Madam Speaker, contrary to what my colleague is saying, I want to assure him that Canada continues to speak loudly on the international scene. Canada's guiding policy and this government's guiding policy is shared values of freedom, democracy, human rights and the rule of law. We will continue following that.
On the other hand, my hon. colleague spoke about key situations in three countries. From the onset, I share those concerns with him in all of the three countries and the three situations he has highlighted.
I want to assure the hon. member that the Government of Canada, my government, has been working on those three areas very strongly and has made our voice on these issues known to all these governments.
On DRC, I went to DRC myself and I visited across the whole country. I saw the atrocities that were being committed. Canada has a chair at the Great Lakes conference, one of which I chaired in Nairobi. We very strongly put the rest of the world's position that all parties must come to the table, respect the rule of law and ensure that violence is stopped, specifically gender-based violence.
The member is absolutely right that so many lives are being lost in the Congo, and that continues. We are very much disturbed by what is happening right now in Eastern Congo. We will continue to raise our voice to ensure that people come to the table and that human rights are respected in the Congo.
As for Zimbabwe, I again share his concern about what is happening there. The positive sign is that there is a unity government right now, after a lot of pressure from the African Union. However, we have a wait and see the attitude. We want to see some positive action happening by that government. Unfortunately, initial reports indicate that is not taking place. We are highly concerned with that. I agree with him that it is cause for concern.
Canada will continue providing humanitarian assistance to DRC, to Zimbabwe and to Sri Lanka, but we will not provide assistance to the governments. We will continue with international forums to ensure we put pressure on all parties to come to the table.
As for Sri Lanka, we are highly concerned with what is happening in there. That is why an emergency debate took place. The Government of Canada has called for an immediate ceasefire so humanitarian assistance can reach the people of northern Sri Lanka where the civil war is going on.
We are working with our partners, like India and other countries, to put pressure on the government of Sri Lanka to allow humanitarian assistance to reach those people.
I share my hon. colleague's concerns. I can assure him that the Government of Canada is taking a very proactive stand on these issues.