Madam Speaker, I sat here today listening to the debates and questions. At times it has been hurtful and emotional for me. I, too, am an immigrant with roots in the Indian subcontinent.
I want to remind everybody that the people who were on the Komagata Maru that was turned away were not only Sikhs, they were Hindus and they were Muslims. If we all remember our history, at that time the Indian subcontinent was one country and it was under British rule.
All of those citizens on that ship were British citizens. They were just coming to another part of the British Empire. An order in council prevented them from coming here for no other reason than the colour of their skin and their religious background. I would say that is a shameful aspect of our history, and because it is part of our official history, nobody is denying it, not the Conservatives, not the Liberals, not the NDP. We all accept that it was a shameful part of our history. Therefore, I believe that we must also accept that if the wrong was done by a government through orders in council, then the apology must also be in the hallowed halls of Parliament today.
If the Prime Minister has already acknowledged, in a speech on a platform in a park, that it was wrong, I would say it would not be a big step for him to sit in his seat on the Monday after we come back and to read out a statement in this House. The fact of the matter is, this is the House.
I want to just reflect a minute, and I would really appreciate it, Madam Speaker, if some of the chatter to the right of me could stop. It is interfering with my train of thought. It is very disrespectful, because I really try to pay attention when other people are speaking.
I have to be honest that because I grew up in England my knowledge of the Komagata Maru was not that great. I have learned more about this incident. Being a social studies teacher, I tried to reflect the cultural diversity of our communities and tried to teach a little bit about the Komagata Maru.
I only became personally attached to some of the stories once I was running to be a member of Parliament. During that time, I had many members of the riding come up and speak to me about this incident. The emotions that were involved were really overwhelming. I had read about it, so I had the historical aspect, but I did not appreciate at that time, as I do today, the emotional baggage people were carrying as a result of this.
I had a gentleman in my riding, whose name is Jasbir. He is the grandson of a Komagata Maru passenger. He asked if he could have a meeting with me before he would decide who he was going to be supporting. He told me of the struggles he has had with the Liberal government and the Conservative government, getting them to apologize.
He said that he had a great deal of respect for Jack Layton, because Jack Layton said that when the NDP formed a government, it would apologize. This motion is here today. Our party is saying that when we form government, there will be an apology. We will not be like the Liberals, who sat with majority governments, year in and year out, and it just was not an issue then. They did not issue an apology when they had the chance.
Why is this so important when there are so many other critical issues surrounding us right now? As a counsellor, I know the importance of truth and reconciliation. The families I have met personally will not find closure, nor will the community, unless and until there is an apology in this Parliament.
I also beg to disagree with my respected colleague from Brampton—Springdale when he says that this is not an issue in the community. I invite him to come with me to my riding, have a debate and discussion and hear from the people.
The Prime Minister talked about the consultations that occurred with the Minister of Citizenship, Immigration and Multiculturalism. I just finished a conversation during the break with a gentleman who helped to facilitate the consultations. He was at both consultations, Toronto and Vancouver, He said that not one person at either of those well-attended consultation meetings said anything other than the apology has to be in Parliament.
There are some things that overwhelm us. I know how important it has been for other communities. I am very proud that the government apologized to the Japanese for the internment and to the Chinese for the head tax. It was my privilege the other day to read a statement. This is the wonderful thing about our communities. There was a comment made by a small business owner, Gabriel Yiu, in Vancouver, who stated, “I believe that with solidarity among the ethnic groups there is hope that a dignified apology could be issued before the centennial of the Komagata Maru incident”. This is the country we have built. Canadians from other cultures absolutely recognize the need for this apology.
There are other comments. For example, in B.C. the Liberal-Conservative coalition government apologized in the legislature. I will read what Carole Taylor said in Hansard, not in some public park announcement. She apologized on behalf of the province and stated:
It is a shame for all of us to remember that our country did this, but I think that part of the healing process is to go through this, where we apologize for it. To those individuals who have been affected directly or indirectly, to those in India whose future was determined by this policy of discrimination and to the world who watched Canada with dismay as we perpetuated this whites-only policy — to everyone — we say: “We apologize.”
I have only one plea to my colleagues on every side of the House. It would take a nanosecond for the Prime Minister to stand in his place on Monday morning or any other day in the near future to say we apologize. One thing I have taught my children is that saying sorry means a lot. It sends a message. There are hundreds of thousands of South Asians, Muslims, Sikhs and Hindus who are looking to for us to make that apology in these hallowed halls.
It was just over a year ago when I first sat in my seat in Parliament that I was overwhelmed with emotion. I was born in India, grew up in England, now live in Canada. I am sitting in a seat where other people sat before me and made motions to keep people from my ancestry out of this country and to keep women from the vote. I was very proud that we are moving forward. This apology is a necessary step for truth and reconciliation.
