Mr. Speaker, as we mark the 70th anniversary of Sri Lanka's independence, I rise to highlight the long and checkered history of the island. For so long, Tamils on this island faced an abysmal human rights situation. They were excluded from the nation-building process and rendered second-class citizens from its inception. The government mandated discrimination and denied employment, education, citizenship, and fundamental rights on the basis of being Tamil.
The UN estimates that approximately 40,000 Tamil civilians were killed during the last months of the 26-year armed conflict. In addition, 18,000 to 20,000 men, women, and children went missing, and Tamil-owned land continues to be in the hands of the Sri Lankan military.
I stand with our Tamil Canadian community to call on the current government in Sri Lanka to honour its commitment to fully implement UN Resolution 30/1 and ensure a process of accountability that will have the trust and confidence of its victims.