Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Good afternoon, ladies and gentlemen, Mr. Ambassador, Mr. Minister.
I listened to the Minister of International Trade for the Republic of Colombia report to us on the situation. The cases of heavy-handedness against defenders of human rights, the number of murders, the number of trade unionists who are impacted by the situation, even assassinated; they have all decreased in Colombia, making it look like the picture is now pretty enough to justify the Free Trade Agreement between Canada and Colombia. But, as you said yourself, despite everything, the figures are still very high.
By contrast, this morning, the International Committee of the Red Cross, which is overseeing the electoral process in a sense, issued a news release in order to sound the alarm that human rights violations are being observed in Colombia. It is said that the war between the army and the Marxist rebels and paramilitaries has displaced millions of people.
What is more, a journalist reports that, one month from the presidential elections, the International Committee of the Red Cross wants to draw attention to the forgotten victims of the conflict in Colombia. The Red Cross people say that they have documented 800 violations of human rights. They also note that there are more than 3 million displaced people out of a total population of 46 million—one of the highest rates in the world. They also say that the lack of security in rural areas and the suffering of Colombians caught between the army and the rebel forces, are not issues in the current presidential campaign. They are simply not talked about.
Are you seeing the same thing?