Mr. Speaker, it is an honour to rise in the House to speak on behalf of the NDP on this very sad day.
February 24, 2022, is a day that will go down in infamy. Without any justification or valid reason, dictator Vladimir Putin brutally attacked Ukraine and the Ukrainian people. For four years now, Ukrainians have been suffering and living in fear and terror with a colossal number of military and civilian victims.
For the first time since the collapse of the former Yugoslavia, Europe has seen war again with all its brutality, massacres, suffering and crimes. We are talking not only about war crimes, but also about crimes against humanity. Rape is being used as a weapon of war and there have been mass kidnappings of Ukrainian children to brainwash them and cause them to lose their own identity.
Every day, every week, there is death. There are drones and bombings. People live in constant fear. There are 3.4 million internally displaced persons within Ukraine, which is paying the heavy price of a dictator who is seeking to expand his influence and who is refusing to respect the peoples around him.
I think we should salute the courage of the Ukrainian people, who have stood firm despite everything for four years now; four years of massacres and rape, four years of living in the cold among the ruins of infrastructure, hospitals and schools. As a democracy, I think we have a duty to show our full support for Ukraine.
Ukraine's honorary consul in Montreal has often said something that has kept coming back to me in recent months, if not years. He said that if Russia stops fighting, it will end the war, but if Ukrainians stop defending themselves, it will end Ukraine. The outcome is totally different. That is why, as others have said before, for the Ukrainian people, this is an existential fight for their survival, for their existence, for their territory, for their territorial integrity and for their civilian population.
Given that Ukrainian men and women are fighting and dying on the front lines today, I think we need to be keenly aware of something: This front line is not just the front line of the Ukrainian territory. It is the front line of our values, of Europe, of democracy, of the rule of law, of respect for human rights and of respect for the self-determination of peoples. That is why we this involves each and every one of us.
Saving lives is paramount. Respecting the will of the Ukrainian people is the first priority. However, there is also the question of the kind of world we want to live in. Do we accept a world where brutality becomes the norm, where international law is flouted and where everything is based on power dynamics? Would we rather have a world built on dialogue, multilateralism, respect and decisions that are made on the basis of law and not brute force?
This has been happening for four years in Ukraine, but we also have an American president south of the border who has a tendency to want to do the same thing. Do we want to live in a world where we respect people's right to self-determination, or do we want to live in a world of spheres of influence, where we believe that if it is our backyard, we have the right to do anything, including invade, massacre and kill?
I think we need to have an important discussion about defending international law, but also about the kind of international relations we want to build and have on the planet. That is fundamental. When I talk about international law, I also mean respecting its institutions, such as the International Criminal Court, which has issued an arrest warrant for dictator Vladimir Putin.
I think that, as Quebeckers and Canadians, we should always show support for the decisions of the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice. I hope that those responsible for the massacres, war crimes and crimes against humanity will be brought to justice.
As parliamentarians, we must continue to support Ukraine. As citizens, let us continue to welcome Ukrainians with open arms. More than 200,000 people have found refuge here. It would be nice for those who wish to return safely to their homes and their country to be able to do so. Failing that, we are prepared to welcome them for as long as necessary. Let us continue to show our solidarity. Let us continue to be there to say that we stand with the Ukrainian people, so that they can one day be treated with respect.
Slava Ukraini.