Canada’S China Foreign Aid Policy

Clearly China is not an impoverished country if it has millions to invest in Canada alone. Reasons why Canada should reconsider, or more specifically cancel, further foreign aid to China: 1) China has $1.43 trillion in foreign currency reserves, sufficient amount to pay for the experts and expertise that at present is being provided through CIDA by Canadian taxpayers. 2) From a Canadian trade deficit of $1.1 billion in 1995, the trade imbalance between Canada and China has grown by leaps and bounds reaching $7.6 billion in 2000 and $13.8 billion just three years later, in China’s favour. By 2004, imports from China were $24.1 billion, a 30 per cent increase over the previous year! 3) In 2004 China became the third largest trading nation after the US and Germany. With exports of $1.15 trillion US and imports of $561.4 billion, the balance of trade is greatly in its favour. 4) China’s defence budget is $30 billion and its army is the biggest in the world. 5) While Western democracies are concerned about what is happening in the Darfur region of the Sudan, China not only supplies arms to that country, but protects it from UN resolutions and action. In addition, it has invested about $4 billion U.S. in that country and imports about 10 per cent of its oil through the China National Petroleum Corporation built pipeline. 6) China has given aid to African countries from whom it is buying oil and gas, repressive regimes like Nigeria, Sudan and Angola. In 2006, a China-Africa summit was held in Beijing, at which China provided aid, technology and scholarships to the visiting African heads of state, in an effort to gain political influence in the region, and ensure it will get access to Africa’s oil, gas and mineral resources. 7) China supports repressive regimes around the world, such as North Korea, Sudan, Zimbabwe and Myanmar (Burma), a clear indication of its lack of respect for human rights. Whenever the UN tries to take action against any of these countries, such as Myanmar in late 2007, China uses its position to protect them. Its largest aid recipient is North Korea, a dictatorship whose leader lives in luxury while his people starve to death. 8) China is a nuclear power and also has its own space programme. 9) December 2007, China invested $5 billion in the brokerage company Morgan and Stanley. Here is a clear indication, if more proof was needed, that it is not short of funds to invest in its own country, or to help alleviate the poverty to be found there. However, it prefers to use its immense resources to gain political influence around the world, rather than concern itself about its impoverished citizens. With the Communist Party and an immense army in total control of the country, there is no need to seek favour with the disadvantaged. Unlike Western democracies, there is no electorate to be answerable to for its policies. http://canadafreepress.com/index.php/article/1345

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