Mr. Speaker, the second petition, also signed by dozens of Canadians, requests an end to the war in Afghanistan. Canadian soldiers and Afghan citizens continue to die in a never-ending war that gets worse with each new deployment of troops. There has been a 40% increase in civilians killed in 2008, with more than 100 tons of bombs dropped by NATO each month. Clearly, women's rights are not on the agenda of the Afghan government. The war has cost Canadians more than $18 billion. That money could have been used to improve health care and seniors' pensions right here in Canada.
Polls continue to show a clear majority of Canadians want the war to end before the scheduled removal date of 2011. The petitioners call on the government to bring home the troops now.