As the numbers of Canadian soldiers and civilians killed or wounded in Afghanistan grows, as humanitarian crises in other parts of the world (including Darfur and the Middle East) worsen, and as Canada’s international reputation for independence and the promotion of peace suffers, the need for the Canadian government to revise its foreign and military policies becomes more urgent each day. The Council of Canadians believes that Canada must move away from its increasingly uncritical support for and integration with U.S. foreign and military policies and reclaim the more enlightened, valued role of an independent, middle power committed to peacekeeping. The more Canadian military policies mirror the policies of the United States, the less they will serve the best interests of both Canadians and the world. The Council of Canadians is therefore calling for the immediate, safe and orderly withdrawal of Canadian troops from Afghanistan and a return to Canada fulfilling its traditional international role of UN-sanctioned peacekeeper. Only as a promoter of peace and an upholder of peacekeeping can we hope to perform the constructive, independent role required of us in the world.

The Council supports the recent call by several organizations for a pan-Canadian day of protest on October 28, 2006, demanding that Canadian troops be brought home from Afghanistan.

August 3, 2006