Mr. Speaker, tomorrow, May 8, is World Red Cross Day.
The Red Cross has been a pillar of civil society. It was instrumental in the signing of the convention on the elimination of antipersonnel mines by 122 countries, in Ottawa, last December.
In Oslo, back in September 1997 when the text of the convention was being worked out, I was privileged to have long discussions with Red Cross officials and with victims who benefited from that organization's help. One had to see the emotion with which these victims expressed their true and personal appreciation for this great community organization to understand the importance of its role.
There are close to 100 million land mines in the world. Each month—and I mean each month—these mines make 2,000 new victims. Given the new world order in which civil society is going to play a vital role, I wanted to mark the day celebrating the Red Cross, which is one of the great humanitarian institutions of the world.