Mr. Speaker, I am glad to introduce for the second time a petition asking Parliament to reject the Canada-Columbia free trade agreement until its impacts on human rights have been assessed by an independent panel.
The petitioners also ask that the agreement be renegotiated with the respect for fair trade practices to take into account its environmental and social impacts in a way that really respects the rights of workers and all other affected people. The petitioners are very concerned by the violence inflicted by the Colombian paramilitary groups on workers and members of civil society and by the fact that more than 2,200 unionists have been murdered since 1991.
The petitioners believe that all trade agreements signed by Canada must be based on fair trade principles, namely the respect of social justice, human rights, workers' rights and good environmental practices.