Mr. Speaker, as we celebrate International Women's Week, it is important to highlight women's accomplishments. We must also take stock of the progress made to date and look at what still needs to be done regarding violence against women. Canada has been a world leader in openly discussing this issue and demanding changes.
In certain countries, the subject of family violence is seen as a private matter and remains taboo. A national survey on wife abuse conducted by Statistics Canada shows that at least 50 per cent of all Canadian women have been subjected, in their adult life, to a form of violence as defined in the Criminal Code. These past few years, we have stepped up our efforts to resolve this serious problem. For one thing, strict gun control legislation is now in place.
The Criminal Code has been amended to strengthen anti stalking legislation. Our ultimate goal must be to ensure that violence against women will no longer be tolerated in our society. Now that the problem has been exposed, never again-