I thank the parliamentary secretary for her question.
You are right, terrorism is a threat. This is a reality for our national security and law enforcement agencies. I was given the opportunity to meet with students in Bellechasse, and this afternoon I thought in particular about a young Quebecker, Annemarie Desloges, who was doing her shopping in Nairobi, Kenya, a little more than a year ago when she fell victim to a terrorist attack. So did a fellow Canadian from British Columbia. It happened in Nairobi, Kenya. It could also happen here.
We were successful, as I mentioned in my speech, in deterring two terrorist plots, one in Victoria, B.C., and the other one that planned to derail a train between Toronto and New York. Another one that we were successful in deterring was the Toronto 18. Now the Combating Terrorism Act legislation that we passed is enabling all of our law enforcement authorities to intervene before an attack occurs. That's how charges were laid against some terrorists.
Let me quote what a judge said about a terrorist who was sentenced to 10 years in jail for planning to join the Islamic jihadist group in Somalia. Ontario Superior Court Justice Deena Baltman said that he was the first Canadian to be convicted for attempting to join an overseas terrorist group, and as such required a sentence that might deter others: “Terrorists are the worst kinds of cowards because they deliberately target innocent members of the public who are not prepared for combat.”
We have to send a strong signal, and she did it as a judge. As politicians, we have to do everything in our power and within the scope of the law and our rights to empower our law enforcement agencies so they are able to do their job, which is to protect us. That's our duty as politicians, from all parties, to support those reasonable measures that are put forward to increase our capability, and especially to track those travelling citizens who are willing to commit terrorist acts, whether here or abroad. The judge went on to add, “And despite being the recipient of a privileged Western education, with its emphasis on free thought, [this individual] aspired to join a terrorist group that seeks to annihilate those who think differently.”
We cannot negotiate with those who want to cut off our heads. We are determined and resolved to tackle terrorism. That's why we need to move on with our strategy and bring forward tools that are needed by our law enforcement and national security community to tackle terrorism.