, Sudan. This is a shameful and worrying oversight. The crisis in Darfur has cost the lives of over 300,000 people, displaced more than three million people to makeshift humanitarian camps and made over 3.5 million people reliant on international aid for day-to-day survival.

After five years of conflict, people are still being murdered, dying of starvation and being neglected by their own government.

If Canada has a ‘responsibility to protect’ the helpless of the world, it is unacceptable that our federal political parties have neglected to make the atrocities still occurring in Darfur an election issue.

Not once during any leader debate or speech has solving or ameliorating the situation in Darfur been discussed seriously.

Party platforms haven given some consideration to Darfur, but not nearly enough.

The Liberal Party is committed to seeing the UNAMID mission in Darfur succeed but so far has only promised limited resources to help the mission obtain crucial heavy lift helicopters.

The Conservative Party position is deplorable at best. Not only is there no mention of Darfur in the party platform, but it has also been an inordinate amount of time since the Harper administration has considered or done anything serious to help end the crisis. The government may have donated money to aid Africa, but Darfur is not a pressing issue for the Conservatives.

The NDP has promised to participate in international efforts to bring peace, justice and stability to the region but has taken little initiative during the campaign to promote the urgency of the issue.

The Green Party promotes ending the genocide in Darfur but presents an outdated view of the situation in their platform.

It would not take much for Canada to make a difference. Using diplomacy to rally international support for the UN mission, as well as increasing Canadian foreign aid and logistical support to this mission, would go a long way in easing the suffering of countless Darfuris.

Unfortunately for the people of Darfur, making a difference is not a priority for Canada’s political parties.

Steven Goldie

ArtSci ’12

Liberals are best for Canada

Dear Editors,

I have come to a definite conclusion about this national election: if elected, the Liberal Party of Canada is the only party that can responsibly govern our nation.

The Conservative Party entered this campaign on a trail of recently broken promises and, perhaps most importantly, without a platform. For the majority of Canadians this idea is offensive, bordering on insulting. For a man who refers to other political parties as having a history of being unaccountable for their actions, Harper’s Conservative’s won’t even tell us what their actions are going to be. This is both condescending and terrifying.

The Liberal Party’s platform is the only complete platform offered in this election. They have specific goals and they list the full costs and specific timelines required for them to be achieved. The Liberal Party recognizes and researches their claims, broadcasting each of their intentions to the public. There is no party more accountable than one that demonstrates the attainability of their promises and they will have no excuse should they fail.

Current polls show the split of support for the top triumvirate of parties as being 36 per cent Conservative, 25 per cent Liberal and 19 per cent NDP. The Conservative Party has refused to even produce a platform and it is leading by 11 per cent. How can this country support a party that demands you vote blindfolded? Combined, the Liberal and NDP vote leads the Conservatives by 8%. Yet this does not matter because the fractious nature of those of us on the left, combined with Layton’s tactics of attacking any side, mean that this vote won’t be combined.

End the fractiousness that has been the greatest gift the left-wing has ever delivered the consolidated right. Please, despite fears of a two-party system that we don’t need, protect the future of our national identity. If we fail to set aside the minute differences and focus on our mutual goals, we will change our country in ways that we cannot take back and that can’t be predicted.

Ryan LaPlante

ArtSci ’10

All final editorial decisions are made by the Editor(s)-in-Chief and/or the Managing Editor. Authors should not be contacted, targeted, or harassed under any circumstances. If you have any grievances with this article, please direct your comments to journal_editors@ams.queensu.ca.

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