Madam Speaker, the word “genocide” is a very powerful word. It is so powerful that we can only use it in very specific circumstances, lest we cheapen its value. When we look at what ISIS tried to do to the Yazidi people, with the horrific trauma, the torture, the killing, and the mass rapes, it meets the test of genocide. When something meets the test of genocide, it says to the international community that its obligations become heightened because of it.
I am very thankful that we are having this discussion on this 79th anniversary of Canada rejecting the Jewish refugees on that ship who begged for support. How does my hon. colleague respond to this notion that the government is good, the government cares and the government is trying, and therefore, the government should be thanked for the inaction we have seen on the horrific crisis facing the Yazidi community?
We need to stand up. Clearly, we need to move more quickly. We need to use whatever resources are necessary for reunification for a community that has done no wrong and has suffered some of the gravest crimes imaginable.
What does my colleague think this Parliament needs to do to follow through on that word “genocide” and prevent it so that it will never happen again?