Mr. Speaker, this week, the Yazidi people will observe Eda Rojiet Ezi, a three-day fast that all Yazidis are expected to observe. Fasting occurs from dawn until sunset, and the nights are given to family time and prayer.
This is a time for Yazidis to connect with the divine, celebrate, and spend time with family and friends. During this time, Yazidis will also give back to those less fortunate and, I am told, will spend time reflecting on their many blessings.
To acknowledge that the Yazidi community has been through much in the last three years does not do justice to the atrocities that have been committed against the Yazidi people and that are ongoing. However, it is in defiance of their oppressors that many Yazidis will celebrate the feast this year. I have been told that this year it will be celebrated as a declaration that the Yazidi people have not, and will not, be defeated.
In this, I ask all Canadians to share this message and to stand behind the Yazidi community in solidarity and love as it marks this feast.