Mr. Chair, we have sat here for a great number of days. We've listened to lots of testimony. I wish I'd had time to go over much of that testimony, but I didn't, not in as much detail as I would have liked. Now we've been through a lengthy period of clause-by-clause.
I've often heard the rationale that the bill is actually for getting at the smugglers. But the more I've looked at the bill as I've gone through it, the more I see that it's about punishing refugees. That is one of the reasons I wanted to move an amendment to that effect.
I want to just comment on the title of the bill. I want to say that there is very little in the bill that actually addresses punishment for smugglers, who already have the maximum punishment, a life sentence, and who already have fines of up to a million dollars. All of those are there.
What this creates for refugees is a two-tiered system. Depending on how you arrive and where you arrive and what kind of grouping you arrive in, you could actually be designated an irregular asylum seeker. Once you are designated, you can actually be kept in a detention prison for up to a year. Then for five years you cannot have any travel papers. You don't have any status. You can't go anywhere. You can't apply for your family to come and join you. You can't go and visit your family.
I can't imagine why we would not be calling this piece of legislation the Punishing Refugees Act.
Also, at this time, I want to acknowledge that there was quite an abhorrent part of this legislation, which would have retroactively sought cessation based on whether the country had changed its standing, so to speak. We're glad to see that gone. But we still feel that this bill is fundamentally flawed and fundamentally changes our refugee policies.
Numerous witnesses gave testimony as to how this bill will contravene the charter, the Constitution, and our international obligations. So it is with a great deal of regret for me, as a Canadian citizen, and now as a parliamentarian, that I see legislation that so lacks compassion.
We heard the representatives from the Anglican Church talk eloquently about the work they do in this area and the problems they see in this legislation. They pleaded with all of us to come out of this process with something that would not be so punitive towards some of the world's most vulnerable people who arrive on our shores.
By the way, our current legislation, from Bill C-11, which is the Balanced Refugee Reform Act, absolutely gives the government the ability to hold people in detention, pending identification and a security check to make sure they're not a risk to Canada's security. We have that option. As a matter of fact, there are people from the two boats that arrived many years ago who are still in detention. That is possible.
The other two-tiered aspect of the bill is related to the designated countries and the fact that within designated countries there can be pretty serious violations, either towards a particular group or in a particular part of that country.
When we look at this bill overall, the one adjective, verb, and adverb that keeps coming up over and over again is built on the word “punishment”, whether you say punitive or punishment.
I am very, very disappointed that this bill is here, and I will be voting against the bill.
I do want to acknowledge once again the moves made by the government, by the minister, to address some concerns, and I will acknowledge that those are baby steps.
I always believe in positive reinforcement, and I hope when you get back and share with the minister—he might even be listening to all of this—that he will listen to some of our other concerns and take a look at the pile of amendments. Perhaps those will happen at the next stage. As you said, I always live in hope, and I am an optimist.
Mr. Chair, we are going to be opposing this bill at this meeting. We're finding it very hard to swallow the title that has been given to this legislation. It's very, very difficult for me to live with that title, but as you said, I'm not allowed to amend that. I still say I will be calling this act the Punishing Refugees Act.
Thank you.