Landowners question CWB role in oil-for-food
By WES KELLER Freelance Reporter, Orangeville
Citizen, Feb. 1
The Canadian Wheat Board (CWB), responsible for
all sales of Canadian wheat and barley, appears to
have become the latest blip on the radar of the
Ontario Landowners Association.
The board is the marketing agency for over 75,000
farmers who grow wheat, durum wheat and barley
in Western Canada. It prides itself on being able to
"market these grains for the best possible price
both within Canada and around the world.
Sales revenues earned, less marketing costs, are
passed back to western Canadian farmers," it says
on its website.
The OLA has close to 100 members in Dufferin
County via their affiliation through the Dufferin
Landowners Association, co-chaired by Ron
Dillman, the new mayor of Melancthon.
In a current news release, OLA President Randy
Hillier quotes the Sydney [Australia] Morning News
as saying Canada's involvement in a $10-billion
UNsponsored oil-for-food program is "a mystery."
It might not always be so. "A little known fact
regarding the new 'accountability act' passed by the
Harper government: until now the inner workings
and operations of the CWB were beyond the
freedom of information act. Under the new act, It
now has to divulge information that was previously
kept secret should someone ask," says Mr. Hillier.
"Canada has been making news in Australia in the
country's oil-for-food inquiry, notes the Western
Standard, but no one seems to be paying attention
in Canada.
"Even though it's for something as meaningful as
our role in an Australian inquiry into the UN oil-
forfood scandal, Canadian newspaper editors have
yet to pay it any mind.
Then again, Canada's role in the $10-billion
scandal remains shrouded. Says David Marr, a
reporter covering the inquiry for Sydney's Morning
Herald: 'Canada is turning out to be a mystery.' "
Since January, says Mr. Hillier, Australia's
newspapers have been dominated by its Cole
inquiry into that country's part in the "historic
scandal."
Wikipedia describes the scandal thus: "The Oil-for-
Food Program, established by the United Nations in
1995 and terminated in late 2003, was intended to
allow Iraq to sell oil on the world market in
exchange for food, medicine, and other
humanitarian needs for ordinary Iraqi citizens
without allowing Iraq to rebuild its military.
"The program was introduced in 1995, as a
response to arguments that ordinary Iraqi citizens
were inordinately affected by the international
economic sanctions aimed at the demilitarisation of
Saddam Hussein's Iraq, imposed in the wake of the
first Gulf War.
The sanctions were discontinued in 2003 after the
United States invasion of Iraq, and the humanitarian
functions turned over to the Coalition Provisional
Authority.
As the program ended, there were revelations of
corruption involving the funds."
Now, says Mr. Hillier, "questions are emerging
about Canada's role - in particular, the involvement
of the Canadian Wheat Board. UN investigations
discovered that the Australian Wheat Board paid
$221 million in illegal kickbacks to Saddam
Hussein, beginning in 1999.
"The AWB became the largest supplier of
humanitarian aid to Iraq during the oil-for-food
program, shipping over $2-billion worth of wheat.
"As the Cole inquiry has confirmed, it was Canadian
officials who first complained to the UN about
improper dealings in the Iraqi export market.
Despite Ottawa's complaints, the UN did nothing to
head off the growing theft.
"Therein," wrote Mr. Marr, "lies the mystery. Here
you have a system that was still bedding itself down
and ultimately over the next three or four years
going to net Saddam $600 million.
"The Canadians are onto it at once. Their
information is perfect, absolutely correct
information, and the complaint fizzles out."
Meanwhile, notes the Western Standard, Canada
continued to sell wheat to Iraq. Canadian Wheat
Board tables show 262,000 tonnes of Canadian
wheat were sold to Iraq in the crop year 1999-
2000. Another 310,000 tonnes went to Hussein in
crop year 2000-2001. Some of the shipments were
rejected due to "contamination." The Cole inquiry
has found that the Iraqis used such claims to
charge extra fees to the AWB.
But since Canada is one of the few nations linked to
oilfor food that has yet to call its own inquiry, the
reasons for rejecting the Canadian shipments
remain undetermined.
And Mr. Hillier says no one knows if there's still
more to the CWB's role in oil-for-food.
By WES KELLER Freelance Reporter, Orangeville
Citizen, Feb. 1
The Canadian Wheat Board (CWB), responsible for
all sales of Canadian wheat and barley, appears to
have become the latest blip on the radar of the
Ontario Landowners Association.
The board is the marketing agency for over 75,000
farmers who grow wheat, durum wheat and barley
in Western Canada. It prides itself on being able to
"market these grains for the best possible price
both within Canada and around the world.
Sales revenues earned, less marketing costs, are
passed back to western Canadian farmers," it says
on its website.
The OLA has close to 100 members in Dufferin
County via their affiliation through the Dufferin
Landowners Association, co-chaired by Ron
Dillman, the new mayor of Melancthon.
In a current news release, OLA President Randy
Hillier quotes the Sydney [Australia] Morning News
as saying Canada's involvement in a $10-billion
UNsponsored oil-for-food program is "a mystery."
It might not always be so. "A little known fact
regarding the new 'accountability act' passed by the
Harper government: until now the inner workings
and operations of the CWB were beyond the
freedom of information act. Under the new act, It
now has to divulge information that was previously
kept secret should someone ask," says Mr. Hillier.
"Canada has been making news in Australia in the
country's oil-for-food inquiry, notes the Western
Standard, but no one seems to be paying attention
in Canada.
"Even though it's for something as meaningful as
our role in an Australian inquiry into the UN oil-
forfood scandal, Canadian newspaper editors have
yet to pay it any mind.
Then again, Canada's role in the $10-billion
scandal remains shrouded. Says David Marr, a
reporter covering the inquiry for Sydney's Morning
Herald: 'Canada is turning out to be a mystery.' "
Since January, says Mr. Hillier, Australia's
newspapers have been dominated by its Cole
inquiry into that country's part in the "historic
scandal."
Wikipedia describes the scandal thus: "The Oil-for-
Food Program, established by the United Nations in
1995 and terminated in late 2003, was intended to
allow Iraq to sell oil on the world market in
exchange for food, medicine, and other
humanitarian needs for ordinary Iraqi citizens
without allowing Iraq to rebuild its military.
"The program was introduced in 1995, as a
response to arguments that ordinary Iraqi citizens
were inordinately affected by the international
economic sanctions aimed at the demilitarisation of
Saddam Hussein's Iraq, imposed in the wake of the
first Gulf War.
The sanctions were discontinued in 2003 after the
United States invasion of Iraq, and the humanitarian
functions turned over to the Coalition Provisional
Authority.
As the program ended, there were revelations of
corruption involving the funds."
Now, says Mr. Hillier, "questions are emerging
about Canada's role - in particular, the involvement
of the Canadian Wheat Board. UN investigations
discovered that the Australian Wheat Board paid
$221 million in illegal kickbacks to Saddam
Hussein, beginning in 1999.
"The AWB became the largest supplier of
humanitarian aid to Iraq during the oil-for-food
program, shipping over $2-billion worth of wheat.
"As the Cole inquiry has confirmed, it was Canadian
officials who first complained to the UN about
improper dealings in the Iraqi export market.
Despite Ottawa's complaints, the UN did nothing to
head off the growing theft.
"Therein," wrote Mr. Marr, "lies the mystery. Here
you have a system that was still bedding itself down
and ultimately over the next three or four years
going to net Saddam $600 million.
"The Canadians are onto it at once. Their
information is perfect, absolutely correct
information, and the complaint fizzles out."
Meanwhile, notes the Western Standard, Canada
continued to sell wheat to Iraq. Canadian Wheat
Board tables show 262,000 tonnes of Canadian
wheat were sold to Iraq in the crop year 1999-
2000. Another 310,000 tonnes went to Hussein in
crop year 2000-2001. Some of the shipments were
rejected due to "contamination." The Cole inquiry
has found that the Iraqis used such claims to
charge extra fees to the AWB.
But since Canada is one of the few nations linked to
oilfor food that has yet to call its own inquiry, the
reasons for rejecting the Canadian shipments
remain undetermined.
And Mr. Hillier says no one knows if there's still
more to the CWB's role in oil-for-food.
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