Madam Speaker, today, more than 100 emissaries of the Canadian Federation of Chabad-Lubavitch have gathered for a national conference here in Ottawa.
At the funeral for the slain emissaries in Mumbai, the movement pledged that Jews traveling to and living in the city would not be forgotten and that the Chabad centre would flourish again. It was two rabbinical students from Canada who were sent to Mumbai to assist in these efforts.
This action is typical of the Canadian involvement in Chabad-Lubavitch world-wide. Canadian alumni of Chabad-Lubavitch institutions play a vital role among the more than 5,500 Chabad-Lubavitch emissaries situated in 73 countries as far-flung as Thailand, Ukraine and Chile.
Canada has been a catalyst for many Chabad-Lubavitch activities across the globe with its educational, humanitarian and youth centres. Our country boasts centres to assist those who are less fortunate, including children with special needs and drug and alcohol addicts.
These are programs that are being emulated throughout North America and, indeed, throughout the entire world.