Bill S-240 (Historical)

An Act to amend the Criminal Code and the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act (trafficking in human organs)

This enactment amends the Criminal Code to create new offences in relation to trafficking in human organs. It also amends the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act to provide that a permanent resident or foreign national is inadmissible to Canada if the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration is of the opinion that they have engaged in any activities relating to trafficking in human organs.

Human Organ Trafficking

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the third and final petition I am presenting this morning is in support of Bill S-204, a bill that has been unanimously adopted by the Senate and is now before this House. The bill would make it a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ without consent. It would also create a mechanism by which people could be deemed inadmissible to Canada if they are involved in forced organ harvesting and trafficking.

Bill S-204 is the same bill, in an identical form, as Bill S-240, which passed in this House unanimously in the last Parliament. Bill S-204 has unanimously passed in the Senate twice. It has unanimously passed in the House. It has passed in both chambers in identical form.

The only remaining step is for this House, in this Parliament, to again pass the bill in the same form it was passed in the last Parliament so we can finally take this vitally necessary step for Canada to fight back against the horrific practice of forced organ harvesting and trafficking.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Madam Speaker, the third petition I am tabling is with respect to Bill S-204, a bill that would make is a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ without consent.

The petitioners want the government to support the passage of Bill S-204 as quickly as possible. The bill has already passed the Senate and is currently before the House. It is identical in form to Bill S-240, which passed in the House unanimously in the last Parliament.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Madam Speaker, the next petition I have to present is from Canadians from across the country who are concerned about the scourge of organ trafficking. They are calling for the quick passage of Bill S-240 from the Senate. They are calling on this House to pass that as well.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition is from Canadians from across Canada who are concerned with the illegal organ harvesting that is happening around the world. The petitioners are calling for the speedy passage of Bill S-240.

I believe it has passed through the Senate. I look forward to it coming to this place.

[Michael Cooper, Conservative, St. Albert—Edmonton, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition respecting forced organ harvesting.

The petitioners wish to draw to the attention of this place the lack of a legal prohibition for Canadians travelling abroad. They call on Parliament to pass Bill C-350 and Bill S-240.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Madam Speaker, I have a number of petitions to present today.

The first petition is signed by Canadians from across Canada who are calling on the government to prevent organ harvesting and for the speedy passage of Bill S-240 from the Senate. Given the circumstances of the Uighurs in China, that would be appropriate.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the last petition I have to present is around Bill C-350 and Bill S-240 from the last Parliament. The petitioners are calling for the Government of Canada to quickly pass legislation similar to this that would restrict Canadians from going abroad and gaining access to organs that have been illegally harvested from around the world. They are calling for the quick passage of these bills and/or government legislation like it.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Madam Speaker, the second petition that I have to present today is from Canadians from across the country.

The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to pass bills from the last Parliament that were formerly known as Bill C-350 and Bill S-240, which would have reduced the number of forced organ harvesting in the world. The legislation would have made it illegal for a Canadian to go abroad to get an organ that has been harvested illegally.

The petitioners are calling for the quick passage of these bills.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the fourth petition I have to present is about the forced organ harvesting that is happening around the world. It is signed by people from across Canada. They are calling on the government to enact, from the previous Parliament, Bill C-350 and Bill S-240, which would make it illegal to travel abroad to purchase organs that have been illegally harvested.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I have five petitions to present today.

The first petition calls on the House of Commons and the government to pass two bills from the last Parliament, Bill C-350 and Bill S-240. These bills would make it illegal to travel abroad to receive a harvested organ.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is my honour and privilege to rise in this place to present a petition. This petition is calling on the government to pass forthwith Bill C-350 and Bill S-240 from the last Parliament. These bills deal with the forced organ harvesting that happens around the world and also Canadians that go abroad to receive a forcibly harvested organ.

The people who have signed this petition are asking for these bills to be passed forthwith in this place and made into law.

[Arnold Viersen, Conservative, Peace River—Westlock, AB]

Mr. Speaker, in the second petition people are calling for the government to work quickly to pass Bills S-240 and C-350 from a previous Parliament. The petitioners are looking forward to that bill being passed. The bill would make it illegal for Canadians to go overseas to get an organ that may have been harvested.

Foreign Affairs

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the Inter-Parliamentary Union, or the IPU, is a critically important international organization. It has been described as the United Nations of parliaments. Essentially, it is an organization of legislators that brings together parliamentarians from around the world. It plays an important role in helping to advance democracy and human rights through dialogue among different parliamentarians.

I am very pleased to share with the House something I think members already know, in large part, which is that Senator Salma Ataullahjan, who has been involved in the IPU for a very long time and has used the IPU as a forum for advancing important human rights issues, is running for the presidency of that organization. I am very pleased that all members of our Conservative caucus are supporting her bid to lead the IPU. I know she has a great deal of support in other parties, including, for instance, within the government caucus.

The member for Beaches—East York told The Globe and Mail, “While we represent different parties, I’ve seen firsthand Salma’s thoughtful diplomacy at IPU conferences, and our Parliament would be lucky to have her represent Canada on the world stage”.

The Liberal member for Hull—Aylmer concurred. He told The Globe and Mail, “Salma would be a great leader of the IPU. It is good for Canada and for what our country represents.”

Senator Ataullahjan was encouraged to run for the leadership of the IPU by delegates from Britain and New Zealand. I know she has substantial support around the world for this bid. It would be good for Canada to have this prominent Canadian senator, a strong advocate of human rights, representing Canadian values on the world stage, bringing together and strengthening the work of the IPU, and continuing to use that as a forum to advance important issues of justice and human rights.

Independent senator, Mohamed-Iqbal Ravalia said that Ms. Ataullahjan is a “beacon of human rights and inclusive values…and as a Muslim woman, she will raise the profile of Canada’s place in the IPU.”

I would just say as well that Senator Ataullahjan has an extensive background in volunteering in various communities. She served on the executive board of the Canadian branch of the Citizens Foundation, an international organization that has built over 700 schools for Pakistan's poorest children. Senator Ataullahjan was appointed to the Senate by former prime minister Stephen Harper and was the first Canadian senator of Pakistani origin appointed.

Senator Ataullahjan and I have had an opportunity to collaborate specifically on the issue of forced organ harvesting and trafficking. She put forward Bill S-240 in the last Parliament, which almost got passed but did not quite make it, and has since put forward Bill S-204 in this Parliament, another critically important human rights issue that just adds to a long list of the work of Senator Ataullahjan.

This is a great opportunity for Canada to have a strong Canadian senator representing us at the Inter-Parliamentary Union in this important leadership role. It is important, therefore, for the government to get behind this bid and show its support because I know countries around the world are looking for that signal of support from the government, from our diplomatic representatives.

It is very clear that the government has put the resources of government at the disposal of former finance minister Bill Morneau in his bid for a position within the OECD, and it is only right that Senator Ataullahjan have the support of government.

We disagree in this place on issues from time to time, of course, but we should be able to work together on the world stage to advance our national interests. Conservatives were supportive, as supportive as we could be, of the government's bid to get on the UN Security Council. We try to work together in these international fora, yet the government has been strangely silent around the bid of Senator Ataullahjan. The minister said he is going to wait, he is going to meet with future candidates later on, and so on and so forth.

It is important for the Minister of Foreign Affairs to send a clear signal of support for Senator Ataullahjan's bid for that strong Canadian voice on the Inter-Parliamentary Union. The minister and the parliamentary secretary have an opportunity right now to express that support, and I think it is very important that they do so.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Mr. Chair, five years ago when Parliament passed Bill C-14, then justice minister Jody Wilson-Raybould said that it represented a finely tuned balance between access and safeguards. It also included a five-year review.

Petitioners on the first petition I'm presenting are very concerned to see Bill C-7 before Parliament, which removes safeguards ahead of that five-year review. Petitioners specifically mention their concerns about the removal of the mandatory 10-day reflection period, which can already be waived in certain circumstances. They are concerned about reducing the number of witnesses required to oversee it and ensure that a request has been properly made. I commend that petition to the consideration of the House.

The second and final petition that I will be presenting today is with respect to Senate Bill S-204. This would make it a criminal offence for a person to go abroad and receive an organ from a person who did not consent. This responds specifically to concerns about organ harvesting in the People's Republic of China involving Falun Gong practitioners and increasing concerns that this is being or about to be applied to Uighurs as well.

Canada can and should take action on this. Petitioners are noting that in the previous Parliament there were bills on this, Bill C-350 and Bill S-240. Now, in this Parliament there is a bill, Bill S-204, and the petitioners hope that this 43rd Parliament will be the one that gets it passed.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Mr. Chair, I'm pleased to be presenting a petition in support of Bill S-204. The text reads Bill S-240 because it was a petition signed during the previous Parliament, but the same bill has been put forward in this Parliament as Bill S-204. It seeks to address the scourge of forced organ harvesting and trafficking. This can happen in many different contexts, but the particular genesis of this is the targeting of Falun Gong practitioners and others in China through an aggressive policy of organ harvesting. There's concern that Uighurs are now being targeted, as well.

The petitioners hope that members of Parliament will support this bill and that this, the 43rd Parliament, will be the one that actually moves forward with action to address the terrible human rights abuse associated with forced organ harvesting and trafficking.