Sometime in the next few weeks, Prime Minister Paul Martin may ignore public opinion and commit Canada to participate in the Bush administration's plans to militarize the heavens.
The U.S. claims that a Ballistic Missile Defense (BMD) system is needed to protect this hemisphere from nuclear attacks from countries like North Korea or Iran. Martin agrees, but says that he will not go along with any plan to put weapons in space.
The arguments against this unilateral and dangerous action are many. First, the idea that the leaders of "rogue states" are demented enough to destroy their nations (and themselves) by launching a missile or two at the U.S. - even if they had the ability - is even more ridiculous than Bush's claim that Saddam Hussein was planning to use his (non-existent) weapons of mass destruction against the West.
On the other hand, Bush II unilaterally broke the 1972 US-Soviet Anti-Ballistic Missile Treaty, agreed to by Nixon and Kissinger, which outlawed such systems because they are destabilizing and would spur the nuclear arms race. That is exactly what will happen if the U.S. goes ahead with "Star Wars", as neither Russia nor China have any intention of allowing the Pentagon to gain a decisive strategic advantage.
Second, Martin is naive if he thinks that, once Canada is enmeshed in Star Wars, the U.S. will allow Canada to back out when it inevitably begins to put weapons systems in space. (The official Pentagon website is not shy about its plans to militarize space in order to conquer the "final frontier" and gain military advantage over all other countries).
A recent Ipsos-Reid survey found that over two-thirds of Canadians oppose our participation in George Bush's plans for "Star Wars." A simple respect for democracy and accountability, central themes in the Liberal election campaign, would mean that the Canadian people should be consulted before making such a momentous commitment.
Finally, it is very doubtful that the Star Wars program would actually work, much less increase the security of the United States. What is not in doubt, however, is that what former president Dwight Eisenhower called, "the military industrial complex" will make tens of billions of dollars in profits from this wasteful program.
Could those tax dollars not be better used to combat poverty, provide universal health care, protect the environment, and solve a host of pressing problems central to real human security?
Ultimately, this is also a question of Canadian sovereignty - another key plank in the Liberal election platform. But American ambassador to Canada Paul Cellucci, the same diplomat who tried to get Canada to go along with Bush and invade Iraq, is now saying that the U.S. wants an agreement soon and that, "the clock is ticking."
If Martin gives in to U.S. pressure to amend the NORAD agreement and allow the construction of a BMD system with Canada, he does not need to go to Parliament for approval. All that the Prime Minister has to do is to send a letter to Washington that Canada accepts the amendment - with no public discussion, no "free vote" in the House of Commons.
Now is the time for Canadians to remind Paul Martin and the Liberals that they have a minority government and that they did not get a mandate to give in to demands from the Bush Administration to help to militarize space. We also need to point out that minority governments usually do not last very long, and that another election will likely take place sooner or later.
Canadians should also tell those members of Parliament who do oppose our involvement in Star Wars -- especially the NDP and the Bloc Quebecois but also many Liberals -- that they will demand a free vote of confidence in the Liberal government if it listens to Washington rather than to its own people.
Another way to make sure that the government listens to Canadians is by organizing locally, holding public meetings, talking to MPs, and so on. In Vancouver, Victoria, and other B.C. municipalities, city councils have gone on record to show support for Canada's traditional policy in favour of peaceful resolutions to problems of war and peace.
There are a variety of ways of participating in the campaign to keep Canada out of Star Wars, but time is short.
Do we really want ideologues like Bush, Cheney, and Rumsfeld, with their doctrine of "preventive wars", determining our foreign policy?
(More information is available at: www.ceasefire.ca).
Peter G. Prontzos is a member of the Peace and Justice Committee of the City of Vancouver, and a research associate with the BC Office of the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives. He teaches Political Science at Langara College.