Madam Speaker, I am pleased to participate in this debate on Bill C-27, introduced by the Minister of Justice on April 18. It seems to me that the objective of this bill is very worthwhile, in that it will amend the Criminal Code to put an end to child prostitution, child sex tourism, criminal harassment and female genital mutilation.
I am very sensitive to this problem as an immigrant, as a member of Parliament and as the official opposition critic on immigration. It is indeed among immigrant women from Africa, Asia and the Middle East that this practice takes on serious proportions. I vigorously condemn such criminal practices as the acts of violence and abuse against women and children that they are. They are a direct attack on their psychological and physical integrity.
These harmful practices inflicted on women and children violate and deny human rights as well as fundamental freedoms.
I look forward to this bill being adopted to finally prohibit and prevent child sex abuse and female genital mutilation altogether. Women and children are full-fledged persons and, as such, they must enjoy every right and freedom enjoyed by the other members of our society.
I am not the only one to be extremely concerned about these issues. Several women's and children's rights groups, from Quebec and across Canada, have been organizing to eradicate child prostitution, child sexual tourism and female genital mutilation. It is interesting to note that, on December 21, 1994, Quebec's human rights commission adopted a position on the practices of female genital mutilation, namely excision and infibulation. According to the commission, such practices threaten the right of women to their integrity, to equality and to non-discrimination. The commission concluded that these practices discriminated against women.
I must commend the Bloc Quebecois member from Quebec who, in 1995, presented Bill C-277 on genital mutilation of female persons. I think her bill was more far-reaching and more complete than this bill by the Minister of Justice.
Like the Bloc members who spoke before me, I think that Bill C-27 has a limited, restricted scope. Bill C-27 could and should go further in several ways.
As regard sex tourism, let me recall certain facts showing the extent of the problem. In the May 1993 edition of L'Actualité , journalist Luc Chartrand stated that between 20,000 and 30,000 young boys were prostitutes in Sri Lanka. According to him, about
10 per cent of tourists are choosing this destination to practice pedophilia.
Sri Lanka is not the only country where pedophilia is widely practised. It is also the case in other poor countries in Asia, like Thailand and the Philippines, and also in Latin America, particularly in the Dominican Republic.
It is with great concern that, a few weeks ago, I watched a Radio-Canada report on this topic. What really shocks me is that there are Canadians who go to the Dominican Republic with the intention of sexually abusing young children and teenagers.
A tragic consequence of sex tourism is the proliferation of AIDS, particularly among young boys. Because of this, clients tend to seek children who have never had sexual relations before, and who are therefore increasingly younger.
There are also clandestine networks through which child pornography magazines can be exchanged, and even children. Sex tourism does create major problems, the most serious one being the fact that these children become slaves.
Canada must put a stop to these criminal acts which violate human rights. We must follow the example of countries such as Germany and Norway, which have already criminalized these unacceptable practices.
This brings me to my first reservation regarding Bill C-27 as it pertains to sex tourism. This reservation has to do with the very definition of the people targeted by the bill. In order to fully eliminate sex tourism, Bill C-27 should not target only those who use child prostitution services abroad.
The wording of the bill should also include those who support the sexual exploitation of children. I am referring to promoters, organizers and travel agencies or companies organizing trips abroad for the purposes of sex tourism involving persons under the age of eighteen. In short, all those who directly or indirectly encourage these criminal practices should be punished.
Second, according to clause 4.1, Bill C-27 only applies to persons who are Canadian citizens or permanent residents. It is important that such a bill also apply to any person living in Canada, whether or not that person is a Canadian citizen. Therefore, this bill would also apply to refugees, asylum seekers, everybody living in Canada on a relatively stable basis.
With regard to genital mutilation, I would like also to give some idea of the scope of the problem. The World Health Organization estimates at between 85 and 115 million worldwide the number of women and girls who have been subjected to excision. This custom mainly involves excising the clitoris and the labia on little girls aged between 5 and 10.
In the countries where this custom is practised, excision on little girls is an integral part of a culture that is sometimes several centuries old. This custom is considered a rite of passage: the little girl then becomes a woman. However, I want to point out that, contrary to some beliefs and claims, no religion accepts nor agrees with female genital mutilation.
We may condemn these customs, but it is difficult to impose our views against the practice of female genital mutilation abroad. However, we must pass legislation to prohibit any female genital mutilation in Canada. These customs have limits.
In this regard, I would like to quote from the declaration and the platform for action adopted in Vienna on June 25, 1993, where the World Conference on Human Rights, after restating that all human rights are universal, indissociable, interdependent and intimately related, pointed out that "even though it is appropriate not to forget the importance of national and regional identities and cultural and religious historical diversities, every state, whatever its political, economic and cultural system may be, has the duty to protect all human rights and all basic freedoms".
Then it points out how important it is to try to "eliminate the contradictions that can exist between the rights of women and the harmful impacts of certain traditional or customary practices, of cultural prejudices and of religious extremism". Further on, in the part dealing with children's rights, the conference "urgently begs states to repeal existing laws and regulations and to eliminate the customs and practices that are discriminatory and harmful to girls".
In Canada, the right not to be subjected to genital mutilation transcends the cultural argument. The right to physical integrity is included in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in the Canadian Charter of Human Rights and in the Quebec Charter of Human Rights and Freedoms.
It is important for Canada to adopt legislation prohibiting female genital mutilation, because, from 1986 to 1991, 40,000 immigrants from countries where this practice exists have come to Canada. In 1992 only, another 3,245 immigrants from countries where genital mutilation is tolerated or promoted came to Canada.
I think Bill C-27 is rather vague about the extraterritoriality of the prohibition of genital mutilation. I wish we would include in the bill a provision allowing proceedings in Canada against persons who take a child abroad for genital mutilation. This is important if we are to close a loophole that can be used, and is already being used, to bypass the law and have female genital mutilation performed.
I do not feel comfortable either with the exception provided for in the bill concerning female genital mutilation. This exception would allow mutilation in surgical procedures performed by a
physician for medical reasons or to enable that person to have normal reproductive functions.
First, physicians think this exception is not needed. Dr. André Lalonde, president of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada, said so very clearly. He stated that female genital mutilation is not a medical procedure per se. Second, instead of banning completely this practice, Bill C-27, with this exception, allows it to go on for reasons of physical health.
In the same vein, I would prefer if the bill did not specify an age of consent for female genital mutilation. The bill before us says that an adult person, that is an 18-year old, can give consent to genital mutilation.
I should remind the House that female genital mutilations are permanent. It scars young girls and women forever. Consent is often the result of a conditioning process, so that the consent given by a child or an adult is questionable.
The establishment of an age limit for consenting to genital mutilation seems to me to be contrary to the objective of Bill C-27, that is to totally eradicate female genital mutilation.
Moreover, I would rather be in favour of legislation allowing for the prosecution of anyone directly or indirectly involved in the practice of female genital mutilation. In my opinion, Bill C-27 is too restrictive on this aspect because it deals only with the people who perform the operation.
Legislation penalizing all those involved would make them both aware of the criminal aspect of female genital mutilation and accountable for their actions. It would also lead to the dismantling of clandestine networks operating in this field, of which there are many unfortunately.
Finally, I believe Bill C-27 is a step in the right direction. Bill C-27 criminalizes child prostitution, sex tourism and women genital mutilation.