Lise Zarac

[Jean-Pierre Brabant, June 7th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, it is with great pride that I commend the extraordinary courage and bravery shown by a police officer from my riding, LaSalle—Émard.

While on patrol on May 10, 2010, officer Jean-Pierre Brabant of LaSalle’s police station 13 dove into the icy waters of the Lachine Canal to save the life of a suspect who jumped into the canal to try to escape during a police chase. The suspect quickly became hypothermic and lost his strength, and was therefore unable to grab the buoy that was thrown to him. Seeing a human being in distress and acting on instinct alone, officer Brabant dove into the water to save the life of someone he had been pursuing just moments earlier.

Jean-Pierre Brabant's bravery and courage exemplify his heroic spirit and his profound desire to serve his community, even at great risk to his own life. On behalf of the people of LaSalle—Émard, I would like to say thank you and offer my most sincere congratulations on this act of bravery. The LaSalle police can be proud to call a hero like Jean-Pierre Brabant one of their own.

[Status of Women, June 1st, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, their flawed rhetoric will not save the lives of the women that they are condemning. The Conservatives have shifted Canada's development policy. They have refused to include the environment on the G8 agenda, against the advice of the international community.

What right does the Prime Minister have to shift Canada's foreign policy for partisan reasons? It is costing $1 billion of public money to defend the Conservative Party's interests.

[Status of Women, June 1st, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, last week I asked the Prime Minister to stand up and tell us, in both official languages, that women are free to choose and that he will never allow a bill to pass if it restricts that right.

He refused to answer and delegated his ministers to again provide a series of evasive responses.

On behalf of Canadian women, I would like to once again repeat my request of the Prime Minister. I would like him to stand up and answer my question in both official languages. Does he not have the courage to do so?

[Status of Women, May 31st, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, by condemning African women to having illegal abortions, the Conservatives are isolating Canada on the international stage and going against the advice of the other G8 countries, the scientific community and CIDA, not to mention the wishes of the vast majority of Canadians.

Exactly whose interests will they represent at the G8 summit? Why are they trying to delegitimize women's right to choose?

[Maternal Health, May 27th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, the Prime Minister did not include the environment on the G8 and G20 agenda, despite the wishes of the other member states and the UN. He wants to take away the right to choose from African women, which is the complete opposite of what the other countries and all of their scientific communities are calling for. He has isolated us on the international stage on all of the major issues. In Canada, he listens to no one, except Dimitri Soudas.

Why does the Prime Minister insist on going it alone, in Canada and abroad?

[Maternal Health, May 27th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, not only has the government disregarded international priorities in its agenda for the G8 and G20, but it is also completely isolating Canada on the issue of maternal health. Scientific communities in all the G8 countries are calling for the inclusion of measures to reduce the number of unsafe abortions. The science is clear: one in every seven mothers dies as a result of a backroom abortion.

Does the Minister for La Francophonie, who claims to be pro-choice, realize what they are doing?

[Status of Women, May 26th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, that is still not an answer. Will he oppose any attempt to restrict women's right to choose, yes or no?

Yesterday, we learned that, her own department's advice notwithstanding, the minister of international patriarchy was planning to interfere in African women's medical decisions. This proves that the government is guided solely by ideology, not by the scientific data on maternal health.

How can the minister sleep at night knowing that she will be forcing African women to get back-alley abortions?

[Status of Women, May 26th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, yesterday, I asked the Prime Minister to stand up and tell us, in both official languages, that women are free to choose and that he will never allow a bill to pass if it restricts that right.

He refused to answer and delegated his minister of international patriarchy to provide a series of evasive responses.

On behalf of Canadian women, I would like to repeat my request of the Prime Minister. I would like him to stand up and answer my question in both official languages.

[Status of Women, May 25th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, how can we trust them to respect a woman's right to choose, when they decided to take that right away from African women, against the advice of doctors and contrary to public opinion, and in violation of the Maputo declaration?

It is a right. What right does the Prime Minister have to take that right away from African women? Will he do away with the Conservative gag rule, as unanimously called for by the National Assembly, or will he take a right away from African women that he claims to not want to take away from Canadian women?

[Status of Women, May 25th, 2010]

Mr. Speaker, it is unacceptable that the Prime Minister refuses to tell Canadian women where he stands on the right to choose. His anonymous sources say one thing in French and another thing in English. The verbal acrobatics from Dimitri Soudas do not constitute a government commitment.

I am urging the Prime Minister to clearly state, in both official languages, that women are free to choose and that he will never allow a bill to pass that could restrict a woman's right to choose.