Last month Prime Minister Stephen Harper tried to make his position on Afghanistan clear: "The exit strategy is success," he said. "There will be no other conditions under which the government leaves Afghanistan."
But the war in Afghanistan isn't going well. NATO troops have not been able to stop the Taliban revival, or the emergence of an opium economy dominated by the Taliban and warlords.
The spread of the Taliban insurgency has brought 100 suicide attacks this year. Also: According to an Associated Press count based on Afghan, NATO, and United States figures --more than 3,000 people have died in violence this year, mostly militants. Since the war began, forty Canadian soldiers have been killed in Afghanistan.
Last week NATO announced it was extending its security mission to all of Afghanistan. That makes it the largest ground combat operation in NATO history. There are currently 2,500 Canadian troops stationed in Kandahar province --the most violent region in Afghanistan.
Although a recent poll by The Globe and Mail and CTV showed some increase in support to send troops to Afghanistan --a majority (57 percent) said the price Canadians are paying in terms of casualties is too high.
Recently, a Senate committee in Ottawa on national security and defence said Canada's military was sent to Afghanistan without adequate public debate. Senator Colin Kenny has asked Prime Minister Harper to go on television to make the case for Canada's participation in the war. That's unlikely to occur.
Although he invoked the wrath of Stephen Harper, former Prime Minister Paul Martin said recently he doesn't approve of the way the military mission is playing out in Afghanistan. He said the original goal of rebuilding the country has been obscured by increasingly intense fighting.
Whether the extension of NATO's security mission in Afghanistan will make a difference is unclear. But in the past their forces had been spread too thin. Understandably, the Harper Tories have questioned the restrictions some European countries have placed on their troops. For example: Not allowing them to go into danger zones. A recent study by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives showed Canada has suffered a disproportionately higher number of military deaths in Afghanistan than its NATO allies.
It's critical the Harper Tories look at alternative approaches to Canada's role in Afghanistan. Slavishly following a "stay the course" policy would be a serious mistake.
More Canadians are anxious about the country's role in Afghanistan. Are we there to provide combat troops and a long-term military garrison? Or should the emphasis be on reconstruction and rebuilding?
To call for a complete re-examination of Canada's foreign policy in Afghanistan now isn't to forget the courage and bravery of Canadians soldiers. But it's time that we have a full and honest debate about what's happening in Afghanistan and the direction Canada should be taking.
Federal NDP leader Jack Layton has called for a withdrawal of Canadian troops from Afghanistan. That may not be the best approach now. But we need a sober assessment of the situation in Afghanistan.
Last month, journalist Christian Parenti wrote in The Nation magazine that: "The sad contradiction of Afghanistan is that many of the individuals and NGOs that joined the reconstruction effort here were not supportive of the American-led assault for fear that it would serve as a stepping-stone to Iraq and quickly devolve into a neo-colonial occupation. But the fall of the Taliban was also seen as Afghanistan's last, best chance at avoiding several more decades of anarchy, privation and civil war. That hope is now fading."
It's incumbent upon Prime Minister Harper to re-assess the Afghanistan mission. This is not a sign of weakness, but a recognition that other courses can be followed which may be wiser. He must also ensure the debate on Canada's role in Afghanistan be opened up to Parliament. Anything less would border on the arrogance he chastised the Liberals about when they held power.
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