Mr. Speaker, to pick up on the last statement by the member which says “in concert with the allies”, we would encourage and expect the government to work with the allies to see what sort of common ground can be found and actions taken. What the government seems to be missing is the potential leadership role that we as a nation could be playing. We would appeal to the government to reflect on the fact that there is a role for Canada to play unilaterally if need be. We have suggested that and been talking about that for weeks now.
First, I would like to give a bit of an outline. Our Canadian Ukrainian community today is estimated at over 1.2 million people. I have heard it is 1.3 million. There should be absolutely no doubt whatsoever that there is a great deal of interest throughout Canada in what is happening in the Ukraine. It goes much further than individuals of Ukrainian heritage. They see and hear what is taking place. They want the Government of Canada to demonstrate strong leadership on this issue. Many are watching this evening, reading the newspapers and they are following it on the Internet. They are looking for leadership on the issue.
We have a parliamentary friendship group. It might be appropriate for the parliamentary friendship group to have an emergency meeting, to see if we can come up with some ideas that might be able to assist the House. As a vice-chair of that committee, I would be more than happy to be part of that discussion. I would encourage the chair and other members to see if we could convene sometime this week and hopefully generate some ideas and thoughts.
In December, we thought about having an emergency debate. However, at the time it was felt that we would have a take note debate, which is fairly similar to what we are doing this evening. That take note debate received the support of all parties. I participated in the full take note debate. It is interesting that there is a bit of a change now. I found that during the take note debate there was a lot more discussion in terms of what was physically taking place in the Ukraine.
I think this started around November 20 or 21. We had an EU association deal, of sorts, that was not being signed off, no doubt for a number of reasons. The people of the Ukraine responded rapidly to the concerns they had with respect to the general move and the failure of the president to recognize the valuable role that the European Union could potentially play for the Ukraine.
Most people would acknowledge that Russia no doubt has a role to play in the Ukraine's future. However, the European Union has a role to play. The people of the Ukraine want to see that take place. There was a great deal of discussion about that in the take note debate.
The Ukraine is a sovereign nation that has gone through a great deal. Canada is a very young nation. However, as a nation, the Ukraine has endured. The people of the Ukraine have always fought for their identity and want to preserve it.
Ukrainians have gone through some pretty horrific times. Members often talk about the Holodomor and the genocide that took place. When I was in Kiev two years ago, two things came out. One was a very touching moment. When I went to the Holodomor museum, I saw an older gentlemen leaving the museum with tears in his eyes. He was obviously deeply affected. He was probably in his late eighties at the time. It was a very touching moment both for me and for my daughter, who had witnessed that and who ultimately went on to the museum.
Among the people I talked to, one was a parliamentarian, but in other individuals there was a great deal of optimism and debate and discussion about the European Union and the possibility of future prosperity for Ukraine through building bridges and building better agreements. We need to understand that what took place in November shattered the dreams of many in Ukraine, and as the days followed, we found that the whole issue of democracy, basic freedoms, and the rule of law were all being challenged.
The people of Ukraine responded. I was in Independence Square in Kiev. It was huge, but very confined with all the large buildings around it, and I could imagine the thousands of people who started to take to the street in protest.
They are entitled. They have earned that entitlement to be able to express themselves in whatever way they can to demonstrate that the basic rule of law, basic freedoms, and democracy are worth fighting for.
As the campaign continued, here in Ottawa we recognized the needs and what the people of Ukraine were saying and how our constituents were responding to what was happening in Ukraine. I am not alone; I am sure that virtually all members of the House would have been contacted, whether by individuals of Ukrainian heritage or by the Ukrainian Canadian Congress or by other stakeholders who were genuinely concerned and wanted Canada to take some action, to do something.
I recall that debate vividly, because not only did the member for Wascana stand and give his speech, but he also talked about the idea of targeted sanctions. We talked about the leadership role that Canada could play, but even in the questions that followed, the member for Wascana continued to push on that particular point. I happened to follow the member and did likewise, perhaps not quite as eloquently, but we recognized it.
It was not just members of the Liberal Party back then who were talking about that measure: Canadians were talking about it. I have had the privilege of meeting with a number of people of Ukrainian heritage, and in a very tangible way they gave me a better understanding of the issues facing Ukraine.
I make reference to my good friend Borys Wrzesnewskyj. As an individual, he has been a valuable resource to the Liberal Party caucus in making sure that we are kept up to date with what is taking place in Ukraine through websites and posts on Facebook. We appreciate that, not only for ourselves, but for other Canadians.
He is not alone. There are many others. My colleague from Toronto Centre wrote a wonderful editorial piece in The Globe and Mail today. I would recommend that people take the time to read it.
If I could steal one of her sentences, she said, “In Ukraine, we are seeing the struggle for human dignity, for the rule of law, for freedom of expression and association in its clearest form”.
That is really what we are witnessing. We see the images, and there are so many. With the Internet and world media and the role they play, the Ukrainian government will not be able to hide from what is taking place. I have seen footage on the Internet, through YouTube and news networks, and what is happening to protesters is absolutely cruel.
Earlier, I had my assistant pull something from the Internet. It was a report from the CBC. I would like to make quick reference to two parts of this report. It says:
Thousands of Ukrainians chanted “Hero!” and sang the national anthem on Sunday, as a coffin carrying a protester who was killed in last week's clashes with police was carried through the streets of the capital, underscoring the rising tensions in the country's two-month political crisis.
We have people dying in Ukraine. They are dying because of a government that is not responding to some of the fundamental rights that the people of Ukraine deserve to have and be honoured with.
The article goes on to say “demonstrators tried to storm a local administration building, but police drove them back with water sprayed from a fire truck in subfreezing temperatures...”
This is what I mean when I say that cruelty is taking place. It needs to stop. There needs to be some sort of accountability for what is taking place and for those who are imposing these sorts of actions. If people want to tune in to local news or go on the Internet, they can do Google or YouTube searches and witness this cruelty first-hand.
We have all had opportunities to engage the community as whole, but particularly individuals of Ukrainian heritage from our communities who are trying their very best to make sure the Government of Canada is doing whatever it possibly can to make a difference. I was at a Winnipeg rally, which I made reference to before. I know there were other rallies. I believe the member for Toronto Centre was at a rally in Toronto. These rallies are taking place because we in Canada want the people of Ukraine to know that we care, that we are following what is taking place and that we do not like what we are seeing.
There are petitions being circulated and signed by hundreds and thousands. If we had electronic petitioning, I would suggest that hundreds of thousands of people would be signing these petitions.
A special mention should go to the Ukrainian Canadian Congress for the phenomenal effort it is making, whether at the national or regional level.
In the local communities, a number of individuals from different Ukrainian organizations have communicated with me. I am grateful for that. It is not only the organizations.
Last Thursday when I was having lunch at Wendy's, I looked to my right because I overheard a young man talking to a lady across from him while showing her his iPhone, which was obviously showing a clip of what was happening in Ukraine.
Someone came to one of my weekly meetings. I have her email here, because I asked her to send it to me with her comments. She, Libid Zyla Harder, said that she would love to see Canada offer refuge for new dissidents, the persecuted protestors, independent journalists, and their respective families.
I hosted a lunch on Sunday in my constituency. We had maybe 150-plus individuals, the vast majority, maybe 90%, who might have been of Ukrainian heritage. One table in particular had a group of young people who picked up on the same point, that we needed to look at how we might be able to assist through refuge or special visas. People have ideas, and there are things that we can do.
I posed a question to the last speaker. It would be nice to get a very straightforward answer. Today in question period the deputy leader of the Liberal Party posed the following question to the government:
Beyond general statements about considering options with respect to Yanukovych, will Canada specifically, one, send official observers to scrutinize what is going on; two, provide expedited visas to any victims who need to leave that country for their own safety; and three, target Yanukovych and his crowd with personal sanctions, asset freezes, and travel bans, for example, to push them to stop their anti-democratic behaviour?
I do believe, and we in the Liberal Party believe, that Canada has a leadership role to play and does not have to wait for other countries. Yes, we work with other countries, but we can play a leadership role in putting in targeted sanctions, a leadership role on the whole issue of immigration and through Citizenship and Immigration assist in a very tangible way.
That is the challenge that we put to the government, starting back in December. I want to conclude really simply and say that the challenge for the government is to demonstrate strong leadership here.
We can go alone. Yes, we can work with other governments throughout the world, but we can go alone if need be, and we believe that the need is now. We do not have to wait. My final appeal to the government is that we can act now, and I would challenge it to do just that.
