Post-9/11 Foreign Policy Requires Push for Peace: Axworthy
Military responses worry former foreign affairs minister

MIKE SADAVA
EDMONTON JOURNAL, OCT. 2, 2007

Canada needs a ministry of peace to offset the militaristic direction the country’s foreign policy has taken since 9/11, says former foreign affairs minister Lloyd Axworthy.
With all the emphasis on military solutions like the war in Afghanistan, which he said has made little progress in bringing peace and stability to that country, the way Canada pursues these issues should be revisited, he said Monday.
Axworthy, currently president of the University of Winnipeg, travels to Edmonton today to address the annual banquet celebrating the birthday of Mahatma Gandhi, who pioneered the use of peaceful methods when India gained its independence in 1947.
“One of the things I really want to raise is an idea I think has some resonance across the country and certainly something I thought about when I was in Foreign Affairs, is that maybe we need a ministry of peace,” he said.
Some people might say that this is the responsibility of Foreign Affairs, but that department has many other requirements to represent the interests of Canadians, he said.
But within the legislation governing Foreign Affairs is an unfilled ministry of state position that’s supposed to be for international development.
“A ministry of peace could be a place where peace-building activities could be consolidated and development education program across the country and other parts of the world that we could develop techniques for reconciliation,” he said.
Axworthy, a former Nobel Prize nominee who has long been a voice for the causes of peace and international development, said that in today’s world, Gandhi might want to reform government structures and bring the notion of peace and reconciliation back into the vocabulary of the government.
He noted that Canada’s defence budget has doubled while Foreign Affairs has been reduced, the country’s foreign aid budget is still less than half the .7 per cent of gross domestic product proposed by Lester Pearson, and Canada is not using its diplomatic networks to promote institutions like the international court.
“Military strength is not unimportant and has to be used at times, but it has become the template for our foreign policy, and not with great results,” he said.
He would love to see more about peace and international justice on the education curriculum where children and teenagers could learn about Gandhi and others dedicated to the cause such as Nelson Mandela.
There is a hunger among Canadians to learn about these issues, Axworthy said, noting that a program on conflict resolution at the University of Winnipeg has attracted more than 700 students.