Ottawa has plans to finally stop blocking Canadian development aid to Afghanistan this year.
But by the time its new system is fully up and running, the Taliban will have been in control of the country for about three years.
Calgarians who lived and worked in Afghanistan raise awareness about Taliban
The process has fallen behind Ottawa’s own benchmark.
The federal Liberals budgeted $5 million for the fiscal year that just ended in order to vet the permits. Another $11 million was committed for the financial year that started this month.
Ontario Sen. Ratna Omidvar advocated for the bill.
She said she is “relieved” that some aid is arriving as a result of the humanitarian exemption, but hopes Ottawa moves quickly to ensure more organizations can help.
“I’m concerned about the amount of time that it is taking us to develop the systems and the protocols,” Omidvar said.
“Whenever public safety and security is in the mix, things will take longer for the smaller fish — always.”
Canadians have a special duty to the Afghan people, the senator said — and especially women, after two decades of Ottawa helping train teachers, journalists and politicians.
“Everything fell off the cliff” when the Taliban took over, she said.
“Canadians need to understand, accept and acknowledge that we were complicit in all of this.”
Omidvar said Afghans feel betrayed and live behind “virtual bars.” Women are unable to go to a park without a male guardian and take great risks to continue their education online.
“Using the word ‘tragedy’ comes easily, but that is an abdication of our responsibility to Afghanistan,” she said.
Canada is ignoring the thousands of Afghans who have since immigrated here but have connections, skills and passion for their homeland, she said.
Afghan Canadians could help turn the world’s attention to their homeland, she added, and improve living conditions for those trapped under Taliban rule.
“I don’t believe we can change history,” she said.
“But we can be front of the line in terms of aid, humanitarian and developmental.”
Aid groups trying to support people in Afghanistan are at the vanguard of a procedural change that, once it is eventually in place, could ease humanitarian work elsewhere.
Fischer noted that the permit process could come into play as Canadian groups seek to respond to crises in other regions run by terror groups, such as Yemen and the Gaza Strip.
“The world is too messy for bureaucratic hurdles,” he said.
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