Introduction
The Liberal Party of Canada has won majority of the seats (184/338) in the recently concluded parliamentary elections in the country, defeating the Conservative Party led by former Prime Minister Stephen Harper. This win is a major achievement for the Liberal Party, which was positioned third, behind the New Democratic Party, in the 2011 elections with just 34 seats. The result signals a vast reversal of fortunes for the party that was all but written off and its comeback registers the largest increase in seats for a party between two elections in Canadian history. Now, the party has the task of fulfilling the promises that it made to the voters.
Prime Minister Harper, who led Conservative governments after three successive elections over the past decade, will remain in the Parliament, but steps down as the leader of his party. Canada is internationally renowned for its open society and liberal political culture and under the Conservatives; the policies shifted more to the right of the centre. He has lowered corporate and sales taxes, kept the country out of international climate agreements, and toughened criminal sentences. The Liberal Party campaigned on the motto of bringing about ‘Real Change’, which resonated with the electorate which found no such concrete plan with the other parties. In a major shift from the policies of Prime Minister Harper’s government, the Liberal Party stated that it would run a deficit budget, meaning that it would not reduce spending on government programmes. The second point of departure was on the issues of tax. The Liberal Party campaigned on the platform that it would to raise taxes on the richest 01 per cent to fund cuts for the middle classes. The economy was a dominant issue of the campaign, with turmoil in global markets, plummeting oil prices and a slowdown in Canada. A key factor that has helped Canada overcome the global economic recession was Prime Minister Harper’s government’s decision to not link the Canadian dollar with the US dollar. A key issue in the campaign’s final weeks centred around the niqab, a type of veil worn by some Muslim women, and whether or not new Canadian citizens should be banned from wearing it during the citizenship oath. The Conservative Party also opened a “barbaric cultural practices” hotline to public ridicule and scorn.i
Mr. Justin Trudeau is the second youngest Prime Minister of Canada, having become the leader of the party only in 2013. He entered politics in 2008 by being elected to the Parliament, to represent Papineau, Quebec, one of Canada’s poorest and most ethnically diverse electoral districts. The Liberal Party was in a state of disarray at this stage, with it losing seats in each consecutive election (103-2006, 76-2008, 34-2011). The 2011 election results meant that for the first time in its history, the party formed neither the government nor the opposition. Mr. Trudeau was elected to lead the party and it can be safely said that he started to re-organise and re-build the party for the 2015 elections since then. His main message to the voters during the campaign, one of the longest in recent Canadian elections, was to vote for real change. He asked the voters to help build a real and honest government and to invest in the future of Canada. His vision is “...to invest immediately in jobs and growth and lower taxes for the middle-class.” He stated that, “My vision of our country is a place where everyone has a shot at success because we have the confidence and leadership to invest in Canadians.”ii
Major Issues in the Elections
The focus of the campaign was on issues, which included a scandal over Conservative senators’ expenses; anti-terrorism measures that Prime Minister Harper had introduced; pensions; the stagnation of the economy brought about by plunging oil prices; the government’s handling of refugees; the Trans-Pacific Partnership trade pact; and Mr. Harper’s attempts to ban the wearing of face veils during citizenship ceremonies.iii
In a report published by the office of the Auditor General of Canada, it stated that it had gone over the expense accounts of nearly all sitting and recently retired senators, 116 in all, and found irregularities in more than one-quarter of them. Many of the senators involved had been appointed by the Conservative government.iv The issue was one that dominated the early stages of the campaign.
Nearly, a decade of governance under the Conservative Party witnessed some policy changes. Under the government of Prime Minister Harper, Canada’s armed forces were proactively engaged in undertaking international responsibilities. They were part of the collision forces that went to Afghanistan and Iraq and currently have contributed to the NATO led air strikes in Syria. The Liberals have stated in their manifesto that they would be ending Canada’s combat mission in Iraq and Syria though, the party has not yet given a timeline on the matter. However, Prime Minister Trudeau has stated that Canada would continue with its commitments to train the Iraqi forces. In another change from the previous government, he has also stated that Canada would be pulling out of the Pentagons F-35 programmev negotiated under Mr. Harper. Canada had committed to buying 65 F-35s on a sole-source basis as the replacement for its fleet of CF-18s, but the deal has been halted on charges that Mr. Harper’s government had lied about the actual cost of the fighter programme. The Liberals have stated that they would launch an "open and transparent competition" to buy more affordable planes to replace Canada's aging CF-18 jets. And the money saved by scrapping the F-35 procurement would go primarily to increasing spending on the Royal Canadian Navy.
The other major issue facing the Canada-US relations has been on the issue of the Keystone XL pipeline. The Keystone XL Pipeline Project is a proposed 1,179-mile (1,897 km), 36-inch-diameter crude oil pipeline, beginning in Hardisty, Alberta, Canada, and extending south to Steele City, Nebraska, USA. It would carry crude oil obtained from oil sands in Canada. The US has raised objections to the project and for the moment it has been halted. Environmentalists have objected to the pipeline and its harmful effects. President Obama has vetoed a bill seeking the construction of the pipeline. It has been argued that the objections for Keystone XL, is not quite as beneficial for the environment as campaigners claimed. Canada is shipping record amounts of crude oil, about 3m barrels a day, to the US through 31 pipelines. About half is heavy bitumen from Alberta’s tar sands, or synthetic oil made from it. That will continue to grow for a while, even though extracting tar-sands oil is expensive and oil prices are weak. Low prices depress future investment, but producers have already spent billions to exploit Alberta’s reserves. A lot of this in the future would now be transported by rail which is a dangerous option. vi Unlike his predecessor, Prime Minister Trudeau has stated that he would re-build relations with the US and President Obama and work towards finding a solution to the hurdles in the project. He has also pledged that climate change would be a priority for his government as will sustainable development.
In what was a major departure from former Prime Minister Harper’s view, Prime Minister Trudeau has pledged to take in 25,000 Syrian refugees. However, how this plan would be implemented is an issue about which the refugee settlement groups in Canada are not sure. They hope that after the new government is sworn in, they will highlight the course of action. Nonetheless, they all estimate that it is too large a number for Canada to absorb by the end of the year as proposed. They argue that more time and a better plan, such as affordable housing, the health care system being able to absorb the new people, schools and job prospects for the refugees, would give better resettlement outcomes.
Two Bills that were tabled by former Prime Minister Harper’s government also had a significant impact on the outcome of the elections. The first, the C-24 Bill, allowed the government to revoke the citizenship of dual citizens and people, who have immigrated to Canada. Under this law, only those Canadians, can never lose their citizenship who are those born in the country and do not have another nationality (and are not eligible to apply for another nationality). Canadians with another nationality (and those, who are eligible to obtain another nationality) now have second-class status, even if they were born in Canada. They can be stripped of their citizenship under Bill C-24. The Canadian government has justified the creation of a two-tier citizenship system by saying that it would counter the threat of “jihadi terrorism.” Citizenship can be taken away mainly on the basis of crimes that are considered threats to Canada’s national security, like terrorism or espionage, or demonstrations of disloyalty to Canada, like treason. Legal experts warned, however, that the list of offences that could lead to the removal of citizenship may be expanded in the future. Additionally, Bill C-24 punishes criminal activity with exile.vii
The second Bill, C-51 Anti-terrorism Bill, has courted controversy as it allows the Canadian police expanded periods of preventive detention without warrant and it allowed the police to arrest on suspicion that the individual may carry out terrorist acts. It allows the security agencies to gather personal information of a person if s/he is deemed a security threat by gaining access to their personal correspondence etc; and lastly it empowered the Canadian Security and Intelligence Services to not just gather information, but also disrupt suspected terrorist plots by disrupting bank transactions, travel plans of suspects, etc.
Opponents criticised the Bill on its lack of oversight measure on the powers being provided to the security agencies. It was also feared that the Bill along with Bill C-24 would be used to target the migrant communities and aborigines.
Prime Minister Trudeau in his manifesto has criticised the Bill C-24 and has stated that his party “... will repeal the unfair elements of Bill C-24 that create second-class citizens and the elements that make it more difficult for hard-working immigrants to become Canadian citizens.”viii He also stated that, “(Canada) needs a new plan for its immigration system that is grounded in compassion and economic opportunity for all....fix the problems created during the Harper decade, so that immigrants can build a new life for themselves in Canada and contribute to the economic success of all Canadians.”ix On the issue on ‘indigenous rights’ or rights of the aborigines, he has promised a renewed relationship with the indigenous people and addressing their concerns. One of the first steps he mentioned in building this trust would be to establish the long demanded national public inquiry to investigate or find the missing and murdered indigenous women and girls.
The Liberal Party is supportive of the Bill C-51. However, it has made it clear that it “...will repeal the problematic elements of Bill C-51, and introduce new legislation that better balances (Canada’s)... collective security with (its)... rights and freedoms.” The manifesto goes on to state that Canada “...can both improve our security while protecting our rights and freedoms.”x They have promised to introduce new legislation that will, among other measures:
As this legislation is tabled in Parliament, they will also “...launch broad public consultations, to engage and seek the input of Canadians and subject-matter experts.”xii
Thus, before the elections, among the themes that dominated the campaigns were the rights of the immigrants and they constituted a very important voter base for all the parties. According to the Census of the Government of Canada (2011), 20.6 percent of its population is foreign-born and this is the highest among the G-7 countries. Of this, the three largest visible minority groups – South Asians, Chinese and Blacks – accounted for 61.3 percent of the visible minority population. The vast majority (94.8 percent) of Canada's foreign-born population lived in four provinces: Ontario (Liberal), British Columbia (Liberal), Quebec (Liberal) and Alberta (Conservative).xiii Of the 10 Canadian ridings (constituencies) with the highest percentage of immigrants, eight went Liberal. Two, Richmond Centre and Markham-Unionville, stayed Conservative. Each of these ridings had comparatively few recent immigrants compared to the other eight.xiv
India and Canada
The Canadian Parliament will also see the entry of 19 Indian origin Canadian parliamentarians, more than doubling their numbers since the last elections. There were eight lawmakers of Indian-origin in Canada in 2011. Fifteen Indo-Canadian Liberal candidates won, while only three from the Conservative Party got elected in the general elections to 338 seats. An Indo-Canadian belonging to the New Democratic Party (NDP) also won. Indian-Canadians make up over three per cent of Canada’s population of about 35 million and have become a significant political force. An example of the growing political influence of the community was witnessed when Darshan Kang of the Liberal Party won the Calgary Skyview seat for his party for the first time in 50 years by beating fellow Indian-Canadians, Devinder Shory of the Conservative Party and Sahajvir Singh Randhawa of the New Democratic Party (NDP). A little over 100 years since the Komagatu Maru incident, when a ship full of largely immigrants was not allowed to disembark in Canada, the Punjabi votes have played a major role in Liberal Party’s victory. In the current parliament, fifteen or about 8.15 percent of the 184 Liberal Party members of parliament are of Indian origin, with a majority becoming to the Punjabi community .
The growing influence of the Indo-Canadian community was also witnessed during the recent visit by Prime Minister Narendra Modi to Canada. It was during this visit that relations were elevated to the level of strategic partnership. The two leaders met during the Prime Minister’s visit to discuss new approaches to develop a strategic, broad based partnership and increasing trade relations with each other. For Indian policymakers, the election of the Liberal party is a positive development as it has not indicated any changes in its relations with India. It is hoped that the two Prime Ministers, having already met and discussed issues of mutual interest, would be able to further strengthen the relationship. It is being speculated that connections will be renewed on the various collaborations and partnerships including the annual Indo-Canada Strategic dialogue. India wants Canada to be an important and reliable partner in its socio-economic transformation. Four members of the newly appointed cabinets are from the Indian Diaspora; Lieutenant-colonel (retd.) Harjit Singh Sajjan was sworn in as the defence minister, Mr. Navdeep Bains got the portfolio of innovation, science and economic development, Mr. Amarjeet Sohi, has been sworn in as minister for infrastructure and Ms. Bandish Chagger is Minister of Small Business and Tourism.xv
The India-Canada partnership has enormous potential for mutually beneficial bilateral cooperation across a wide range of areas and can help shape a more peaceful, prosperous and sustainable world. The Indo-Canadian community has a significant role to play in Canada. While they have assimilated into the Canadian society, they have been able to maintain their religious identities. While, discussion of foreign policy was limited during the campaign period, analysts generally agree that there will not be many major shifts in Canada’s foreign policy. Under the new government, India-Canada relations are likely to continue on the positive sphere. Prime Minsiter Modi’s strategy for marketing a confident and a strong India has been through connecting and building enduring links with the Indian diaspora and building on an agenda of peace, tolerance and cooperation amongst the nations will find resonance with Mr. Trudeau’s vision of Canada.xvi
Nonetheless, there are some areas of concern that need to be addressed as well. India will also like to ensure that the new government in Canada would not allow pro-Khalistan elements to use its territories to destabilize peace in Punjab. Canada had, in the past, given refugee status to pro-separatists and had stated that under its Freedom of Speech, they had a right to promote their political view. However, they would not be allowed to indulge in terrorist activity.
For India, the pro-Khalistan support among the Canadian Diaspora is a matter of concern. Despite residing abroad, there is a strong sense of attachment among Sikhs to their culture and religion. There is a persistent demand for justice for the Sikh victims during the violent phase of the Khalistan movement. Some groups within the Indian Diaspora view themselves as supporters of the Khalistan movement – highly political and military in nature – long after its demise in India. The Indian intelligence reports have raised the issues of a rise in pro-Khalistan sentiments among the Sikh Diaspora overseas, which could potentially revive the secessionist movement. Inputs based on intelligence and technical surveillance suggest financial support from European countries, like Britain, Germany, the U.S. and Canada for the Khalistan movement.xvii The attack on Lt. Gen. Kuldip Singh Brar for his role in Operation Blue Star and the Gurdaspur terrorist attack have once again raised questions of attempts to revive militancy in Punjab, especially as links between various pro-Khalistan groups and terrorist groups in Pakistan become more evident.
With the new government in Canada, India would need to discuss the issue at length. This would be necessary in view of the fact that in December 2014, a group of Sikh Liberal party members left the party in protest against Mr. Trudeau’s support to Mr. Harjit Singh Sajjan’s candidature from Vancovour South over Mr. Barj Dhahan. The breakaway group claimed that Mr Sajjan has the backing of the World Sikh Organisation (WSO). The WSO claims to be a human rights advocacy group based in Ontario. On its website, it states that it provides an effective and credible voice to represent Sikh interests on the world stage.xviii Indian intelligence and the ‘moderate’ Sikhs state that it continues to support its basic agenda of promoting the cause of Khalistan. It provided legal services to the 1985 Air India bombing planners or the Kanishka bombingxix. The International Sikh Youth Foundation, officially listed by Canada as a terrorist organisation, has members who have participated in Baisakhi celebrations with the members of WSO and elected members of both parties, Liberal and Conservative were also present. This is an indication of the influence of the Sikh Diaspora within the political sphere of Canada.
The nuclear cooperation issue would be a second area where India would need to be sure that Canada would be supportive. It was during Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau’s tenure that India was placed under sanctions by Canada following its peaceful nuclear explosion. This is very important as India is expected to receive its first shipment of Uranium from Canada in December 2015, in over four decades. India needs a steady supply of nuclear fuel as Asia’s third biggest economy explores nuclear energy and expands its atomic reactors.
Prime Minister Modi was one of the first world leaders to congratulate Prime Minister Trudeau. India had built a stable partnership with Canada under former Prime Minister Harper. Given that India and Canada share a relationship that is friendly and based on cooperation, it is expected that the relationship would be further strengthened under the new government in Canada. The two heads of government may meet on the sidelines of the Global Climate Change meet in Paris by the end of the year to discuss issues of mutual interest and concern.
Canada and India have longstanding bilateral relations built upon shared traditions of democracy, pluralism and strong interpersonal connections with an Indian Diaspora. It is expected that the momentum that was generated by Prime Minister Modi’s visit will be carried forward.
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* The Authoress is Research Fellow with the Indian Council of World Affairs, New Delhi.
Annexure
Brief Bio-data of the Indian origin Cabinet Ministers in the Government of Canada.
1. Harjit S. Sajjan (Vancouver South) -Minister of National Defence
Lt Col (retd) Sajjan was born in Punjab, India in 1970, and moved to Canada with his family at age five, settling in the Pacific coast city of Vancouver. He worked 11 years as a police officer, including as a detective with the gang crimes unit, before joining the Canadian military and rising to the rank of lieutenant-colonel. xx
His candidature created a controversy in the Vancouver Sikh community. Many Liberal Party members left the party in opposition saying that he had the support of the World Sikh Organisation, of which his father is a member. The organisation has advocated the cause of the pro-khalistan movement. They also provided legal support to Air India bomb-maker Inderjit Reyat, who remains the only person convicted in the 1985 attack on a jetliner that killed 329 passengers and crew over the Atlantic Ocean, southwest of Ireland.xxi
As defence minister, Mr. Sajjan will be part of some of the new government’s most powerful cabinet committees, including public safety and intelligence.xxii
2. Navdeep Bains (Mississauga-Malton)- Minister of Innovation, Science and Economic Development
Mr Bains was born in Toronto, Ontario. He served as a Member of Parliament for Mississauga Brampton South from 2004 to 2011. xxiii
He is also an expert on a wide range of public policy issues including: International Trade, Government Operations, Small Business and Human Rights. Mr Bains has been active in a variety of community organizations, as a board member for the Mississauga Food Bank, having worked with the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and the Guru Gobind Singh Children’s Foundation, as well as having served as an Ontario board member with the Heart and Stroke Foundation. He is the recipient of a number of awards recognizing his work in promoting diversity within his community.xxiv
3. Amarjeet Sohi (Edmonton Mill Woods)- Minister of Infrastructure and Communities
Mr. Sohi was born in 1964 in India. He was 17 when he moved to Edmonton in 1981. In 1988 at age 24, he returned to India to study with a noted Punjabi playwright and reformer, Gursharan Singh. He was arrested by the Bihar Police which stated that he was involved in Khalistan activities. CSIS investigated Sohi’s Edmonton activities, reporting to officials in India he was no threat. In 1990, the public prosecutor formally requested the case be dismissed, saying “there is a lack of evidence against Mr. Sohi and also his prosecution is against public policy of the state.”xxv
As a former member of the Edmonton Police Commission, Mr Sohi has helped create the Police Chief’s Indo-Canadian Liaison Committee, the Punjabi Cultural Association, and the Punjabi Arts Association.
He was first elected in 2007, he is a two time Edmonton city Councillor.xxvi
4. Bardish Chagger (Waterloo)- Minister of Small Business and Tourism
Ms Chagger was born in Waterloo. Ms Chagger would be addressing issues that are important to residents of Waterloo: manufacturing, technology, and innovation. Passionate about community involvement, Ms Chagger has lent her support to many different causes and organizations including Waterloo Rotary, Interfaith Grand River, and the Workforce Planning Board of Waterloo Wellington Dufferin.xxvii
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Endnotes:
i Matt Ford, “A Resounding Liberal Victory in Canada,” The Atlantic, (October 2015), http://www.theatlantic.com/international/archive/2015/10/canada-justin-trudeau-election/411415/ and Stuart Reid, “Canada’s Contender,” The Atlantic, (May 2015), http://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2015/05/the-contender/389540/ (Accessed on 29 October 2015).
ii The Liberal Party, https://www.liberal.ca/realchange/, (accessed on 13 November 2015).
iii Ian Austen, “Top Issues in the Canadian Election,” The International New York Times, Oct. 19, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/10/20/world/americas/top-issues-in-the-canadian-election.html?_r=0, (Accessed on 01 November 2015).
iv Ian Austen, “Canadian Senators’ Expenses under Investigation after Auditor’s Report,” The International New York Times, June 09, 2015, http://www.nytimes.com/2015/06/10/world/americas/canadian-senators-expenses-under-investigation-after-auditors-report.html, (Accessed on 01 November 2015).
v The F-35 Lightning II Program (also known as the Joint Strike Fighter Program) is the Department of Defense's focal point for defining affordable next generation strike aircraft weapon systems for the Navy, Air Force, Marines, and US allies.
vi The Economists, “Keystone Flops”, http://www.economist.com/news/americas/21678157-barack-obamas-rejection-pipeline-test-new-prime-minister-keystone-flops, (accessed on 13 November 2015).
vii ----, “Dual Citizens, Immigrants could Lose Canadian Citizenship under New Law,” The Express Tribune, June 07, 2015, http://tribune.com.pk/story/899400/dual-citizens-immigrants-could-lose-canadian-citizenship-under-new-bill/, (Accessed on 01 November 2015).
viii The Liberal Party, “A New Plan for Canadian Immigration and Economic Opportunity”, https://www.liberal.ca/files/2015/09/A-new-plan-for-Canadian-immigration-and-economic-opportunity.pdf, (accessed on 06 November 2015).
ix Ibid
x The Liberal Party, “Bill C-51”, https://www.liberal.ca/realchange/bill-c-51/, (accessed on 06 November 2015).
xi Ibid
xii Ibid
xiii Statistics Canada, Government of Canada, “Immigration and Ethnocultural Diversity in Canada,” http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/nhs-enm/2011/as-sa/99-010-x/99-010-x2011001-eng.cfm, (Accessed on 01 November 2015) and Elections Canada, Results on Provinces and Territories, http://enr.elections.ca/National.aspx?lang=e (Accessed on 01 November 2015).
xiv Anna Mehler Paperny, “Ridings with Most Immigrants Voted Liberal by a Landslide – and Other Things We Learned from Federal Election Results,” Global News, http://globalnews.ca/news/2291301/immigrants-voted-liberal-by-a-landslide-and-other-things-we-learned-from-the-federal-election-results/, (Accessed on 01 November 2015).
xv Anirudh Bhattacharyya, “Canada: Justin Trudeau Sworn in as PM, 4 Indian-origin MPs in cabinet”, The Hindustan Times 04 Nov. 2015, http://www.hindustantimes.com/world/canada-trudeau-sworn-in-as-pm-4-indian-origin-mps-in-cabinet/story-8mUABcxL7RuwOeO600VXfI.html, (accessed on 06 November 2015).
xvi Reeta Tremblay, “A new liberal Canada will push ties with India”, http://southasiamonitor.org/detail.php?type=sl&nid=13917, (accessed on 06 November 2015).
xvii Gaurav Kumar, “Probable Resurgence of the Khalistan Movement: Role of the Sikh Diaspora,” http://www.stsfor.org/content/probable-resurgence-khalistan-movement-role-sikh-diaspora#_edn8 (Accessed on 01 November 2015).
xviii World Sikh Organisation, “World Sikh Organisation Mission Statement,” http://www.worldsikh.org/, (Accessed on 01 November 2015).
xix Air India’s Boeing 747 ‘Kanishka’ that left Montréal for London en route New Delhi on June 23, 1985, crashed near the west coast of Ireland after a bomb planted on the aircraft exploded. Authorities believe Sikh extremists living in Canada fighting for an independent homeland sabotaged the Boeing 747. The attack has been attributed mainly to the terrorist outfit Babbar Khalsa, while the Canadian Commission of Inquiry also mentioned the International Sikh Youth Federation.
xxThe Liberal Party, “Your MPs”, https://www.liberal.ca/mp/ and https://harjitsajjan.liberal.ca/biography/.
xxi Canada Broadcasting Cooperation, “B.C. Sikhs quit Liberals to protest Justin Trudeau's 'star' candidate”, http://www.cbc.ca/news/politics/b-c-sikhs-quit-liberals-to-protest-justin-trudeau-s-star-candidate-1.2866343
xxii Murray Brewster, The Canadian Press, “New defence minister, a former commander, used to dealing with tough characters”, http://www.thecanadianpress.com/english/online/OnlineFullStory.aspx?filename=DOR-MNN-CP.205f0a55750842c0bf779f72d0c91b71.CPKEY2008111303&newsitemid=35207570&languageid=1
xxiii The Liberal Party, “Your MPs”, https://www.liberal.ca/mp/
xxiv The Liberal Party, http://navdeepbains.liberal.ca/
xxv Paula Simson, Edmonton Journal, “City councillor Amarjeet Sohi recalls his imprisonment in India in the 1980s”, http://www.edmontonjournal.com/City+councillor+Amarjeet+Sohi+recalls+imprisonment+India+1980s/10814912/story.html
xxvi The Liberal Party, “Your MPs”, https://www.liberal.ca/mp/ and http://pm.gc.ca/eng/minister/honourable-amarjeet-sohi.
xxvii The Liberal Party, “Your MPs” https://www.liberal.ca/mp/ and Waterloo Federal Liberal Association, http://waterloo.liberal.ca/bardish-chagger/