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Kelowna Lake Country MP Stephen Fuhr is back after an eye-opening visit to Mali. The landlocked West African country has been described as the most dangerous of all the U-N's peacekeeping missions. There was a rebellion, there is drought, poverty, and there was a coup in the capital. An influx of Islamic Jihadists has added another layer of violence.
Fuhr spoke with KelownaNow about Canada's impending withdrawal and the pressures to stay.
Mali's current population is about 18 million people and it's expected to double by 2035.
"We don't want that state to fail," said Fuhr. "So there's a humanitarian and compassionate reason for Canada to be there." If it does become a failed state, there are fears that the number of refugees could be massive. Canada's role is to provide combat-ready air medical evacuation for the 12 thousand peace keeping troops who are there. The problem is, Canada's commitment ends at the end of July, and Romania isn't expected to take over that part of the mission until October.
"I know that we're going to everything we can to make sure that that capability gap is reduced and that Romania can get in there. What that looks like, right now, I don't know."
Fuhr returned home with a renewed sense of pride in what the Canadian troops are doing in places like Mali.
"We're super-proud," said Fuhr. "The German commander came up to me, the Dutch commander came up to me and said 'Thank you, this is unbelievable, we don't want you guys to leave'. It was really heartwarming."
He also returned home reminded just how lucky we all are to live where we do.
"It really puts things back here into perspective for me. " "Even on our most challenging day here in Canada, when you compare it to what else is going on in the world. We're very lucky here."
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