Debates of Feb. 18th, 2021

Opposition Motion—Religious Minorities in China

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Minister of Foreign Affairs]

Madam Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House today to speak to the motion moved by my colleague, the member for Wellington—Halton Hills.

I want to first start by saying unequivocally that Canada will always advocate and stand up for human rights around the world. We are deeply concerned by reports of human rights violations in China against the Uighur minority and other ethnic minorities, and we will continue to voice our grave concerns regarding the situation in Xinjiang.

I welcome today's debate and the opportunity to discuss our actions to date.

We know that our relationship with China is an important and complex one, which is why we go into it with our eyes wide open. Although China is a key economic player and could be a major partner in, for instance, the fight against climate change, we need to see China as it is now and not how we want it to be. Indeed, China has changed a lot over the past five years.

I know that Canadians share our government's serious concerns about Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor being arbitrarily detained and Robert Schellenberg being arbitrarily sentenced to death. Furthermore, the ongoing crackdown on fundamental political freedoms in Hong Kong and the widespread human rights violations happening in Xinjiang and Tibet are inconsistent with Canadian values and interests and with China's international obligations. The Government of Canada continues to raise these issues with the Chinese government at all levels, and we are not alone. A growing number of members of the international community are calling on China to make changes.

China must recognize that its actions are damaging its reputation in the eyes of the whole world. Defying long-standing international standards and principles sends a negative message to the international community and undermines the trust that is essential to any relationship.

Our government's top priority is to safeguard and protect the rules-based international order. We will continue to work with our international partners to defend fundamental human rights and freedoms, as well as the guiding principles that shape our international political relationships. To that end, promoting and protecting human rights is an integral part of Canada's foreign policy and will continue to guide the Government of Canada's engagement with China. We will vigorously defend Canadian values and the fundamental rights and freedoms of people around the world in all their diversity.

As Canada's new Minister of Foreign Affairs, my top priority is securing the release of Michael Kovrig and Michael Spavor, who are being arbitrarily detained. Our government is working tirelessly to secure their immediate release. These men have been detained for more than two years now, two years that have been stolen from them, their families and their loved ones. They must be brought home.

Canada will continue to advocate for their release at every opportunity both directly with Chinese authorities and with our friends and allies on the world stage. In fact, on Monday, I stood with nearly 60 countries at the launch of the Declaration Against Arbitrary Detention in State-to-State Relations. This illegal and immoral practice undermines the rule of law and it needs to stop. Though this declaration is not aimed at any particular country, it is in fact practised by too many. The message to our Michaels and others around the world was clear: They are not alone.

The promotion and protection of human rights is an integral part of Canadian foreign policy and it will continue to guide the Government of Canada's engagement with China.

Canada is deeply concerned about the repression and ongoing targeting of ethnic minorities, religious groups and vulnerable groups in China, including Tibetan Buddhists, the Uighurs and other Muslims, Falun Gong practitioners and many others.

Canada has expressed its concerns about the shrinking space for civil society in China. The continuing increase in actions against human rights defenders, including lawyers, journalists and civil society actors, is also worrisome. We have consistently called on China to honour its international commitments to protect and promote the freedom of opinion and expression, freedom of assembly and association, and freedom of religion or belief of all Chinese citizens. Canada will continue to raise these issues at every opportunity.

In recent years, Canada has observed a steady and significant decline in the fundamental rights and freedoms that the people of Hong Kong should have. China's inability to implement a more inclusive political system has led many Hong Kong residents to revolt. Unfortunately, the authorities have continued to suppress rights and freedoms in Hong Kong.

On July 1, 2020, the Chinese central government imposed national security legislation on Hong Kong without the participation of Hong Kong's own institutions. This legislation was enacted in a secretive process, without the participation of Hong Kong's legislature, judiciary or people, and in violation of international obligations. This process demonstrated a lack of respect for Hong Kong's basic law and the high degree of autonomy promised to Hong Kong under the one country, two systems principle.

On July 3, shortly after the law was imposed, Canada announced a series of measures: We suspended our extradition treaty with Hong Kong; we are now treating exports of sensitive goods to Hong Kong in the same way as those destined for China; we will not permit the export of sensitive military items to Hong Kong; and we have updated our advisories for travel to Hong Kong due to the risks of arbitrary enforcement of local laws and civil unrest.

On November 12 my colleague, the Minister of Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship, announced new immigration measures to attract young people from Hong Kong to Canada by offering them a new open work permit and making it easier for them to obtain permanent resident status. On February 4, 2021, he announced that residents of Hong Kong could apply for a new open work permit and he indicated that the Government of Canada was committed to implementing two other avenues for accessing permanent residency for young residents of Hong Kong.

As a committed friend with a lasting interest in the prosperity and long-term well being of the people of Hong Kong, Canada will continue to work with its foreign partners to—

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, NDP, Carol Hughes]

I apologize for interrupting the minister. The hon. member for Manicouagan is rising on a point of order.

[Marilène Gill, Bloc, Manicouagan, QC]

Madam Speaker, I have been listening to the minister, and it seems to me that he is not talking about the matter before us. Most of his remarks pertain to the situation in Hong Kong, but today we are talking about the Uighurs. I just wanted to bring that to the Chair's attention.

[The Assistant Deputy Speaker, NDP, Carol Hughes]

I thank the hon. member for her comments. As she knows, we grant a certain degree of latitude during these discussions. I am sure the hon. minister will take note of the member's comments and ensure that his remarks are germane to the motion we are debating today.

The hon. minister.

The minister's speech is relevant to the motion that is being debated.

The hon. minister.

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount, QC]

Thank you, Madam Speaker. My speech is relevant to what we are debating today, and I would ask my colleague to be a bit patient. We will get there.

As a loyal friend with a long-standing interest in the long-term prosperity and well-being of the people of Hong Kong, Canada will continue to work with its foreign partners to persuade China to respect its international obligations in relation to Hong Kong.

Canada has called on China to respect, protect and promote freedom of expression, assembly and association, as well as freedom of religion or belief, for all individuals. The restrictions of these freedoms for Tibetans living in China as well as the destruction of historic buildings and temples are cause for great concern. Canadian officials regularly discuss concerns regarding the treatment of Tibetans in China, and in Canada with our Chinese counterparts.

As I said at the beginning, the Government of Canada is gravely concerned about the human rights situation affecting Uighurs and other ethnic minorities in Xinjiang. I would like to acknowledge the work by the Subcommittee on International Human Rights on the human rights of the Uighurs, including the brave testimony from survivors and civil society representatives on this issue.

We have already been very clear: Canada takes allegations of genocide very seriously and I take these allegations very seriously. This includes testimony from survivors, leaked government documents, and credible allegations and reports of mass arbitrary detention, repressive surveillance, forced labour, forced sterilization, torture and other mistreatments affecting Uighurs and other ethnic minorities.

As I have repeatedly stated, China must provide unfettered access to the region without delay. We continue to call for an international investigation in response to serious and deeply concerning allegations of genocide. Regardless of whether that access is provided, the international community has to work together in order to investigate the egregious human rights abuses taking place in Xinjiang. It is clear from the available evidence that serious and credible human rights violations are occurring in Xinjiang. The nature and scale of these abuses are alarming.

That is why this government has taken and will continue to take action. We will do this with single-mindedness working with our international partners. We have raised these issues bilaterally with the Chinese government at all levels. Canada has also raised on numerous occasions the specific human rights situation in Xinjiang. In October 2020, Canada, along with 39 other countries at the U.N., expressed its grave concerns regarding the situation in Xinjiang.

On January 12, we announced that the Government of Canada is adopting a comprehensive approach to addressing human rights abuses in Xinjiang, including measures to address forced labour. We announced a robust suite of measures that have placed Canada at the forefront of the global response to human rights concerns in Xinjiang, including the prohibition of imports into Canada of goods made in whole or in part with forced labour, and a business integrity declaration for Canadian exporters.

Global Affairs Canada will continue to work closely with Canadian firms doing business in or with China to make sure that their officials understand and mitigate the risks of doing business with entities possibly implicated in forced labour. We will also continue to work with our international partners and raise our concerns about the human rights situation in Xinjiang, and to call on China to live up to its international obligations.

In closing, I would like to emphasize that we must and we will continue to coexist with China. We will compete with China, using our innovative businesses, people and abundant resources. We will co-operate on global challenges like climate change, and we will challenge China when human rights are being violated.

As the ground beneath us shifts, this government will continue to evolve its approach to China. As we do, we will always put the safety and security of Canadians first and be firmly guided by our interests, our fundamental values and principles, as well as global rules and strategic partnerships.

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

Madam Speaker, I disagree with a lot of what the minister said on the government's response on the China file more broadly. However, this debate, as he should know, is about a specific issue, namely a legal finding of genocide corresponding to the data, the opinion of experts and the testimony of survivors. Our partners are already moving, including two U.S. administrations. Canada would not be the first, but we do not have to be the last. Working multilaterally should not be an excuse to do nothing and act last.

I have some specific questions for the minister on issues that he should have addressed in his remarks, but did not. Has the minister been briefed on the existing reports and legal findings by experts with respect to genocide? Does he agree with their conclusions and will he support this motion?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount, QC]

Madam Speaker, I want to say again very clearly, and I have stated this on many occasions, that we are gravely preoccupied with the host of egregious reports and allegations made with respect to the treatment of Uighurs and other ethnic minorities. We have urged China to allow impartial, independent experts to go in and look at it. If there is nothing to worry about, then there should not be a problem with looking at it.

Finally, as I said a number of times in my speech, we are working with our international partners. We have a body of evidence here in Canada and are working with our international partners to understand fully the extent to which the allegations are justified and correct.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Madam Speaker, we were just treated to quite a string of words that were meant simply to evade the question of whether the Minister of Foreign Affairs supports the motion.

The minister's Liberal colleagues who sit on the Subcommittee on International Human Rights have used the term “genocide”. Three of his Liberal colleagues have signed an open letter that was released on February 6 entitled “The Games of Shame” that also uses the term “genocide”. To make this as clear as possible, does the Minister of Foreign Affairs support the position of his colleagues who are calling the treatment of the Uighurs in Xinjiang “genocide”?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount, QC]

Madam Speaker, to answer my colleague's question, our government has a responsibility to make decisions and to make certain determinations. That is what we are doing right now and, as I have mentioned, we are deeply concerned about all the information we have received from credible sources.

We are currently studying and analyzing the situation, and doing so with our international partners. Before coming to any conclusions, it is particularly important to draw upon all the expertise that exists in Canada, as well as expertise in other countries, which is what we are doing. Meanwhile, we encourage China to open up and provide access to a group of independent observers to examine the situation in Xinjiang.

[Charlie Angus, NDP, Timmins—James Bay, ON]

Madam Speaker, it is very important for us to discuss human rights in this chamber. When I heard the minister talk about Canada's commitment to human rights and to keeping Canadians safe, I was thinking of the people of Eabametoong First Nation this morning, who are living in tents. It has been -45 degrees and they are living in shacks and homes overrun with mould and bugs. They have gone 20 years without access to safe water. I am sure the hon. minister knows that under the United Nations commitments Canada made, access to water is a human right, as is access to safe housing.

Given the fact that people are going to die in Eabametoong/Fort Hope if we do not get emergency housing in there, why has the Liberal government done nothing to help this community?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount, QC]

Madam Speaker, I reject the allegation that this government has done nothing. We are the first government to commit not only to reconciliation but also to correcting many of the wrongs that exist with respect to indigenous peoples, and we did so as soon as we came to power in 2015. Incidentally, this is something we could have started about 10 years earlier if the NDP had not blocked our motion when the Kelowna accord was being discussed.

[Michael Chong, Conservative, Wellington—Halton Hills, ON]

Madam Speaker, does the minister worry that equivocation in response to China's belligerence and threats, its detention of Mr. Kovrig and Mr. Spavor and condemnation to death of Mr. Schellenberg, sends a message to China that these threats and this belligerence works?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount, QC]

Madam Speaker, I very much appreciate the question from my colleague, which is complex and one that I assure him our government is seized with.

We are examining all of the evidence that has been provided, and we will continue to do that in concert with other countries. I believe that my colleague for Wellington—Halton Hills said that, yes, we should be working with other countries, and that is precisely what we are doing at the moment.

This file will not go away. We will continue to deepen our knowledge of exactly what is happening, and we will do it in partnership with other countries.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the President of the Queen’s Privy Council for Canada and to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Madam Speaker, I appreciate the minister's comments, and I want to pick up on the point of international partners and just how important that is.

Canada alone has a voice, but in working with other countries, that voice is enhanced. Could the minister provide his thoughts on why it is so important that we have those international partners and how that gives further strength to Canada's voice?

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount, QC]

Madam Speaker, I would point out that earlier this week, the declaration against arbitrary detention in state-to-state relations, a Canadian initiative, was brought forward. We, as a country, feel that it is better for us to approach issues on a multilateral basis on certain issues, and that is why we are working in concert with international partners on this very legitimate point that has been brought up today in debate.

We are happy to participate in this debate on this extremely serious subject, but it is also important for Canada to work with its international partners to move this particular issue forward to arrive at a final determination.

[Elizabeth May, Green, Saanich—Gulf Islands, BC]

Madam Speaker, I recall back in 1996 when former Prime Minister Jean Chrétien signed a deal to sell nuclear reactors to the People's Republic of China, and we gave it the money to buy our reactors. The prime minister at that time said that engagement with China would help our values rub off on them. However, I have been concerned ever since that its values have rubbed off on us: We are more secretive now, and the former government under Stephen Harper signed, in secret, the Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement with the People's Republic of China, which means that we could be being sued right now in secret tribunals about which this Parliament knows nothing.

By the way, I congratulate the minister on his new role as Minister of Foreign Affairs, but I would ask if he would undertake to allow a full debate in Parliament and review of how much sovereignty we have lost under the foreign investment protection treaty with the People's Republic of China, which operates entirely in secret.

[Marc Garneau, Liberal, Notre-Dame-de-Grâce—Westmount, QC]

Madam Speaker, I will answer the point generally by saying that the China of 1996 and even the China of 2016 is not the China of 2021, which is why our policies with respect to China, whether these apply to foreign investment, trade or human rights, is evolving.

As I have said on many occasions, we must coexist with China, and in some areas we will co-operate, but in some areas we will challenge them and in some areas we will compete with them. This is part of our evolving policies with respect to China, and in all matters, as times change, these can legitimately be reviewed.

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Montarville, QC]

Madam Speaker, first I would like to state that I will be sharing my time with my esteemed colleague from Lac-Saint-Jean. I would also like to congratulate him today for the leadership he has shown on this file at the Subcommittee on International Human Rights of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development and also for spearheading an open letter entitled “The Games of Shame”, which was published a few days ago in certain media across Canada.

I know that my colleague is greatly concerned about this issue and has worked hard to have members of the subcommittee unanimously recognize that a genocide is actually taking place in China and to bring about this cross-party gesture which transcends the House. In fact, representatives of all stripes at Quebec's National Assembly and also people from civil society, such as the former Liberal justice minister and founder of the Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights, Irwin Cotler, were also brought in. None of this could have happened without the efforts of our colleague from Lac-Saint-Jean, and I believe he will have a place in history for it.

What is a genocide? I think that is the first question we need to ask. What makes this a genocide?

I am sure that when my colleague speaks in a few minutes he will share some of the horrific testimony heard by the members of the subcommittee studying what is going on in Xinjiang, in particular.

Witnesses have spoken about concentration camps euphemistically referred to as re-education camps. This reminds me of the inscription over the entrance to Nazi concentration camps, “Work sets you free”. In other words, if people worked hard, they were eventually freed. This is the kind of euphemism used to describe concentration camps. There was also talk of rape, children being separated from their families, slavery, surveillance and mass sterilization. These facts have been reported around the world.

I want to get back to the meaning of genocide. I remind members that in the aftermath of the Second World War, the world was shocked to learn what had happened in Nazi concentration camps, where Jews, gypsies and gay people faced mass extermination.

One of the first conventions, if not the very first, adopted by the newly founded United Nations after the Second World War was the Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide, which Canada ratified in 1952.

Article II of the convention explains what is meant by the term “genocide”. It reads, and I quote:

In the present Convention, genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, as such:

(a) Killing members of the group;

(b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm to members of the group;

(c) Deliberately inflicting on the group conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or in part

(d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group;

(e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group.

It is important to note that not all of the criteria need to be present to constitute genocide; rather, only one criterion needs to be observed for acts to constitute genocide within the meaning of international law.

The convention goes even further. In article I, it states, and I quote:

The Contracting Parties confirm that genocide, whether committed in time of peace or in time of war, is a crime under international law which they undertake to prevent and to punish.

I remind you that Canada signed that agreement.

Since the early 2000s, the international community has been concerned about human rights violations against a number of religious minorities in the People's Republic of China, including practitioners of Falun Gong, Uighurs, Kazakhs, Uzbeks and Tibetans, among others. Several reports, including those from Amnesty International, point to flagrant violations.

I heard the minister talk about the need for consensus among international partners, or at least agreement with a certain number of them, in order to conclude that genocide is indeed taking place in the People's Republic of China. The minister claimed that he did not have enough information to reach that conclusion and that it would take an international observer mission to obtain evidence that genocide is indeed happening in the People's Republic of China.

Curiously, that reminds me of what Global Affairs officials said to members of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development about the conflict in Nagorno-Karabakh. Officials were unable to say what was happening on the ground. However, we learned after the fact that the former minister was well aware of what was going on in the region.

I am respectfully of the opinion that the government knows full well what is happening in the People’s Republic of China. In addition, when it comes to relying on international partners, which seems to mean so much to the minister, I would like to point out that the European Parliament published a declaration in 2016 stipulating that “[t]here have been persistent credible reports on systematic, state-sanctioned organ harvesting from non-consenting prisoners of conscience in the People’s Republic of China, primarily from practitioners of Falun Gong peaceful meditation and exercises but also from Uighurs, Tibetans and Christians.”

The members of the United States Congress are also aware of this. Both the current and the former administrations refer to this as genocide. A BBC news story reported that genocidal actions are definitely being committed in the People’s Republic of China, and the Chinese government responded by prohibiting the network in its country.

I think that the minister cannot bury his head in the sand forever and claim that he is unaware of what is going on in the People’s Republic of China jus to avoid taking action. As my colleague from Lac-Saint-Jean pointed out, some Liberal members on the Subcommittee on International Human Rights signed an open letter entitled “The Games of Shame”. What is the government waiting for to follow its MPs’ lead and recognize that there is a genocide taking place in China?

It is important to point out that this Conservative motion is very welcome. However, I feel I have to mention in passing that its author, the Conservative Party critic for foreign affairs, who just yesterday made all sorts of statements asking that the next Olympic Games be moved to another city, failed to sign the open letter. Moreover, Stephen Harper’s Conservative Party was happy to participate in the Beijing Olympic Games, which took place while it was in power. As the former leader of the Green Party was saying earlier, the Conservative Party even negotiated an investment agreement and collaborated with China on the expulsion of Chinese nationals. This being said, they say that is never too late to see the light. We were therefore pleased to see the Conservatives put forward this motion today.

To answer the Minister’s arguments, I would say that the People’s Republic of China is certainly an important partner, but that in no way justifies turning a blind eye to such abuses of Chinese citizens’ most inalienable rights, which unfortunately seem to have been proven to be true.

If Canada has even the slightest desire to continue positioning itself as a leader in respecting human rights, it will have to walk the talk.

[Pat Kelly, Conservative, Calgary Rocky Ridge, AB]

Madam Speaker, I heard the member talk about the systemic nature of what is going on in China and all the different criteria.

Could the member comment further on the necessity for the government to respond specifically to the question of genocide and to answer to all the points that he made in his speech and that the motion addresses?

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Montarville, QC]

Madam Speaker, during his speech, the minister spent a lot of time telling us about the situation in Hong Kong. We understand and agree that the situation there is extremely worrisome. It has even been the focus of work by the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development.

However, I would have liked to hear the minister talk about the various criteria in the genocide convention. I would have liked him to tell us why the evidence that has been available internationally for years now, evidence gathered from our partners, is not sufficient for us to say that at least one of the criteria has been met. That would enable Canada to take action and recognize that this is genocide. It must do so because of its commitment under article 1, which I discussed. That commitment requires action and reprisals on the part of the government.

[Mark Gerretsen, Liberal, Kingston and the Islands, ON]

Madam Speaker, I appreciated the intervention from my colleague in the Bloc. He delivered it with great passion and he is clearly well informed on this topic.

I did take exception to the member saying that the minister was pretending that he does not know what is going on in China. I did not hear that from the minister. What I heard the minister say was that there are a lot of moving parts, that things have to be considered holistically, that Canada was working and is working with other countries throughout the world on this very important file, and that Canada was going to continue to do that moving forward.

Would the member at least acknowledge that the minister is clearly aware of what is going on and that he has said he is working on this issue?

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Montarville, QC]

Madam Speaker, perhaps my colleague knows something we do not.

If the minister is actually aware of what is going on in China, he should have said so. In his speech he was very careful not to acknowledge that he is aware of what is happening in China.

If I am to believe my colleague and the minister is aware of what is going on, it is even more unacceptable that he refuses to call it a genocide. Either the minister knows what is happening and is being complicit by remaining silent, or else he claims to not be aware, even though his partners, whom he loves to mention, have clearly acknowledged this as a genocide.

We went through this with the Nagorno-Karabakh conflict. Global Affairs was telling parliamentarians that they did not know what was happening there because Canada did not have any representatives in Azerbaijan and Armenia. A few days later, the former minister testified in committee and told us that he was well aware of what was happening over there.

We want the government to tell us the truth.

[Julie Vignola, Bloc, Beauport—Limoilou, QC]

Madam Speaker, I was much younger then, but I remember hearing about the Rwandan genocide and about how the government did not listen to General Dallaire. He suffered terribly knowing what he did when no one would listen.

What can the government do today to avoid repeating its mistakes of the past, which are many?

[Stéphane Bergeron, Bloc, Montarville, QC]

Madam Speaker, I thank my colleague for her question, which is likely the most important question today. What did we learn from the Second World War? Despite the convention, we turned a blind eye to the Rwandan genocide. Despite the convention, we turned a blind eye to the genocide in Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Are we going to turn a blind eye to yet another genocide by reacting after the fact and saying that it is unfortunate? We see what is happening. It is time to take action.

[Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe, Bloc, Lac-Saint-Jean, QC]

Madam Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague from Montarville for his speech. Since he paid me a compliment, I will reciprocate by saying that his speech was powerful, eloquent and sound, and I congratulate him.

I am extremely thankful to be here in the House for what may be a historic debate. For this reason, it is especially important that we ask ourselves the following question: what side of history do we want to be on? It is not often that we are fully aware we have this choice, but today, in the House, we are faced with a unique opportunity.

We are here in Parliament, exactly where many politicians have stood before and either failed or succeeded. It is not up to me to judge what happens today. History will decide. I will limit myself to judging my and my colleagues' ability to convince every member of the House that what is going on in Xinjiang is genocide. My only power over my colleagues is to convince them to stand on the right side of history.

The facts are troubling, and members from every party could cite them, so I, too, will do so. Regardless of what the House does with the motion put forward by my colleague from Wellington—Halton Hills, at least no one will be able to plead ignorance, which happens to be the greatest ally of totalitarian regimes, after willful blindness. Let us be neither ignorant nor blind.

This summer, the Subcommittee on International Human Rights, on which I sit, studied the human rights situation of the Uighurs and other Turkic Muslims in Xinjiang after documents were leaked that strongly suggested that there was a system of mass detention and oppression in this region of China. Numerous experts consulted by the subcommittee estimated that millions of people are being held in what Chinese authorities despicably refer to as “vocational training centres,” surrounded by walls, barbed wire and guards.

For some people, just hearing this is not enough, and that is where the increasingly troubling satellite images and photos of huge complexes, factories and lines of prisoners and forced labourers come in. These images reveal the scope of the operation that has been under way for several years in Xinjiang and that is now unfolding before our very eyes. This operation needs to be called by its name: genocide. There were witness accounts, but they were eclipsed by the western world's complacent attitude towards the Communist Party and its secrecy. Suddenly, these stories were corroborated by the missing physical evidence. I can say that members of parliaments around the world have taken notice.

As we speak, a veritable cultural obliteration is taking place. In Xinjiang, wearing a beard, praying or quitting smoking can get a person sent to a concentration camp. There, people are prohibited from practising Islam or even speaking their own language. They are forced to eat pork and to praise the Communist Party and President Xi Jinping.

It is not easy to hear Uighur expatriates tell their story. It is very hard to remain indifferent when human beings are telling stories of children being taken away from their families and placed in state-run orphanages or schools. It is even harder when we know that they will be robbed of their language and culture so they can be indoctrinated and ultimately assimilated.

Unfortunately, it gets worse. We were disgusted, to put it politely, to hear that many women had been raped in these camps. When we heard the unproven allegations of organ harvesting, we could not decide what horrified us most, that this was possible or that we were not surprised because it had happened before to Falun Gong followers and other religious minorities.

That is not all. We were deeply troubled by the stories of mass sterilization in Xinjiang. It was revealed that the authorities hoped to sterilize 80% of all women of child-bearing age. The methods used include forced insertion of IUDs and forced surgery. It was reported that people are being forced to take drugs and receive injections.

If anyone does not trust the stories, all they have to do is look at the figures. Between 2015 and 2018, the population growth rate in the mostly Uighur areas of Xinjiang dropped 84%. I recently heard members of Parliament, including our Prime Minister, who were reluctant to use the word “genocide”. They claim that “genocide” is a loaded word and that we need to think hard before using it.

With all due respect, it is because it is such a loaded word that we must use it. The first nations of Quebec and Labrador are not reluctant to use it. Representatives of the Ukrainian community are not reluctant to use it. Representatives of the Jewish community are not reluctant to use it. Irwin Cotler, Canada's special envoy on preserving Holocaust remembrance and combatting anti-Semitism, is not reluctant to use it, and he was appointed by the Prime Minister. We should not be reluctant to use it, either. It is our duty to denounce it and to take action.

We may not realize it, but we are involved in this genocide. Without knowing it, we are benefiting from the situation. More and more evidence is coming to light directly linking western companies' supply chains to forced Uighur labour. I will not name names, but I would bet that each one of us very likely has items in our possession that were fully or partly made by Uighurs.

In any other situation, we would not hesitate to call taking people out of their regions to make them work as forced labourers modern-day slavery. I submit to the House that the situation in China should not be considered any more leniently than if it were in any other country. We realize, at a time when the entire planet is facing the worst health and economic crisis in more than a century, that human rights are not front and centre. We are talking about genocide, the most horrible example of man’s inhumanity to man. We cannot remain silent.

That is what prompted me to find a possible solution, because I believe that we have to start somewhere. Following our allies and declaring that genocide is taking place is an important step that I hope to take with every other member in the House, and we can do more. We can and must hit the Communist Party regime where it hurts the most: in its arrogance and pride. In 2022, Beijing is set to hold the winter Olympic and Paralympic Games. It is a prime opportunity to act and to unite humanists and democrats the world over around a very simple idea: refusing to participate by not allowing this world sports event to be used as a platform for the self-aggrandizement of a regime that is committing the most heinous crimes against its own people. We cannot reward the Communist Party for its nefarious schemes by going to Beijing, and neither can the rest of the world.

On February 6, 13 members of the House signed an open letter along with human rights organizations and a number of Quebec MNAs. In fact, my colleagues from Montarville and Longueuil—Saint-Hubert both signed the letter. We are not asking our athletes to give up their Olympic dreams. We are very aware of the considerable efforts they have put into following that dream. We believe that there is still time to demand that the International Olympic Committee move the games if the Chinese government continues its genocidal spree.

Some have said that we should not mix politics and sports. We are not taking our elite athletes hostage. We cannot hide behind politics when a genocide is taking place. My answer is that we are facing a genocide. As I just said, we are not talking about politics, but about human rights and crimes against humanity. We need to make sure that the medals athletes win in 2022 are not tainted, because history will undoubtedly remember these games as the games of shame, much like the 1936 Olympics in Berlin. We cannot accept the status quo. I know that my 12 colleagues and I are not alone in the House.

That is why I am proposing an amendment to the motion moved by the member for Wellington—Halton Hills, which I hope will garner the support of a majority of members of the House. I move:

That the motion be amended by adding after the words “against Uyghurs and other Turkic Muslims,” the following:

“call upon the International Olympic Committee to move the 2022 Olympic Games if the Chinese government continues this genocide.”