I also wish to share with you a personal experience.
In 1968 I came to Canada because when I applied for a U.S. student visa, which was at the height of the Vietnam war, as a condition of issuing that visa to me they wanted me to sign the draft. I could be drafted to serve in Vietnam. At that time, in the United States military, if you served three years in active combat duty, you were granted citizenship automatically, as well as all the benefits of the G.I. bill for education.
At the time I chose not to do that because I didn't think I wanted to be drafted into a war that I opposed, coming from Asia. That was the reason I came to Canada. I appreciate the fact that that changed the entire course of my life. After having been in Canada for 40-plus years, we're now in a position where we're here to give back to Canada our shared experience from the transition of an immigrant to our current position as members of Parliament.
Unfortunately, I haven't had the chance to serve with the Canadian military, but I have served in a number of United Nations peacekeeping duties as a civilian adviser. I certainly have seen the sacrifices made by our men and women in uniform.
Having opened this pathway, and having shortened this period for immigration, how does that enhance people's, say, sacrifices or devotion, or the value of Canadian citizenship?