Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my hon. colleague for his passion. I agree with him on one thing. We are all inspired by the determination of the Iranian people and their effort to seek a democratic, freedom-loving state and government. He will understand why I take exception to many of the characterizations in his speech.
I enjoy his passion for the promotion of human rights. I respect his desire to see justice and equality all over the world, but I also remind myself of the partisan jabs that he takes, which sometimes undermine his credibility and his argument.
Let me reiterate. Our government has been extremely clear about our position toward the Iranian regime. Our government continues to lead an annual UN resolution on the situation in Iran and calls for the Iranian government to uphold its obligations, domestically and internationally. This is an annual resolution at the United Nations that our government leads.
We have been very clear with the Iranian government in calling for it to allow people to protest, to call for democratic reforms, and to call for free elections. Our government was one of the first governments in the world to speak in support of freedom of assembly in Iran during the latest protest, which the hon. colleague mentioned.
I know the member was not part of the former government, but when the Conservatives were in charge, they had a lot of posturing but did nothing to help the Iranian people. They were not able to move the needle an inch.
We have spoken with many Canadians who have relations with Iran and interests there. They have been asking us to continue to speak up clearly for human rights, but they are also asking us to make sure that we represent their interests in Iran to the Iranian regime.
We have been very clear and consistent. We want to have the ability to speak directly with the Iranian regime. We have also been clear in condemning it for supporting terrorism and for its destabilization efforts in the region. We have been very clear in condemning it for supporting the Assad regime and what it has been doing in Syria.
We have loudly condemned the death of a Canadian citizen in Iranian detention. We have called, and will continue to call, for an independent, transparent investigation into the circumstances of his death. Today, we will continue to call for allowing his widow, Maryam Mombeini, to leave Iran and to be reunited with her family here in Canada.
I welcome my hon. colleague's input and feedback, but we have been very clear. We will not compromise the interests of Canadians, and we will not compromise the promotion of human rights in Iran and around the world.