THUNDER BAY - As the situation in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate, local federal candidates are speaking out about the way the Canadian government is responding.
On Aug. 15, Canada announced it would be temporarily suspending its diplomatic operations in Kabul due to the rapidly evolving situation in Afghanistan. On Aug. 18, Canadian defence minister Harjit Sajjan tweeted out that Two CC-177 Globemasters have been assigned to evacuation efforts and will be flying regularly into Kabul.
“The situation in Afghanistan is absolutely heartbreaking. Canada is working with our allies to help Afghans and Canadians in Afghanistan leave the country safely and as soon as possible,” said Patty Hajdu, The Liberal incumbent MP for Thunder Bay – Superior North.
“The Prime Minister has been clear that Canada will continue to assist in this manner for as long as it is feasible to do so. So far, since the start of the airlift, Canada has evacuated 1,700 Canadians and eligible Afghans from Kabul on a total of 13 flights.”
The Green Party Candidate for Thunder Bay – Superior North, Amanda Moddejonge, said Canada’s response to the situation in Afghanistan is “beyond abysmal”.
“I know that Patty Hajdu was briefed at least a year ago by local retired CAF members who are actively responding to this humanitarian crisis. Patty told him then that this was not an issue that affected her constituents and it was not an issue that is important to her, “ Moddejonge said,
“What I would do differently is simple: I would hire enough staff for Immigration, Refugee, and Citizenship Canada to be able to do their job. Justin Trudeau said himself that the problem has been a process issue with this department. This department is woefully understaffed. Oddly, this is much the same issue with Health Canada and its pandemic response. Health Canada was not prepared, and now Patty is calling for a full review of the scope of the Public Health Agency of Canada.”
The NDP candidate for Thunder Bay – Superior North, Chantelle Bryson, said that the issue of getting Afghan allies has been brought to Hajdu for years.
“Local Afghanistan veterans have been seeking assistance to remove Afghan allies and their families for years. They sought assistance directly from Patty Hajdu, as a cabinet minister, only to be rebuffed and then ignored. The ultimate U.S. withdrawal and the current untenable situation was foreseeable. Until the past few weeks, the Liberals could have simply landed, processed everyone and brought them to safety, “ Bryson said.
“The only way to extract a significant number of these Kabul allies is through authorization of armed units to pick them up and negotiations with Taliban leaders and checkpoints to let them through within the next week. This is in the Liberal government's hands who decided to call an election when they knew the situation on the ground in Afghanistan was out of control.“
The Peoples Party of Canada candidate for Thunder Bay – Superior North, Rick Daines, feels that our government should have done more for our Afghan allies.
“The situation in Afghanistan is tragic. Any situation where lives are lost or at risk is tragic. I believe our military should have received advanced notice prior to pulling out, and intelligence services would have known. Our government would be well aware that pulling out in this way would put Afghan allies at great risk and we should have been there to do more.” Daines said.
“This is a gross leadership failure by our Liberal government. To be there for such a long time working with allies and then to pull out in such a way that puts so many lives at risk is irresponsible and shows a leadership failure. The People's Party would have more respect for our allies and take a more responsible approach to ensure that the safety of all Canadians and allies would be treated with the utmost care and attention.”
The Conservative Party Candidate for Thunder Bay – Superior North, Joshua Taylor, says Canada should have been more prepared for this situation.
"If Canada is going to be a true leader on the world stage, we need to ensure that our troops, citizens, and those we've made promises to are taken care of. We should have been prepared for the worst and been hoping for the best. Most importantly, this was predictable and going forward we can't treat the Taliban like a legitimate government," Taylor said.
UPDATE: This story has been updated with comments from Conservative candidates who were not initially included due to a communication issue on Tbnewswatch's end.
