Debates of June 9th, 2016

Opposition Motion—ISIS

[Pam Goldsmith-Jones, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, I thank the member for that excellent depiction of the horror going on right now at the hands of ISIL. What responsibility does she feel to the International Criminal Court?

[Rona Ambrose, Conservative, Sturgeon River—Parkland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, it is not surprising that Canada is now one of the only countries in the western world that has not declared this a genocide, and the member stands and starts talking about legalese. This is an issue of morality, it is an issue of moral courage, and this is the Liberals' answer to us? It is unbelievable.

The member has an opportunity to stand with all the members of the U.S. House of Representatives, all the members of the U.K. House of Commons, and members of the E.U. Parliament. What is stopping the government from calling this a genocide? What more do the Liberals possibly need to see?

The sad part is that ISIS does not do this stuff in secret. It does not do it in stealth. It is on YouTube. The whole world can see what is happening, and the government is turning a blind eye to it.

[Hélène Laverdière, NDP, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am a bit surprised to hear the member brush this off as legalese, as though it were not important.

Hon. members will recall that the former prime minister said that we need not concern ourselves with international law because ISIL did not have lawyers. However, international law is our best guarantee for security.

Accordingly, I would like to ask the hon. Leader of the Opposition, who mentioned the British Parliament's motion, among other things, whether she agrees that they should have also included in their motion a reference to the Security Council, or the International Criminal Court. Would that not have improved the motion?

[Rona Ambrose, Conservative, Sturgeon River—Parkland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, unfortunately the Yazidi girls cannot file a petition and they cannot hire a lawyer to defend them.

Here is the opportunity for people who are elected representatives to stand and take a moral position in parliaments of western democracies, just like the U.S. House of Representatives, the U.K., and the E.U. Canada was always a country that would step up first. People are asking why Canada is almost the last country in the western world to declare this a genocide.

Yes, there will be debates about what obligations Canada will have if we call this a genocide, but what is stopping the government from taking the moral decision? Where is the Liberals' moral clarity on this issue? What are they waiting to find out? What more do they need to know before they call this a genocide?

[Denis Lebel, Conservative, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Mr. Speaker, we have withdrawn our CF-18s. We prefer to leave the heavy lifting to our allies. I want to hear our leader talk about the way we have withdrawn our CF-18s.

[Rona Ambrose, Conservative, Sturgeon River—Parkland, AB]

Mr. Speaker, one of the things that has crossed my mind is that the government is uncomfortable with calling this a genocide because it would have to explain why it has not done more. The Liberals are not doing more. In fact, they are now doing less. They withdrew our CF-18s. They are not part of the bombing combat mission to degrade and destroy ISIS, which is this genocidal cult, murdering thousands of people, beheading children, enslaving women and girls. We just heard last week about 19 girls being burned alive because they refused to be sex slaves. I do not know what more the Liberals need.

If the House declares this a genocide, yes, there may be consequences and, yes, Canada may have to do more. However, what is wrong with that? Is that not what we want to do?

Let us all support the motion, and then let us have a debate about what Canada does next. What do we do next to make a difference?

[Peter Kent, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I am honoured to rise to support the motion by the member for Sturgeon River—Parkland.

It is tragically incredible that in 2016 any minister in any country that considers itself a democracy, committed to the rule of law and recognizing the United Nations Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide refuses to speak the word that specifically and powerfully defines what has been happening in full sight, and has been horrifically documented in Syria and Iraq for years now. It is the brutal persecution of any and all who refuse to convert to the Islamic state's perverse interpretation of Islam, kidnapping, sexual enslavement, rape, torture, mass murder, in other words, genocide.

Today we have heard, and I suspect will hear many more times, convoluted attempts from the government side to excuse Liberal ministers from uttering that word. More than seven decades after the word was created from Greek and Latin roots, the Greek word genos for race or tribe and the Latin word cide for killing, lexicologists, diplomats, politicians and ordinary people have quibbled and quarrelled over a precise meaning and when it should be applied.

The House passed a motion unanimously just last year, put by the former Conservative member of Parliament Brad Butt, that reaffirmed recognition of four genocides of the 20th century: the Holocaust, the Armenian genocide, the Ukrainian Holodomor and the Rwandan genocide. However, many of us felt that motion fell short of recognizing all of the 20th century genocides, such as the Great Chinese Famine, Cambodia's Khmer Rouge killing fields, Srebrenica, and Darfur, to reference several yet unrecognized genocides. Now we have Syria and Iraq and the so-called self-proclaimed Islamic state.

The evidence is overwhelming. The most clearly defined instance is the massive atrocities committed on the minority communities of Ninewa province in northern Iraq. Before June 2014, Ninewa was Iraq's most diverse province. The ethnic and religious minorities included the Yazidis, the Assyrian Chaldean Christians, the Sabaean-Mandaeans, the Shia Shabak, Turkmen, and the Kaka'i. More than 800,000 men, women and children were forced form their homes and communities. Shrines, temples and churches were systematically destroyed. Many thousands were killed in barely three months, and the slaughter has continued since.

In September last year, during the Canadian election campaign, the Simon-Skjodt Center for the Prevention of Genocide conducted a bearing witness expedition to Iraq. The group documented the brutal forceable displacement, forced religious conversion, rape, torture, kidnapping and murder. Just to explain for the House what the Simon-Skjodt Center is, it conducts work on genocide and related crimes against humanity for the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. The Simon-Skjodt Center is dedicated to stimulating timely global action to prevent genocide where possible and to, as it states, “catalyze an international response when it occurs.”

In August 2014, the report found that more than 200,000 Yazidis were surrounded on Mount Sinjar without food and water. Another 50,000 were isolated and captured by Islamic state terrorists. Only have U.S. humanitarian food drops and bombing raids created a safe corridor for escape was the siege of Mount Sinjar ended.

Detailed testimony, recorded by the genocide expedition, was given by refugees in Iraq's internally displaced persons camps and those at large in the area.

One man's quoted testimony in the expedition's report characterizes, I believe, the Islamic State's campaign of forced exile and actual extinction. “We have no future“, he said, “Our generation has gone”.

The Simon-Skjodt genocide report, and it is a report I would suggest all members of this House read for its well-documented detail of what has happened under Islamic State's brutality, concludes with the statement:

...our belief is that [Islamic State] perpetrated genocide against the Yezidi people.

The next sentence is one that will be debated, I know, throughout the day today, but the next sentence is the sentence the Liberal government has been hiding behind. The sentence says:

Any formal determination of whether genocide was perpetrated needs to be made by a court based on careful consideration of the evidence.

That is exactly what has not happened. It has not happened as Islamic State has continued to perpetrate genocide and crimes against humanity ever since, and still today.

The International Criminal Court will not, on its own, initiate proceedings to consider and declare Islamic State guilty of genocide. The ICC must first be directed by the United Nations Security Council to act. Because of veto dysfunction on the Security Council, and the blockage of such genocide and crimes against humanity resolutions by Russia and China, repeatedly, none of the democracies on the Security Council have bothered to put such a motion regarding Islamic State.

As a bit of an aside, this is just another powerful reason to shake up, to renovate, to recreate the United Nations to be the international institution it was originally created to be and is so often not today.

However, and this is a point we will argue through the day today, the inability of the United Nations to direct the International Court to act should not be used by sovereign democracies like Canada to not meet our individual responsibility to speak the g-word out loud and to take the necessary action with like-minded countries.

We know well, and we heard from the Leader of the Opposition, the list of those who have spoken out. Our mother Parliament, the British House of Commons, voted unanimously to define Islamic State action as genocide. So too the European Parliament, the Council of Europe, the Vatican, the U.S. House of Representatives, the United States Commission on International Religious Freedom, the U.S. Secretary of State, the council of bishops in Europe, and others, and there are more, almost by the month, have dared to speak the word the Liberal government refuses to say.

In conclusion, I would urge all colleagues, across parties, to stand today and support the motion put by the member for Sturgeon River—Parkland to declare that this House strongly condemns the atrocities and declares these crimes to be genocide.

[Karina Gould, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of International Development]

Mr. Speaker, I think it is incumbent upon all of us in this House to recognize that we all recognize the horrible atrocities being committed by Daesh in the region. All of us understand this and take this to heart. Canada stands by the people who are suffering and the people who have been innocently victimized horrifically by Daesh.

However, it is also important to remember that Canada does not operate within a vacuum. We operate within an international community. There is the United Nations Security Council and the International Criminal Court, institutions that were put in place precisely because of a genocide in 1939 to 1945.

As responsible members of the international community, Canada has, indeed, through the Minister of Foreign Affairs, written to the President of the UN Security Council to ask for this investigation. I believe that the other side should take this very seriously and understand that Canada is doing its part and that we are working together to best--

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Bruce Stanton]

The hon. member for Thornhill.

[Peter Kent, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, we expected this argument to be raised today, and I am sure we will hear it repeatedly through the day.

The reality is that the United Nations Security Council is dysfunctional and impotent when it comes to responding to today's crisis. These laws were written in the middle of the last century, and it is a system that should be respected. However, as we have seen, the United Nations has fallen into dysfunction, as has the UN Security Council when it comes to the vetoes from Russia and China.

The leader of the official opposition made the point that the young Yazidi girls who are suffering today cannot write letters to the United Nations Secretary-General.

Writing letters, consulting, and not speaking a word is simply unacceptable.

[Hélène Laverdière, NDP, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, earlier, my hon. colleague said that the International Criminal Court could not investigate this because of the United Nations Security Council veto.

Does my colleague realize that this does not necessarily need to go through the Security Council? A country can simply refer the matter to the International Criminal Court and the court can take it from there. One of the possible avenues would be not only to call to action the International Criminal Court, which is already addressing the matter, but also to ensure that Canada offers its assistance to investigate crimes committed on the ground.

[Peter Kent, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I respect my colleague's insight and her expertise in this area, but the reality is that the ICC will simply not initiate a complete investigation and definition of what we know is happening and what we see graphically in many forms on YouTube, on social media, which the Islamic State boasts about on a regular basis. We will not see the ICC act meaningfully without direction from the United Nations Security Council. That simply will not happen.

Canada should be doing more.

The Simon-Skjodt report is a worthy and meaningful report. That report by itself provides more than enough evidence for ministers on that side of the House to stand and say, as ministers in democracies around the world have said, that what the Islamic State has been perpetrating and continues to perpetrate is genocide.

[Pam Goldsmith-Jones, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Mr. Speaker, as members of the House are aware, Canada has responded to the current situation in Syria and Iraq and the horrific acts of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, ISIL, by putting into action a comprehensive strategy.

The people of Syria and Iraq, who do not believe in ISIL's warped methods, are targeted and have suffered horrible losses. Individuals belonging to minority communities, including religious and ethnic groups, have been especially affected by the conflict in the region and by ISIL's barbarism.

Our strategy focuses on degrading and defeating ISIL, and most importantly, on preventing its return.

The instability resulting from the crises in Iraq and Syria caused by ISIL, the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, is affecting the entire region. Religious, ethnic, and other minorities are among the most vulnerable groups and have already suffered greatly.

We condemn the terrorist acts committed by ISIL, and we actively support efforts to determine whether some of the acts committed by ISIL constitute genocide.

No one is disputing that ISIL has committed many abuses of international human rights and violations of international humanitarian law. The motion put before the House, however, fails to reflect the need to complete an independent investigation of the facts being gathered about ISIL's crimes and to then present these facts to a competent court or tribunal.

No one uses the word genocide lightly. That is why Canada has supported the efforts of the United Nations and civil society organizations to document and investigate crimes committed in ISIL-affected areas. Canada and our partners must continue to work at this on multiple fronts, assembling evidence and supporting judicial processes, while we work toward reducing suffering and stifling this horrendous conflict. This is the right way to go about holding ISIL accountable.

Our strategy is designed to put an end to ISIL's brutality, to address the terrible humanitarian crisis, and to contribute to political solutions and stability in the region.

Canada is investing $1.6 billion over three years to respond to the crises in Iraq and Syria and to address their effects on Lebanon, Jordan, and the wider region. Implementation of the strategy is under way in Canada and abroad. We are going far beyond that of the former government.

We believe that this strategy provides strong support, as well, for the brave men and women engaged in the fight against ISIL. Our efforts in the region strengthen the resilience of local populations, institutions, and legitimate governance actors because it is they who confront and manage the challenges associated with extremism and conflict. This is how our efforts will succeed.

Conflict prevention and resolution depend on many factors. Chief among them are the promotion and protection of human rights. On May 17, we announced the creation of the Office of Human Rights, Freedoms and Inclusion. The new office expands on the work undertaken by the former office of religious freedom. It is yet another example of how proactive our government is in including all human rights. The integration of freedom of religion or belief within a broader human rights framework provides Canada with additional ways to advocate for all rights and freedoms.

Extremism flourishes in non-inclusive environments that lack respect for diversity and difference, that lack respect for human rights. Under our new international human rights framework, we are continuing our policy, advocacy, and programming work to promote freedom of religion or belief in Iraq, Syria, and around the world.

The budget dedicated to the promotion of human rights is $15 million. That is three times the amount originally committed for the former office of religious freedom.

Canada has taken concrete action to stop ISIL and the scourge of extremism. With respect to the military, Canada's refuelling and surveillance aircraft continue to provide air support and intelligence gathering capabilities, which are invaluable to the coalition's military operations.

Canada and other coalition members are also providing strategic training for Iraqi security forces in order to help them plan and conduct their own operations against ISIL.

Canada is tripling the number of personnel assigned to its train, advise, and assist mission to help Kurdish security forces in northern Iraq. Efforts to strengthen the capacity of local security forces will improve their effectiveness against ISIL and provide long-term security for the Iraqi people.

It should also be noted that Canada is one of a few members of the coalition contributing to all the goals, namely stemming the flow of foreign fighters, cutting off funding for ISIS, countering the organization's propaganda, and contributing to security and stabilization in the region.

Canada supports a full judicial investigation into ISIL's crimes and endorses calls for the UN Security Council to refer these crimes to the International Criminal Court. This is why Canada has requested that the UN Security Council establish a mechanism to investigate violations of international law by ISIL in Iraq and Syria to determine whether these violations constitute acts of genocide or other serious international crimes, to identify the perpetrators of such crimes, and to identify measures to ensure accountability, including a referral to the International Criminal Court.

One week ago, on May 30, our Minister of Foreign Affairs wrote a letter to the president of the UN Security Council that states:

In March 2015, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights released a report, which concluded that there is evidence to suggest that ISIL may have committed war crimes, crimes against humanity, and genocide in Iraq. The report called for an independent investigation and for the Security Council to consider referring the situation to the International Criminal Court. The Government of Canada agrees with the recommendations made in the report.... We, therefore, ask the Security Council to act pursuant to its primary responsibility for the maintenance of international peace and security by establishing a mechanism to investigate reports of violations of international law by ISIL in Iraq and Syria...

Canada is also deploying additional diplomatic resources in the region. We have made strong statements in February before the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva on the situation of conflict-affected populations in Syria, especially including the situation of women. We have given our support to ensure that the voices of women are properly reflected in Syrian peace talks and high-level engagement with the Syrian opposition. We have been present for the last three rounds of UN-led intra-Syrian peace talks in Geneva.

It is important to correct the record as stated by the opposition. The vote in the U.S. was by Congress and has not gone any further. The vote in the U.K. did not have any members of cabinet there. The vote in the EU was a motion, and the governments are not acting. We are following through, as reflected in the letter by our Minister of Foreign Affairs.

Civilians are the first victims of these conflicts and of the ISIL scourge. Canada is among the major contributors of humanitarian aid in the Middle East region, and we continue to respond immediately to the essential needs of civilian populations affected by ISIL.

On September 12, 2015, the Government of Canada also launched the Syria emergency relief fund to support humanitarian relief efforts. Since then, we have matched that and more. Those who are most affected by the crisis, notably women and children, are the greatest beneficiaries.

Nor should we forget the incredible efforts that Canada and Canadians have dedicated toward the resettlement of Syrian refugees in this country. The Government of Canada, working with Canadians, private sponsors, non-governmental organizations, and provincial, territorial, and municipal governments have welcomed more than 25,000 Syrian refugees since November 2015.

Given that the original initiative included privately sponsored refugees, more government-supported refugees will be settled to meet a specific target of 25,000 government-supported Syrian refugees.

Our development assistance is helping governments, communities, and families hosting those affected by the conflict by providing them with adequate services and helping to rebuild infrastructure. It is helping to create jobs for parents and ensuring that children go to school. We are identifying the children who are not going to school, and supporting them every step of the way.

We cannot meet the essential short-term needs of those affected by conflict, particularly the most vulnerable minority groups, unless we also build and maintain the resilience of communities hosting refugees and displaced persons. Over 600,000 Syrians have fled to Jordan, and over 1.2 million to Lebanon in the past three years. We know that Jordan and Lebanon are suffering under this huge burden, and so are their infrastructures and services. We must help to avoid a situation in which host populations and displaced persons are competing for resources.

Among those who have been targeted, of course, are women, girls, and gender minorities. There is growing recognition of the need to involve women and gender perspectives in responses to this immediate threat. The inclusion of women in all stages of conflict and peace-building processes proves to be an underutilized but immensely effective method of reducing radicalism and violent extremism.

The inclusion of women must be a part of our own comprehensive strategy, recognizing that women and girls are particularly vulnerable and suffering from the atrocities at the hands of ISIL. We know women are bearing an increasing burden of the conflict.

In Jordan, for example, our development assistance will build the capacities of vulnerable women and youth, empowering them to care for themselves and their families, and to work. Just last month while I was at the Women in Parliaments Global Summit in Amman, Jordan, I announced, on behalf of the Minister of International Development and La Francophonie, a $16-million project to support the empowerment of women in decision-making in the Middle East. Canada is recognized for its leadership in that regard.

The evidence is clear, the inclusion of women leads to more sustainable peace and enhanced prevention efforts. When proper funding, committed and viable leadership, inclusive rights-based and gender-equal processes and plans are in place, tangible results for security and stability are achieved.

We know that sexual violence plays a prominent role in the insecurity that ISIL inflicts. The UN Secretary General's April 2016 report on conflict-related sexual violence provides ample evidence of the ways in which ISIL uses sexual violence, notably against Yazidi women in the areas it controls. We have witness accounts from survivors of rape, sexual torture, and sexual harassment.

As territory is retaken from ISIL, evidence of these horrible crimes continues to emerge. The UN Secretary General's special representative for Iraq told the Security Council last week that more than 50 mass graves have been discovered so far in several areas of Iraq. It is precisely for this reason that Canada has supported organizations that are investigating and documenting sexual violence crimes and other abuses by ISIL.

These efforts are invaluable. It is these organizations that will assist all of us in holding those responsible to account.

In a response to a request from its coalition partners, Canada is also coordinating stabilization efforts connected to gender equality matters. We are working with our coalition partners, including the government of Iraq and the United Nations Development Programme, to ensure that the coalition's stabilization efforts consider input from women and gender equality considerations.

To that end, Canada supports the removal of explosive remnants of war so that communities can get on with their lives. Furthermore, Canada provides technical support to local authorities to help restore the rule of law. To help reduce the risk that ISIL and other extremist groups acquire and use chemical and biological weapons, Canada is helping Iraq improve its methods of combatting this type of weapon.

Our assistance to Jordan will help it to counter terrorist groups like ISIL while integrating human rights and rule of law standards into its investigation and enforcement activities. Working in co-operation with Jordanian officials, we are building resilience against radicalization.

As part of our strategy, on May 5 our government announced the signature of a new memorandum of co-operation with Jordan on security and stabilization. The memorandum of understanding lays out our framework for co-operation in which the two countries agree to collaborate in addressing the challenges faced by Jordan. This is doing more.

With respect to Syria, Canada seizes every opportunity to find a political solution to the conflict, including support for efforts to counter ISIL's narrative in ISIL-controlled territories. Canada, through the global partnership program, has recently contributed over $6 million to the Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons towards investigating chemical weapons use as well as the verification, monitoring, and destruction of chemical weapons.

By helping those responsible for local governance in Iraq and Syria provide essential services, our strategy helps civilians return to areas that have been liberated by ISIL. We help to prevent violent extremist organizations from exploiting the political vacuum created when local authorities are unable to provide citizens with essential services.

Canada's strategic programming greatly contributes to the coalition's efforts to weaken ISIL, restore stability, and promote regional security.

Canada is acting as a reliable, responsible contributor to security in the region. Canada is acting as a reliable and responsible contributor to holding ISIL accountable for crimes against humanity. This is comprehensive. We are following through. We are not using terms lightly. We are confident that ISIL will be held responsible by the world.

[Harold Albrecht, Conservative, Kitchener—Conestoga, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I had the privilege of visiting Juno Beach about seven years ago, and I have also visited Armenia a number of times. I know my colleague from Cambridge recently came back from Armenia, where we have seen first-hand the effects of a genocide. Unfortunately, the current Parliament and government took too long to identify what happened in Armenia as a genocide.

We have heard today comments about strong statements that were made and letters that were written. However, my question is this. Will we wait for 50 years to identify what is happening in Iraq and Syria? Or, will we take action to name it what it is, a genocide, and then, because we are naming it what it is, take action to stand beside innocent civilians who are being raped and killed and actually having these pictures portrayed on Youtube? How can we stand by as Canadians and not do more?

[Pam Goldsmith-Jones, Liberal, West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, other governments have not recognized that genocide has occurred, as the Conservative motion holds, against Christians and Shia Muslims. I would like to know why the previous government did not recognize that genocide has occurred, as the Conservatives today hold, against Christians and Shia Muslims.

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

Mr. Speaker, what is very disturbing today in the debate, both from the Conservatives and the Liberals, if we are talking about the brutal crimes that are being conducted, is this fiction that in Syria local authorities are unable to provide safety, as the minister said something about. We have seen no mention of the murderous regime of Bashar al-Assad: the torture and killing of thousands under his watch, the fact that the regime has used barrel-bomb attacks against civilians. They talk about chemical weapons only in the context of ISIL, which is a brutal barbaric gang, when Bashar al-Assad has already been found to use them.

I want to ask the member this. Both Russia and China, on the Security Council, have blocked attempts to have international investigation of crimes by the regime of Bashar al-Assad so that all participants in the brutality that is happening in Syria will be held accountable. What will the current government do to stand up and say that all those who commit crimes against humanity will be held accountable, including the regime of Bashar al-Assad in Syria today?

[Pam Goldsmith-Jones, Liberal, West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, perhaps my hon. colleague is not listening. Canada is funding the very groups on the ground who are documenting this, so that we can hold those who perpetuate these atrocities accountable.

[Adam Vaughan, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Prime Minister (Intergovernmental Affairs)]

Mr. Speaker, I listened to the presentations from the side opposite, particularly from the Conservative Party, and there is this sense that simply uttering a word is going to save a life; that simply uttering a word is going to suddenly transform action on the ground; that simply uttering a word, instead of taking direct action of landing more refugees, of providing more supplies on the ground to confront ISIL, of putting more action in place in terms of pursuing this legally through the appropriate international channels, is good enough. In the same way that simply saying that the CF-18s will stop something by flying overhead, it is absurd.

Why does the member think the other side prefers a single word to concrete action that is actually effective and being requested by the partners who are confronting this terrible situation?

[Pam Goldsmith-Jones, Liberal, West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I was listening, because I thought that was a very apt description of how complicated and complex the problem is and, by turn, how complicated and complex the Government of Canada's plan for responding is. I am at a loss to understand why the previous government did not just call this genocide. It is pretending that it did, but it did not. Do members know why? It is because the Conservatives could not attack the problem in the way we are. We are there. We are supporting the intelligence. We are supporting communities. That is partly how we gather what we need to hold ISIL accountable.

[Garnett Genuis, Conservative, Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, AB]

Mr. Speaker, the only thing worse than using legalese to mask moral cowardice is using bad and misinformed legalese to mask moral cowardice.

The member has talked about the International Criminal Court. She well knows that every single member of the European Union is also a signatory to the Rome Statute with respect to the international court. The member knows that. These are transparent efforts to construct non-existent legal norms. We have every right to do it. We have a moral responsibility to identify this as genocide and all of the evidence is clear.

Will the member at least, if she wants to oppose the motion, give her real reasons, instead of hiding behind this nonsense, which does not at all resemble a realistic description of her international legal obligations?

[Pam Goldsmith-Jones, Liberal, West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is an outrageous statement to call this nonsense. Canada is viewed and recognized and respected for the leadership role it is playing with regard to the fight against ISIL; with regard to supporting local communities, women, and children; with regard to resettling Syrian refugees; and particularly, with regard to going through the proper steps to ensure that ISIL is held accountable for its crimes against humanity.

[Hélène Laverdière, NDP, Laurier—Sainte-Marie, QC]

Mr. Speaker, in May 2015, the government announced that Canada would provide $1.2 million over one year to support accountability and transitional justice activities.

Since that one-year period is almost up, what kind of funding will the Government of Canada offer to investigate what is going on in Syria and Iraq and to collect evidence?

[Pam Goldsmith-Jones, Liberal, West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, we have put several million dollars toward that effort. It matters. As we find these graves, and more and more come to light every day, the fact that we are there matters. We are not shying away from this responsibility. In fact, if anything, we are holding ourselves to a high standard, one that Canadians can be proud of and that the member opposite can be proud of. I know that she will be helpful in that regard.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the words that the parliamentary secretary has put on the record regarding where the Government of Canada is on this issue.

One thing I found interesting in her comments was the type of support that is actually behind the motion the Conservatives put forward today. The Conservatives tend to want to give the impression, for example, that the United States is behind declaring this a genocide. To the best of my knowledge, I do not believe President Obama has called it genocide.

The Conservatives were in government not that long ago. I am wondering why they did not bring forward a resolution to call it genocide when they were in government.

[Pam Goldsmith-Jones, Liberal, West Vancouver—Sunshine Coast—Sea to Sky Country, BC]

Mr. Speaker, the opposition throws around decisions made by states as though they are fact. I would like to correct the record.

In the U.K., the vote was taken without a single member of cabinet and the government's response has been to call for an investigation. Canada is acting in concert with its ally. In the U.S., Congress voted but the U.S. government has not recognized it. In the EU, there was a motion but governments have not recognized it. The UN special adviser on the prevention of genocide has said it is very important to have an investigation.