Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to present a petition today signed by Canadians in the Maritimes and on the west coast that touches on the condition of barrenness. Barrenness is the inability of women and men to conceive children or successfully produce them. It affects approximately 100 million couples worldwide.
The petitioners are calling on the government to take a lead role in raising awareness about the social and health issue of barrenness in Canada and internationally. They also call on the government to take a leadership role in the inclusion of barrenness and the treatment of people with barrenness. Oftentimes there is a social stigma both within Canada and otherwise, so the petitioners ask to have the people who are living with that condition recognized in the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights.