Mr. Speaker, it is with great interest that I listen to the debate here tonight. In 2003, I had the opportunity to visit Tehran and go outside the notorious Evin jail where I spoke with some of the individuals. That was right after Mrs. Kazemi was killed by the regime.
I have a couple of questions for the parliamentary secretary.
We talk about issuing press releases and about Canada pushing the issue at the United Nations. However, Canada lost its place at the United Nations decision-making table and it went to Portugal. How can Canada push anything at the United Nations, let alone what is happening in Iran?
Further, the Canadian government closed the visa section in Iran for cost saving purposes. It had two officers but the Conservative government did away them. When people from Iran need to apply for a visitor visa to come to Canada, they must go through Ankara. If they need to have an interview, they must fly to Ankara. How is the hon. parliamentary secretary able to stand up and defend his government when it did away with the visa section?