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LIKE CANADA, INDIA FINDS ITS STRENGTH IN DEMOCRACY AND
RESPECT FOR DIVERSITY, STATES MINISTER DION
NEW DELHI, INDIA, April 23, 2002 – Speaking to the Centre for
Canadian Studies at the University of Delhi, as part of the Pearson Lectures,
the President of the Privy Council and Minister of Intergovernmental Affairs,
the Honourable Stéphane Dion, said today that India is the most eloquent
example of the universality of democracy.
"For all those who may have thought that democracy was made only for
Western countries, or that it is a luxury that only the wealthiest and most
developed countries can afford, India, in spite of all the difficulties, many
pitfalls, many detours, offers a most eloquent refutation," noted Mr.
Dion.
Referring to statements by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien during his
recent visit to Africa, to the effect that a new partnership between that
continent and the international community would involve development aid being
tied to democratic progress, Minister Dion stressed that the universal
value of democracy fosters economic development and quality of life.
"In fact, to those who doubt the universal application of democracy
and of its economic virtues, I will speak about India. Your country, despite the
sizeable challenges it faces, is a remarkable example of what democracy can
achieve," the Minister pointed out.
Referring to the trade mission led by Canada’s Minister for International
Trade, the Honourable Pierre Pettigrew, Mr. Dion highlighted India’s
economic potential and the progress achieved in this respect since its accession
to independence in 1947, despite tremendous and considerable difficulties. With
an annual growth rate of five to six percent, India is an ideal trading partner
for Canada, Mr. Dion explained. India’s development has been realized
within democracy. "Democracy has served Indians well, and they are
attached to it in return."
Referring to the 20th anniversary of the Canadian Charter of Rights and
Freedoms, which the Minister stressed has allowed Canadians to rally around
common values while respecting their country’s rich diversity, the Minister
said he feels that unity in diversity, for India and Canada alike, is the only
way forward.
The Minister stated that India, a country of over one billion inhabitants
with a highly diversified population in terms of language – it has 1,652
languages or dialects, and 18 languages are recognized as "languages of
India"– and of religion, has based its unity "simultaneously on
democracy, tolerance, federalism and secularity of the state."
"This principle of tolerance gave birth to your country: humanity
would despair if it did not also characterize its future," noted
Mr. Dion.
Canadians can already find the virtues of unity in diversity within their own
history, Mr. Dion claimed, but "nothing could provide them with a
better confirmation than the success of the great Indian federation."
For their part, he added, Indians can find in Canada’s success "a
meaning to their struggle for democracy, for unity and for greater justice."
"When I look at your vast country, I see, in a manner more solemn,
more dramatic and more imposing, the growing reflection of the most fundamental
challenges facing Canadian society: the unceasing quest for democracy,
justice, the federal spirit, and unity in diversity," Mr. Dion
concluded.
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For information:
André Lamarre
Special Assistant
Telephone: (613) 943-1838
Fax: (613) 943-5553
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