Mr. Speaker, for over 20 years, the international opinion has ignored the East Timor tragedy.
Since this former Portuguese colony was violently annexed by Indonesia, over a quarter of the 600,000 Timorese may have died. No one can ignore this genocide, or the Indonesian authorities' policy of reducing native populations, notably by forcibly sterilizing young Timorese women.
Last week, the Nobel Peace Prize was awarded jointly to Jose Ramos-Horta and Carlos Filipe Ximenes Belo for their sustained efforts to reach a peaceful settlement of the conflict in East Timor.
By giving them the Nobel Prize, the international community is paying tribute to and greatly encouraging these resistance workers.
The Bloc Quebecois condemns the invasion of East Timor by Indonesia and calls for the withdrawal of Indonesian forces. We urge the Liberal government to do the same.