Canada’s plan to deepen ties with Southeast Asia raises human rights concerns

Ottawa is negotiating trade deals with Southeast Asian countries, but Canada's silence on human rights issues in countries it plans to partner with has advocates concerned.

Canada’s plan to deepen ties with Southeast Asian countries raises questions about how it will address human-rights concerns in the region, critics say.

Last month, Ottawa unveiled its Indo-Pacific strategy, which calls for a greater presence in the region through diplomatic, military and trade ties. The strategy seeks to counteract China for undermining human rights as well as global trade rules.

Ottawa is negotiating trade deals with Indonesia, India and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, and plans to undertake military training and interoperability with countries such as Indonesia, Singapore and Vietnam.

But Canada’s silence on human rights issues in countries it plans to partner with has advocates concerned.

“Human rights are human rights, and you can’t be a hypocrite when it comes to dealing with governments who are human-rights abusers,” said Fareed Khan, the founder of Canadians United Against Hate.

“We can’t be silent. We tried that with China … and look where we are today.”

This past week, Indonesia’s parliament unanimously voted to make sex outside of marriage punishable by a year in jail, and to outlaw insulting the president and state institutions.

When asked about that legislation on Thursday, Foreign Affairs Minister Melanie Joly spoke generally about human rights.