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| These blue waters could some day be Canadian. |
OTTAWA | Oct.
17, 2003 —
Canadian
Alliance MP Peter Goldring hopes to turn the Canadian winter dream of
relaxing in a tropical paradise into more than just fantasy.
Goldring has introduced a motion in Parliament urging
the government to look at a union with Turks and Caicos, a group of Caribbean
islands near Cuba.
The Turks and Caicos government has heard it all before, Goldring admits.
The country has twice been rejected by Canada.
“I am very much afraid that this was an opportunity that may have
been lost,” says Goldring. “We really should have done this
25 years ago, when we were asked.”
Not a new idea
The idea was first proposed by Prime Minister Robert Borden in 1917,
but it didn’t receive much attention until the 1970s and ‘80s.
| 'I am very much afraid that this
was an opportunity that may have been lost.' |
In 1974, NDP MP Max Saltsman introduced a private member’s bill
to annex the islands, but it was defeated. Tory MP Dan McKenzie took up
the cause in 1986 and brought two members of the Turks and Caicos Development
Organization to Canada to explore the idea. They commissioned an independent
survey of the islands’ residents and found more than 90 per cent
favoured an association with Canada.
After the visit, MP David Daubney, then chair of a Conservative caucus
committee on external affairs, issued a report recommending that Canada
should await the results of an election in the islands before proceeding
any further .
He urged Canada to start talks with the new Turks and Caicos government
and increase investments in the region. However, the proposal was soon
overshadowed by free trade negotiations with the United States.
This time it’s different
This time the campaign will be different because it will involve the
people, rather than just governments, says Goldring.
“Last time, the decision was made behind the closed doors of the
Mulroney government with little regard for what the people of Turks and
Caicos and Canada wanted.”
He believes Canadians may be more open to the idea now.
“We weren’t as in sync with our multiculturalism as we are
today.”
However, Rosemarie Wilson, general sales agent with the Canadian branch
of the Turks and Caicos Tourism Board, points out that today the islands
economy is in much better shape than 20 years ago.
“They needed Canada then,” she says. “But they have,
on their own, basically turned it around, made it happen.”
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| Canada isn't really known for its beaches, but Goldring
hopes that will change. |
Great for retirement
Richard Pearson, vice president of sales with CI Mutual Funds and head
of a Web site promoting the idea of a Canadian Turks and Caicos, points
out that with Baby Boomers close to retirement, and the high cost of health
insurance in such traditional retirement areas as Florida, it would be
nice to have a Canadian destination.
“I think this generation retiring is really going to get people
thinking about it,” he says. He also points out that after the events
of Sept. 11, 2001, people face fears and border delays when travelling
to the United States.
Canada could also establish a Caribbean naval training facility and year-round
summer sports on the islands, while Turks and Caicos would benefit economically
says Goldring. The islands import goods from the United States, he adds,
and a union would mean more trade with Canada. He suggests the islands
could also become a distribution point for Canadian goods in the Caribbean
and South America.
“In other words it expands Canada’s market dramatically.”
A special spot
| 'I just have to laugh at how Canadians
feel they deserve this.' |
However Wilson says she thinks Canadians are being greedy.
“I just have to laugh at how Canadians feel they deserve this.”
Part of what makes Turks and Caicos so attractive is that it’s
an elite and quiet travel destination, explains Wilson. She says if the
islands becomes too much of a cheap tourist spot they will attract too
many of the wrong people and thus, lose what makes them special. Furthermore,
she points out that the islands have coral reefs, 33 natural parks and
lots of endangered plant life that need protection.
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| Wilson fears more tourism will destroy the islands'
fragile waters. |
“You put such an influx of people as these Canadians are talking
about and oh my God, the Turks and Caicos won’t be there anymore.”
Will of the people
But Goldring is quick to point out that closer links must be approved
by a majority in both Canada and on the islands.
People have been really supportive thus far, Pearson says, noting his
Web site has received 118,000 hits since July.
“We’re constantly getting e-mails from people saying ‘Good
job,’ and “How can I get involved?’”
The next step, Pearson says, is to organize an official committee of
Canadian community leaders to examine the issue. He is also involved with
the Turks and Caicos Investment Agency, which is bringing a trade show
to Toronto in December. Goldring says he plans to visit the islands next
month to get a better idea of islanders views.
At this stage it’s just an exploratory movement, Pearson says,
and he agrees with Goldring that involving the people will be key.
“If it’s just government, then things tend to go back to
the backburner.” 
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A Place in the Sun
