A key sub-committee of the Canadian Parliament plans to visit Sudan in November for an on-the-spot tour of the country's war-stricken regions.
Beth Phinney, chair of the House of Commons sub-committee on human rights, said Wednesday that final details of the planned trip had still to be finalized, but it would be in the context of a lengthy probe by her sub-committee into the Sudan war and the role of a Canadian-owned oil company.
She was speaking at the sub-committee's third meeting on the subject.
A coalition of human rights groups called on the Canadian government to take a stronger public stand in criticizing the Sudanese government for human rights violations and Calgary-based Talisman Energy for its alleged role in helping the government in its civil war efforts, AFP reported.
Talisman, which has denied helping any violation of human rights, has been accused of helping finance the Sudanese Army's efforts in the civil war and even giving the Sudanese government access to helicopters and landing strips for military purposes.
Gary Kenny, of KAIROS - Canadian Ecumenical Justice Initiatives, told the sub-committee, "Neither Canadians for their government would tolerate on Canadian soil the behavior associated with Talisman in Sudan." (Albawaba.com)
© 2002 Al Bawaba (www.albawaba.com)
