Human Rights in Foreign Policy: Lessons for South Africa from Canadian Experience?

Abstract

In order to narrow the 'compliance gap' between the 'idea of universal human rights and practices of human wrongs', differences in human rights understandings and practices between countries of the North and the South must be reduced. Towards this end, it is useful to critically examine the experiences of Northern countries which have long professed their dedication to human rights. This article specifically examines lessons for post-apartheid South Africa from Canadian experience - although the findings should be of wider interest. It reflects on three interrelated dimensions of Canada's international human rights activity, each of which resonates strongly in South Africa and elsewhere: (1) the preference for multilateralism; (2) the emphasis on 'quiet diplomacy' and 'constructive engagement'; and (3) the growing importance of actors in civil society, both independently and in conjunction with government policy makers. It finds that each of these dimensions is distinctly double-edged in its impact on Canada's human rights foreign policy. Only through a clear understanding of the strengths, limits, and interrelations of each of these policy dimensions can performance be improved and prevarication and hypocrisy limited.