Kinsman: Should Canadian corporations be permitted to do business with corrupt and repressive regimes?

By: /
12 March, 2012
By: Jeremy Kinsman
Former ambassador to the European Union and high commissioner to Britain

“Permission” by the Government only clicks in when there are Security Council or Commonwealth sanctions involved. Authorities are less than vigilant, however; examples – on Iran where a Canadian software company is reported as assisting Iranian security on techniques to choke the Internet; or ill-disguised bribes (“signing bonus”) by Canadian corporations (eg, Petrocan in Libya) which contravene our obligations under OECD codes of conduct on corrupt practices. Otherwise, on doing legal business in what is a wicked competitive world, methods and scale of engagement are really up to the Boards of the corporations in question. SNC/Lavalin’s disgraceful conduct in Libya suggests a Board asleep at the switch or unacceptably very cynical governance for a company which long profited from projects funded by the Canadian taxpayer. There is an argument that doing honest business through investment in a dishonest country, a Canadian company with our habits and rules of meritocracy and transparency can be a mentor to employees and contribute to building capacity for a better culture. Maybe. But an obvious line not to cross is a joint venture with acknowledged tyrants, such as with a Gadhafi son to build them a better prison. Give us a break. “

Before you click away, we’d like to ask you for a favour … 

Journalism in Canada has suffered a devastating decline over the last two decades. Dozens of newspapers and outlets have shuttered. Remaining newsrooms are smaller. Nowhere is this erosion more acute than in the coverage of foreign policy and international news. It’s expensive, and Canadians, oceans away from most international upheavals, pay the outside world comparatively little attention.

At Open Canada, we believe this must change. If anything, the pandemic has taught us we can’t afford to ignore the changing world. What’s more, we believe, most Canadians don’t want to. Many of us, after all, come from somewhere else and have connections that reach around the world.

Our mission is to build a conversation that involves everyone — not just politicians, academics and policy makers. We need your help to do so. Your support helps us find stories and pay writers to tell them. It helps us grow that conversation. It helps us encourage more Canadians to play an active role in shaping our country’s place in the world.

Become a Supporter