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Canada a democracy, not a dictatorship

Lack of input into Canada-China trade agreement worries reader

I’m writing because the proposed free trade deal with China causes me a lot of consternation and I feel that it has not been covered enough in the press.

Never mind the positive or negative benefits of such an agreement. What really gets my goat is the fact that the government is trying to ram it down our throats without even any opportunity to discuss it.

That makes the whole thing smell bad. Other countries such as Australia are moving away from such agreements. Let’s examine why before we rush into it.

The NDP, Liberals, PQ and Green Party have all formally requested a discussion in Parliament, but have been denied. This is supposed to be a democracy not a dictatorship.

I’m tired of the current government arbitrarily forcing Canada down a path that most Canadians do not agree with. At least give us the feigned respect of a public discussion. If it is good for Canada, then Canadians will see it, and support it.

Hiding and sneaking around does not instil confidence in me that the government has Canadian interests in mind. It is certainly not democratic. This is Canada, are we going to accept this?

David Monk

Victoria