{"id":35120,"date":"2014-12-13T05:15:25","date_gmt":"2014-12-12T21:15:25","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/?p=35120"},"modified":"2014-12-13T00:05:06","modified_gmt":"2014-12-12T16:05:06","slug":"senate-passes-bill-that-infuriates-vietnam-sparking-trade-investment-warnings","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canadianinquirer.net\/v1\/2014\/12\/13\/senate-passes-bill-that-infuriates-vietnam-sparking-trade-investment-warnings\/","title":{"rendered":"Senate passes bill that infuriates Vietnam, sparking trade, investment warnings"},"content":{"rendered":"

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OTTAWA\u2014The Senate has passed an obscure private member\u2019s bill from a Conservative senator that\u2019s at the centre of a growing diplomatic spat between Canada and Vietnam.<\/p>\n

The Vietnamese government is taking offence at the bill, which has sparked warnings that it could harm Canadian trade and investment opportunities with the Asian country.<\/p>\n

The bill recognizes April 30 as a national day to commemorate the exodus of Vietnamese refugees and their acceptance in Canada after the 1975 fall of Saigon to North Vietnamese communist forces\u2014a development that ended the Vietnam War.<\/p>\n

The Harper government has made it a priority to deepen economic ties with Asia, and Vietnam is certainly a player in the region.<\/p>\n

Vietnam is member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and is one of the countries with a seat at Trans-Pacific Partnership trade talks.<\/p>\n

The bill, sponsored by Conservative Sen. Thanh Hai Ngo, was passed Monday night by a 45-4 margin. From there, it goes to the House of Commons, where it is not clear when\u2014or even if\u2014it will be dealt with.<\/p>\n

If the bill is passed by the Commons, it will \u201chave an adverse impact on the growing bilateral relations between Vietnam and Canada, as well as efforts devoted to broaden and deepen our ties, including trade and investment relations,\u201d said Viet Dung Vu, a diplomat with the Vietnamese embassy in Ottawa.<\/p>\n

In an emailed response to questions, he added: \u201cIt will send the wrong message to the public of Vietnam and the international community about Canada\u2019s goodwill toward our country.\u201d<\/p>\n

Vietnam\u2019s ambassador To Anh Dung expressed \u201cconcern\u201d to Foreign Affairs Minister John Baird about the bill as recently as Monday night at a Parliament Hill reception, Vu said.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe government of Vietnam (the embassy included) has made many representations to different levels of the government of Canada and leaders of Parliament expressing our serious concerns about the language and intent of this bill,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n

Baird\u2019s spokesman Adam Hodge said Vietnam is a \u201cstrong and valued partner, including in the TPP negotiations.<\/p>\n

Vietnam\u2019s ambassador to Canada and the Vietnamese Deputy Prime Minister Pham Binh Minh have written separate letters to the government expressing concern.<\/p>\n

The Canada-Vietnam Trade Council warned in a letter to the Senate\u2019s human rights committee that the bill would negatively affect the government\u2019s economic aspirations because it would so divisions among Vietnamese Canadians.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe proposed bill not only would damage diplomatic relations with Vietnam, but also would have a strong, negative impact of further dividing an already terrorized and divided community,\u201d wrote Dai Trang Nguyen, the council\u2019s director.<\/p>\n

\u201cThis is in turn would have an adverse effect on trade and investment between Canada and Vietnam, given the important role of Vietnamese Canadians in supporting trade links.\u201d<\/p>\n

He said the bill reflects the view of less than five per cent of Vietnamese Canadians and promotes a view \u201cof the past, of hatred, of negativity, resulting in neglect of the well-being of future generations.\u201d<\/p>\n

The Liberal leader in the upper chamber, Sen. James Cowan, accused the government of blocking the Vietnamese ambassador from testifying before the Senate about his concerns.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe government permitted only witnesses who spoke in favour of the bill to testify before the committee,\u201d Cowan said in the Senate on Monday night after abstaining from the vote.<\/p>\n

\u201cIndividuals, including the ambassador of the Socialist Republic of Vietnam, requested the opportunity to appear, and the government denied them that opportunity.\u201d<\/p>\n

Conservative senators did not rise to challenge Cowan\u2019s assessment.<\/p>\n

In an interview Tuesday, Cowan questioned how the government could approve such a contentious bill when it is trying to make economic inroads in Asia, including Vietnam.<\/p>\n

\u201cWe\u2019re trying to improve relations with Vietnam. We\u2019ve signed a memorandum of understanding to increase trade and cultural connections,\u201d Cowan said.<\/p>\n

\u201cWhy you would want to stir up divisions? I don\u2019t understand.\u201d<\/p>\n

Hodge reiterated a past comment that bill is \u201cnot a government bill\u201d and that MPs and senators are free to introduce private member\u2019s legislation.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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