Evidence of meeting #120 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 students.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal
The motion is in order. Is there debate?
I have two speakers on the list: Mr. Chiang and Mr. Redekopp.
Please go ahead, Mr. Chiang.
Liberal
Paul Chiang Liberal Markham—Unionville, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Since we have witnesses here and the international student study is an important study for us to complete before the year ends, I move that we adjourn debate.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal
We have a motion to adjourn debate. It's a non-debatable motion.
Do you want a recorded vote?
Liberal
Conservative
Brad Redekopp Conservative Saskatoon West, SK
Thank you.
I just want to mention that we have talked about this motion before. I'm not opposed to talking about it again, but I have an amendment that I would like to make to it.
I think six meetings is too many, so my thinking is that if we had one meeting for one of the ministers, a second meeting for the second minister and then a meeting on Sudan and a meeting on Gaza, that might be sufficient.
I'm going to propose two changes. First, I'd like where it says “no less than six” to become “no less than four”. Also, at the end, where we're talking about the production of documents, I want to specifically add in a Sudan piece. After the section that says, in English, near the bottom of the motion, “and the information requested from applicants on additional screening forms”, I would like to add the following words: “as well as documents related to the development of the Sudan humanitarian program and the family permanent residency pathway”. Then we'd continue on with “that, while respecting s. 19”, etc.
There are two things: changing “six” to “four” and adding in a piece on Sudan to the production of documents section. That's my amendment.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal
Thank you, Mr. Redekopp, for bringing this amendment forward.
We are now on the amendment brought forward by Mr. Redekopp. I have a speaking list with MP Chiang and MP Kwan.
MP Chiang, please go ahead.
December 12th, 2024 / 12:20 p.m.
Liberal
Liberal
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
We don't need to suspend. If they need to clarify, they can do it on their own. I'm—
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal
Okay, MP Zahid, you are on the list as well, but let me focus on this first.
I'm not going to suspend this time, Mr. Chiang. You can talk to your team. You can always come back, because I'm not closing the debate yet.
In the meantime, I'm going to MP Kwan and then MP Zahid.
NDP
Jenny Kwan NDP Vancouver East, BC
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I appreciate that decision. If the Liberal members need to talk to their team, they can go ahead and do that, but it should not take committee time.
With respect to the amendment from MP Redekopp, I take as a friendly amendment amending the number of meetings from six to four.
With respect to the other piece related to documentation for Sudan, I'm fine with adding that language for clarity, but this motion speaks to two dates. The first date is January 9, which relates to when the Gaza policy became open. The February 27 date is the Sudan date. I thought incorporating those two dates made it clear that it was for documents related to both Gaza and Sudan, but I don't have any problem whatsoever with adding in the language that MP Redekopp wanted to add in to further clarify that. I just wanted to make it clear that this was already incorporated into the motion to ensure that both Gaza and Sudan documentation was being sought.
Liberal
Salma Zahid Liberal Scarborough Centre, ON
Thank you, Chair.
Right now we are on the amendment moved by MP Redekopp. He sent a significant amendment. Can we please suspend the meeting so it can be circulated in both official languages to all members and we can have a look at it?
Liberal
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal
We are back.
The amendment has been distributed. Is there any discussion or debate?
Go ahead, Mr. Brunelle-Duceppe.
Bloc
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
I just want to point out that the interpreters didn't hear anything.
Liberal
Liberal
Liberal
Salma Zahid Liberal Scarborough Centre, ON
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
The war in Gaza has been a very important topic, and the community has been going through a lot in the last 16 months. For over 400 days, we have seen the suffering of the people in Gaza. We have seen international reports on this as well.
I represent a big Muslim community, especially a big Lebanese community, and I've been hearing stories of the people in Gaza. So many people in Canada have lost 15, 16, or 20 family members on average—their loved ones. It is very important to make sure we have programs through which they can bring extended family members out of Gaza and here to Canada. Many of our constituents are living by the phone just to hear from their loved ones—their parents, brothers and sisters.
We have been hearing about the issue that Israel is not letting people leave Gaza even if the Canadian government puts them on a list. I have a family living in my riding that had family members on the exit list. They came to Rafah, but the 16-year-old boy was not allowed to leave with his mother and sisters.
Initially, the mother was not willing to leave the child and come here, but with insistence by her husband, who is living in my riding, the mother crossed the border with her daughters. The 16-year-old boy was then sent back, although he was on the list provided by the Canadian government. When that child went back to his home with his older siblings—because they were over the age of 21 and were not counted as dependants—that same night there was a bomb blast in the building. That constituent of mine lost his 24-year-old daughter, who was a doctor, leaving behind two toddlers.
In the same bomb blast, my constituent's two sons, who were over the age of 21, were seriously injured, along with their wives. One of his daughters-in-law's legs were burned. The child who was not allowed to leave had serious injuries, life-threatening injuries, and lived in the hospital for many weeks. There was no care available for him, and he had to be transferred to Cairo for treatment.
These are the types of horror stories we have been hearing about from constituents. My constituent had to get custody of his two grandchildren, whose mother died in that bomb blast. These are the horrors our constituents are living every day, and they have been living them for over 400 days.
Many of our constituents were not allowed to get their mothers and siblings on the exit list because they are not considered immediate family. Based on Canadian law, only spouses and children under the age of 21 are considered immediate family. These are the parents and siblings of our constituents, and I think we need to make a serious effort to make sure we reunite these families. There have been a lot of challenges crossing the Rafah border and people have been paying money at the border—
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Sukh Dhaliwal
MP Zahid, I'm sorry to interrupt you. I have directions from the clerk that you should adjust your mic because it's creating some issues.
I'll give the floor to the clerk.
The Clerk of the Committee Mr. Rémi Bourgault
Ms. Zahid, can you make sure that you have selected, at the bottom of the Zoom screen, the headset and not your computer microphone, please?