OTTAWA�Prime Minister Stephen Harper sets off for Latin America and the Caribbean tomorrow to wave the Canadian flag in a region that the government, in a major foreign policy shift, now considers "our neighbourhood."

But he will be walking along a fault line he created in previous forays on the world stage by challenging powerhouses like Russia and China on human rights while vowing not to sell out Canada's values "to the almighty dollar" of trade.

This time, observers want to see how much attention Harper pays to rights in countries like Haiti and Colombia on a trip that is heavily tilted toward trade promotion. It reflects a lingering doubt about Canada's commitment to a part of the hemisphere that the government admits has seen only "intermittent" interest from Ottawa.

"Canada is the odd duck in the Americas" because it has focused on relations with Europe, all but ignoring other countries in the hemisphere, said Michelle Bonner, a specialist in Latin American politics and human rights at the University of Victoria.

Canada's relationship to the southern part of the hemisphere has been defined by the relationship with the United States, she said. The Americans, with their strong interests in the region, have tended to fear Canada siding with the left-leaning Latin American governments over the U.S.

The closer relationship between Harper and U.S. President George W. Bush appears to have calmed those fears, and Harper's visit south follows one Bush made in March to Brazil, Guatemala, Mexico and Colombia. But Bush's bid for a free trade deal in Bogota was halted by a U.S. Congress that is controlled by Democrats and more concerned with human rights than trade.

"We recognize that (Harper), probably, through dealings with the U.S. government and others, is also receiving strong messages that he needs to go down and shore up (Colombian) President (Alvaro) Uribe's beleaguered government and convey a strong message of support," said Alex Neve, head of Amnesty International Canada.

Neve said that support would be for naught if a free trade agreement with the country pushes the human rights situation out of the picture.

"It's our hope that he's going to recognize the importance of being consistent with the human rights message, that if he starts to become inconsistent then he immediately starts to lose his credibility."

The most controversial stop on the trip could come Wednesday in Santiago, Chile. There, Harper will visit the offices of Barrick Gold, whose proposed Pascua Lama gold and silver mine in the Andes on the Chile-Argentine border has become a rallying point for critics of multinational mining operations.

Reports that the company's explorations have eroded the size of three glaciers by more than half have some Chilean lawmakers calling for a halt to planned operations and a probe into the environmental effects of Barrick's activities.

While Canada does have "significant interests to advance" in the region, an adviser to Harper said there are also areas where the government can give a helping hand to developing countries.