Evidence of meeting #25 for Subcommittee on International Human Rights in the 43rd Parliament, 2nd Session. (The original version is on Parliament’s site, as are the minutes.) The winning word was afghanistan.
A video is available from Parliament.
7:05 p.m.
Liberal
Maninder Sidhu Liberal Brampton East, ON
Thank you, Ms. Bhullar.
It would be interesting to learn more about the process of how you support members of the Afghan Sikh community. Could you provide us some insights into that as well?
7:05 p.m.
Director, Manmeet Singh Bhullar Foundation
Absolutely. As I mentioned in my opening statement, these families are people we are in constant contact with. They have many conduits within the community, and the foundation is definitely one of them. As a family, we support them when they are in India. As recently as about a month and a half ago, the concern was that they did not have an adequate supply of food because of the pandemic. Of course, it is everyone's responsibility to make sure that we help each other.
From a sponsorship point of view, we really work closely with our sponsors and donors who have come on board with us. We have the primary responsibility to ensure that when these families arrive in Canada, we are providing them with every basic need that they have as well as setting them up for success. That means providing them with housing, providing them with every single supply they need in that house and setting them up with settlement agencies to make sure they receive their health care cards, get proper medical attention—as you can imagine, many of them have never seen a doctor for so long—and enrol the children in school.
Once the children are in school, it can be something as simple as.... When the pandemic hit, it was all about making sure they had access to tablets and laptops to make sure they were able to continue their education. That's a responsibility we have based on the principles that are set out through the private sponsorship agreement.
My dad often says that these are people who have become extended family. Whether it's the birth of a new child or a school milestone, it's something we take part in.
7:05 p.m.
Liberal
Maninder Sidhu Liberal Brampton East, ON
Thank you for that very detailed answer, Ms. Bhullar. We're all Canadians. We wear our hearts on our sleeves. That's what we're known for. It's great that you mentioned that it's not just your foundation. It's with partnerships with the community and other organizations and associations. They've all stepped up and come together to support the Afghan Sikh community.
Mr. Chair, I have five seconds left, so I may not have time for another question, but I do want to take this moment to thank all the other witnesses for being here as well.
7:10 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Peter Fonseca
Thank you, MP Sidhu. Your time has just come to an end.
We're moving now to MP Chiu for seven minutes.
7:10 p.m.
Conservative
Kenny Chiu Conservative Steveston—Richmond East, BC
Thank you, Mr. Chair.
The questions I have are for representatives from both the Sikh and Hazara communities. I have questions for each, so I'll begin with the Sikh community.
The two communities, unfortunately, have similar backgrounds in that they're being persecuted and rejected by the native Afghanistan population. Therefore, they're facing persecution and imminent danger of being wiped out.
My first question is this: Could you comment on the home country's advocacy?
I heard, through you guys, for example, that India has been posturing to receive refugees from Afghanistan, but what about Iran? Is it helping the Hazara community? In the case of India, what prevents them from settling in the Punjab province area?
The second question would go through post-COVID Canada support. I will talk about that later in the interest of time.
With regard to the first question, I'd like you to comment on the home country, what I call the home country's advocacy on their behalf. Let's go with the Punjab province and also the Sikh community.
7:10 p.m.
Legal Counsel, World Sikh Organization of Canada
Yes, I can comment on that.
Like I said, the Indian government is currently a right-wing Hindu government. It postures itself as being a protector of minorities that have fled Muslim countries. In fact, the protection it provides is, essentially, just a visitor's visa. It's a six-month visitor's visa. In terms of actual steps, there's nothing. There's no path to permanent settlement in India. India is not a signatory to the Refugee Convention.
There have been some glimpses of hope, but they are not for the recent refugee arrivals. For example, there's a controversial citizenship amendment act that was passed. It excludes Muslim refugees, but it opens the door to non-Muslim refugees. However, it only applies to refugees who arrived before December 31, 2014. After being passed over a year ago, the rules for it still haven't been framed. There have been certain districts for which the government announced applications would be accepted for refugees, but it's a completely random process and it's only certain districts, at random, from the Indian map.
7:10 p.m.
Jasjeet S. Ajimal Co-Chair, Save Afghan Minorities Project, Manmeet Singh Bhullar Foundation
May I add? Like Mr. Singh mentioned, in India's situation, the population is extremely precarious. The local populations are well aware that the Afghans arriving are precarious, so these Afghans have been the target of consistent crime. Their houses have been broken into. Local authorities harass them when they try to use public transportation. When they try to go to the hospitals in a public setting, they're not able to do so. Local organizations and organizations abroad are helping the families with medical care.
The precarious situation continues to get worse. As scarcity hits India, this population is targeted further. They are then isolated by locals, harassed, persecuted and the cycle continues.
7:10 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Peter Fonseca
I just saw Mr. Maley's hand up and I believe I also see Ms. Kerr's hand up.
Mr. Chiu, I don't know if you'd like them to also answer, but they do have their hands up.
7:10 p.m.
Conservative
Kenny Chiu Conservative Steveston—Richmond East, BC
Yes, I'd also like to hear witnesses from the Hazara community. Why don't we spend the next 30 seconds on further comment from the Sikh community, please?
7:10 p.m.
Legal Counsel, World Sikh Organization of Canada
I can just say that Sikh refugees initially left Afghanistan en masse in 1992. They tried to settle in India at that time. They returned en masse again because there were no prospects for them there.
The situation has seriously deteriorated since 1992. Currently, there are no prospects for them. For example, the family I mentioned can't get health care for their daughter, so they have to go back to Afghanistan to go to a hospital. They don't feel safe there, so they have to come back to Delhi. It's just a really bad situation.
7:15 p.m.
Conservative
Kenny Chiu Conservative Steveston—Richmond East, BC
Thank you.
In the interest of time, let's switch over to the Hazara community.
Mr. Maley.
7:15 p.m.
Dr. William Maley Emeritus Professor, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia, Canadian Hazara Humanitarian Services
Thank you very much, Mr. Chair.
I think we should be wary of seeing Iran as a protective player with respect to Hazaras from Afghanistan.
Firstly, Hazaras are often located in vulnerable places that are quite remote from the territory of Iran, but more seriously, Iran has historically not been a particularly generous host to Hazara refugees. In recent times, there's been plenty of evidence of Hazaras being forcibly deported from Iran to Afghanistan. There's also been evidence of Hazaras being press-ganged by Iranian agencies for use in other areas where Iran finds itself involved in proxy combat.
It's actually quite a dangerous environment for Hazaras in Iran, who have long experienced quite a lot of discrimination at the hands of the Iranian state.
June 22nd, 2021 / 7:15 p.m.
Bloc
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
A point of order, Mr. Chair.
Unfortunately, the interpreter cannot translate what Mr. Maley is saying.
7:15 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Peter Fonseca
Okay. I don't know if we checked that.
I've stopped the time, so we still have a little while.
7:15 p.m.
Bloc
Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe Bloc Lac-Saint-Jean, QC
The interpreter is telling me that there is a problem with the sound.
7:15 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Peter Fonseca
It's a technical issue. Did that not come up during the testing, Clerk?
Mr. Maley, could you just say a couple of sentences?
7:15 p.m.
Emeritus Professor, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia, Canadian Hazara Humanitarian Services
Yes. The situation for Hazaras is dangerous.
7:15 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Peter Fonseca
I don't know if that's any better. Did you change something on your computer or on your headset from when you got tested to when you started answering the question?
7:15 p.m.
Emeritus Professor, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia, Canadian Hazara Humanitarian Services
No. If your team wants to identify a particular setting in the interpretation button, I'm happy to go to that. I'm on “off” at the moment.
7:15 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Peter Fonseca
Okay. They say it's technical. It's not....
Clerk, do you have any thoughts?
7:15 p.m.
The Clerk of the Committee Ms. Erica Pereira
Yes, and could you speak a little bit slower, please? Try that.
7:15 p.m.
Emeritus Professor, Australian National University, Canberra, Australia, Canadian Hazara Humanitarian Services
Okay.
Mr. Chair, should I repeat the points that I made earlier for the benefit of your colleague?
7:15 p.m.
Liberal
The Chair Liberal Peter Fonseca
We're just trying to fix whatever technical issues we have. I don't know if it's the Aussie accent, but we'll see how that goes.