Mr. Julian is here. We can get started.
We had a motion that if you weren't here for the presentations, you wouldn't be allowed questions, so we thought we'd give you another ten minutes. I'm glad you've arrived.
We are going to get under way. This is the 12th meeting in the third session of the 40th Parliament of the Standing Committee on International Trade.
I am delighted that we have as witnesses today representatives from the Republic of Colombia. This is pursuant to the order of reference, an act to implement the free trade agreement between Canada and Colombia. This bill has been referred to the committee.
The committee is very pleased to have with us today, from the Republic of Colombia, the Minister of International Trade, Luis-Guillermo Plata.
Of course, we have our old friend as well, who has appeared before the committee and has been helpful to the committee in this regard, His Excellency Jaime Giron Duarte, Ambassador of the Republic of Colombia to Canada. Welcome again, Mr. Duarte.
In addition to that we have an adviser to the President of Colombia on mining and energy matters, José-Raphael Unda. From Ceniflores, Rebecca Lee is the director and representative of the Colombian Association of Flower Growers. We appreciate your attendance.
We're going to have a wide variety of discussion today, and these people from Colombia will be very helpful.
In addition to that, we have a union member. From the Union of Antioquia's Industrial Workers, we have Walter Navarro, president of SINPRO, and you're going to have to tell us, Mr. Navarro, what that means. I hope there's an English translation.
As an individual, we also have a former Canadian ambassador to Colombia, the very distinguished Gaëtan Lavertu. Thank you very much for joining us today.
It's going to be a crowded day. We're going to have a little business at the end, but I'm going to give the committee as much time as we'd like. I'd like to have some opening statements to set the trend. First I'm going to ask the trade minister from Colombia to have opening remarks. That would be followed by Mr. Navarro, because it's a different point of view, a union voice--if you could perhaps give a short opening of your experience of late with regard to unions and trade in Colombia. We'll follow that, Your Excellency, with a former ambassador, Mr. Lavertu.
I'm going to ask Luis-Guillermo Plata, Minister of International Trade, to begin.