Evidence of meeting #20 for Foreign Affairs and International Development in the 40th Parliament, 3rd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was women.
A recording is available from Parliament.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
We're going to finish off with Mr. Pearson.
We'll get back to you, sir.
12:55 p.m.
Liberal
Glen Pearson Liberal London North Centre, ON
If we lose a child, we lose a generation. If we lose a mother, we lose whole communities. I have three children from Sudan who lost their mother. I was there when she died. Her whole worry as she was dying was what was going to happen to them and their community.
I'd like to throw it open to you to see what you have to say about that. The cost of losing a mother is so phenomenal. I would like you to speak to that.
12:55 p.m.
Executive Director, Action Canada for Population and Development
There are the social and the economic costs. It's the community cost. It's the cost at every level. There's research out of the USAID that says that the economic cost is somewhere around $15 billion a year around maternal deaths. I don't know the source of that, but I've read that in the materials.
Also, I think especially when we're talking about conflict zones, we have rape used as a weapon of war; we have women who are dying from a myriad of diseases. If we don't provide those women with the services they need to stay alive, then we're doing a huge disservice for those three children. Also, we have to understand that Canadians actually would support this initiative, if it was a comprehensive initiative. I don't think this is an issue that Canadians are divided upon. Only 30% of Canadians, according to the latest poll, support this government's initiative to exclude safe abortion services from the maternal and child health initiative. Canadians historically are pro-choice 70% of the time; the numbers haven't changed in 20 years. Are we agreed on any other issue at those numbers? I don't think so. I think those numbers are needed to save children like those three children from Sudan. We have to put our money where our mouth is and where our beliefs are.
12:55 p.m.
Conservative
The Chair Conservative Dean Allison
Thank you.
Once again to all our witnesses this morning, thank you very much for being here. We started this morning; it's now this afternoon. So thank you.
With that, the meeting is adjourned.
