Sunday was National Peacekeepers’ Day and the Canadian Forces had the temerity to celebrate the UN occupation of Haiti. Through UN missions Ottawa has contributed to major US imperial crimes.
On its Facebook page the military noted, “On this day, we honour the courage, dedication, and commitment of all Canadians who have served—and continue to serve—in peacekeeping operations around the globe. Since 1948, more than 125,000 members of the Canadian Armed Forces, over 4,500 members of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and hundreds of Canadian civilians have served in international peace support missions to more than 35 countries.”
The photo that accompanied the post was of two white soldiers looking at a young Black boy in Port-au-Prince as part of Operation Hamlet, which was the name for the Canadian Forces’ participation in the UN mission in Haiti (MINUSTAH) from 2004 to 2017.
After consolidating a US, France and Canada military coup against Haiti’s elected government the UN mission was responsible for countless abuses. The foreign soldiers had sex with minors, sodomized boys, raped young girls and left many single mothers to struggle with stigma and poverty after departing the country. Beyond sexual abuse, the UN’s disregard for Haitian life caused a major cholera outbreak, which left over 10,000 dead and a million ill.
500 Canadian troops were part of the UN mission that backed up the coup government’s (2004-2006) violent crackdown against pro-democracy protesters. For years Canada led the policing component of a UN force that also killed dozens of civilians directly in pacifying Cité Soleil, a bastion of support for ousted President Jean-Bertrand Aristide.
It’s not just Haiti. Canada played a significant role in the UN peacekeeping force that contributed to one of the worst post-independence imperial crimes in Africa. In 1960 the UN launched a peacekeeping force that delivered a major blow to Congolese independence aspirations by undermining elected Prime Minister Patrice Lumumba. As detailed in Canada, the Congo Crisis, and UN Peacekeeping, 1960-64, Canadian soldiers played a significant role in the Organisation des Nations Unies au Congo (ONUC) force that enabled Lumumba’s assassination. Canadian troops dominated intelligence-gathering positions within the UN mission, and they worked to undermine Lumumba. After the PM escaped house arrest and fled Leopoldville for his power base in the Eastern Orientale province, Canadian Colonel Jean Berthiaume assisted Lumumba’s political enemies by helping recapture him. Kept in place by Ottawa, the UN Chief of Staff tracked the deposed prime minister and Berthiaume informed the head of the military, Joseph Mobutu, of Lumumba’s whereabouts. The elected prime minister was killed soon after.
Through UN missions in Haiti (2004), Congo (1960) and Korea (1950) Ottawa contributed directly to major US imperial crimes. Canada’s sizable contribution to UN missions in Egypt and Cyprus were largely designed to reduce tensions within NATO. In Egypt (1956) the US opposed the British/French invasion while in Cyprus (1964) NATO members Turkey and Greece were on opposite sides.
As far as I can tell, major Canadian peacekeeping missions have always received support from Washington. Still, many liberal/Left commentators ignore the power politics driving UN missions.
In recent days Rideau Institute president Peggy Mason and Royal Military College professor Walter Dorn have been quoted in major outlets complaining about the Liberals abandoning UN peacekeeping. In the CBC Dorn explicitly linked participating in peacekeeping to Great power competition with China, noting “we’re ceding more rights and more territory for China to take over leadership.”
Dorn is correct to (indirectly) highlight the geopolitical motivations driving UN missions.
It’s correct to say that Canada’s participation in UN missions has generally been less damaging than its involvement in US/NATO wars in Iraq, Yugoslavia, Afghanistan and Libya. But, that’s not an argument for blanketly promoting peacekeeping.
The stark reality is that Ottawa has never deployed large number of troops abroad principally to promote international law or justice.
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