Global Policy Forum

By Anthony DePalma

Toronto -- The cozy relationship between Canada and Cuba that has so infuriated U.S. presidents and congressional leaders has sunk to its lowest point in years, principally because of Cuba's continuing record of violating basic human rights.

Angered by the recent conviction of several dissidents on whose behalf Prime Minister Jean Chretien had personally intervened, Canada is blocking all new assistance programs to Cuba that do not clearly further the protection of human rights. Canadian officials have also decided not to encourage other countries in the hemisphere to support Cuba's admission into the Organization of American States.

Officials in Canada's Foreign Ministry say the new approach is not a break with Cuba -- as some U.S. politicians had hoped it would be -- but rather the refinement of a long-standing policy that continues to have as its goal Cuba's transition to democracy. "We're still engaged with them, but we have to put some northern ice in the middle of it," Chretien told reporters in Ottawa on Tuesday.

But some political analysts see the cooling of Canada-Cuba relations as the inevitable result of dealing with Fidel Castro. "Chretien is learning what Khrushchev knew before," said Larry Birns, director of the Council for Hemispheric Affairs in Washington. "You can supply billions in foreign aid, as the Russians did, and still have minimal leverage. Ultimately, Castro is a nationalist, and he decides what he thinks is best for Cuba."

When Chretien visited Cuba in 1998, he presented a list of four political prisoners whom he wanted Castro to release. But in March the four were convicted of "counterrevolutionary activities" and sentenced to up to five years in jail. Canada-Cuba relations then sank to their lowest point since foreign aid was suspended in the mid 1980s because of Cuba's military involvement in Angola. Foreign Minister Lloyd Axworthy ordered a review of Canada's contacts with Cuba and the policy of constructive engagement that has been the basis of Canada's approach throughout the period that Cuba has been ruled by Castro's Communist regime.

While the United States imposed an economic embargo on Cuba, Canada moved in the opposite direction, believing that the best way to bring about real democratic reform in the country was to maintain strong ties. Canada also believed that it could use its influence to prod Cuba into doing more to protect human rights of its citizens, particularly political prisoners. After the policy review was completed in April, Canada decided to continue trading with and doing business in Cuba, which came to $555 million in 1998.

But because of the serious flaws in Cuba's human rights record, Canada's Foreign Ministry believed that a tougher approach was needed, at least until Cuba responded positively to Canadian concerns. Axworthy had demanded that all cabinet ministers with programs in Cuba clear any official visits through him, and he has decided that for now, planning for all visits should be suspended. That meant the indefinite postponement of trips by the international trade minister, Sergio Marchi, and the minister of international cooperation, Diane Marleau.

Canada has given Cuba $24 million in foreign aid over the last five years. Officials say the funds have not been frozen completely but are subject to a case-by-case review. Several projects have already been suspended, including a plan to provide financial assistance to help Haiti cooperate in a medical development effort with Cuba. The Canadians fear that Cuba may use the medical research more for propaganda than humanitarian purposes.

Canada has also backed away from a commitment to lobby for Cuba's integration into the hemisphere, particularly through participation in the Organization of American States, from which it was expelled in 1962. Canada will host the organization's general assembly next June.

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