Deepak Obhrai

[Business of Supply, November 25th, 2010]

Madam Speaker, the member occasionally comes in front of the Afghanistan committee to see what is happening, but his colleague, who is a prominent member of that committee, and ourselves have travelled to Afghanistan. We have seen the mission at hand and we have seen what steps have taken place to improve what has happened. The Prime Minister attended the Lisbon NATO conference. Every country is now looking at how we can improve our mission in Afghanistan.

It is a natural evolutionary process. I do not understand what seems to be the problem. We are going from 2,500 troops to 950 troops. This is a training mission. What is wrong with a training mission? It is the best legacy we can leave for the Afghan people. I fail to understand why the member cannot support that legacy.

[Business of Supply, November 25th, 2010]

Madam Speaker, I alluded to that in my speech. The government has been transparent. It has given quarterly reports. It has had a mandated mission. We are doing exactly what the 2008 motion set out. For the member to say that this is undemocratic is absolutely wrong.

Today we are speaking to that party's motion. Next week, when we vote on this motion, he will find out what the will of the majority of members will be. Let us wait for the vote on the Bloc motion.

[Business of Supply, November 25th, 2010]

Madam Speaker, I will be sharing my time with my colleague from Kootenay—Columbia.

As we are discussing the future of Canada's engagement in Afghanistan, I believe it is also important to reflect upon what we have achieved through this engagement until now.

Afghanistan is not the place that it once was. As the foreign affairs committee saw this past summer, it is a nation of people with incredible will, courage and resilience. When Canada first became involved in Afghanistan, it had been under the rule of the Taliban, one of the world's most repressive and regressive regimes. Poverty, illiteracy and oppression characterized life for all Afghans and the country had become a safe haven for international terrorists.

This was the situation that existed nearly 10 years ago and it is the starting point from which the accomplishments of Canada and its partners must be assessed. In such circumstances, progress takes time and setbacks are to be expected. Nevertheless, progress is being made and Canada has succeeded in making a difference in the lives of the Afghans. Our government feels strongly that we must continue to build on what we have achieved so far and maintain our commitment to Afghanistan.

This is something we owe to the thousands of remarkable Canadian men and women who have risked their lives, including the 152 members of the Canadian Forces, a diplomat, 2 NGO humanitarian aid workers and journalists who have made the ultimate sacrifice in Afghanistan.

The objective of Canadians was to help Afghans improve their own security, development and governance, both in Kandahar province and in Afghanistan as a whole. No one felt that achieving this objective would be free of obstacles and challenges, but that did not discourage the brave men and women, military and civilians, Canadians and Afghans who give the best of themselves to this noble goal, to provide measurable improvements to the lives of Afghan citizens.

Thanks to their hard work, very significant progress has been achieved with regard to our six priorities and three signature projects. This progress is compiled every quarter in the government's report to Parliament on Canada's engagement in Afghanistan. For each of our six priorities and three signature projects, benchmarks and progress indicators have been established. This gives Parliament and the Canadian public a very clear picture of our achievements to date and of what is left to accomplish in order to achieve our objectives.

No other country reports on established benchmarks like we do. Through quarterly reporting, our government ensures an exceptional level of accountability and transparency.

I believe it is important to emphasize how much of our accomplishments are in areas that many Canadians take for granted such as access to basic services, to education and health care. Building schools or providing polio vaccines may not sound like the most groundbreaking achievements to the average citizen of a developed country like Canada, but for an Afghan child, it may make the difference between a life of poverty and a life of opportunity, or even between life itself and death. This is what I hope my fellow parliamentarians and my fellow Canadians keep in mind when they reflect upon Canada's contribution in Afghanistan.

Now let me speak about some of our accomplishments in further detail.

Recognizing that Afghans need to build their own capacity to ensure their own security, Canada has worked tirelessly to enable the Afghanistan National Security Forces in Kandahar to sustain a more secure environment and promised law and order. To this end, we are training, mentoring and equipping the Afghan national army and the police, building capacity in administration and logistics support and carrying out complementary initiatives in justice and correctional systems.

With the rule of law comes the ability for citizens to defend and exercise their fundamental rights. Promoting and protecting human rights, including women's rights, is a core element of Canada's engagement in Afghanistan. Canada consistently raises human rights issue such as freedom of expression, free speech, gender equality and freedom of media with the government of Afghanistan. We also provide support to build Afghan capacity to ensure that laws are in accordance with its constitution and its international human right obligations and to enable justice sector reform

While we acknowledge that this is a long-term process, we have seen substantial improvements in this area since the beginning of our engagement in the country. For instance, women, who had virtually no rights merely 10 years ago, now represent over a quarter of the Afghan parliamentarians and are taking a more active part in the country's political and economic development.

Perhaps more important is girls now represent a third of school children, compared with none in 2001, ensuring a better life and better opportunities for future generations.

Canada is also fully conscious of the importance of regional dynamics and the need for increased regional co-operation in order to help Afghanistan become a more stable and prosperous country.

With this in mind, since November 2007, Canada has facilitated a series of workshops to enhance mutual understanding and confidence between Pakistani and Afghani officials, which will allow them to undertake targeted joint border management projects.

This effort, known as the Dubai process, brings together border officials to promote co-operation with regard to customs, movement of people, counter narcotics and law enforcement. The most recent Dubai process meetings held in April, July and November were very highly productive.

These are just a few examples of progress.

To Afghans, Canadian accomplishments are more than just numbers and quarterly reports. For many Afghans, this partnership with Canada and the progress we have achieved together means real opportunities, as well as hope for a better future.

We can be proud of what we have achieved, but we must remain aware that our work is not complete. As history has proven time and time again, Canadians do not shy away from challenges. Nor do we back down when faced with difficulties. We must continue to look at the bigger picture and maintain our commitment to the people of Afghanistan.

After all, with all of our experience, through blood and hard work, and the admiration and handicraft of the Afghan, it is the best legacy we can leave behind. The Bloc motion fails to recognize that.

[Business of Supply, November 25th, 2010]

Madam Speaker, I listened with interest to both the Bloc and the NDP talk about development aid for Afghanistan. They do not seem to look at the whole of Canada's approach. They just pick on little niggly things and say that aid should go there and forget everything else.

Afghanistan is not a normal country. It has no security and it is run by one of the worst kinds of insurgents in the world, the Taliban. I am not really interested in the kind of development that Canada has been doing there.

I find it quite amazing that the Bloc and the NDP get up every time and say that we should remove the security portion out of it and just let things run by themselves and that we are very much welcomed over there. I have no idea who will provide that security.

To say that Canada should provide development assistance and everything and expect other countries to provide security for this is a very irresponsible attitude.

Talking and listening in Parliament, we are already debating this thing and there will be a vote after this in which the hon. member can express the voting right that she is talking about.

[Business of Supply, November 25th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, the hon. member has been to Afghanistan many times. He was with me when we visited Afghanistan. He is talking about the tragic consequences of losing people; soldiers and diplomats.

Yes, we have lost people. It is tragic, but that is the responsibility that Canada has undertaken under NATO. We are a responsible nation, a small nation, and our military has stood very strong. We can all, including the hon. member, be proud of what the military has done and what they are doing in Afghanistan, and that includes our diplomatic mission.

The fact of the matter is that we cannot pick and choose what is going to happen. It is a whole of government of Canada approach to diplomacy, to development, as well as to providing security.

For all the sacrifices Canadians have made, it is but natural that we leave that country to the Afghanis. We have always said that Afghanistan is for Afghanis, but it is our responsibility to ensure that we leave them with a trained force that they can take over themselves. We cannot leave them with a half-done job. We are the best trainers and we can teach them what we have learned.

That is why I am surprised that the Bloc is not willing to support this. They should be supporting and be proud of the Canadian military for the training mission they are doing. That is a great legacy that we leave behind for Afghanistan.

[Foreign Affairs, November 24th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Government of Canada, I wish to express my deepest condolences to the government and the people of Cambodia in the aftermath of Monday's devastating stampede in Phnom Penh. Cambodians were celebrating the final day of their national water festival when the tragedy struck, resulting in over 450 deaths with hundreds more injured. We also wish a speedy recovery for those injured.

I also wish to express our deepest condolences and sympathies to the Government of New Zealand for the deaths which resulted from the mining explosion. I would like to extend our sympathies to the families and friends of those who were killed. Our thoughts and prayers are with them at this difficult time.

[Foreign Affairs, November 19th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Government of Canada, I am greatly relieved that Robert Croke of Newfoundland, who was seized on November 8 in the Niger Delta region of Nigeria along with six other expatriates, has been released and is now safe.

Canadian officials are ensuring that Mr. Croke receives consular assistance, and that he will be reunited with his family as soon as possible.

We are also relieved that 12 Nigerian citizens who were taken hostage in a separate incident shortly following Mr. Croke's abduction were also released at the same time.

I was recently in Nigeria for its Independence Day celebration to further our strong, bilateral relationship with the Government of Nigeria. Let me be very clear, our mutual goal is for a safe and peaceful world.

[November 18th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, in my response I said we work with international agencies and other groups to ensure that child and maternal health is a very important issue.

Let me assure the hon. member that this July, the African Union summit in Kampala used the same theme of child and maternal health. Everyone there agreed that the priority that we and CIDA have and working with other partners will produce results henceforth with our attention to this important initiative.

[November 18th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, Canada made maternal and child health a priority at the G8 summit in Muskoka because we recognize that the loss of a mother has a critical impact on the health and well-being of her children. It starts in pregnancy and carries on well after birth. Mother and child must remain healthy for each to have a real chance of surviving and thriving in life.

Within its children and youth strategy, CIDA has focused one of its priorities on maternal and child health in order to ensure that mothers stay healthy during pregnancy and are able to properly care for their children once they are born. However, it is not enough to simply keep women healthy during and after pregnancy.

CIDA also recognizes that women should be able to determine the timing and spacing of their pregnancies, which has a direct impact on their health and well-being, as well as the outcome of pregnancies. For this reason, CIDA annually provides approximately $15 million to support programs, activities and commodities in the developing world.

We are not alone in pursuing such a program. In fact, increasing access to services is also an area of focus for the international organizations that CIDA supports, for example, the United Nations, the International Committee of the Red Cross and World Vision. Our G8 initiative is necessary to ensure the long-term health of mothers and children, and the work we are doing in this area is translating into much progress for maternal and child health in the countries of focus.

In western Mali, for example, skilled health care workers now attend almost half of all deliveries thanks to the CIDA project; and approximately 733 health professionals have been trained to improve the health of mothers and newborns during childbirth through CIDA's support of the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada and its partner associations in Guatemala.

Beyond pregnancy, it is also critical that we work to give infants and young children a healthy start in life. Doing so greatly increases the likelihood that they will go to school as they grow up, contributing in a meaningful way to their communities. CIDA is fulfilling this objective by training and equipping front-line health care workers to deliver modern malaria treatments, bed nets, antibiotics for infections and other key health services for children and vulnerable groups.

Nutrition is also an important component of our efforts to keep mothers and children healthy. As a founding partner and principal donor of the micronutrient initiative, CIDA is helping to avert malnutrition by providing vitamin A, iodine and other micronutrients to mothers and young children.

Others in the world agree that maternal and child health needs to be a priority. During the G8 development ministers' meeting in Halifax last April, ministers were unanimous that improving the health of mothers and children should be the top priority of the agenda. There was similar agreement when it came to determining the scope of action required to address child and health issues.

In conclusion, Canada has made great strides and our $1.1 billion in new funding for maternal and child health will make a definite difference in the lives of the people in the developing world.

[Foreign Affairs, November 17th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, on behalf of the Government of Canada and all Canadians, I wish to express my indignation at the news of the unlawful detention of Saeed Malekpour who is an Iranian citizen and a permanent resident of Canada. He returned to Iran in October 2008 to see his terminally ill father and was arrested. Currently in jail, he faces several allegations, including agitation against the Iranian government, and he has not had access to a lawyer.

Mr. Malekpour's case is but one of the many cases in which someone in Iran is facing a death sentence after a highly questionable process. The Canadian government, along with the international community, is committed to holding Iran to account for this and other violations of human rights. We continue to call on Iran to respect its domestic and international obligations and ensure fairness and due process to all its citizens and others.