Mr. Speaker, I call on the Ukrainian government to respect the democratic wishes of the Ukrainian people and stop its politically motivated attacks against its opposition.
Last week the foreign affairs committee heard from expert witnesses who confirmed that the situation in Ukraine continues to worsen, with the erosion of human rights, freedoms and democracy.
Former primer minister Yulia Tymoshenko is currently in prison, where she is reportedly in poor health and is being denied the medical attention she needs. I would like to thank the Canadian doctors who visited Ms. Tymoshenko in February.
Former minister of interior Yuriy Lutsenko was recently sentenced to four years in prison as part of the Ukrainian government's ongoing pursuit to silence the opposition.
These convictions are a miscarriage of justice and are nothing but show trials. I call on President Yanukovych to restore the rule of law and judicial independence in Ukraine.
The Ukrainian government's blatant gerrymandering of the election laws prove that there must be international election monitoring for Ukraine's upcoming parliamentary elections. Canada and the world are watching and continue to strongly state that President Yanukovych's actions will not be tolerated.