Mr. Speaker, I am not a lawyer, so I do not know the language that my hon. colleague is talking about. However, I will state what some of the experts are saying about this particular legislation. I can only take their word. These are not my words; these are the words of renowned experts in their fields.
Paul Hannon, executive director of Mines Action Canada, stated:
Canada should have the best domestic legislation in the world. We need to make it clear that no Canadian will ever be involved with this weapon again but from our reading this legislation falls well short of those standards.
Another expert, Mr. Earl Turcotte, former senior coordinator for Mine Action at DFAIT, stated:
In my view, the proposed Canadian legislation is the worst of any country that has ratified or acceded to the convention, to date.
It fails to fulfill Canada's obligations under international humanitarian law; it fails to protect vulnerable civilians in war-ravaged countries around the world; it betrays the trust of sister states who negotiated this treaty in good faith, and it fails Canadians who expect far better from our nation.
To me, this makes sense, rather than the legal language that my friend—