Debates of March 28th, 2023

Citizenship and Immigration

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Humber River—Black Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, as much as it was unexpected this morning to be dealing with this rather than the Order Paper items and the work of the government, I think it is a very important debate. I would like to see us have a take-note debate in an evening when we could talk a lot more about the issues that we are all talking about.

I believe all of us stand against this terrible regime, and stand with the Iranian community who are fighting for their freedom, especially the protesting women and students in Iran. The Government of Canada has designated the Iranian regime as a regime that has engaged in terrorism, as well as systemic and gross human rights violations. We hear about it every day on the news, the number of people who are murdered senselessly for nothing more than wanting to stand up for their freedom and the freedom of the Iranian people.

As a result, senior officials, including those from the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps and its top leaders, are now inadmissible to Canada under the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. There is an important distinction here, from the blanket covering of everyone. The government is targeting all senior officials with decision-making power, not innocent Iranians, as one of my colleagues was referring to earlier today, many of whom are actually the victims of this horrific regime.

It is an important and effective measure. We do not want former Iranian IRGC and military leaders to be able to claim asylum in our country. The designation the government has put on the Islamic Republic of Iran as a regime means that all senior officials in the country are inadmissible. This includes heads of state, military leaders, intelligence officials, senior public servants, diplomats and members of the judiciary.

To further strengthen our ability to hold Iran accountable, last May the government tabled Bill S-8 in the Senate to make changes to the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act. This legislation addresses an important gap in our framework to hold foreign governments accountable, whether we are talking about Iran or interference from China or Russia. I believe there are many countries that are looking to find ways to intimidate Canadians and Canadian parliamentarians, and to interfere in a variety of ways, which is why we are having many discussions here in the Government of Canada.

The amendments placed expand the scope for inadmissibility to Canada based on sanctions imposed on a country, entity or person. Right now, individuals, organizations, state entities and businesses named or listed in Canada's economic sanctions are not automatically inadmissible to Canada. Bill S-8 is going to fix that and tighten up the loophole that is there. It means that corrupt officials may still be eligible for a travel visa, even if they are sanctioned under the current laws.

Bill S-8 would fix this legislative oversight and empower Canadian officials to refuse visas to any Iranian regime leader, as well as any other individuals and groups sanctioned in the future. Again, this is another step forward to try to put down the kind of conditions that we want to see against Iran, and to try to help bring down the regime, ultimately, which I believe should be everybody's goal.

Bill S-8 was reported to the House in October of last year, but it is not yet before the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration. I do hope, especially given today's debate, that Bill S-8 gets there sooner rather than later, so that we could strengthen all the tools we have to try to help defeat the mullahs who are currently causing such terror throughout Iran and elsewhere. We know that the Iranian mullahs are helping to provide drones to Russia to continue to help with the destruction in Ukraine. They continue to murder their own people in a very clear way.

I want to share with the House that last year I had an opportunity, together with several of my colleagues from other parties, to attend a meeting with representatives of the NCRI to talk about democracy and their quest for freedom for the Iranian people.

For over 40 years, the NCRI has been standing and protesting against this brutal regime. Their dream, and the dream of most Iranians, is to have a free and democratic secular Iran. That is what people want. That is what NCRI wants. That is what the United States wants. Two weeks ago, I believe, Congress passed the motion for House Resolution 100, which was endorsed by hundreds of congressmen and senators, supporting the 10-point plan put forward by NCRI. Again, the goal is to have a free and democratic Iran. That is what we all want to see, and an end to the brutality.

We are so fortunate to live in this wonderful country of ours and to have the freedom to come and go as we please, to say the things that need to be said, to have our freedom of speech and freedom of dress, all those things we take for granted. That is what the Iranian people are fighting for now. I think it is critically important that we, together, as parliamentarians of all stripes, continue to be their voice to continue to keep that pressure on Iran so that, ultimately, there will be many parties to choose from, whether it is NCRI or others that get together. It will be up to the Iranian people, who do not want to have a dictatorship and who want the freedom that we have. I hear that so many times: The Iranian people want what we have, that freedom of choice and the freedom to vote for whomever they want.

Currently, I am working on a letter to send out to parliamentarians to try to keep up the pressure, as many Canadians are protesting at rallies every weekend. I think it is important, if there is going to be a collapse of this regime, for all of us to do whatever we can, so I have been putting together a communication. I will summarize a bit of it, because it will go to all 338 members. It is calling for support for the Iranian people in their quest for a secular and democratic republic. It talks about the past six months and the terrible things that have happened. It acknowledges that we stand in solidarity with the people of Iran in their desire for a secular and democratic republic in which no individual, regardless of religious beliefs or birthright, has any privileges over others. Through their slogans, which we have heard many nights on the nightly news, the Iranian people have made it clear that they reject all forms of dictatorship, be it in the form of the deposed shah or the current theocratic regime, and reject any association with any of the others.

The goal here, I think for all of us, is to see a free and democratic Iran. We are looking today, in this discussion, for other ways to strengthen sanctions. Putting the IRGC on the terrorist list, yes, I support that. I am known to support that it should be listed as a terrorist organization, but I think we need to do more than that. We need to have more voices out there supporting and fighting for a free and democratic Iran. That has to be the goal, and whatever all of us can do as parliamentarians to advance that, whether it is in our own communications to each other or out to the community, I think is very important.

I am thankful for the opportunity to participate in this important debate today, and I am happy to take some questions.

[Melissa Lantsman, Conservative, Thornhill, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I appreciate the member opposite's advocacy. I have always appreciated it. I know that she was on this cause long before I was here and long before many other members were here, so I commend her on that. I also appreciate that she is one of the few members on the other side talking about a true regime change. As well, I appreciate that she is one of the few members on the other side who have admitted that the IRGC should be banned and listed as a terrorist organization. I appreciate her support for that.

Why will she not advocate to the rest of the government to do what it voted to do in 2018, which is to help those who are here, the families in our neighbourhoods? I know they sometimes go to the gym or to a Starbucks with their children, and they are fearful of members of the regime. They call our offices with a blurred-out background in their car away from their homes, because they are terrified of who is in the country and why they are still let in here. I know the government has sanctioned a number of regime operatives, but it does not know whom it has sanctioned. The government does not have the names of all those it has purportedly put on a list in terms of a number. We cannot put 10,000 people on a list and not know who they are. That is not real action.

I wonder if the member will advocate to her government to finally list and ban the IRGC as a terrorist organization here in this country.

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Humber River—Black Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I very much enjoy the times when my colleague and I occasionally get together at events.

We do not always know what the government is doing. It does not send out a message to us every day on what it is doing and what it is not doing. When the government chose to take the route of not doing a blanket cover over everybody in Iran who was part of the regime, it was an attempt to make sure that innocent people were not caught up in that. That is the route it chose to take.

There are senior officials who know exactly how many people are on that 10,000-plus list and who they are. They are doing the best they can to protect people's individuality and their opportunity to be treated fairly. We do not want to be like the regime in Iran and put a blanket over everybody and say everybody is inadmissible for whatever terrible reason.

I do want to add that we need to do more together than just label it as a terrorist organization. More needs to be done. That is just one step. It works for us to talk about it here in the House, but more needs to be done.

[Sébastien Lemire, Bloc, Abitibi—Témiscamingue, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I am still shocked about the death of Mahsa Amini. It raises many questions.

We know about these events because they were reported by the morality police—which wanted to boast about this to send a message to the rest of the population—and because international reporters communicate this information at great personal risk. There have been probably many more such cases than just the ones reported.

What can we do to foster the disclosure of more information so we know what is happening around the world? What is happening is serious. If we want to take action, we must be able to properly assess the situation.

How do we go about getting that information from within these countries?

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Humber River—Black Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague continues to ask questions about what else can be done, rather than just talking about labelling it as a terrorist organization. I think many of us want to see that happen.

The issue is what else can be done. How do we continue to be the voices for the protection of journalism? So many journalists have been in jail. With the recent incident of the poisoning of many schoolgirls, which happened in over 50 schools in Iran, the journalists who were able to report it are apparently all in jail. It makes it very difficult. It calls on us, as parliamentarians and free voices, to be their voices, to stand up here in the House and outside making sure people understand and care about what is going on in Iran.

[Bonita Zarrillo, NDP, Port Moody—Coquitlam, BC]

Mr. Speaker, I want to take this opportunity to ask the member for some facilitation. In my community of Port Moody—Coquitlam, Anmore and Belcarra, community members have been asking me to assist them with getting a meeting with the government to talk about some of those exemptions that need to happen. They want to see the IRGC named as a terrorist organization, and they have some ideas on how to protect innocent people on that front.

Could the member assist me with making that connection so they can speak to the minister?

[Judy Sgro, Liberal, Humber River—Black Creek, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I want to applaud the member for the work that she continues to do on these issues. I am very happy to try to facilitate that as soon as we can get together and do that.

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

Mr. Speaker, I want to begin by saying that I will be sharing my time with my esteemed and dynamic colleague from Shefford.

Women in Quebec and Canada are lucky in many respects. We can go to school, hold a job, get involved in our community and go into politics. We still have a number of battles to wage to achieve full gender equality, but we have it pretty good compared to some.

We have it pretty good because in some other parts of the world women do not have nearly as many rights and freedoms as we do here. Let us not forget that women and girls in Afghanistan have been unable to attend school or university for many months now. Let us not forget that women and girls are being disfigured with acid for refusing to enter into a forced marriage. Let us not forget that women and girls are being kidnapped, held captive, forced to convert and forced to marry one of their abductors. Let us not forget Mahsa Amini, who was abused and beaten to death, and all of the other deaths that followed. These people were imprisoned, tortured, blinded and killed, all because they stood up and demanded what we have here: freedom and equal rights. This goes well beyond being required to wear a hijab by the regime. It is a matter of freedom and equality.

For months, we have been outraged to see such things happening over and over again in Iran, but nothing has been done. Is the regime fed up with seeing our outrage? It is not. Is the regime fed up with our protests and awareness nights? It is not. To keep my language parliamentary, I will say that the regime does not care at all.

These protests all have one thing in common. They seek to raise awareness of the situation among Quebeckers and Canadians and their governments, so that these governments can take practical action and not just pay lip service. One of the things the protesters want is for the government to seize or at least freeze the material and financial assets located on Canadian soil of Iranian nationals associated with the IRGC, the Iranian armed forces, the Iranian morality police and Iranian intelligence agencies.

There is nothing about that in the motion and there is nothing about what my constituents told me in it. However, it does provide a worthwhile approach in terms of sanctions, that of asking the government to stop issuing visas to Iranian nationals with ties to the groups that I just mentioned.

Today, I am using my voice and my words here to share a message from my constituents. I spent time with them, I demonstrated with them, and we spent evenings together informing people about what was really happening in Iran.

Next, I am going to talk about the means at our disposal to exert real pressure. My constituents told me that, right now in Canada, there are people with ties to the regime who are making financial and material investments here only to then redirect those funds to support the Iranian regime. My constituents are asking me when those individuals will be subject to the same measures we reserved for the Russian oligarchs, meaning when their assets will be frozen to prevent support going to this untenable and unacceptable regime.

My constituents also shared a number of concerns with me, including the fact that this regime is powerful and has a long reach. They reminded me that money not only provides support for the Iranian regime but also allows some Iranian permanent residents or Canadian citizens in Canada to be monitored. They fear for their safety, and yet, that was the reason they came to Canada: to be safe, free, equal and secular. Some of them have received threats to their family back in Iran.

Every day they are worried that their name will get out there and that their family will be punished because they chose freedom. In fact, they fear going through the same experience that we have seen Chinese citizens and Uighurs go through in our own country. They even worry about travelling abroad, for fear that their plane will inadvertently be taken for a foreign missile.

My constituents tell me that individuals involved with some of the organizations I mentioned, or who are funded by them, are very active at every level. They do everything they can to downplay the actions taken, to have others shoulder the blame for appalling acts that are committed, to clear the regime. My constituents really want to avoid seeing here the experiences and events happening there. People tell me that they chose to live in Quebec because of our freedom and equality that they cherish above all else.

Now, for our part, we are we doing? We are protesting, side by side, with the Iranian citizens and protesters. Again, these are just words. There is no action. Where are the sanctions?

The government is aware of the suspicious situations I just mentioned, of the presence of Iranian nationals linked to the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, the Iranian Armed Forces, the Iranian Guidance Patrol or Iranian intelligence organizations. Nothing is being done.

There is a sanction in place, although it is apparently difficult to enforce and cannot be applied to everyone. Once again, there are ways to do that, and action is needed.

As many people know, I was once a teacher and a vice-principal. When classroom and school rules needed to be implemented, certain questions came to mind. What is the goal? What means do we have to enforce the rules? What sanctions can we apply? Are the means and sanctions consistent with the goal?

I mention this because it is important to be able to apply sanctions, when needed. If that cannot be done, the government will end up in a situation where it is constantly talking and never doing anything. That is basically what is happening right now.

The Immigration and Refugee Protection Act does have teeth and provides for a case-by-case analysis of the people suspected of being tied to the organizations that I mentioned. Why is this not done? We have the tools to apply the sanctions. Canada has a list of those responsible and of those at the most senior levels of the regime. The committee's recommendation does go further and prohibits entry of any cell of the regime in Canada. Let us evaluate every case before issuing a visa. Naturally, that is a lot of work, but it ensures the safety of our citizens of Iranian origin and the entire population.

In conclusion, as I was saying, we must protect our fellow citizens of Iranian origin so they can truly enjoy the life of freedom, equality and safety that they came here for. We must implement concrete and real measures to starve the regime so that it does not have the financial and ideological means to continue its wrongdoing and atrocities in Iran.

We must take action for Mahsa and for so many others. If we do not, we are accomplices.

I am going to borrow a phrase from a song by Loco Locass: Go for it, do it.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, within the current legislation and regulations, when we think of visitor visas or temporary visas generally speaking, the civil servants have a system that includes things such as good character. The civil service is very much aware of the issues that are taking place in Iran.

Could the member provide her thoughts on how our current system seems to already accommodate and take into consideration what the first and only recommendation would do in limiting temporary visas to individuals who should not be coming to Canada?

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

Mr. Speaker, as I stated, the decisions we have made have primarily targeted the senior ranks of the regime. It is sad to see that Iranians who are complicit with the regime manage to come to Canada despite the security measures in place to carry out a case-by-case analysis. What we need to do is ensure that those who are complicit with the regime and commit inhumane acts against their own fellow citizens are sanctioned and barred from Canada by conducting a case-by-case review.

[Tom Kmiec, Conservative, Calgary Shepard, AB]

Mr. Speaker, most of the immigration rules that the government has changed, such as visas, are designed to keep people out of this country. Anyone identified by the government as a member of the regime should not be allowed to enter Canada.

The next step is to add the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps to the list of terrorist organizations in the Criminal Code. Consequently, anyone who is in Canada and is a member of that group, has been a member of that group, or has assisted a terrorist group, would be allowed to go before the courts and have a judge decide whether they actually helped the group to persecute or intimidate citizens or violate Canadian law.

I would ask the member to look into this issue. Parliament already looked into it in 2018 and determined that the IRGC should be listed as a terrorist group in our Criminal Code.

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

Mr. Speaker, throughout my speech, I said that there was a lot of talk but no real sanctions. What my colleague just mentioned is real action. It is about making sure that these people are on the list of terrorist groups and that, ultimately, real powers are granted to find out where they are and to urge them very strongly to leave the country.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Mr. Speaker, one of the problems that we hear about a lot from the Iranian diaspora is that it is extremely fragmented. Ultimately, the state was able to do what it set out to achieve, which was to divide and conquer.

I would like to hear my colleague's thoughts on that.

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

Mr. Speaker, the diaspora is definitely scattered, but it is informed. Some of them support the regime, but all those I met were against what is happening right now and do not recognize their country, the beautiful Iran of the past. They would like their country to recover the historic, secular beauty that it once had.

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Mr. Speaker, my colleague from Beauport—Limoilou is always a tough act to follow. It is truly not easy, but I will try to speak today with sensitivity to this situation in Iran, a very complex subject.

As the critic for the status of women, I have been asked about this topic many times, and I am particularly concerned about the situation of Iranian women and girls. Our debate today concerns more specifically the 11th report of the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration. To help people follow my speech, I will read the motion:

That the Standing Committee on Citizenship and Immigration report the following to the House: In light of the downing of Ukrainian International Airlines flight PS 752 by the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), and in light of the killing of Mahsa Amini by the Iranian Guidance Patrol, that the committee demands the government stop issuing visas to all Iranian nationals directly affiliated with the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps (IRGC), Iranian Armed Forces, Iranian Guidance Patrol or Iranian intelligence organizations and that, pursuant to Standing Order 109, the committee request a response to the report by the government.

I will quickly provide some context, discuss the situation of women in Iran, and reiterate the role we have to play in this.

First, Ukraine International Airlines flight PS752 was shot down over Iran on January 8, 2020. The United States and Iran had started attacking each other after the United States killed a high-ranking Iranian officer, General Qasem Soleimani, near the Baghdad airport on January 3, 2020. Iran also attacked an American airport in Iraq on the night of January 7 to 8, 2020, in retaliation for Soleimani's death. Iran may have been expecting a U.S. counterattack, so its air defence system was on high alert. A total of 176 people died on the downed flight, including 63 Canadians.

I will now turn to the Mahsa Amini affair. The election of Ebrahim Raisi as President of Iran in 2021 marked the rise to power of the most conservative wing of the Combatant Clergy Association. Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei is said to be in ill health and could die soon. For these reasons, authorities are becoming more rigorous in the application of Velayat-e faqih.

Mahsa Amini was a Kurdish Iranian woman who was arrested by the morality police in Tehran on September 13 for allegedly violating Iran's strict female dress code. She was killed by Iran's morality police just for wearing her hijab “improperly”. She died in hospital three days later, on September 16, 2022. Mahsa Amini, a Kurdish Iranian woman, was only 22 years old.

Her death was followed almost immediately by protests on an unprecedented scale for Iran. Iran forces women to wear the hijab. Mahsa Amini was wearing her hijab, but her hair was slightly visible. This was the reason she was arrested and fatally beaten by police. Her death led to major demonstrations against the regime throughout Iran, and more than 500 people have died so far, while many others are determined to overthrow the regime. Mahsa's death sparked nationwide protests, with Iranian women leading the charge, as well as solidarity rallies around the world.

Activists say that Mahsa suffered a head wound while in custody. Iranian authorities deny any physical contact between the police and the young woman and say that they are awaiting the results of the investigation. Iran's largest protests since the 2019 unrest over increased fuel prices were met with a violent crackdown. According to the latest report from the Oslo-based NGO Iran Human Rights, at least 92 people have been killed since September 16. An official report lists some 60 dead, including 12 members of Iran's security forces.

The international community denounced the crackdown, and some countries imposed sanctions. As a reminder, here is the motion I moved in October:

That the House:

(a) reiterate its unconditional support for Iranian women who are peacefully demonstrating for their rights in Iran;

(b) condemn the killings, intimidation, and acts of violence initiated by the Iranian state against protesters who support the women's liberation movement in Iran; and

(c) call on the United Nations to withdraw Iran from its Commission on the Status of Women.

Last month, I also supported a petition presented by the member for Aurora—Oak Ridges—Richmond Hill that urged non-partisan action. It reads:

We, the undersigned, residents of Aurora, Oak Ridges, and Richmond Hill, Ontario, draw the attention of Leah Taylor Roy, MP for Aurora–Oak Ridges–Richmond Hill to the following and ask for her help in bringing this matter to The House of Commons.

THEREFORE, your petitioners call upon Leah Taylor Roy, MP, to: Demand the Canadian Government urgently follow through with the actions against the Iranian regime which includes making the regime, the IRGC and top leaders inadmissible to Canada, expanding sanctions against those responsible for human rights violations and denying them entry to Canada, and investing more money to allow sanctioned Iranian person's assets to be quickly frozen and seized. The Regime and its most senior officials - including the IRGC - be immediately banned from entering Canada, and current and former senior officials present here be investigated and removed from the country as soon as possible.

We also ask that you insist that the Minister of Global Affairs, the Hon. Mélanie Joly, and the Government of Canada, with its partners and allies, have Iran removed from the UN Commission on the Status of Women, which is the principal global intergovernmental body exclusively dedicated to the promotion of gender equality and the empowerment of women.

That is the petition we presented here in the House.

The United States announced economic sanctions against seven high-ranking Iranian officials for their roles in the crackdown. According to a press release from the Treasury Department, Minister of the Interior Ahmad Vahidi, the key figure behind the crackdown, and Minister of Communications Issa Zarepour, the person responsible for the shameful attempt to block Internet access, were two of the individuals sanctioned. Washington had already announced a slew of sanctions against the Iranian morality police and several security officials on September 22.

Iran's strict dress code forces women to wear the Islamic head scarf, but according to videos posted online, women are leading the protests in Iran. Schoolgirls even organized rallies in several regions, where they removed their hijabs and shouted anti-regime slogans.

In a video verified by AFP, bare-headed young girls chanted “Death to the dictator”, referring to Supreme Leader Ali Khamenei, one Monday at a school in Karaj, west of Tehran. Some of these girls lost their lives. Right now, there are allegations that female students were poisoned simply because they decided to protest.

Getting back to the motion, it seeks to sanction members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps and the Iranian armed forces by refusing them visas. However, prohibiting entry to the country is a complex issue, since many people serving in the Iranian armed forces are conscripts.

For example, one Iranian-born man was refused entry to Canada because he served in the armed forces 20 years ago. The United States is also imposing similar restrictions, which many are calling discriminatory.

It would be more reasonable to make decisions on a case-by-case basis. Generally speaking, refusing to issue visas to individuals who are currently on active service seems appropriate, but it is not that simple.

On November 14, 2022, Canada announced that it had designated Iran as a regime that has engaged in terrorism. As a result, tens of thousands of high-ranking officials, including senior members of the Iranian Revolutionary Guard Corps, the army and the morality police, were denied entry to Canada. Low-ranking members of these organizations are dealt with on a case-by-case basis, which is a reasonable approach. For example, those who committed war crimes or other crimes would be inadmissible to Canada regardless of their rank.

Because of the conscription in Iran, all men aged 18 and over must serve in the military. It is therefore reasonable that the Canadian government maintain a certain amount of leeway in its sanctions. We do not want to see a case like the one of a family of Iranian refugees in Saskatoon, who are trying to get a brother who remained in Turkey into Canada. The brother was refused entry because of his military service in Iran 20 years ago. There are many of these types of cases in the news.

Keyvan Zarafshanpour, a 38-year-old man, and his family managed to settle in Canada about three years ago, after fleeing religious persecution in Iran. Keyvan’s older brother Kaveh Zarafshanpour is still in Turkey. Canada refused him entry for supporting a terrorist organization because he served his compulsory military service in the IRGC.

Members can see where this is going. That is why a case-by-case approach is important. There are also branches of the Iranian Armed Forces that are designated as terrorist organizations in the United States, but not in Canada.

Clearly, there is a lot we still have to look into. We need to show considerable diplomacy depending on the situation. I think it is better that way. There are still a lot of grey areas.

For example, in an email, the Canada Border Services Agency stated that it processes applications as quickly as possible, adding that the average wait time is eight years. We also need to take into account the time it takes to process applications. In short, the situation is nothing short of deplorable.

In closing, I will say: woman, life, freedom. Women and girls also have the right to freedom of expression. Women and girls also have the right to a secular state where they are no longer murdered for who they are, where they do not see their rights slipping away, and where they can continue to live a dignified life.

[Anna Roberts, Conservative, King—Vaughan, ON]

Mr. Speaker, I enjoy working with my colleague on the Standing Committee on the Status of Women. She always has a great sense of purpose and always defends the rights of women.

January 8 was the third anniversary of the downing of flight 752. On that day, and every year on that day, Shahin, husband to Shakiba and father to Rosstin, remembered that they last spoke as his wife and son were departing for Canada. Unfortunately, the last conversation he had with his family was that he welcomed them home so they could share some quality time together. That never happened. Each and every year he struggles. To this day, he, a constituent in my riding, continues to suffer.

Would the member agree the government needs to do more to ensure we identify the IRGC as terrorists and nothing else?

[Andréanne Larouche, Bloc, Shefford, QC]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to thank my colleague and tell her how much I deeply appreciate our collaboration on the Standing Committee on the Status of Women and our work on the senior file, which we share. We are working together in both these areas.

That being said, as my colleague from Beauport—Limoilou mentioned and I reiterated, the government is not doing anything about the situation in Iran. I heard the same thing when I attended the protests in Montreal in support of the “Woman, Life, Freedom” movement.

I was there with my colleague from Longueuil—Saint-Hubert. Protesters told us that the Canadian government was not doing enough, that it was not taking enough concrete action, and that it appeared to be afraid to go any further with its sanctions against the regime. What is it afraid of?

People asked us. We had no answer for them, but we decided to bring back their demands. My colleague mentioned this as well: we have been having this discussion since 2018. Let us move forward and try to work faster to take action in support of Iranian women.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

Is the House ready for the question?

[Some hon. members]

Question.

[The Deputy Speaker, Conservative, Chris d'Entremont]

The question is on the motion.

If a member of a recognized party present in the House wishes that the motion be carried or carried on division or wishes to request a recorded division, I would invite them to rise and indicate it to the Chair.

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Winnipeg North, MB]

Mr. Speaker, I request that it be carried on division.

(Motion agreed to)

Human Rights

[Rick Perkins, Conservative, South Shore—St. Margarets, NS]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present a petition from 72 Canadians with regard to the holding of a Canadian in prison in China.

Petitioners say that, although Canadians Michael Spavor and Michael Kovrig have recently been released after a thousand days of unjust detention in China, there are at least 115 Canadians still being detained in China, including Huseyin Celil, who has been detained for over 5,000 days.

Huseyin is a Canadian Uighur human rights advocate who was detained in China for supporting political and religious rights of Uighurs. He is a Canadian citizen who escaped China to Uzbekistan after being unjustly jailed for 48 days in 2001. On recognition from the United Nations as a refugee, he immigrated to Canada, obtained Canadian citizenship and gave up his Chinese citizenship.

The Chinese government has refused to accept his Canadian citizenship and has denied him access to lawyers, family and Canadian officials.

Petitioners demand the Chinese government recognize Huseyin's Canadian citizenship and provide him with consular and legal services according to international law, that the Canadian government formally state that the release of Huseyin from Chinese detainment and his return to Canada is a priority for the government of equal concern to the unjust detentions of the two Michaels, that it appoint a special envoy to work on securing his release, and that it seek assistance from the Biden administration and other allies around the world in obtaining his release.

The Environment

[Gord Johns, NDP, Courtenay—Alberni, BC]

Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to table a petition today about ocean protection.

It is quite ironic that I am sitting with my colleague from Nunavut, whose birthday it is today. I wish her a happy birthday.

We know Canadians care deeply about the health of the ocean and they depend on thriving ocean ecosystems. In 2019, over one million cruise ship passengers travelled from British Columbia on their way to Alaska. These ships generate significant amounts of pollutants that are harmful to human health, aquatic organisms and coastal ecosystems.

Canada's regulations under the Canada Shipping Act that address the discharge of sewage and grey water are much less stringent than those in U.S. Pacific coastal states. Canada has zero no-discharge zones off British Columbia, it does not require third party independent observers on board ships as is required by Alaska, and it has less stringent regulations that encourage cruise ships to discharge their waste off British Columbia.

Constituents from my riding are calling on the government to set standards for cruise ship sewage and grey water discharges equivalent to or stronger than those in Alaska; to designate no-discharge zones to stop pollution in marine-protected areas, the entirety of the Salish Sea and Great Bear Sea and; to require regular, independent third party monitoring while ships are under way to ensure discharge requirements are met.

Hazaras

[Tom Kmiec, Conservative, Calgary Shepard, AB]

Mr. Speaker, I am tabling this petition on behalf of constituents in my riding. It is regarding the ongoing genocide and persecution of the Hazaras in Afghanistan by the Taliban.

The petitioners are calling upon the Government of Canada to prioritize Hazaras coming to Canada as part of the target of 40,000 Afghani refugees. They are drawing the attention of the House to the persecution of the Hazara ethnic group in Afghanistan that has been going on for hundreds of years. Most recently, in the last few decades, it has been made worse by the Taliban, who are originally from Pakistan, and they are still involved in the extrajudicial killings of Hazaras, the forced expulsion from their homelands and the destruction of their villages. Some of the worst persecution that went on between 1998 and 2001 was massacres, arrests, forced mass displacement and the confiscation of Hazaras' lands.

The petitioners are calling on the Government of Canada to make sure it includes Hazaras as part of the 40,000 target of Afghan refugees.

Questions on the Order Paper

[Kevin Lamoureux, Liberal, Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons]

Mr. Speaker, I would ask that all questions be allowed to stand.