Mr. Chair, I must say that I am really heartened tonight by the fact that all members on all sides of the House in Parliament have shown a deep concern for a bad situation in Darfur at this point in time. In my riding of Kildonan—St. Paul there are different faith based groups that are working very hard and rallying to send aid to Darfur. They have met with challenges over there as well. I must commend Canadians as a whole for the heart they have right now.
We remember the terrible Holocaust, the loss of life, and the pointless genocide that occurred with the Jewish people. We remember Rwanda. Unfortunately, we have many examples throughout history.
Now, Canadians and parliamentarians, with one voice, are having a late debate tonight over our very deep concern about Darfur. We have heard about the work by many parliamentarians on all sides of the House in trying to come up with a solution. We know about the situation there and we want to do something about it.
Despite the presence of the African mission in Sudan, the security situation in Darfur continues to deteriorate. Furthermore, the tense security situation in Chad has the potential to further destabilize the already extremely fragile region. Right now, in Abuja, the peace process has recently gained momentum and we have a very few short hours left to find out whether this peace process will come to fruition.
Tonight, I was gratified to hear the Minister of International Cooperation in the House commit another $10 million in aid for Darfur. This is a significant commitment over and above all the concerns that are voiced about the killings, rapes and terrible circumstances in which these people are living right now. It has touched the hearts of our nation. The world's eyes are now on Darfur and they are also on us, as Canadians, because our hearts are being taken to a country far away. We are reaching out and it seems like it is just next door. It is because we are so aware of what has gone on there.
Traditionally, Canadians have always been the peacekeepers of the world. In May 2005 Canada launched a major initiative to support AU efforts to resolve the conflict in Darfur, making Canada one of the top international donors in the world to that cause. There was $170 million of logistical, financial and equipment support for the African mission in Sudan, including a provision for contracted helicopters and fixed wing aircraft. All these things were deployed to Darfur.
There was $28 million of humanitarian assistance and government support through CIDA and $20 million to support the Canadian diplomatic engagement and the support of the AU peace talks in Abuja. There were peacekeeping initiatives throughout Sudan, including $500,000 to support the International Criminal Court to address war crimes and crimes against humanity.
We now hear on a daily basis about those continued crimes against humanity. This is what has touched the hearts on Canadian soil. We believe that children have a right to go to bed at night without fearing what might happen to them. We believe that women and men ought to be safe and fed. I will say with a very sincere heart that Canadians need to stand at the forefront, and help solve this problem and its immediate need.