The Professional Association of Foreign Service Officers (PAFSO) is deeply concerned by the public, personal attacks on one of its members in the aftermath of testimony before the Parliamentary Committee on Afghanistan on 18 November 2009. Mr. Richard Colvin was called by the Committee to provide evidence obtained not as a private individual, but rather in the course of his duties as a representative of the Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade in Kandahar and Kabul.

Professional Foreign Service Officers, like other government employees, are obliged to serve Canada and Canadians to the best of their abilities, including by reporting what they see as wrongdoing. The Federal Accountability Act and the Public Servants Disclosure Protection Act spell out both the rights and the duties of civil servants who find themselves in such a situation.

We are pleased that both the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Defense have publicly acknowledged the Government of Canada’s obligations in this regard, and confirmed that Mr. Colvin’s employment with DFAIT is not at risk as a result of his testimony.

This situation faced by Mr. Colvin highlights the difficulties faced by many of our members, who perform in good faith and to the best of their abilities in a range of extremely difficult, stressful, and complicated circumstances. PAFSO calls on all political parties and on members of the media to respect the professional and personal integrity of all witnesses who appear before the Committee, and to focus on the legitimate public policy issues emerging from their testimony.