Mr. Speaker, persecution based on religious belief is a significant and growing problem around the world. Women and girls from religious minority communities are increasingly at risk of a kind of double persecution known as gender-specific religious persecution, where they are targeted for both their faith and their gender. Gender-specific religious persecution can include abduction, sexual assault, forced marriage and forced conversion, along with other abuses.
Maria Shahbaz, a 13-year-old Pakistani Christian girl, was abducted, forcibly converted and subjected to so-called forced marriage. The Pakistani court ruled that the marriage was legal.
Amany, an 18-year-old Coptic Christian woman living in upper Egypt, was kidnapped on her way to school as part of a coordinated effort to have her forcibly converted and married outside her community.
The often hidden plight of women and girls who face this double persecution must not be ignored. Canada's government should push legal and practical reforms in partner countries to address this issue and ensure that our public service has the knowledge and capacity to address gender-specific religious persecution. There is a need and an opportunity for our government and our Parliament to champion a response to this issue.