Madam Speaker, my colleague opposite said that the government will fight for religious freedoms around the world. He talked about ensuring that Canada makes every effort to speak out against human rights violations, sexual and gender-based violence, and that it will look at other tools to promote human rights around the world.
Genocide is defined as an intent to destroy in whole or in part a national, racial, or religious group. We know that in the Iraqi-Syrian region, ISIL has been committing atrocities deemed to be genocide by a UN panel on March 19 last year, as well as by the United States. Both the UN and the United States have said that ISIL is committing genocide against Christians and Yazidis in the area, doing exactly what my colleague said he would stand up and fight against: sexual slavery, genital mutilation, rape, beheading, and persecution of religious minorities.
Given that our neighbours around the world are all standing up and calling this genocide and the member is talking about Canada using other tools to speak out against human rights, I would like to give him this opportunity in the House to call ISIL's actions in the Middle East what they are: genocide. Will the minister stand and call this genocide today?