Ladies and gentlemen, my name is Noor Nizam. I represent the Tamil-speaking minority community of Sri Lanka, the Muslims. I have to thank the team here and the honourable Paul Crête and David Sweet for giving me this opportunity.
To go straight to the question of international relations between Canada and Sri Lanka, there have been a lot of issues among the Canadian diaspora regarding the situation that is happening in Sri Lanka. There was a change after the militancy group of the Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam was proscribed through Bill C-36. In recent times, this has since resulted in a somewhat unique but appreciated diplomatic relationship between Canada and Sri Lanka.
One of the main things I would like to emphasize here is that in the aftermath of the situation in Sri Lanka, as the whole world is watching, what are we as Canadians going to do to fill the vacuum that will be created, especially among the diaspora?
What interest will Canadians have in helping the Sri Lankan Muslim minority community, which is 1.7 million of the population, with 40% of the population living in the northeast? It was completely sidelined by the CFA and the peace process. The Muslims played a very important role in bringing forth the peace process in Sri Lanka nearly 18 years ago.
It's not the only concern of the Muslims. A concern of the Muslims has been the Tamils and the children. Child soldiers are a big issue. You'll note that 10 to 12 of the Security Council resolutions have never been effected by UNICEF, the United Nations Children's Fund. If Canada is not alive to that, how are we going to help the 7,200 children who need assistance and who will come out of this war? Maybe some of them will die. What are we going to do? What is Canada's responsibility?
I'm also in the field of communication studies. I'm an educator at McMaster, but I'm making a personal representation. On this aspect, my colleagues and I are asking for the possibility of having a round table with the same method as applied to the Afghanistan round table, so that we can discuss the issue of child soldiers and bring back the child campaign that Sri Lanka had launched with the support of UNICEF.
Apart from that, we also have a very important issue on humanitarian aid and development assistance. You will see that I've brought a box to show you. This box is from Health Partners International.
Canada gave $3 million to organizations. None of this money has reached the IDPs in Vavuniya. I spoke to CARE Canada yesterday. They reluctantly accepted and said they were sorry, but nothing was being done in Sri Lanka. They had given the money to Care International. The money was given by Canada on February 26, but not a single dollar has gone there.
The Sri Lankans, Muslims, Tamils, Sinhalese, and Burghers collected money. We all put money into a till. We collected money. We got $30,000 worth of medicines from HPI, Health Partners International, as a donation. We paid for the logistics.
One of our volunteers will be flying soon. Air Canada gave us a free ticket. I have to thank the honourable David Sweet for helping us. SriLankan Airlines is carrying it for free.
This is the humanitarian aid that Canada has to give. You don't give $3 million and forget it and then tell the world to look at what Canada did. What did they do?
I am a Canadian. As a Canadian, I'm asking Canada this. Why can't you give us more money to send there? Should we collect money to send humanitarian assistance to our kith and kin, our extended families, our own communities, the Tamil-speaking community, and the Tamil-speaking Muslim community? There's no difference among us. We are one people. We are one nation. I'm a Canadian.
Gentlemen of the committee, my appeal to you is this. Tell CIDA to stand on their own feet and not to play the old games or help the old club members. Look at projects like this. Do not use criteria that knock us out because we don't have three years of experience, we don't have audited reports. In emergency and disaster relief, you don't require all that. You stand on your feet and make decisions.
We are appealing to the Canadians. It is your money. Canada is known for giving. But your own MP here, Mr. Dan McTeague, has said how $200 million given to the tsunami fund has still not been used. Red Cross, for example, and this is dated very recently: $200 million for the tsunami still not accounted for. I have evidence here. If my statement is wrong, you can prosecute me.
There was $3 million given to organizations, with $500,000 given to CARE Canada. Not a single cent has gone, sir--not a single cent. There are 700 pregnant women suffering there without medicine. Children are suffering.
The Sri Lankan government may be doing what it can, but that's not our territory. We can't get into government territory. We can get into civil society territory. That is the territory where we can fight and work. We want you to consider these things positively.
And please, understand that the Muslim community also has suffered. We have suffered genocide. We were killed--174 people in a mosque in Kattankudi. In 1990 we were chased away--80,000 people.
I'm not blaming anyone here. I am blaming the conflict. I'm blaming the international community. International NGOs have been completely unfair in representing the facts.
I have evidence here to show that the international press and the media.... And I'm a media scientist. I write journalistic and investigative articles about terrorism. My articles are respected by the U.S., the British, and the French. But what I'm saying is that they don't follow the ethics and codes of journalism; they just write spontaneous articles, which has in fact created the problem between Canada and Sri Lanka.
What we're asking is that you give the opportunity for young people.... We have to do it. Sir, don't allow the next generation of Tamil young people here in Canada--Tamil-speaking Tamils and Muslims--to become a community filled with hatred. If you allow the gap to remain, this next generation will grow with hatred. That will create a much bigger conflict between the two countries. Let us help our kids here to understand, to accept the situation in the Sri Lanka, to help the kids there and work forward.
Thank you very much.