OTTAWA — The Senate has passed an obscure private member's bill from a Conservative senator that has caused a diplomatic spat between Canada and Vietnam.
The Vietnamese government has taken offence at the bill, which has sparked warnings that it could harm Canadian trade and investment opportunities with the Asian country.
The bill recognizes April 30 as a national day to commemorate the exodus of Vietnamese refugees and their acceptance in Canada after the 1975 fall of Saigon to North Vietnamese communist forces that ended the Vietnam War.
The Harper government has made it a priority to deepen economic ties with Asia, and Vietnam is certainly a player in the region.
Vietnam is member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Co-operation (APEC) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN), and is one of the countries with a seat at Trans-Pacific Partnership trade talks.
The bill, sponsored by Conservative Sen. Thanh Hai Ngo, was passed Monday night by a 45-4 margin.
