Mr. Speaker, today is the symbolic anniversary of Tibet's loss to China 46 years ago, but Tibetans are not rising up in defiance of China. They seek a peaceful means of negotiating with China Tibet's rightful place in today's world. It is reasonable and just that Canada help to make this happen.
It was my privilege to meet with his holiness personally during his visit to Canada last spring. When he met with the foreign affairs committee and the Prime Minister, the Dalai Lama urged Canada to take on a peace bridging role between China and Tibet.
Tibetans, Canadians and a majority of their parliamentarians urged the Prime Minister to seize the opportunity of his recent visit to China to urge an end to human rights abuses in China and the resumption of peaceful dialogue with Tibet.
We have yet to see evidence that the Prime Minister has acted on those requests. That is why today parliamentarians in every corner of the House once again call upon the Prime Minister to show leadership in doing what Canadians expect of their government, and that is to contribute to building peace and a meaningful place within China for Tibetans.