Ethics at Home and Abroad
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ETHICS AT HOME AND ABROAD Thomas S. Axworthy The sponsorship scandal and other revelations, such as the human resources scam, have corroded public trust in government as seldom before in Canadian history. In seeking accountability in these affairs, there is a recurrent pattern of plausible deniability among both politicians and public servants, who denied both knowledge of and responsibility for the waste and disappearance of public funds. Or worse, as in the case of Chuck Guité, the public servant in charge of the sponsorship funds, the end justified the means. Thomas Axworthy, former principal secretary to Pierre Trudeau, begs to differ. “Necessity knows no law, the perfect Machiavellian argument,” he writes, noting: “We make our choices and our choices have consequences…Understanding the primacy of responsibility is the starting point of ethical conduct.” He endorses recommendations of a conference hosted by Seneca College and York University for putting responsibility and accountability back into the system, in Parliament, politics and the public service. Le scandale des commandites et autres révélations, l’affaire des Ressources humaines par exemple, ont ébranlé comme rarement dans notre histoire la confiance de la population à l’endroit du gouvernement. Mais la quête de responsables se heurte aux dénégations répétées de politiciens et de fonctionnaires clamant leur innocence ou leur ignorance en ce qui a trait au gaspillage et à la disparition de fonds publics. Et les choses s’aggravent avec Charles Guité, le fonctionnaire chargé de l’attribution des fonds, pour qui la fin justifiait les moyens. Tom Axworthy, ancien secrétaire principal de Pierre Elliott Trudeau, ose diverger d’avis. « Nécessité fait loi, voilà bien l’argument machiavélique par excellence », s’insurge-t-il, avant d’ajouter : « Toute décision a des conséquences, et toute éthique repose sur la primauté accordée à la notion de responsabilité. » Il fait donc siennes les recommandations d’un colloque organisé par le Seneca College de York University, qui préconisait de renforcer l’obligation de rendre des comptes pour les dirigeants politiques, le Parlement et la fonction publique. mploring the political leadership of his day to avoid war, been rocked by sexual scandal. In the media, Jayson Blair, a that rigorous 18th century moralist Immanuel Kant, reporter for the New York Times, was caught totally fabricat- I quoting Matthew 10, advised kings and princes, “Be ye ing stories and then had the gall to write a book to try to therefore clever as serpents and innocent as doves.” Kant rec- make money over his lying. The formerly expert and disin- ognized the never-ending competition between ethics and terested public service of Canada is deeply implicated in the politics and more generally how difficult it is, in a world of sponsorship mess and has scandals of its own. In sector after temptations, to apply a moral sense to our daily lives. sector, there has been a moral collapse. The critical issues are But if serpents and doves have to co-exist, these days the why has this happened and what is to be done? serpents are feasting. Politically, Canada is enduring one of To answer these questions, the non-partisan Ginger the worst scandals in our history with $100 million in feder- Group, mostly young progressives, joined forces with al sponsorship money gone missing in a blizzard of fake Seneca College and York University on March 26, 2004, to receipts and dubious accounting. In the corporate world, organize a day-long conference on ethics and citizen almost daily there are new revelations about the excesses of engagement. Ethicist John Dalla Costa told the conference Enron and WorldCom, and even such a household icon as that there has been a shrinking of trust in Canada, with Martha Stewart was caught in insider trading. Churches have eight in ten Canadians in a recent survey agreeing that POLICY OPTIONS 31 MAY 2004 Thomas S. Axworthy people are less trusting than in the what is even more critical is that each this responsibility is denied by a pow- past. Information Commissioner John of us takes responsibility for our own erful tradition of governance — the Reid proclaimed the need for a robust actions. We make choices and our school of real politick. Practitioners of interpretation of the Access to choices have consequences. Organiza- real politick argue that one cannot Information Act based on the rationale tions or collectives don’t have moral apply individual moral standards to of Justice Brandeis that, “sunlight is responsibilities, only individuals do. state actions, that in government the best of disinfectants; electric light Understanding the primacy of respon- necessity knows no law. Niccolo is the most efficient policeman.” sibility is the starting point of ethical Machiavelli (1469-1527) is the patron Penny Collenette, senior fellow at the conduct. saint of real politick and “murderous Machiavel,” the original of Codes of conduct, integrity offices and structures are Iago, has a large following important, but what is even more critical is that each of us even today. takes responsibility for our own actions. We make choices and our choices have consequences. Organizations or collectives achiavelli argued that M because Christian don’t have moral responsibilities, only individuals do. virtue glorified the meek Understanding the primacy of responsibility is the starting and selfless, it allowed the point of ethical conduct. world to be dominated by the wicked. To survive in Centre of Business and Government at Ethics are central because it is val- the treacherous world of power, good Harvard University, argued that, “our ues and goals that guide human action. leaders had to learn how to be bad. In brands and companies carry our pride Public sector ethics are the most impor- the Discourses he wrote, “When it is and flag as well as any Olympic ath- tant of all because representative absolutely a question of the safety of lete.” Jonathan Kay, of the National democracy functions on the notion one’s country, there must be no consid- Post, surprised the delegates by assert- that those to whom we have delegated eration of just or unjust, of merciful or ing that while the media was a watch- power will use their influence for the cruel, and praiseworthy or disgraceful; dog over the ethics of others, they had public good, not private gain. If that instead, setting aside every scruple, one no universally accepted code of their accountability chain is broken, then it must follow to the utmost any plan that own. The mayor of Toronto, David is everyone looking out only for him- will save her life and keep her liberty.” Miller, concluded with a town hall self. Trust withers. Civility declines. To Dostoevsky’s terrible question “Is meeting of students who made the Society crumbles. Applying ethical everything permitted?”,` Machiavelli point again and again that ethical norms is not easy. Immanuel Kant would eagerly answer, “Yes.” lapses in our public officials are one believed that, “out of the crooked tim- Isaiah Berlin, in his essay “The Orig- reason for the decline in youth partic- ber of humanity no straight thing was inality of Machiavelli,” carefully notes ipation in the political process since ever made.” Humanity may indeed the huge number of interpretations of no one wants to be associated with a often be crooked but the students at Machiavelli’s thought and the influence corrupt enterprise. Machiavelli argued that because Christian virtue glorified the hat delegates meek and selfless, it allowed the world to be dominated by the W found in common in recent ethical abuses wicked. To survive in the treacherous world of power, good across several domains leaders had to learn how to be bad...To Dostoevsky’s terrible was the absence of per- question, “Is everything permitted?” Machiavelli would eagerly sonal responsibility. answer, “Yes.” Alfonso Gagliano denied liability for his department because he lacked knowledge. His deputy minister Seneca and York devoutly believe that of his doctrine (including the Dosto- did the same. But if the minister and our only hope is to have leaders with evsky reference above). Philosophically, deputy minister were not running the backbones strong enough to take per- Hobbes and Hegel followed Machiavelli department who was? Max Weber, the sonal responsibility for their actions. in justifying immoral acts when under- inventor of public administration theo- The assumption of personal taken on behalf of the state, while polit- ry, would be aghast, because his whole responsibility by our leaders for their ically the practitioners of Machiavellian system depended on an ethic of respon- actions may be the expectation of stu- real politick are legion — Richelieu, Bis- sibility. Codes of conduct, integrity dents, and probably of Canadian pub- marck and Kissinger to name only a few. offices and structures are important, but lic opinion more generally, but in fact Frederick the Great cuttingly made a 32 OPTIONS POLITIQUES MAI 2004 Ethics at home and abroad CP Photo Chuck Guité, the man at the centre of the sponsorship scandal, leaves Parliament Hill after his unenlightening testimony to the Public Accounts Committee. Like Alfonso Gagliano, he denied personal responsibility for the scandal, and claimed the sponsorship program was a great success in fighting separatism. To the extent he knew what was going on, it was for a higher good — saving the country. point about public morality and private selected advertising firms with mini- ibility