Evidence of meeting #148 for Subcommittee on International Human Rights in the 42nd Parliament, 1st Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was violations.
A recording is available from Parliament.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Anita Vandenbeld
Mrs. Jebali, would you mind speaking a bit more slowly? We're having trouble hearing you.
President, Free Sight Association
All right.
[Technical difficulty]
Can you hear me?
President, Free Sight Association
Very good.
In response to your question about women's rights advocates, female bloggers and others being harassed, I would say this. All of us women who work and who are involved in advocacy, legislation and program proposals, and oversight—bringing pressure to bear on the government to enforce laws and address women's rights more effectively—we are constantly subject to arrest and harassment, especially during protests. We have many accounts of such occurrences.
Indirect and direct abuses are perpetrated. I, myself, can attest to indirect abuse. Having worked in a ministry for 20 years, I was the target of administrative harassment because of my activism. I had to appear before disciplinary boards until I left my job at the ministry. It was a form of violence, and it even happened during the disciplinary board meetings. I was told that, for the past few years, I had not been behaving properly, I had not been "like I was before”, as they say in Tunisia, meaning before I became an activist.
Liberal
Marwan Tabbara Liberal Kitchener South—Hespeler, ON
My second question will go to Madame Bouziri.
Sticking with the same theme of the legal and justice system, I wanted to know how women human rights defenders experience the legal system differently from men in terms of detention, investigation and imprisonment. Can you comment on that, please?
Hend Bouziri
Detention-wise, measures aren't applied systematically to all human rights defenders, but individual incidents do occur. When women are involved, our concern is always that the number of violations is greater. As borne out by facts, the state is not involved in a systematic attack on activists, whether male or female. However, measures are taken independently. Although there have been reports, they do not prove that the violations are carried out in a systematic manner.
Furthermore, given the transitional period we are in, the fact that we've experienced a dictatorship and the fact that a return to such a regime is not impossible, as members of civil society and human rights advocates, we support the transitional justice process. Although we do make some effort to expose the violations against male activists, we focus primarily on violations against women because they are more serious. We do what we can to press upon the government the need for a strong and formal commitment to not reinstate the system of violations. Thus far, the government has not committed to the process, having only very recently accepted a report, with no political guarantees that the results of the transitional justice process will be adopted.
As I said, what makes the situation worse is that not even the truth and dignity commission gave fair consideration, in its report, to the violations against women, mainly sexual violations. As members of civil society, we are trying to push the government to recognize the violations in order to end such practices.
In terms of political violence, our country is transitioning towards democracy and will be holding parliamentary and presidential elections in 2019. Although the legislative framework is strongly in favour of women's participation, it is important to note that women remain reluctant to participate. They do not become actively involved in politics because they tend to be targeted by political violence, mainly in relation to aggressive media debates. What's more, political parties do not deal with the problem in their internal rules and regulations, and so, women are excluded from decision-making positions, even if the overarching framework stipulates that there must be gender parity. Women are encouraged to participate, but they can't do so effectively.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Anita Vandenbeld
Thank you very much.
I will now turn the floor over to Ms. Hardcastle.
Cheryl Hardcastle NDP Windsor—Tecumseh, ON
Ladies, I will ask you a simple question. Then I'll give you each a turn to comment on it in the time I have. I want to ask a little bit more about recognition by the state of sexual violence as violence. I would like to hear a little bit about the impact or the influence of the media in the rise of hatred, or in helping with your causes towards human rights for women specifically.
The other thing I want to ask you about is this. Our Prime Minister announced about a year and a half ago that Canada was going to establish a corporate ombudsman for responsible enterprise. If Canada were to do something like that, would you think that women human rights defenders, and maybe the violence specifically experienced by them, such as sexual violence, should be specifically addressed in the mandate of an ombudsman?
Let's start with Ms. Bouziri.
Can you hear me?
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Anita Vandenbeld
Mrs. Bouziri, did you hear the question?
I think we might have lost Madame Bouziri.
NDP
Cheryl Hardcastle NDP Windsor—Tecumseh, ON
Okay.
Ms. Chicaiza, perhaps I can ask you to comment. Do you think a corporate ombudsman for responsible enterprise for Canadian companies should specifically address women human rights defenders and/or sexual violence, or the violence they experience, in the mandate of the ombudsman in Canada dealing with corporate responsible enterprise of Canadian companies? What are your thoughts on how we could play a role in the oversight of our extractive industry that is based in Canada?
Gloria Chicaiza
[Witness spoke in Spanish, interpreted as follows:]
Yes, sexual violence and physical violence are of course some of the most significant manifestations of gender violence perpetrated against women when, for example, the mining industry is present in certain regions. Without a doubt, we need an effective intervention in order to put an end to these situations where women are vulnerable. They can be vulnerable to repression and detention. They can be insulted, harassed or threatened. They might even be raped. In that case, I think the intervention of a corporate ombudsman would be essential, and it would be important for them to be independent of the mining industry in order to truly help and to guarantee and ensure the enforcement of current protocols in our country.
They could also help us have access to justice, even justice in Canada, because that is a challenge for us at this moment. It's a challenge for us to have access to justice in the face of the violations carried out in our country. Those are specifically the violations that you already mentioned but also the human rights and environmental violations by mining companies in our country. Specific and specialized reports about women would also be of tantamount importance, as would demanding that the government in Equador have policies that protect human rights defenders. That would also be very important.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Anita Vandenbeld
Mrs. Bouziri, are you still there? Would you like to add anything?
Hend Bouziri
Yes, but I couldn't hear the question clearly. I lost the audio. You asked about sexual violence, did you not?
NDP
Cheryl Hardcastle NDP Windsor—Tecumseh, ON
Yes, go ahead and use up the time. Tell us what you think we need to know for Canada to move forward and help address this.
Hend Bouziri
Very well.
None of the laws on combatting violence address state-led violence. In our view, it is paramount that law enforcement mechanisms take account of the fact that violence can also be perpetrated by the state. State-led violence is more serious than violence committed by a spouse or someone else. Including this type of violence is very important, and institutional reforms aimed at the detention system and security forces must be undertaken to ensure this type of violence, which includes rape, does not resume.
Canada could help efforts to combat violence through programs to support the Tunisian government. As members of civil society, we feel it is imperative to guarantee equal opportunity and gender equality through program implementation and project monitoring and oversight.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Anita Vandenbeld
Thank you very much.
Thanks to all three of you for your hard work, your courage and your very important contribution today.
This was our last meeting as part of our study on the situation of women human rights defenders. We've received considerable information from incredibly courageous women all over the world.
Thank you very much.
The next meeting, as you all know, is going to be in camera for committee business on Thursday.
With that, I'd like to thank all of the witnesses we've had for this very important study.
Thank you very much.
The meeting is adjourned.