Mr. Speaker, it is very appropriate today that we have young cadets in the House, listening to the ongoing debate. It is truly young people like that, and through the youth of our country, who will remember the sacrifices which others made for us.
Let me, as my colleague before me did, congratulate the member who brought the bill forward. It is something that is of extreme importance to all of us, to the veterans who are still alive, to the ones whose families are here and, in general, to the people of the country, not only the people who are Canadian, have been Canadian and were Canadian when the wars took place, but also others who were not.
We have to remember that during the first and second world wars people from two great nations were represented; Canada and Newfoundland. As members would know, Canada did not join Newfoundland until 1949. Consequently, we cannot forget that. In fact, every year we have the celebrations at Beaumont Hamel. Who cannot remember the Newfoundlanders who went over the top and only a handful, less than 10%, answered the roll call the next day to pave the way for victory with their lives? That is what Newfoundlanders and all Canadians did. Their sacrifices gave us this great, free, democratic nation that we have today. This cannot be forgotten.
Each year we remember on November 11, particularly in Newfoundland where it is not only a holiday but a holiday which must be observed on that exact day. We cannot transfer the holiday to the following Monday or whatever should it fall on the weekend. The holiday is observed on November 11, as it should be and perhaps as it should be throughout the country.
The least we can do at this stage is to ensure that we have some remembrance for all this. Two minutes of silence across Canada is very significant. I can picture the country coming to a standstill, as the world perhaps came to a standstill when we realized that the great wars were over, that we could start rebuilding and that there would be peace.
However, as we know that is an awful lot for which to hope and wish. We have never found lasting peace in the world but perhaps we have avoided major world conflicts and hopefully we always will. However we can only do that if the young people today learn from the past. The old saying is “If we don't learn from the past we're doomed to repeat it”.
Hopefully, by having this two minutes of silence, people will ask this is being done. Hopefully the answers they get will lead them to appreciate the sacrifices made by the people who went to the fronts, who sailed in our naval ships and who flew in our planes to ensure that Canada was protected, that our freedoms were protected and that forever and a day we would be the great nation that we are. In return, it is very little to ask that we pause and keep quiet for two minutes each year to remember their sacrifices.
We certainly support the bill. Again, I congratulate the member. It is a significant gesture that we cannot, and I am sure nobody will, say no to.