Mr. Speaker, I will be splitting my time with my colleague and friend, the member for Ottawa—Vanier.
Like all Canadians and people around the world, I am heartbroken about the abduction of schoolgirls in Nigeria. My thoughts and prayers are with the girls. I cannot begin to imagine how frightened they are. Their anguished families and communities and the people of Nigeria want to bring their daughters home.
In these girls, we see all our children, their hopes and their dreams, and our hearts ache. It is absolutely abhorrent that these girls are alleged to have been abducted to prevent them from attending school. Despite the fact that their school had recently been closed because of terrorist threats, they were so determined to have education they insisted on coming back for exams.
We must all work together to push for more action, both nationally and internationally, regarding this brutal act of violence, this crime, this terror attack, this unconscionable unending nightmare. We must all take whatever steps we can to ensure that the girls are returned to their families unharmed, and that they and all girls in Nigeria can continue their education in a safe environment.
As we all so tragically know, the militant Islamist group Boko Haram kidnapped 276 girls from a secondary school in remote northeastern Nigeria on April 14, and has since threatened to sell them into slavery. Another eight girls were taken from another village on May 5. We should all ask why Canada condemned a separate terrorist attack in Nigeria on April 14, but waited over two weeks to condemn the abductions of the schoolgirls. In fact, why did the international community at large wait for close to two weeks before expressing outrage?
The UN Secretary General is deeply concerned about the schoolgirls. He repeats, “...the targeting of children and schools is against international law and cannot be justified under any circumstances”. The UN is sending a high-level envoy to discuss how the world body can support the government of Nigeria.
The UN Security Council has also expressed its profound outrage, and condemned the abduction of the schoolgirls, demanded their immediate and unconditional release, suggested some acts may amount to crimes against humanity under international law, and that perpetrators must be held accountable.
Ensuring the return of the girls and holding perpetrators accountable goes a long way to ending impunity, and will send a strong message that Nigeria places paramount importance on the protection of girls.
The members of the Security Council have also expressed deep concern at the terrorist attacks conducted by Boko Haram since 2009, which have caused large-scale and devastating loss of life, and represent a threat to the stability and peace of central and west Africa.
The Nigerian president believes the girls are still in Nigeria. The United States, Britain and France have pledged to send specialist teams of intelligence and communications experts to help Nigeria search for the missing schoolgirls. American and British officials have already arrived in Abuja to supplement an American team already on the ground there. They will help Nigeria's government look for the missing girls, plan rescue missions and advise on ways to subdue Boko Haram. We have heard today that Canadians are on the ground and aiding in the effort to find the missing girls, and we are thankful.
There are tough questions being asked after an Amnesty International report accused Nigerian military commanders of knowing the terrorist group was on its way to raid the boarding school at least four hours before the girls were abducted, but not able to raise enough troops to respond. The military counters that it was asked to provide reinforcements that came under attack. CNN reports that what it is hearing on the ground supports the Amnesty International report.
The Nigerian government, which has come under growing criticism at home and abroad for being too slow to react, says that it does not believe the Amnesty International allegations are true, but it is investigating.
Sky News reported that the search for the schoolgirls was closing in on a huge forest near the border with Cameroon, and that the girls had been divided into at least four groups, which would make the rescue more difficult. BBC reported last night that the abducted girls had been sighted, and today we saw video of the children.
What makes the abductions so horrific is that they are not an isolated incident on our most vulnerable, on our most precious. Prior to 2011, most attacks on schools in the north targeted infrastructure and were carried out at night when schools were empty. However, since 2012, teachers and students are increasingly targeted by militants, resulting in abductions, killings and threats.
Between January and July 2013, more than 50 schools were attacked. Dozens of school teachers have been murdered, and universities have experienced heavy casualties by gunmen firing indiscriminately, and in some cases using bombs.
Nigeria has 10 million children out of school, the highest number in the world. Almost one in three primary aged children is out of school, and roughly one of four junior secondary aged children is out of school.
The clock is ticking. The more time passes the greater the risk, including the girls being sold into marriage or engaged in the worst forms of child labour, sexual exploitation and violence and recruitment into armed groups. The time to act is now.
The girls must be returned safe and sound. UNICEF, for example, stands ready to work with the Nigerian government and provide psychosocial care and other necessary assistance to the girls and their families.
An attack on one school, on one child, is an attack on every school and every child. When a school is under attack and students become targets, not only are their lives shattered, the future of their nation is stolen. There is a broader issue here: children's rights to live free from violence, and girls' right to an education. What happened to these schoolgirls could happen tomorrow to other girls in other countries.
Let us ensure the government supports the efforts of the Nigerian government to secure the girls safe return to the protection of their families. All of Canada's efforts should be undertaken in coordination with the government of Nigeria and key partners, and should be in line with the best interests of the girls and the Convention on the Rights of the Child.
How is the government working with our allies to ensure that our efforts are coordinated and targeted and will help bring these girls home? Will Canada call on and support neighbouring countries such as Cameroon and Chad to coordinate search efforts with Nigerian authorities?
Whether it be Nigeria, the Central African Republic, South Sudan or Syria, the government should continue to call for compliance by all parties with international humanitarian law, including the prohibition of attacks on schools, students and teachers. Will Canada support the Nigerian government to bring the perpetrators to justice?
Let us, each and every one of us in the House, raise our voice through this hashtag, bring back our girls movement. Once the girls are safe, will Canada advocate for a post-2015 development goal and indicators that aim to end violence against all children? What will Canada commit to over the next four years at the global partnership for education replenishment meeting on June 26 in Brussels?
Fifty-seven million primary school-age children remain out of school, and half of these children live in conflict-affected areas and disaster zones. We hope that Canada will participate in the summit that will be hosted by France.
The failure to rescue the girls has sparked worldwide outrage. In the words of the Nigerian people, “Enough is enough, the abductions must stop”.