Janko Peric

[National Aids Awareness Week, September 30th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, recent reports from Health Canada confirm the increase of HIV infections among young people, women, native people and injection drug users. AIDS continues to exact an enormous toll on those inflicted with the disease and on their loved ones.

The theme for this year's National AIDS Awareness Week is the changing face of HIV-AIDS. From September 29 to October 5 many community groups fighting AIDS will be organizing various events to promote the awareness of HIV-AIDS.

I rise to congratulate the Canadian AIDS Society, the Canadian Public Health Association and the Hemophelia Society for their ongoing dedication to increasing public awareness of HIV-AIDS.

[Award Of Merit, April 9th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the people of Cambridge, I am delighted to congratulate Cambridge lawyers Milena Protich and Robert Pettitt, recent recipients of the Law Society of Upper Canada's 1997 Bicentennial Award of Merit. To celebrate its 200th anniversary, the Law Society of Upper Canada introduced this special award which recognizes the incredible contribution lawyers make to their towns and cities through community work. This award of merit was bestowed on Ms. Protich and Mr. Pettitt for their powerful sense of community giving and exemplary dedication to public service.

Again, I congratulate these two community spirited lawyers for their ongoing voluntarism.

[Standing Orders Of The House, April 8th, 1997]

Madam Speaker, let me congratulate the hon. member who moved Motion No. 267 and the seconder.

In this session members from all sides tabled private members' bills and I believe those ideas came from communities right across the country. As individual members of Parliament or, as this Chamber calls us, backbenchers, we do not have the same resources as the government or the ministers have. We cannot prepare and draft a bill as polished as the government does.

From my own experience, I have tabled three private members' bills. One of these bills has been stuck at committee for one year. I have been hearing excuses for one year that the committee is overloaded or is too busy with other issues. Then I found out that on many occasions the committee did not even sit. After complaining with some force, the committee finally moved on. Then we hear from hon. members some support for this motion.

I believe that the motion is very important for the democratic process of the House. We were all sent here by the people of Canada. I believe that if we come up with good ideas that those ideas should be dealt with here in the Chamber, not at the committee, and not by two, three or ten people on a committee. They should not have the power to stall bills and destroy the ideas which, in my opinion, are very valuable and important to building a democratic society.

I know that time is running out. Once again I declare my support for the motion. I believe that other members of the House will do the same so that the democratic process will lead to a stronger and better Canada.

[Petitions, April 7th, 1997]

Madam Speaker, in the third petition 270 citizens of my riding of Cambridge wish to draw to the attention of the House their concerns about the prospect of the provincial government taking over the administration and funding of social housing, including housing co-operatives currently participating in federal housing programs.

For this reason the petitioners pray and request that the negotiation on social housing with the province of Ontario be conducted with the input of co-operative housing stakeholders.

I fully agree with all the petitioners.

[Petitions, April 7th, 1997]

Madam Speaker, the 400 citizens who signed the second petition firmly believe that our age of consent laws should be designed to protect children from sexual exploitation and abuse.

Therefore the petitioners call upon Parliament to amend the Criminal Code to set the age of consent except within a husband and wife relationship at the age of 18.

[Petitions, April 7th, 1997]

Madam Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 36 I have the privilege to present to the House three petitions.

In the first petition 180 citizens of my riding of Cambridge wish to draw to the attention of the House their concerns for the sanctity of life.

The petitioners pray and request that the Parliament of Canada retain current provisions of the Criminal Code prohibiting assisted suicide and that Parliament not sanction the aiding of suicide or euthanasia.

[Copyright Act, March 17th, 1997]

Madam Speaker, I want to be recorded as voting yes on this motion.

[Chaplin Family Ymca, March 13th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, I congratulate the city of Cambridge, the Ontario government and the many individuals and businesses that worked together to complete the new $10 million Chaplin Family YMCA in Cambridge.

Citizens and local businesses generously contributed a total of $3.1 million toward the project. The Chaplin family of Cambridge alone contributed more than $500,000.

This co-operative effort shows the people of Cambridge are in touch with the concerns of the greater community and that notions of civic responsibility and giving back to the community are what make Cambridge a great place to live.

[Petitions, March 10th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, I have the privilege to present to the House a petition signed by 125 concerned citizens from my riding of Cambridge and southwestern Ontario.

The petitioners pray and request that the Parliament of Canada enact legislation prohibiting convicted criminals from profiting financially from writing books, setting up 1-900 numbers or producing videos which detail the stories of their crimes.

The petitioners also request that legislation be enacted which would prohibit convicted criminals from selling their stories to others for publication through books, movies or videos, and from selling details of their crimes to publishers and producers outside Canada.

[Imax, March 6th, 1997]

Mr. Speaker, during a special ceremony on March 1, Cambridge resident Bill Shaw received an Oscar from the Academy of Motion Pictures Arts and Sciences for the technological development of IMAX.

While studying at the Galt Collegiate Institute, Robert Kerr and Graeme Ferguson, together with Bill Shaw, came up with the idea of a large screen format motion picture. Following their first IMAX type film at Montreal's Expo '67, 148 IMAX theatres have opened worldwide and more than 100 IMAX films have been produced, making the company one of the largest grossing motion picture theatres in North America.

The IMAX success story shows that Canadians can not only compete but lead in the high technology sector.