"Honorable Ministers Graham and Augustine, Your Excellencies, Senators, Members of the Parliament, Members of the National Council, Ladies and Gentlemen. I want to thank you all for attending tonight's dinner.

This is an important venue to gather our friends, colleagues and members together to celebrate Canada's relations with the Arab World and discuss common prospects and challenges.

Canada, is a unique multicultural country; a leader in gender equality, social equity, technology, innovation. With a proven commitment to international peace and security, Canada is held up as a model for many of the world's population, and with its parliamentary democracy, speaks forcefully and effectively on the international scene. It is for these and many other reasons that many Arab people migrated to this great land. Today these immigrants are proud of both their Canadian and Arab heritage.

NCCAR Activities

On behalf of these of the vast majority of Canadians who want Canada to have positive and healthy relations with the countries of the Arab World, NCCAR is consistently striving to promote strong and mutually beneficial relations and understanding between Canada and those countries.

NCCAR believes that it has contributed positively to the policy making process by holding regular discussions with officials in the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade, the Parliament of Canada and the Canadian International Development Agency for improving bilateral relations, aid, trade and investment between Canada and the Arab world. DFAIT and CIDA have responded with improved efforts to enhance cooperation.

DFAIT has continued to support the NCCAR's work under the Youth Internship program, sending young Canadian graduates to the Arab world. This important program is a key vehicle for encouraging Canadian youth interaction with Arab people and institutions.

We have urged the Canadian government to approach the Arab world from a position of justice and peace position that takes into account the challenges facing the region, and the threats to stability in the region by powers that, unlike Canada, do not respect international law. Canada has responded with a balanced policy on Iraq, restoring diplomatic relations with Libya, continuing to facilitate improve relations with Sudan and attempting to promote solutions to the Palestine question.

A number of security measures and related legislation that have unfortunately been adopted in Canada and the United States. The NCCAR believes these measures challenge Canadians' rights and freedoms and threaten scare tactics that in many cases represent racial and ethic profiling.

We believe many of these Canadian and American laws undermine the fundamental Canadian principle of equality under law in its application to Canadian citizens, regardless of place of birth, skin color, ethnicity or religion.

And while Minister Graham himself has made great attempts to have American measures of fingerprinting, photographing and interrogation of Canadians entering the US reversed, unfortunately, the United States, and indeed the Canadian security apparatus continue to apply objectionable practices toward the Canadian Arab population.

We call upon the Government of Canada to stop these oppressive and unconstitutional measures and continue to request the US government cease in applying these objectionable measures.

Canadian Relations with the Arab World

The Arab Development Report produced by the UNDP presented a glimpse of the current status of the state of affairs in the Arab World. It indicated the serious challenges facing peoples of the region, and it put much of the blame on the effects of occupation, lack of democratic development, desperate economic prospects, illiteracy, and lack of rights for women.

Canada can play an important role in addressing many of these challenges, in co-operative spirit for the benefit of Canada and the Arab World.

We would like to encourage Canada to enhance its economic and cultural relationship with the Arab world. The level of bilateral trade with Arab countries is low by comparison with their trade relations with relations with Europe, Japan and the United States.

We call on Canada to increase its support for those countries with serious economic challenges, including Yemen, Sudan, Palestine, Syria and Lebanon. In particular, we call upon Canada to establish a bilateral cooperation agreement with Yemen - one of the poorest countries in the World which is desperately in need of assistance. Canada should also increase its support of development strategies in countries facing economic and social challenges such as Jordan, Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Mauritania, and Egypt. Furthermore,

NCCAR urges Canada to focus its programs in the areas of the growing youth population, women and human rights development. NCCAR commends Canada's present support for parliamentary reform, educational programs, and human rights training for the police and judiciary in diverse regions of the globe and encourages Canada to direct more of these efforts to the Arab speaking World.

Trade Relations

The Arab World constitutes a growing and prosperous market to Canadian investors and exporters. It is a potential and willing market to be explored for the benefit of all parties. Canadian trade relations with the region are around 7 billion annually - not a large amount for a region covering 300 million people.

The lack of full and official diplomatic and immigration representation in Libya, Sudan, and Yemen are obstacles to trade. These countries represent emerging states, with unlimited potentials, but in serious need of support and technology that Canada can provide. Canada should actively work to upgrade its diplomatic relations with these countries.

And we need to work harder together to improve awareness of the region and so Canadians can learn as much as they should about these opportunities. The Canadian government needs to encourage Canadian business to invest in the region, while supporting Arab efforts to privatize state owned firms, promote e-government, free trade agreements, and improve education and health care.

We call upon DFAIT, in cooperation with the Canada Arab Business Council, should work harder to identify and promote opportunities in the region and upon the Arab Governments to work harder to appreciate the value of Canadian investment potential.

A supplemental information campaign on opportunities in Canada for Arabs and in the Arab World for Canadians would be a good start as would be regular Team Canada Missions to the region.

Canada, Palestine and Israel

If Canada is to improve relations with the Arab world, it must approach the Middle East from a position of fairness and evenhandedness in applying international standards. It cannot make demands that states such as Iraq apply United Nations' Resolutions, while at the same time allowing Israel to ignore to countless U.N. resolutions applying to the occupation of Palestine.

Canada must condemn Israeli practices which are in contravention of international law, illegal settlements, mass arrests and detentions, house demolitions and land confiscation, closing of schools, intimidation and psychological warfare, not to mention Israeli politicians who publicly state their objective of ethnically cleansing Palestine of its Palestinian population under the code term "Voluntary Transfer."

The only path to peace is for Israel to abide by Security Council Resolutions 224, 338 and to end its illegal occupation of the West Bank and Gaza. NCCAR reiterates its position that only by ending the occupation will both people will live in peace.

NCCAR urges the government of Canada to work for the implementation of its own public policies supporting these resolutions that have been clearly stated and reiterated.

NCCAR urges the government to apply the full measure of Canadian law and stop those Canadians who are donating and supporting the illegal settlements and the occupation. We believe that these settlements constitute a war crime and those who are supporting and abetting financially or otherwise are subject to prosecution under Canadian law.

The U.S. - Iraq Confrontation

I would like to turn now to the U.S. - Iraq confrontation - the most serious issue confronting global peace and security as well as stability in the Arab World. This crisis, manufactured to satisfy larger geopolitical and economic interests can only bring about a tragedy for the people of Iraq and the region.

Israel possesses an unchecked arsenal of weapons of mass destruction, occupies Palestinian lands, and the territory of neighbouring Syria and Lebanon, and thumbs its nose at the entire world, all the while led by a Prime Minister who has led his troops to commit untold atrocities. Its brutal repression of the Palestinian people viewed daily on television continues to fuel the despair and hatred that is making the world less safe for all of us. Yet shamefully The US government and the US Congress refuse to exercise their capacity to rein in their Israeli Ally, and chose to harness their tremendous power on a weak and fragmented Iraq..

We call upon the Canadian government to maintain its position grounded in international law and support the United Nations' efforts to find a peaceful solution. Given our ties with the Americans, resisting their demands will take a principled and strong stand.

Conclusion

The theme of tonight's dinner is Prospects and Challenges. Despite the challenges, we believe Canada can play an important role in Arab world. Canada stands to gain significantly from a deliberate, constructive, and open relationship with the Arab World.

To achieve this, increases in the Canadian budget for the region to support human resources development, investment in aid and trade development are essential.

We would like to reiterate that the Canadian government's policies on important matters which dominate the region, such as Palestine/ Israel crisis and the Iraq crisis should be principled and consistent, rather than succumbing to political pressure of the day - such as the banning of the Lebanese political party Hizbullah taken to placate American and pro-Israeli groups' demands.

This decision should be reversed to put our relations with Lebanon back on track; Canada should suspend its free trade agreement with Israel - just as the EU has suspended its preferential trade agreement with Israel until these objectionable practices are ended. And we should resist American pressure to wage a war that no one wants against Iraq.

We ask Canada to base these and its other decisions on democratic and justice principles, and international law, peace and security.

For if we are to construct bridges to the Arab World and promote the necessary democratic development in the Arab world, then as Canadians we need to set an example while promoting the widest possible interaction with our partners in the region."

" Let us work together to overcome the challenges by building on the prospects."