Foreign Affairs Committee on May 5th, 2022

[Penpa Tsering]

We always try to reach out to the Chinese. As His Holiness always says, we are not against the Chinese people. The Chinese are human beings just as we are. Every human being needs happiness. That's why during all of our meetings—in Washington, D.C., New York and, on Sunday, in Toronto—I'll be meeting with another 60 or 70 Chinese. We always try to reach out to the Chinese and explain to them the situation inside Tibet.

Unfortunately, the students who come from inside China to study here do not have too much freedom. They have the students and scholars associations, which are used by the consulates to come and protest when ever they they want them to. Otherwise, they will not be allowed to go back into China or they may face a lot of actions from the Chinese government. They always fear that.

You have a lot of Chinese in Canada who enjoy Canadian freedom and Canadian values. I think some politicians think that if they support Tibet, they will lose Chinese friendship or votes. That should not be the case. The Chinese who live in Canada enjoy freedom here, and they should be supporting the human values that Canada cherishes, rather than supporting the Chinese government. Not being able to go back to China is the weapon that China uses all the time—not granting visas.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Marty Morantz]

Ms. McPherson, you have two minutes.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Thank you, Mr. Chair.

Again, thank you for all of your testimony and information about the human rights abuses, the loss of culture, language and religion, and the attacks on the Tibetan people. It has all been very illuminating for me. Thank you.

Like my colleague Mr. McKay, I'm very eager to see the report on forced labour and child labour that you'll be providing to us. Thank you for that as well.

As the last member of Parliament asking questions today, I would like to give you one more opportunity to tell us how we can help. What can the Canadian Parliament do, what can members of Parliament do to help you? Could you take the last few minutes just to do that, please?

[Penpa Tsering]

To start with, if you can adopt a reciprocal access to Tibet act, then we can go from there on larger issues. Until such time that there is a political solution to the Sino-Tibetan conflict, one of my jobs is to keep my community compact together. We are witnessing a lot of demographic and social changes, and also the challenges we face because of that.

I have put forward a proposal to the international development department on humanitarian support for Tibetans in the exiled community, as well as the Tibetan community in Canada, for them to be able to learn their language and culture. We have five Tibetan communities, in Toronto, Montreal, Ottawa, Calgary and Vancouver, B.C.

I will also make it a point to present to you this book later. I think it's aligned with the Wallenberg institution. This will be forwarded to you. There is also a suggestion on policy recommendations for course correct. If you go through that, I think we can save a little time on practical actions that Canadians can take.

[Heather McPherson, NDP, Edmonton Strathcona, AB]

Thank you very much.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Marty Morantz]

I think we're going to move to the motion now. Let's continue debate on the motion.

The meeting is still on. The meeting is not adjourned. We'd like the witnesses to stay while we deal with the motion.

Are there any speakers to the motion?

Ms. Bendayan.

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Outremont, QC]

Mr. Chair, I'm not sure if that decision is debatable, but out of respect to the witnesses, while we engage in this discussion, it would be more appropriate for the witnesses to be released.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Marty Morantz]

I was hoping everyone would get a picture with them before we're done. I don't really want them to leave. If they're willing to stay for a picture until we're done with the motion—

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Outremont, QC]

We should ask them what they prefer. I wouldn't mind standing up for a picture, and then coming back to debate.

[Michael Chong, Conservative, Wellington—Halton Hills, ON]

Mr. Chair, may I suggest that you suspend the meeting for five minutes to allow photos to be taken.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Marty Morantz]

That's an excellent suggestion, Mr. Chong.

[Michael Chong, Conservative, Wellington—Halton Hills, ON]

We could then resume the meeting with the continuation of the debate on the motion.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Marty Morantz]

We will suspend.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Marty Morantz]

We're now resuming the meeting, and we are live.

We'll continue debate on the motion. Who would like to start?

[Rob Oliphant, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

Are we in camera now?

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Marty Morantz]

No, this is public. We're resuming debate on the motion that Mr. Genuis tabled earlier, which is being amended and subamended.

[Rob Oliphant, Liberal, Don Valley West, ON]

If I could then continue with the amendment, my understanding is that we have reached an agreement between the Conservatives and the Liberals, but I haven't had a chance to bring the Bloc Québécois and Heather.... Will she be back? I didn't want to begin without her.

There's a reworking of the motion, which the clerk has sent around, but I think we're going to rework it again.

It would read:

That this committee call for dialogue between representatives of the Tibetan people (his Holiness the Dalai Lama or his representatives and/or the Central Tibetan Administration)—

I remember we worked on that language a lot at CACN.

and the government of the People's Republic of China with a view to enabling Tibet to exercise genuine autonomy within the framework of the Chinese constitution; report this motion to the House, and request the government table a response to the report.

It would ask for a government response. The reason we're doing that, I will be very clear, is that we don't want to take time on a concurrence debate on this. We want to get this done here. We would ask for the government response, but with the hope that we in this room are all committed to work with our House leaders to make sure we do not get into a concurrence debate on this. We don't want to take House time.

It's not that Tibet's not an important issue. It's precisely the opposite. We don't want a political division on this. That would be our hope.

If we're agreed on the language that Mr. Bergeron presented, which we've all agreed to before, I hope that will work.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Marty Morantz]

Excellent.

Before we vote, I was very moved by the testimony we had today. Certainly, it was very informative. There's lots to unpack and discuss here.

Ms. Bendayan.

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Outremont, QC]

I understand from my colleague Mr. Oliphant, who spent a long time on the Canada-China committee in the previous mandate, that an extensive study was done on this issue. I was not part of that committee, but I wonder what the analysts have as instructions—I apologize if this is already clear to everybody else—in terms of the testimony we heard today.

To your point, Mr. Chair, I agree with you. I just wonder what the analysts had intended to do with the testimony we heard today.

Mr. Chair, I did not realize there was a motion on the floor. If you would like to proceed to the vote.... I thought we had agreed unanimously.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Marty Morantz]

No. I made that interjection just before I was about to call the vote.

[Rachel Bendayan, Liberal, Outremont, QC]

My apologies.

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Marty Morantz]

It's my fault for interjecting, but I just felt like I should say something before we get into the vote.

Why don't we vote on the motion? It sounds like everyone is on the same.... I'm sorry. We're voting on the amendment.

Do we need a recorded vote?

No.

(Amendment agreed to)

Now we're on the main motion.

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

Can we do a recorded vote on the motion, just to put it on the record?

[The Vice-Chair, Conservative, Marty Morantz]

There is a call for a recorded vote on the main motion as amended.

(Motion as amended agreed to: yeas 10; nays 0)

I'm not clear on the rules around here. I know it's not a tie, but am I allowed to be recorded in support as well?

[An hon. member]

By unanimous consent.