CIDA - Parliament's Quasimodo

Our last post dealt with the distinctions between government and Parliament and in the past few days it has generated a lot of questions. Our lives seem preoccupied with the political machinations that seem part and parcel of recent years, whereas the dedicated civil servants in Parliament itself have suffered a painful and largely ignored demise.This is perhaps no more true than within the offices of the Canadian International Development Agency (CIDA), which has had the unfortunate experience of suffering undue criticism at the department level when it has really been the small-mindedness of politics that has cut its potential off at the knees. What should have been an instrument of pride and international compassion has instead turned into Parliament's Quasimodo - unloved, belittled, yet still capable of great mercy and loyalty to the dispossessed, still attempting to ring the bells of international responsibility despite its maligned position.  Locked in an edifice that has largely shut out the public, it has often been ruled by political masters bent on protecting the status quo more than feeding the hungry. Loyalty to the poor has been rewarded by a kind of flagellation that is embarrassing to any modern civil service, and especially so in Canada.I had numerous occasions this past summer to speak with former employees of the agency whose spirits still beat with a sense of obligation to the world's bottom billion and who gave CIDA their best shot. Yet they were stymied in their attempts to advance the cause. Regardless of what the research informed them, they were often overruled by a political class that knew little of international development. What I found remarkable about these individuals was that they now work for non-governmental organizations - their faithfulness to the ideal of international service, though squandered at CIDA, has found effectiveness in other endeavours meant to reach the world's most challenged. They yearned for a time when the agency would become a serious player in the Canadian government, regardless of political stripe, and despite the frustrating treatment they received while in its employment, they still cast a sentimental eye at CIDA because of its promise.There was a time when CIDA and Foreign Affairs fascinated Canadians and drew in people of remarkable vision and foresight. That part of Canada is now largely gone. Yet numerous reports and even the voices of our international partners are calling on us once again to get back to the best that is in us as a nation. It is clearly true that the world is a source of endless fascination to many Canadians. Yet, as someone who has traveled extensively, I have learned that the world is equally fascinated with us. Nations that have trouble containing the violence among their own divided peoples look to the Canadian form of federalism as a kind of ideal. They look at our courts, electoral accountability, prosperity and the intelligence of our people and they see what they could accomplish in their own nations as a result. Every nation has its own natural grandeur and beauty like Canada, but few can match the sheer quality of life guarded by a remarkable system of civil service such as we have had.Alas, the meanness of politics has begun to poison the well of public service and we are all the poorer for it. Nevertheless, like Quasimodo, CIDA employees yet look outside the windows of their fortress in Hull, Quebec and see a world in need. They look to their political masters in hopes of a willingness to thrust open those doors and distribute Canadian largesse to those who have had no such privilege. The depth of CIDA's compassion must now be met with the responsibility of federal politicians of all stripes to let Canada be Canada.