Increasingly I have been getting urgent pleas in the mail from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) asking for funds to help with the agency's work of providing basic human necessities such as water to those desperately in need around the world.
Unfortunately, I don't think the meagre funds I am able to contribute are doing much to help the UNHCR achieve that organization's mandate to alleviate the suffering of so many in the world who are deprived of the basic necessities of life.
Our federal government contributed $46 million to the UNHCR in 2009 but I wonder if it couldn't have done more. Our neighbour to the south, for example, contributed the lion's share ($640 million) to the UNHCR in 2009. The United States’ population is 10 times ours of course, but 10 times our federal government contribution last year still falls well short of the generous United States donation. And then there are countries like Sweden, Norway and the Netherlands that contribute far more than Canada. In 2009, Sweden gave $108 million, Norway $61 million and the Netherlands $81 million to support the good work of the UNHCR.
The money our federal government gave to the UNHCR on our behalf last year amounts to about $1.50 per Canadian. There are many ways the Stephen Harper government could find money in the federal coffers so human beings around the world have access to safe water. Here's one suggestion — cutting just one of those 65 macho new toys for the air force boys from the Joint Strike Fighter purchase would free up $138 million, which could triple our contribution to the UNHCR next year at no net cost to the Canadian taxpayer.
Dave Burkhart, St. Albert
