Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time. I have listened to the debate throughout most of the day. Like many members and other Canadians I have learned quite a bit about the breadth of the issues that are facing Canada along with its NATO allies.
As all members have been exposed to feedback from their constituents, I thought I would start by sharing a couple of the experiences of my constituents. One person who is quite active in the Women's International League for Peace and Freedom has written to me often on matters such as the Kosovo conflict.
It is very interesting that these communications have indicated that the military aggression now taking place has actually exacerbated the situation and further instability in the Balkan region. This is a complex situation which has baffled negotiators for centuries. The situation has arguably led to two world wars. Some would argue that it could potentially lead to another one. They go on to argue what to expect with regard to a peaceful resolution to conflict around the world.
It is very important for those who fear the ravages of war around the world, its impact on people and human lives, to be heard. I want them to know that they are being heard, that they have been heard by me and by many members.
A Serbian family came to me who was so distraught with what was going on that it immediately wanted to make application to sponsor its parents to come to Canada. In fact they were already in Canada under a visa and thought it would be appropriate to find out if I might be able to make that happen.
As all members know it just does not happen that way. It is a process that is very difficult particularly when someone is already here on a visa. The concern was for no other reason than family. It was not an ethnic dispute but a matter of safety and security of family.
The piano store owner across the street from my constituency office was born in Yugoslavia and lived there most of his life. He came here with his family. He wanted to thank Canada for what it was doing over there. He knew what was happening. He knew the history and he told me all about it. Despite the fact that he knew there were people in harm's way, he wanted me to know that it was important that we break this cycle, the centuries of ethnic wars and the killing of innocent people.
A Serbian gentleman came to my office and gave me quite a lecture about the centuries of history of the area. His basic conclusion was that it was their turn, that many Serbians had died over the years and that they had to get even. It was as bald as that. It was their turn to kill somebody.
It dawned on me that in Canada we have probably very diverse opinions about what is going on, depending on one's background, depending on one's linkages to the Balkans, to European countries and to other places around the world that have experienced civil war, ethnic cleansing and genocide. Unfortunately this is part of our history.
Listening to the debate today makes me ask more questions and maybe provide more answers. It was clear that ethnic cleansing was going on as far back as 14 months ago. In October of last year it was even written about in the papers while negotiations were being held to somehow bring this matter to some stability, and it did not happen.
For the last 20 days the NATO alliance has been executing a military plan, a bombing plan. I wonder why NATO waited as long as it did. I wonder if that was not a big mistake. When we consider the number of people, the number of refugees that moved so quickly to the borders and literally overwhelmed the NATO allies in terms of sheer numbers, it was clear that NATO was not ready for that number of people.
It was also a big surprise that some 250,000 refugees are still within Kosovo. There is grave concern about their safety. They have no shelter. They have no food. Who knows what their fate is? This raises some very serious questions about what is going on.
Canadian people responded to a poll recorded in today's press about their degree of support for the current actions of the government. It surprised a lot of people, probably the defence department and the foreign affairs department as much as any. It was no surprise that Canadians had opened up their hearts to the refugees and wanted to help in whatever way possible.
I think it is a big mystery to Canadians why refugees ultimately did not want to come to Canada. It begs a question. The linkage is to the strength of feelings in the Balkans. Canadians are having some difficulty understanding why people who are in harm's way and literally without food and shelter would not accept a helping hand and come to the safety of Canada.
It is difficult to understand. We need to understand that there is something more to this situation than simply a civil war. There is something much more when we see Serbian demonstrators daily in downtown Toronto, for the most part peacefully demonstrating but fervently stating that their situation is such that we must have the bombing stopped because their families are in harm's way.
Most people would ask whether they are also concerned about ethnic Albanians. I am sure stories will be coming out of the atrocities, of the rapes, of the murders and of the slaughters of people. Are they not also concerned about that? No. They are concerned about their families and it being their turn.
When we hear such things we wonder how Canadians will feel when the dimensions of what has happened become public, when we find out how bad the situation is and how many people have been affected by the situation even in the short period of time.
In the last moments of my speech I want to dwell on the whole issue that has been raised in the House about having a vote. It struck me that the Reform Party, for instance, wants to know the military, political and moral objectives and dimensions so that we can debate them and have a vote on them before we do something. I believe the NDP is of the same view, that we have to vote. We may have to ease up on some of the NATO requirements before we feel we have an opportunity to bring the negotiators back to the table.
I found out today that the vote being asked for, at least by the NDP, is not a vote and debate before the government takes action. NDP members made it very clear that they wanted to have a vote after the government had made its decision and after action was been taken by NATO. They just want a vote so that in retrospect they can put their position on the table after a decision has been taken.
It is very important to know that because that is not the way it was presented to the House. It was presented that before the government took action we wanted to have a say and a vote. It is important for Canadians to know that strategically and militarily it would be somewhat foolish to have the House debate the dimensions of a proposed action.