Debates of March 13th, 2001

Learning Disabilities Month

[Lynn Myers, Liberal, Waterloo—Wellington, ON]

Mr. Speaker, March is learning disabilities month in Canada and the theme for this year's public awareness campaign is “Early Help Means Early Success”.

Some 100,000 Ontario children are identified as having learning disabilities. As we all know, learning disabilities are not merely an educational issue. They impact on all aspects of a person's life.

Research has shown that by identifying a child at risk as early as senior kindergarten and providing the appropriate help at that moment in time, the need for more lengthy interventions at a later date is greatly reduced. It helps prevent emotional and behavioural problems later in life.

I encourage all members of the House to raise awareness of learning disabilities in their communities and to foster the understanding that people with learning disabilities are competent individuals who sometimes have to do things differently to succeed in life.

Agriculture

[Howard Hilstrom, Canadian Alliance, Selkirk—Interlake, MB]

Mr. Speaker, today I mention to the minister of agriculture that in fact there is a farm crisis in the country and that this week there will be protests in Saskatoon, in Winnipeg and in Ottawa.

It seems that farmers believe that the minister does not and will not acknowledge that there is a crisis. In fact, $500 million is insufficient for the crisis at hand. Farmers have asked me to stand here to ask where the other $500 million is. Also, today the Prince Edward Island Potato Board is stating that the assistance announced today was too little, too late. Something has to be done for agriculture across the country.

National Epilepsy Month

[Mark Assad, Liberal, Gatineau, QC]

Mr. Speaker, this month Epilepsy Canada and other organizations involved with the fight against this disorder have launched National Epilepsy Month. Epilepsy is a serious brain disorder affecting close to 30,000 Canadians.

It is characterized by seizures, uncontrollable trembling, convulsions and confusion. There is no cure, and the medications available for treatment often have severe side effects.

I strongly encourage Canadians to make a special effort during this month to learn more about epilepsy. Working together with medical researchers, we could improve the quality of life of those around us who suffer from epilepsy.

Immigration

[Stockwell Day, Canadian Alliance, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, the solicitor general has claimed that the RCMP could not arrest alleged cop killer Gaetano Amodeo in 1999 because it had not received an extradition request from the Italian government. We have now received new information which throws into question everything the solicitor general has said.

Tomorrow the Corriere Canadese , an Italian newspaper, will report that on January 13, 1999, over two years ago, along with the original warrant the Italian government sent the RCMP a formal request for Mr. Amodeo's arrest.

My question is for the solicitor general. Why did the RCMP not arrest this man in April 1999, two years ago?

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Solicitor General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, I do not decide when the RCMP decides to arrest or not to arrest an individual. However, it is important to note that this individual was a fugitive from justice. He has been arrested and is now in jail awaiting a deportation hearing.

[Stockwell Day, Canadian Alliance, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, he decided not to give us the information or to give us wrong information.

Tomorrow, the Corriere Canadese , a Toronto Italian paper, will publish what the Italian authorities had been seeking since January 1999, the arrest of Gaetano Amodeo, in preparation for an application for extradition. The RCMP had monitored him and even photographed him with a head of the Montreal Mafia.

How does the Solicitor General explain the RCMP's decision to photograph this killer instead of handcuffing him?

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Solicitor General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, I think the Leader of the Opposition would be aware that I do not decide how the RCMP conducts its investigations. I do not tell the RCMP whether it should take pictures or whatever it should do. The RCMP is a well respected police organization around the world.

[Stockwell Day, Canadian Alliance, Leader of the Opposition]

Mr. Speaker, it is not a matter of deciding what the RCMP should do. It is whether you decide to tell the truth or not.

[Some hon. members]

Oh, oh.

[Stockwell Day, Canadian Alliance, Okanagan—Coquihalla, BC]

The minister of immigration and the solicitor general both—

[The Speaker]

Order, please. I am sure all hon. members know that hon. members tell the truth all the time. The hon. the Leader of the Opposition.

[Stockwell Day, Canadian Alliance, Okanagan—Coquihalla, BC]

Mr. Speaker, both the minister of immigration and the solicitor general have clearly indicated that it is only recently they knew about this situation.

Yet the evidence is very clear. It has been over two years that they have had this information. They have either withheld information or they have not given accuracy to the House. Either of those is a great failing.

Which of these two ministers, or both, will the Prime Minister ask to resign on the grounds of ministerial accountability for this lack of action?

[Jean Chrétien, Liberal, Prime Minister]

Mr. Speaker, it is always what they resort to as a last argument when they cannot establish anything they are talking about.

I have two very competent ministers who are trying to deal with a very difficult file. They are both serving Canada very well.

[Joe Peschisolido, Canadian Alliance, Richmond, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the name of Gaetano Amodeo appeared on an application for permanent residence on June 28, 1999. The warrant for his arrest had been issued six months previously.

My question is for the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. Why did her department not check for a criminal record?

[Elinor Caplan, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, the individual the member refers to is not an immigrant. He was refused permanent resident status. As soon as the RCMP concluded its investigation my department, CIC, acted and within three weeks the man was in custody. He is now awaiting the deportation hearing.

[Joe Peschisolido, Canadian Alliance, Richmond, BC]

Mr. Speaker, on September 1, 2000, Mr. Gaetano Amodeo applied again for permanent residency. His arrest warrant was issued 18 months before.

Again I ask a question of the minister of immigration. Why did her ministry fail a second time to conduct a police check?

[Elinor Caplan, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, my department relies on evidence. We need evidence and warrants before we can arrest and deport someone. Unlike the member opposite we do not rely on whisper and innuendo.

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the list of opportunities missed by this government in the Gaetano Amodeo affair is a long one.

In January 1999, the RCMP learned from Italian authorities that a warrant for Mr. Amodeo's arrest had been issued by a Palermo court.

Why did the office of the solicitor general not advise Immigration Canada in January 1999 of the criminal charges against Gaetano Amodeo, when this notorious criminal was trying to move to Canada?

[Lawrence MacAulay, Liberal, Solicitor General of Canada]

Mr. Speaker, the RCMP had been working with Italian police from 1999, but I would like to remind my hon. colleague that it does not inform me of its investigations. I do not decide who it investigates, who it tells or who it does not tell.

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, the RCMP did not inform the solicitor general or Immigration Canada.

But in September 1999, the Department of Justice received from Italy an official request for the extradition of this same Gaetano Amodeo. The Minister of Justice received a request for extradition at that time.

Might we know why the Minister of Justice, who knew this fact, who had been informed, did not advise Immigration Canada that a request for Mr. Amodeo's extradition had been received?

[Elinor Caplan, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, as soon as the RCMP completed its investigation and notified my department that it had sufficient evidence we were able to move. We were able to get a warrant. The man was detained and he is now awaiting a deportation hearing.

My officials acted promptly once they were given the information that they needed.

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I will put my question to the Minister of Justice again.

I do not want to hear that the government was not aware, that there was insufficient evidence, when this was a duly completed request for extradition, when photographs were taken in April 1999, but of the wrong person, when he and his wife subsequently applied here, when the minister had received a request for extradition and did not think of advising Immigration Canada.

There is something wrong with this picture. I can believe that the solicitor general did not know, but the Minister of Justice did.

[Elinor Caplan, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, I will repeat once again that as soon as the RCMP had completed its investigation and had sufficient information my department was notified. We obtained a warrant. The individual was arrested. He is now awaiting a deportation hearing.

[Gilles Duceppe, Bloc, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, three weeks after the Department of Citizenship and Immigration was—supposedly—advised, Mr. Amodeo was arrested, but this could have been done 14 months earlier.

Can anyone explain to me how it was that the RCMP did not have the sense to visit the wife of the man being sought? That would strike me as a good place to start, particularly when they could take a picture of the right person.

Would the Minister of Justice, who knew that there was an extradition request, tell us why she did not advise the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration?

[Elinor Caplan, Liberal, Minister of Citizenship and Immigration]

Mr. Speaker, as I said, CIC relies on warrants and in order to get a warrant we need to have evidence.

The RCMP provided that evidence. We moved quickly and within three weeks the individual was apprehended. He is detained and is now awaiting a hearing. In order to get that warrant we need evidence, not just whispers.