Mr. Speaker, yesterday, Canadians from across the country gathered at the fourth annual Sisters in Spirit vigil to honour the lives of the many aboriginal women and girls who are presently missing, and we offered support to the suffering families that bear the terrible burden of grief.
Today, as a nation, we cannot stand by while over 500 aboriginal mothers, sisters, daughters and aunties have been taken so violently from us. Ending this type of violence and bringing to justice those who have committed crimes is a shared responsibility of all levels of government as well as law enforcement agencies, the justice system and civil society.
I personally worked on missing aboriginal women's cases as a police officer and I continue to work toward reunification and justice.
Our government continues to work together with aboriginal organizations, provinces and territories to protect the rights, freedoms and safety of aboriginal women and girls. We also reiterate our commitment to protecting and advancing the equality of aboriginal women and girls.
We urge all Canadians to take a moment to reflect upon this grave injustice and the ways we can collectively fight against it.