Evidence of meeting #104 for Citizenship and Immigration in the 44th Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was kongers.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
Conservative
Brad Redekopp Conservative Saskatoon West, SK
Yes, I do, but with one condition that we finish the Liberal, Bloc and NDP round as planned. I'm done with my time.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal
Sure.
All those in favour of the amendment?
(Amendment agreed to)
(Motion as amended agreed to)
We are going to Mr. Redekopp. No? We are going to Mr. Ali. No?
Look at how generous both the Conservative and Liberal friends are for Mr. Brunelle-Duceppe.
Mr. Brunelle-Duceppe, we are skipping the Conservatives and the Liberals, and we are going to give you and Madam Kwan the last round before we adjourn the meeting.
Mr. Brunelle-Duceppe, you have a quick two and a half minutes.
Bloc
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
Thank you, Mr. Chair. It's like Christmas came early.
Ms. Chen, you told us that Canada has called for the repeal of the Hong Kong national security law and is calling for the release of all political prisoners charged or imprisoned under that law.
As we know, Jimmy Lai is a political prisoner. Am I to understand that Canada is calling for the release of all these political prisoners, including Mr. Lai?
Executive Director, Greater China Political and Coordination, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development
Yes, Mr. Chair, I would agree with that statement.
Bloc
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
I'm glad to hear that answer.
Thank you, Ms. Chen.
I'll yield the floor over to whoever wants to take it.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal
I took the time, without the consent from Mr. Chiang. Mr. Chiang, can I give two and a half minutes to Madam Kwan, and then come back to you? I know I am going out of order, but hopefully you will entertain my request as the chair.
I see consent. Okay, thank you.
Madam Kwan, you have two and a half minutes before I go to Mr. Chiang, because I just went off the track.
Madam Kwan.
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I just want to be sure, and the question is for GAC.
Of course, yesterday was the 35th anniversary of the Tiananmen massacre, and 30 years ago the national security law and the protests came about. Many people will say that what's happening right now in Hong Kong is basically Tiananmen massacre 2.0.
Just this past week we had a situation where what's called the "Hong Kong 47" are under arrest and charged with being in violation of the national security law and also article 23.
My question for GAC is this. What is the minister doing in relation to that? Is she actually calling for the release of these political prisoners and for the Hong Kong authorities to stop prosecuting these individuals?
Executive Director, Greater China Political and Coordination, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
The last few days have seen some very important developments on the China human rights scene. As some of you may have noted, Global Affairs Canada released a statement on May 30 regarding the outcomes of the trial of what we call the "Hong Kong 47", again expressing our grave concerns about the application of the national security law for what we believe are legitimate expressions of political views in Hong Kong.
Yesterday Global Affairs Canada also released a statement on the occasion of the 35th anniversary of Tiananmen Square. We think it's very important that Canadians and the world do not forget what happened 35 years ago in Beijing.
I would say that our minister is very focused on the relationship with China at this moment, including human rights.
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
I'm sorry. I was asking very specific question.
Is the minister calling for the release of these political prisoners and for the Hong Kong authorities—the Chinese government—to stop prosecuting political prisoners? It's a yes-or-no question.
Executive Director, Greater China Political and Coordination, Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development
As mentioned in the universal periodic review statement by Canada in January, we called for Hong Kong to discontinue all cases against individuals charged with exercising their human rights and freedoms.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal
Thank you.
Mr. Chiang, I'm sorry. I just saw the hand from Mr. Ali. I thought Mr. Ali was giving me the go-ahead to go to the other parties. You have my apologies.
Mr. Chiang, you have the floor.
Liberal
Paul Chiang Liberal Markham—Unionville, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
I want to thank all the witnesses for being here today.
In July 2023, I had the honour of making an announcement on behalf of IRCC about the removal of the educational requirement under Canadian work experience streams A and B of the Hong Kong permanent residency pathway. This change meant that we could welcome more Hong Kongers who need our support to Canada, while simultaneously helping Canadian businesses fill labour gaps with workers who already have work experience here.
Can you explain to the committee how the government has been using a flexible approach to adapt its program to support the needs of Hong Kongers here in Canada?
Director General, Family and Social Immigration Branch, Department of Citizenship and Immigration
Thank you.
That was one example of when we looked at a public policy and amended it to make it more effective in the circumstances of the day.
Other examples are the May 27 amendments and new public policies that allow persons who have work permits to extend them, and that allow persons who are in the process of getting permanent residence access to a longer stay in Canada of up to three years. These were made in response to the realities of our day-to-day that we need to adapt our policies. We're very willing to do that, and we'll continue to do so if necessary in the context of Hong Kong.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal
The member is good, and the watch says it's right on 7 o'clock.
On behalf of the committee members, I want to thank all of the officials for being with us. I wish you the very best.
I also want to thank everyone—the support staff, the interpreters and, of course, the clerk and the analysts—for staying until 7 o'clock.
The meeting is adjourned.