Debates of May 17th, 2017

Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development—Main Estimates, 2016-17

[Celina Caesar-Chavannes, Liberal, Whitby, ON]

Madam Chair, could the minister briefly touch on what Canada is doing to address the unprecedented humanitarian crisis with the famine that is going on in Sudan and Yemen?

[Marie-Claude Bibeau, Liberal, Compton—Stanstead, QC]

Madam Chair, Canada has committed $120 million to help the four countries most affected by the famine.

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

Madam Chair, I will be using my time to ask questions, and I want to start with a really easy one.

Saudi Arabia was just elected to the UN women's rights commission. On balance, does the minister think that is a good thing or a bad thing?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, it is really late and we have already had mention of the Senators and the Leafs. I went to high school in Edmonton and my heart was broken when the Oilers were knocked out last Wednesday—

[The Deputy Chair, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The hon. member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan.

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

Madam Chair, I appreciate the collegiality and the hockey references, but we only have 15 minutes. I want to get through some really substantive stuff, with all due respect.

Having Saudi Arabia on the UN women's rights commission, is that a good thing or a bad thing in the view of the Minister of Foreign Affairs?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, I want to assure the member opposite that none of his constituents will mind us talking about the Oilers.

Saudi Arabia's membership on the Commission on the Status of Women was chosen by the United Nations Economic and Social Council. Canada, as the member opposite knows well—

[The Deputy Chair, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The hon. member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan.

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

Madam Chair, I do not know how far we are going to get. Maybe I will ask the same question over and over again, like last week in question period.

In the minister's view, is it a good thing or a bad thing that Saudi Arabia is on the UN women's human rights commission?

[The Deputy Chair, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The hon. minister has 12 seconds.

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, as I was explaining, we are not on the UN Economic and Social Council, so we did not have a vote. Saudi Arabia's regional candidacy was not contested.

That said, we are going to be very clear. We will never hesitate to—

[The Deputy Chair, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The hon. member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan.

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

Madam Chair, I think the record will show whether the minister answered, but I have other things I want to ask about.

I gave the minister advance notice on Twitter that I would be asking this question: has the Prime Minister directly contacted Aung San Suu Kyi to raise the issue of ethnic cleansing of Rohingya in Burma, and if he has not, will he?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, I am personally very seized with the issue of the Rohingya. It is something I am very focused on. In fact, shortly after becoming minister, I made a point of getting in touch with the UN special rapporteur on this issue, Professor Yanghee Lee. It is something Canada and my department are focused on. We have provided $4.3 million in support. We are on this one.

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

Madam Chair, I asked this question of the Prime Minister last week. He did not answer. I asked it again and I do not think I heard an answer.

Will the Prime Minister contact Aung San Suu Kyi to raise this issue? Is the Prime Minister willing to engage on this issue? It is an issue of ethnic cleansing of a religious minority in Burma. I think it is important enough for it to be engaged at that level.

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, let me speak for myself and my own engagement. This is something I am absolutely focused on. I have taken a direct personal interest and have spoken with people who are directly focused on this issue. My department is supporting the Rohingya refugees. They are, indeed, a persecuted ethnic and religious minority, and they have Canada's support.

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

Madam Chair, has the minister raised this issue with her counterpart in Burma?

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, we as a government have been very focused on this issue with our counterparts around the world, at the UN and diplomatically.

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

Madam Chair, that question could have been answered with a yes or a no, and it was not, but I want to move on to Sri Lanka.

With respect to Sri Lanka, the Liberals promised during the last election to push hard for accountability for human rights abuses, for a long-term political solution that respects basic human rights, and for action to support victims.

It has been almost two years. I want to know concretely what steps the government has taken to implement its election commitments with respect to justice in Sri Lanka.

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, I very much share the concern of the member opposite for justice in Sri Lanka, and we have many members in this House, including active members in our own caucus, who are extremely focused on it. It is something that our officials are working at, that our MPs are working at, that we have been focused on in international fora and directly.

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

Madam Chair, I am grateful for the concern and empathy of the minister, but I asked specifically what action the government has taken, after almost two years in power, to implement specific election commitments with respect to justice in Sri Lanka.

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, I think I was very clear. The issue of justice in Sri Lanka is one that our government is very focused on, that members of my caucus have been extremely active on, that I have instructed my officials to work on very—

[The Deputy Chair, NDP, Carol Hughes]

The hon. member for Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan.

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

Madam Chair, again the minister's concern is not sufficient. I wanted to know what action was taken on that, and unfortunately we did not hear an answer.

In supplementary estimates (C) from 2016-17, there is an item of approximately $18 million allotted for loan forgiveness to Cuba. These are Canadian tax dollars that are going, effectively, to the Cuban government. I would like to hear from the Minister of Foreign Affairs as to why that is a justifiable expenditure for taxpayers.

[Chrystia Freeland, Liberal, University—Rosedale, ON]

Madam Chair, I thought the member opposite or one of the members opposite might ask about that.

As the member may well know, this is an old loan dating back to 1975. In 1982, Cuba began repayment, but stopped making payments in 1986 because of the financial situation. In December of 2015, members of the Paris Club creditors, a group that includes allies such as the U.K., Australia, France, and Japan, decided that the thing to do was to reach an agreement with Cuba to forgive the debt. We—