Foreign Affairs committee  Absolutely. The lack of access to abortion doesn't stop abortion; it only makes abortion very unsafe and it results in dead women, essentially. That is borne out in instance after instance throughout the globe—here, as well—and it was the big push to decriminalize abortion in Canada.

Foreign Affairs committee  I would concur 100%.

Foreign Affairs committee  I also don't have additional information as to the second part of your question. As to the first, absolutely, rape as a tool of war and terror is quite commonplace. There are also many instances of that being used as state terror—not just in conflict between two nations, but also as a way to suppress opposition within a state's own borders.

Foreign Affairs committee  Absolutely, unequivocally, I think that abortion is an important part of health care that needs to be accessed, whether it's to save the parent's life or it's a choice that she would like to access. Absolutely, there are many instances. I've never heard that it is rare. There are many instances when abortion is the recourse that's needed to save the mother's life.

Foreign Affairs committee  Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'm honoured to be invited here today. I represent, as you've heard, Planned Parenthood Toronto, a community health centre that since the 1960s has been advancing reproductive justice and sexual and reproductive health for young people through primary care, mental health care, community programs, research and advocacy.