Mr. Speaker, I am delighted to participate in the debate on our NDP opposition day motion calling for a public inquiry into prisoner torture in Afghanistan.
Judging by some of the emails my office has received after commenting on this issue on CTV's Power Play, there are some Canadians who think it is a waste of time to try to get to the bottom of this issue. I am happy to note, by the way, that none of those emails came from constituents in my riding of Hamilton Mountain.
One man referred to the detainees as “scumbags”, another as “local bandidos”. The inference is that what happens to Afghan detainees does not much matter because they are, to put it mildly, unsympathetic characters.
Less obliquely, government members and indeed the Prime Minister shamefully suggest that if I stand up to oppose the torture of Afghan prisoners, I am siding with the enemy instead of supporting the brave men and women in our own armed services.
Let me start by making one thing absolutely clear. The reason we need to get to the bottom of the allegations that Canadian officials were complicit in the torture of prisoners in Afghanistan is because we put our diplomats and soldiers on the ground at risk. Canadian troops serve our country with valour and honour, and they do so by engaging in accordance with the law.
This issue is not just about morality and altruism. It is about the law. Canada ratified the United Nations Convention Against Torture and it wrote it into Canadian law by passing both section 269.1 of the Criminal Code and Canada's Crimes Against Humanity and War Crimes Act. There is no ambiguity. It is illegal to hand over prisoners of war when torture is a known possibility. Turning a blind eye to torture is not supporting our troops.
Our troops are in Afghanistan to stop human rights violations, not to be complicit in them. Our armed forces need to know that when they are following orders, they are not being asked to commit crimes against humanity. The cover-up is endangering our soldiers and hurting our mission by turning Afghans against us. It is precisely because I support our troops that I support this call for a public inquiry into the allegations of prisoner abuse.
Frankly, I would be happy if we could get to the bottom of this matter without the drawn-out process of a public inquiry, but the Conservative government has consistently covered-up its role in the Afghan scandal and Canadians deserve unconditioned and complete answers.
Let me remind members of the House that this issue did not just surface with Richard Colvin's testimony two weeks ago. In fact, the NDP's former defence critic, Dawn Black, was the first to raise the treatment of Afghan detainees in the House as far back as April of 2006.
The government stonewalled in its replies. Legitimate attempts by Amnesty International and the B.C. Civil Liberties Association to find out what was going on were similarly delayed. The Conservatives used every available dodge, including Canada's anti-terror laws, to shut down a lawful inquiry by its own Military Police Complaints Commission.
The government does not want Canadians to learn the truth. As Toronto Star columnist Thomas Walkom rightly points out, that is why:
--in its usual brutal fashion, the government is attempting to turn this affair into a referendum on the Taliban.
Essentially, it is arguing that anyone who complains about torturing Afghan prisoners is either a traitor or a Taliban dupe.
The Conservatives know that the best defence is a good offence as they are scrambling to save their ministers from having to resign because they most likely have misled both Parliament and Canadians. However, for once, let us leave politics out of this.
In reality, the prisoner transfer protocols that may have contributed to the problem were the work of the former Liberal government, not the Conservatives. The original agreements were already in place when the Conservatives took office in 2006, but that is not the point. The point is that Canadians deserve answers. Who knew that the detainees who were handed over to Afghan authorities were routinely tortured? When did they know about it and what did they do about it?
Let me lay out part of the chronology that is now part of the public record.
On April 5, 2006, NDP defence critic Dawn Black called on the Conservatives to ensure Canada's prisoner transfer agreement reflected “our values as Canadians”. The then defence minister and member of Parliament for Carleton—Mississippi Mills declined. He said, “We have no intention of redrafting the agreement...there is no need to make any change in the agreement”.
On May 26, 2006, Richard Colvin, political director of the provincial reconstruction team, filed his first “serious, imminent and alarming” action message on Afghan detainees.
On March 19, 2007, the then defence minister and member of Parliament for Carleton—Mississippi Mills apologized for telling the House of Commons that the Red Cross would share information with Ottawa about alleged abuses of detainees after Canadian troops handed them over to Afghan authorities.
On April 20, 2007, Colvin filed an action message with 71 addresses in foreign affairs and national defence, including the provost marshal.
On April 23, 2007, Graeme Smith wrote in the Globe and Mail:
Afghans detained by Canadian soldiers and sent to Kandahar's notorious jails say they were beaten, whipped, starved, frozen, choked and subjected to electric shocks during interrogation.
On April 24, 2007, Colvin sent an action message on detainees as chargé d'affaires of the diplomatic mission in Afghanistan, and a response to the diplomatic contingency plan drafted by national security adviser to the Prime Minister.
Again, on April 24, 2007, the NDP leader and MP for Toronto—Danforth called on the Prime Minister to fire the defence minister. The Prime Minister denies reports of abuse and blames the Taliban. He said:
Allegations to the effect that we are not living up to our responsibilities are only being made by the Taliban.
On April 25, 2007, a Globe and Mail article read:
The Harper government knew from its own officials that prisoners held by Afghan security—