Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Thank you to the witnesses for being with us today. I appreciate what you've done, what you continue to do and what you will be doing in the near future to help the Afghan people.
This is a very important committee. Our focus is the current humanitarian crisis. We are trying to figure out what can be done now and in the very near term.
A number of NGO representatives who appeared before the committee told us how difficult it was to carry out their mission in Afghanistan, delivering goods, providing humanitarian services and so forth. Since the Taliban are considered a terrorist entity, one of the challenges faced by NGOs who work with the Taliban is that they could be prosecuted under the Canadian Criminal Code. The NGOs are not to blame; in order to carry out their mission, they have to work with the Taliban.
Two weeks ago, I put forward a motion calling on the government to give NGOs assurance that they would not be prosecuted. This would have allowed NGOs to conduct their co‑operative and humanitarian assistance work in the areas most at risk. Unfortunately, the Liberal Party—which, by the way, has a significant number of members on this committee—rejected the motion.
I wonder what message that sent to the NGOs on the ground.
I'd like to hear from Mr. Macdonald, Ms. Taylor, Ms. Long and Mr. Lavery, in that order.