The Government of Canada has proudly done the right thing. It has recognized that Canada has a moral obligation to protect the Yazidis from the existential threat of genocide. It has responded by committing to relocate women and children survivors of ISIS to Canada.
While its execution of the relocation has not been without problems, it needs to be congratulated on its moral intent. Still, Canada, as a signee to the 1948 Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, must continue to do more for the Yazidis. It is an obligation that must not end with the current initiative since not only is it fundamental to the role Canada has taken in the world as a peacekeeper and a nation that respects the right of all people to live in freedom, but also it is our duty by international agreement. We cannot claim the moral high ground if we limit sanctuary for a people who have experienced genocide. We must as a moral nation do our fullest to uphold our commitment and to continue to help the survivors.
It was with great pain that I, as a Canadian and as a Jew who knows only too well about genocide, heard that the representative of the UNHCR, speaking before this committee, refused to acknowledge the obligation of the UN regarding the Yazidi genocide. It was with great pain that I heard from his lips that the UNHCR is ignoring its mandate as required by the 1948 Geneva Convention by having a stated policy that disregards and contradicts the policy of the Government of Canada on the genocide of the Yazidis. It was even more astonishing to hear it while knowing that a survivor of the Yazidi genocide, Nadia Murad, is a UN goodwill ambassador and spokesperson who is demanding justice for her people.
Given this flagrant disregard, I urge the Government of Canada, out of respect for its moral leadership, to continue the Canadian initiative to help the Yazidis, who are still facing an existential crisis, by following the U.S. government's lead to no longer fund the UNHCR with regard to the minorities in Iraq and to commit to work directly through its own agencies and NGOs on the ground in Iraq to resettle Yazidi refugees who need sanctuary.