Osvaldo Nunez

[United Nations Universal Declaration Of Human Rights, December 10th, 1996]

Madam Speaker, I will share my time with the hon. member for Louis-Hébert.

I appreciate this opportunity today to draw your attention to World Human Rights Day. The world has undergone profound changes since the adoption in 1948 of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, whose 48th anniversary we celebrate on this 10th of December.

During those past 50 years, considerable progress has been made. In recent years, humanity put an end to a number of dictatorships, including the hated apartheid regime in South Africa, which gave new hope to the entire African continent.

In 1989, we saw the Berlin wall, that symbol of the cold war, collapse, and we also saw major changes taking place in the countries of eastern Europe. The rivalry between the two great blocks has ended.

The issue of human rights was officially mentioned at the beginning of this century in the Pact of the League of Nations which, among other things, led to the creation of the ILO and the United Nations Organization. The UN preparatory commission, which met in 1945 immediately after the closing session of the San Francisco conference, recommended creating a commission to promote human rights as defined in section 68 of the Charter.

Finally, the draft declaration was submitted, through the Economic and Social Council, to the General Assembly meeting in Paris. The declaration was adopted on December 10, 1948. In two years we will celebrate the 50th anniversary of this declaration, which constitutes "a common standard of achievement for all peoples and all nations, to the end that every individual and every organ of society shall strive by teaching and education to promote respect for these rights and freedoms".

The declaration provides that "recognition of the inherent dignity and of the equal and inalienable rights of all members of the human family is the foundation of freedom, justice and peace in the world" and "disregard and contempt for human rights have resulted in barbarous acts which have outraged the conscience of mankind, and the advent of a world in which human beings shall enjoy freedom of speech and belief and freedom from fear and want has been proclaimed as the highest aspiration of the common people".

The horrors of World War II played a large part in making the whole world aware of the direct link between the respect of human rights and peace. The Universal Declaration of Human Rights is the cornerstone of the UN human rights conventions. It was followed by the Declaration on the Right to Development in 1986, the Declaration on the Protection of all Persons from Enforced Disappearance in 1992, and several others. These declarations and conventions are not legally binding, except on ratifying states. However, many countries have incorporated certain provisions into their legislation.

The principle of the declaration which states that "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights" has served as a model for the laws and institutions that today protect Canada, Quebec and many other countries.

Human rights, peace and development are the three pillars of the UN.

Since it was first formed, the UN has adopted over 50 instruments concerning human rights: the right to life, the right to freedom, the right to freedom of expression, religion and association, the right to protection from discrimination, the right to adequate food and housing, and the right to an adequate standard of living.

We are told that international promotion of human rights is an integral part of Canada's foreign policy. However, the present government is closing its eyes to repeated violations of human rights in certain countries, especially when it is a question of developing trade ties with those countries. This is true in the case of China and Indonesia.

The cold war is now a thing of the past. It has been replaced, however, by other types of threats to peace and security: interethnic hatreds; breakdown of social and government infrastructures; an increase in the frequency and intensity of internal armed conflicts, with all the massive migrations that result. Twenty-five million refugees have been forced through persecution to move or leave their country of origin. As you know, the situation today in Zaire and neighbouring countries is tragic.

Despite the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, and all the other covenants and protocols on human rights, there have been genocides in Bosnia, Rwanda and Burundi. In the 1960s and 1970s, several cruel dictatorships sprang up in Latin America. Flagrant violations of human rights in Chili-assassinations, tortures and disappearances-forced me and my family to leave my country of origin and come to Quebec. Even today, according to Amnesty International, a number of Latin American countries continue to violate certain fundamental rights.

I want to take this opportunity to congratulate the Government of Guatemala and the National Revolutionary Union of Guatemala on the peace accords and definitive ceasefire that were signed not long ago. Peace has been restored after 35 years of fighting between the armed forces and the guerrillas. I hope that Canada will play an active role in supervising these accords and help to promote and defend human rights, including those of the Indian peoples in this country for whom I have great respect.

We have a duty to condemn human rights violations throughout the world. But this is not enough. We must establish a permanent international criminal court. This decision is urgently needed, considering the intolerable situations experienced by various peoples, and I am thinking of Rwanda, the former Yugoslavia and other countries where war criminals remain unpunished.

I want to congratulate the Ligue des droits et libertés du Québec on starting a campaign to establish this kind of permanent tribunal, and I would ask the government to give its vigorous support to this initiative. I have always been active in promoting human rights, especially in the "Ligue" where I was a member of the board for a number of years.

The international community must acquire the necessary tools to implement existing standards effectively and wisely throughout the world. It must also have the tools to punish the perpetrators of crimes against humanity. It is necessary to reinforce international control, investigation and monitoring mechanisms, especially in cases of forced disappearance, arbitrary detention and torture. We must narrow the gap between the solemn principles set forth in the Charter and the suffering endured by peoples throughout the world.

Furthermore, we cannot dissociate the protection of human rights from the process of democratization. Poverty is a major obstacle to the genuine implementation of the principles underlying democracy. It is on behalf of this ideal that third world countries have started a long and difficult struggle to obtain recognition of the right to development and to find a solution to their debt problems.

In concluding, I would urge the Canadian government to make this issue an absolute priority and to intensify and reinforce the promotion and defence of rights and freedoms here and throughout the world.

[Universal Declaration Of Human Rights, December 10th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, today, December 10, 1996, we celebrate the 48th anniversary of the United Nations Universal Declaration of Human Rights. This important document sets out basic international standards concerning fundamental human rights and freedoms and promotes the respect and dignity of all human beings.

During the last half century, we have observed considerable progress in this regard: the Berlin Wall came down, a number of dictatorships were replaced by democratic governments, and the end of apartheid in South Africa gave new hope to the African continent as a whole.

However, many countries are still living under oppressive regimes, and, in some cases, in states of civil war. Over 25 million refugees worldwide are the victims of persecution.

It is our fervent hope that Canada will devote more attention to defending human rights and freedoms, at home and abroad.

[Finance, December 9th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I listened with great interest to the hon. member's speech. I know that he cares about the issue of child poverty. I also know that he supports his government's strategy against the deficit.

I do not think he mentioned the enormous problem we currently have with the unemployment rate, which exceeds 10 per cent in Canada and 12 per cent in Quebec, with the cuts made by his government to social programs, and with the fact that over 4 million Canadians live below the poverty level.

His government has demanded tremendous sacrifices from the most vulnerable in our society, like the unemployed and welfare recipients, but not from rich Canadians.

This is in contradiction with the traditional Liberal philosophy, which was based on compassion. A former Prime Minister coined the phrase "just society". Where is the compassion? Where is the traditional Liberal ideal of promoting a just society? I do not see any compassion in the government's agenda. On the contrary, the government is relentless with the unemployed and with welfare recipients, who are the poorest members of our society.

I would appreciate it if the hon. member could explain the contradiction between his stated concerns about children, and his government's policy, which in no way reflects his own concerns.

[Illegal Immigrants, December 6th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, only one RCMP officer handles this case. The Dutch authorities themselves said they were surprised that there was only one RCMP officer investigating such an important matter, when they themselves had assigned more than 30 police officers to work on it.

Does the Solicitor General appreciate that by downplaying such important matters, police authorities are in fact penalizing all legal immigrants, who will suffer the direct and indirect repercussions of these illegal entries?

[Illegal Immigrants, December 6th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Solicitor General.

A few weeks ago, we learned about the smuggling of illegal immigrants from Hong Kong. This morning, we learned about the smuggling of illegal immigrants, this time from Iran through the Netherlands. This smuggling is said to have allowed the illegal entry into Canada of 4,000 Iranians, and to be operated by a very well organized network with connections in Canada.

What serious and effective steps does the Solicitor General intend to take in order to stop this smuggling of illegal immigrants and reduce the number of people illegally entering Canada?

[Immigration, December 5th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, I believe the minister is not a loyal member of the Liberal Party since she has no intention of complying with her party's resolutions.

The vast majority of people working for agencies involved with assisting immigrants, labour unions, a number of community groups, the Bloc Quebecois and now members of her own party are asking her to change the rules. What more does the minister need to take action?

[Immigration, December 5th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the immigration minister.

At its last convention, the Liberal Party of Canada passed a resolution calling for the lowering or the outright elimination of the $975 head tax immigrants must pay when they apply for residence in Canada. This tax which is particularly outrageous, unfair and discriminatory for refugees comes on top of the $500 processing fee for each application.

Can the minister tell us whether she intends to comply with the request put by members of her party and what exactly she is considering doing in response to their demand?

[Parliament Of Canada Act, November 27th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, on October 8, I asked a question of the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration concerning the imposition of a visa requirement for Portuguese visitors to Canada.

Portugal is the only country in the European Union for which such a thing is required, and this is profoundly unfair and discriminatory. This country is, moreover, an ally and a friend, as well as a fellow member of NATO. The population of Portuguese origin living here numbers close to half a million, which makes it one of the largest ethnic communities in Canada and in Quebec.

This measure, which the immigration minister of the day described as temporary, was taken by the Mulroney government in 1986, as the result of certain immigration irregularities involving Portugal. The Liberals, who were then in opposition, were vehemently opposed to this decision. At that time, the hon. member for York West, who was the Liberal critic in this area, denounced this measure by saying: "That action would be unwarranted and unfair and I have asked the minister to abandon the proposal and to avoid needlessly penalizing the Canadian Portuguese community, and a European friend and ally".

This unjustified requirement generates enormous problems for family members wishing to visit relatives here.

I have asked a number of questions of the minister and her predecessor. I have prepared press releases, so far to no avail. The Bloc Quebecois supports this campaign.

I am therefore again condemning this measure, because visa applicants are being subjected to unacceptable interrogation and red tape at the Canadian embassy in Portugal. They are also being required to pay a fee which keeps going up. Sometimes, as well, they have to cope with either refusals or intolerable delays. While this is going on, the event they were invited to, such as a marriage or a baptism, has often come and gone.

In her response to my question in the House on October 8, the minister said she was, and I quote: "quite prepared to reopen discussions with the Portuguese authorities on this question". The next day, she met José Lello, the secretary of state for Portuguese communities abroad, during his visit to Ottawa. Why did the minister not take advantage of this excellent opportunity to put an end to this discriminatory and totally unjustified requirement?

I can understand the Portuguese community's anger and annoyance at the attitude of the Canadian government. Canadians and Quebecers of Portuguese origin make a significant contribution to our society. They are exceptionally hard workers. I know the

community well, especially in Montreal and the Outaouais. I know that all members of the community want to see the end of the visa.

Various Portuguese-Canadian organizations are circulating a petition in Canada on this issue. It will be tabled in the House shortly. Those signing it state that the visa hinders the development of bilateral relations in the areas of culture, education, job training and trade. Furthermore, it prevents Portuguese citizens from regularly visiting their relatives for various family events when their presence is required.

I would like to conclude by again requesting the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration to immediately remove the visa requirement for Portuguese visitors. Canada must implement a policy of reciprocity with Portugal, which does not require a visa from Canadians.

I take this opportunity to salute my many friends in the Portuguese community in Canada and Quebec.

[Immigration, November 26th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, the Bloc Quebecois has on several occasions advised the minister of this behaviour.

The president of the world antifascist league, who lives in her riding, called before the conference to let her staff know they were going to have this press conference.

It is pretty obvious that in Algeria we are seeing what to all intents and purposes is a civil war. That being said, will the minister respond positively to repeated requests from the Bloc Quebecois to suspend the deportation of Algerian nationals?

[Immigration, November 26th, 1996]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday the coalition for the respect of human rights condemned abuse by Immigration officers of Algerian nationals seeking refugee status, including excessively long detentions, intimidation, harassment and other arbitrary practices. The Bloc Quebecois has already sharply criticized these actions.

When will the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration put an end to the kind of practices and abuse unworthy of a democratic country that are committed by her officers when dealing with Algerian nationals seeking asylum?