The Canadian conundrum

 

The growing perception of Canada being a sanctuary for global offenders not only tarnishes its international reputation but also poses a threat to its societal fabric

Recent diplomatic crises have shone an instructive spotlight on the Canadian system. In early September, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau alleged an Indian hand in the murder of a Sikh extremist, Hardeep Singh Nijjar. A few days later, Canada was plunged into yet another crisis when it felicitated a former Waffen SS—a combat branch of the Nazi Party—soldier, Yaroslav Hunkain, the House of Commons. The latter’s felicitation helped Russia’s President Vladimir Putin to make an unexpected victory in the war of narratives over the Ukraine conflict, where Putin made the ‘de-Nazification’ of Ukraine the motive for Russian actions. For long, Canada has been shielded from international gaze in the shadow of its powerful southern neighbour, the United States (US). In a simpler world, this enabled Canada to pursue insulated approaches, sans any significant blowback. With a superpower for the closest ally, Russia, a clearly defined arch enemy and emerging nations such as India and China mired in multiple developmental challenges, the arithmetic worked. The world has moved on since, and the challenger states have emerged as political heavyweights and economic powerhouses. Their emergence has morphed the field and changed the game as they increasingly assert themselves on the global stage. However, Canada has not kept pace with this changed external reality. Instead, Canada has responded by going the opposite way, hanging on to counterproductive constructs of the past, putting it on a collision course with the rest of the world.

Canada relies heavily on immigration as the panacea for its ageing demographics and below-replacement birth rates. Today, immigrants make up roughly a quarter of the Canadian populace. As Canada continues to receive hundreds of thousands of newcomers each year, it faces mounting challenges related to housing, healthcare, and employment. Compounding these challenges is the absence of a coordinated integration approach which in turn pushes newcomers towards familiar support systems offered by the immigrant communities. Consequently, these communities become increasingly insular and ghettoised, serving as echo chambers for the problems and conflicts they bring with them. As these communities gain political traction, their narratives are heavily influenced by what gets amplified within these echo chambers. Local political figures often pander to these communities, further entrenching their insularity. The rise of the far right and the hijacking of the political narrative by perverse fringe elements within immigrant populations are a consequence of this dynamic. It is not only drastically reshaping Canadian politics and way of life, but also influencing Canada’s global alignments, priorities, and strategic response. If left unchecked, this trajectory might alter the very essence of what Canada stands for, both at home and on the global stage.  (more...)

The Canadian conundrum