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UNCLAS SECTION 01 OF 05 OTTAWA 000495 
 
SENSITIVE 
SIPDIS 
 
STATE FOR DRL, USAID, INL, S/CRS AND WHA/CAN 
 
E.O. 12958: N/A 
TAGS: PHUM PREL PGOV KDEM CA
SUBJECT: INAUGURAL U.S.-CANADA DEMOCRACY SUPPORT 
CONSULTATIONS DEFINE WAY FORWARD 
 
REF: A. OTTAWA 281 
     ¶B. OTTAWA 249 
 
¶1. (SBU) Summary:  During the first U.S.-Canada Democracy 
Support Consultations in Ottawa in late May, the delegations 
agreed to explore establishing an early warning and rapid 
response task force for threats to democratic governance. 
Canada will consider placing the issue of restrictive NGO 
laws on the 2010 G-8 agenda.  Other ideas included developing 
cooperation between U.S. and Canadian public broadcasters and 
strengthening inter-parliamentary contact on threats to civil 
society.  Both delegations agreed to work toward 
strengthening the Inter-American Democratic Charter and 
greater information sharing on imprisoned human rights 
defenders.  The next consultations will focus largely on 
democracy in the Americas.  End summary. 
 
¶2. (SBU) Led by Acting Assistant Secretary of State for 
Democracy, Human Rights, and Labor Karen Stewart and Canada's 
Director General of Foreign Affairs for Democracy and Human 
Rights Adele Dion, the first U.S.-Canada Democracy 
Consultations took place in Ottawa May 19-20.  Canada had 
requested the consultations to identify additional areas of 
cooperation and to align its policies more closely with those 
of the U.S.  The U.S. delegation included officials from DRL, 
S/P, USAID, and Embassy Ottawa, while the Canadian side 
included representatives from the Department of Foreign 
Affairs and International Trade (DFAIT), Canadian 
International Development Agency (CIDA), and Privy Council 
Office (PCO). 
 
Canada Emphasizing Democracy Support 
------------------------------------ 
 
¶3.  (SBU) Canada provides democracy assistance through DFAIT, 
CIDA, international organizations, and Canadian NGOs such as 
the International Center for Human Rights and Democratic 
Development ("Rights and Democracy") as well as the 
Parliamentary Center.  This assistance focuses primarily on 
supporting democratic transitions in countries already on the 
path to democracy.  In July 2007, the House of Commons' 
Foreign Affairs Committee recommended strengthening Canada's 
role in international democratic development, including 
calling for a new non-partisan democracy promotion agency. 
The establishment of a new agency became official government 
policy following the Governor General's November 2008 Speech 
from the Throne (marking the beginning of the 40th Parliament 
after the October 2008 federal election).  While the agency 
is still in the planning stages, Minister of State for 
Democratic Reform Steven Fletcher has indicated that it would 
support like-minded political parties abroad (reftels). 
According to DG Dion, DFAIT is feeding ideas for the new 
agency to the PCO.  Canada is also setting up a regional 
Democracy hub for the Andes in Lima (ref b).  DG Dion added 
that, under Prime Minister Harper, democracy and rule of law 
Qthat, under Prime Minister Harper, democracy and rule of law 
had been the central themes of the October 2008 Francophonie 
Summit in Quebec City. 
 
"Whole of Government" Approach 
------------------------------ 
 
¶4.  (SBU) DG Dion outlined Canada's "whole of government" 
approach to democracy assistance and the importance of 
coordination among DFAIT, CIDA, and the Canadian Forces. 
Canada has been trying this coordinated approach in 
Afghanistan, according to Dion, admitting that Canada aims to 
be more "nimble."  Canadian NGO contacts who participated in 
the opening dinner also noted that it can take decades to 
establish democracy, and called for better donor coordination 
focused on medium to long-term results.  A-A/S Stewart 
underscored that DRL and USAID coordinate closely with the 
Millennium Challenge Corporation, S/CRS, and other agencies 
 
OTTAWA 00000495  002 OF 005 
 
 
and bureaus.  A-A/S Stewart and DG Dion agreed on potential 
benefits from cross-training diplomats with development 
colleagues. 
 
Good Governance and Tailored Strategies 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶5.  (SBU) USAID's Legislative Strengthening expert Keith 
Schulz stressed that political governance is a key to 
democratic development, and that more attention should be 
focused on parliamentary work as well as on supporting 
leaders once they gain power, rather than preparing them for 
electoral competition.  USAID's Director of Democracy and 
Governance Dorothy Taft noted that good governance is also 
essential for effective and sustainable health and 
development assistance.  Taft emphasized the importance of 
tailoring strategies to individual countries by considering 
election dates and considering other local factors.  CIDA is 
piloting its Governance Analysis Tool (GAT) in Pakistan and 
Ethiopia to assess what governance assistance may be needed 
and to evaluate ongoing programs.  The U.S. and Canada agreed 
on the importance of accountability in designing and rolling 
out programs. 
 
Defending Civil Society 
----------------------- 
 
¶6.  (SBU) USAID's Schulz highlighted restrictive NGO laws, 
praising the work of the International Center for Non-Profit 
Law (ICNL).  DFAIT's Human Rights Director Donica Pottie 
acknowledged World Bank efforts in this area.  DFAIT will 
suggest that the question of how to confront restrictive NGO 
legislation be on the 2010 G-8 agenda.  DFAIT officials 
commented that repressive regimes regularly consult on how to 
tighten their laws regulating NGOs and that democracies 
should share best practices in combating this trend. 
Parliamentarians have a vital role to play in engaging fellow 
parliamentarians on civil society legislation, good 
governance, and anti-corruption. 
 
Working in Repressive Contexts 
------------------------------ 
 
¶7.  (SBU) The Canadian NGO "Rights and Democracy" has worked 
with the Burmese government-in-exile and Burmese media since 
the early 1990s and has also developed valuable networks in 
Zimbabwe and elsewhere.  U.S. programs to promote 
democratization in repressive countries include exchange 
programs, third-country training for human rights activists, 
Embassy-administered small grants programs, American Corners, 
and public broadcasting (RFE/RL and VOA etc.).  DG Dion 
called for greater consultation between U.S. and Canadian 
broadcasters, noting that Canada contributes to the global 
francophone TV5 channel.  The delegations agreed that new 
technologies and blogs create additional opportunities for 
democracy programming.  The America.gov website's "Democracy 
Challenge" has given citizens around the world a forum for 
expressing what democracy means to them.  Canadian officials 
expressed interest in learning more about polling conducted 
Qexpressed interest in learning more about polling conducted 
by the International Republican Institute (IRI) in 
authoritarian countries. 
 
Greater Consultation in Capitals and the Field 
--------------------------------------------- - 
 
¶8.  (SBU) The U.S. and Canada agreed on the need for more 
systematic consultation between Washington and Ottawa as well 
as among diplomatic personnel on the ground in repressive 
environments.  DG Dion stated that Canadian diplomats should 
more actively "fly the flag" by meeting with human rights 
activists under duress and observing court trials of human 
rights defenders.  A-A/S Stewart commented on the success of 
 
OTTAWA 00000495  003 OF 005 
 
 
the U.S. forensic assistance program. 
 
Conflict Zones - Canada in Kandahar 
----------------------------------- 
 
¶9. (SBU) Elissa Golberg, Director General of DFAIT's 
Stabilization and Reconstruction Task Force (START) and 
former Representative of Canada in Kandahar (ROCK), 
emphasized the importance of local level engagement and 
legitimacy and of understanding human geography.  Golberg 
also stressed sustainable development and working through the 
Afghan government.  While the Canadian military might be able 
to provide a generator to a village overnight, it is better 
practice for villagers to learn how to talk to their own 
leaders to ensure that their government responds to their 
needs.  While Afghans need to better engage their government, 
the Canadian government needs to create stronger incentives 
for its officials engaged in democracy promotion, according 
to DFAIT officials.  They lamented that Royal Canadian 
Mounted Police (RCMP) volunteers for assignments in 
Afghanistan and Haiti do not find this service 
career-enhancing.  They admitted that Canada still needs 
better incentives to attract quality staff. 
 
Preventing Failed States 
------------------------ 
 
¶10.  (SBU) DFAIT and CIDA officials emphasized that it is 
cheaper to prevent state failure than to deal with the 
aftermath of a failed state and that Canada is expanding its 
mediation capabilities.  CIDA officials noted that the OECD's 
Development Assistance Committee (DAC) has also developed 
principles for engagement with fragile states.  CIDA's two 
year-old Deployment for Democratic Development (DDD) program 
deploys Canadian experts abroad for anywhere from 6-18 months. 
 
Democracy Support in the Americas 
--------------------------------- 
 
¶11.  (SBU) DFAIT's Director General for Latin America and the 
Caribbean James Lambert confirmed that the Americas are 
central to Canadian foreign policy.  Lambert praised the USG 
for not taking the bait of responding to Bolivarian 
provocations of Venezuelan President Hugo Chavez and Bolivian 
leader Evo Morales.  A-A/S Stewart noted that the populist 
Bolivarian approach is not economically sustainable.  Lambert 
commented that Canada is the second largest contributor to 
the Organization of American States (OAS), after the U.S., 
and urged that both countries work together to make the OAS 
more effective generally but also specifically in democracy 
promotion.  PCO Foreign and Defense Policy Operations 
Director and former Canadian Ambassador to Colombia Matthew 
Levin stated that security, prosperity, and democratic 
development are all inter-linked and mutually reinforcing, 
adding that the OAS Mission in Colombia played a vital role 
in overseeing the disarmament and demobilization process. 
 
More Robust International Forums 
-------------------------------- 
Q-------------------------------- 
 
¶12. (SBU) A-A/S Stewart argued that the U.S. and Canada 
should more fully utilize regional forums such as the OAS and 
Community of Democracies (CD) to address democracy and human 
rights issues.  The U.S. and Canada support the OAS-African 
Union (AU) "Democracy Bridge" to build stronger linkages 
between the two organizations in democracy and governance. 
The CD should be more robust and action-oriented, she added, 
while expressing high hopes that the upcoming Lithuanian 
chairmanship may move the CD agenda forward. 
 
¶13.  (SBU) DFAIT officials noted that the Commonwealth 
Ministerial Action Group (CMAG) can suspend members that 
 
OTTAWA 00000495  004 OF 005 
 
 
violate democratic norms, as in the case of Pakistan.  The 
Commonwealth can also organize pre-election and post-election 
observer missions. 
 
¶14.  (SBU) DFAIT officials pointed to the Ottawa-based Global 
Organization of Parliamentarians Against Corruption (GOPAC), 
whose funders include USAID, the State Department's Middle 
East Partnership Initiative (MEPI), and CIDA; its head is a 
member of the Kuwaiti National Assembly.  DFAIT officials 
expressed support for the Extractive Industries Initiative 
(EII) as a development tool for strengthening civil society. 
 
Engaging Regional Players 
------------------------- 
 
¶15.  (SBU)  U.S. officials noted the importance of working 
closely with regional leaders such as China, India, and South 
Africa when addressing the situation in repressive regimes 
such as North Korea, Burma, and Zimbabwe, with whom we may 
have less leverage.  DFAIT's Human Rights and Democracy 
Director Donica Pottie commented that more could be done to 
harness the half dozen Burma Parliamentary Caucuses in the 
ASEAN region.  Pottie also noted that parliamentarians can 
craft a wide range of pretexts for visiting Burma.  DG Dion 
noted that high level visits can reassure fragile governments 
under pressure, as occurred in Georgia's war with Russia. 
 
¶16.  (SBU) DG Dion opined that Indonesia is seeking to play a 
leading regional role in human rights and democratic 
development.  Indonesian interlocutors have told her that the 
Asia-Pacific Democracy Partnership and Bali Partnership 
complement one another. 
 
Next Steps in U.S.-Canadian Cooperation 
-------------------------------------- 
 
¶17. (SBU) There was agreement on the following areas: 
 
--  further explore establishing an early warning Rapid 
Response Task Force on threats to democratic governance (with 
DRL and DFAIT to work out additional details); 
--  systematize the sharing of information about at-risk 
human rights and democracy defenders/activists; 
--  consideration of adding the issue of restrictive NGO laws 
to the G-8 agenda for 2010, when Canada hosts; 
--  develop cooperation between our public broadcasting 
networks; 
--  strengthen Parliamentarian/Congressional 
legislature-to-legislature direct outreach; 
--  regular consultation on threats to civil society, and 
engaging Parliament/Congress on these threats; 
--  interlocking efforts to strengthen implementation of the 
Inter-American Democratic Charter; 
--  exploration of the current and possible increased levels 
of involvement in UN mediation efforts; and, 
--  greater information-sharing in multilateral forums such 
as the Asia-Pacific Democracy Partnership, Bali Democracy 
Forum, Community of Democracies, UN Democracy Fund, AU/NEPAD, 
and GOPAC. 
 
Greater Information Sharing 
--------------------------- 
 
¶18. (SBU)  The U.S. and Canada also committed to greater 
Q18. (SBU)  The U.S. and Canada also committed to greater 
information-sharing on Canada's planned Lima-based Democracy 
Hub and USAID's mobile technology report.  Canada will also 
share the results of its democracy reporting requirements 
pilot program and democracy training course.  The U.S. will 
create communication channels among other democracy-related 
actors such as INL (rule of law), EEB (Partnership for 
Democratic Governance), Millennium Challenge Corporation, and 
S/CRS with Canada's START program.  Both sides agreed to add 
 
OTTAWA 00000495  005 OF 005 
 
 
non-governmental actors such as democracy-focused NGOs and 
academics to future Consultations and to consider inviting 
the United Kingdom to the next meeting.  The next Democracy 
Support Consultation will include at least one day on the 
Americas by addressing the OAS and the Inter-American 
Democratic Charter, engaging the Bolivarians more effectively 
on democracy issues, attacks on civil society, and possible 
expansion or replication of the OAS-AU Democracy Bridge to 
other regional organs, such as ASEAN. 
 
¶19.  (U) A-A/S Stewart has cleared this cable. 
 
Visit Canada,s North American partnership community at 
http://www.intelink.gov/communities/state/nap / 
 
BREESE