Thank you, Madam Chair.
Mr. Gauthier, it's a pleasure to have you here.
I'm quite surprised that some of the witnesses are lumping the entire Canadian mining sector in with the mining companies from other parts of the world, with the reported human rights violations that happen in countries in Africa, South America, Asia, etc. I'm not suggesting that every single Canadian mining company is lily white—we do have some black sheep—but many of us sitting comfortably in our homes in the cities may not appreciate the kinds of things you mentioned—the risks the Canadian mining companies face, the capital risks, the logistical risks, the political risks, the physical risks and the environmental risks.
You mentioned how some of the mining companies contribute to education. I was born in a relatively poor country—a developing country. I know how projects like this, when it comes to poor countries, can make a tremendous change in the local economy, not only for our jobs and to put food on the table but also for education and rural economic and health development.
From your experience—and I have worked in several countries—in general—and I'm talking about the slightly bigger companies, not the junior ones—when they go in, will they go in with certain social responsibility too? Have you seen evidence of that?