Mario Silva

[Social Development, September 30th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, my question is for the Minister of State for Families and Caregivers.

Tomorrow is the International Day of Older Persons and like all parliamentarians we all know the important contributions that seniors have made to our country. My riding of Davenport has a sizeable and growing number of seniors.

Would the minister provide an update on the direction of the government's efforts on behalf of seniors?

[Iran, September 30th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, this past summer people across the world were shocked and saddened by media reports from Iran which indicated that two young men aged 16 and 18 had been executed.

Independent media reports confirmed that Mahmoud Asgari and Ayez Marhoni lost their lives because they were gay. While Iranian officials tried to make reference to supposed criminal charges, these lacked any credibility.

The reality is that gays and lesbians in Iran are subject to appalling human rights abuse. These young men lost their lives for being gay. The fact that they were as young as they were meant that their execution was in violation of international conventions to which Iran is a signatory.

People across the world must speak out in outrage at these continued abuses of the most basic human rights in Iran.

[Criminal Code, September 27th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I want to thank the member for having repeated his question. I already explained the situation, and the great importance of this bill. I hope that everyone will vote in favour of it.

[Criminal Code, September 27th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I believe I already answered that question, although I am a little confused as to where the hon. member is going with that question.

I assume that he is in support of the bill that is before the House, as all members should be. It is an important bill that moves forward on certain United Nations conventions to which we have been a signator.

I do not see the relevance in the member's question. I hope the member is not suggesting in any way, shape or form that Canada is engaged in human trafficking in the sex trade. I would be quite appalled if the member were in fact suggesting that is the direction this country is moving toward.

[Criminal Code, September 27th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I have great respect for the opposition member who asked this question.

I have already pointed out how important this legislation is to Canadians and to the future of our country. I fully support this bill, as does everyone I hope.

In a sense, this bill is a step toward respect for the rights of the men and women of this country, that is every citizen of this country.

[Criminal Code, September 27th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I must say that I do have great respect for the member and his question but I fail to see the link. Maybe he could explain in a supplementary question if he wants to ask one.

I and I think most Canadians do not believe that the government is in any way, shape or form engaging in human trafficking. The facts suggest that it is a little absurd.

We have been working very strongly with international organizations with the UN Convention on Human Trafficking. Canada is a signatory to that protocol. We also work very strongly with our municipal officials and our provincial governments to ensure that does not happen in Canada. Canada is a great model for the rest of the world. We should be proud of this country and what it does to protect children and women.

[Criminal Code, September 27th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to rise today to speak to Bill C-49, an act to amend the Criminal Code, trafficking in persons. The bill is unquestionably an important step toward protecting the vulnerable and is also a reflection of the government's commitment to ensuring Canadians clearly recognize and strongly denounce the practice of human trafficking.

Bill C-49 demonstrates the government's commitment to these priorities as it introduces indictable offences to address the horrible human rights violation that is human trafficking.

The main offence related to the trafficking in persons would essentially prohibit anyone from engaging in specified acts such as recruiting, transporting, harbouring or controlling the movements of another person for the purpose of exploiting or facilitating the exploitation of that person. Under Bill C-49, this offence becomes punishable up to life imprisonment depending on the severity and the harmfulness the trafficking caused the victims and Canadian society.

Bill C-49 would not only protect the vulnerable but it would also serve to deter those who seek to profit from the exploitation of others by making it an offence to receive a financial or material benefit knowing that it results from the trafficking of persons. An individual found guilty of this offence could face up to 10 years imprisonment for their involvement in trafficking.

Bill C-49 proposes to forbid the withholding or destroying of travel or identity documents in order to commit or facilitate the trafficking of persons. Involvement in this type of conduct would be punishable by a maximum of five years imprisonment.

Recently in a report released on May 11 by the international labour organization, it was estimated that 2.45 million people around the world are forced into labour conditions as a result of human trafficking. Who are the primary victims? They are women and children. UNICEF has estimated that 1.2 million children are being trafficked around the world each year.

Numbers like these demonstrate the magnitude as well as the urgency of strengthening both domestic and international measures to combat human trafficking. It is our duty to ensure that we have the best response possible to this horrible crime that violates the most basic human rights.

Bill C-49 would strengthen Canada's legal framework by building upon existing local and global responses to human trafficking. Currently, there are many international mechanisms that respond to human trafficking, including the most recent one which is the United Nations Conventions Against Transnational Organized Crime and its supplemental protocol to prevent, suppress and punish trafficking in persons, especially women and children. These offer a widely accepted international framework for addressing this issue. Bill C-49 more clearly reflects this framework.

Canada's approach, as it is stated in Bill C-49, focuses on the prevention of trafficking, the protection of its victims and the prosecution of the offenders. The reforms proposed by Bill C-49 send a direct message to those who seek to exploit the most vulnerable members of our society through this intolerable form of conduct.

Bill C-49 would strengthen Canada's current responses to trafficking by building upon existing provisions in the Criminal Code and would also complement the provisions of the Immigration and Refugee Protection Act that look to prevent Canada's border from being breached by human trafficking smugglers.

The government is also working to address human trafficking in a non-legislative manner as well. In April 2004 the Department of Justice launched a website on trafficking persons. This website provides important information for the public describing the problems and providing related links.

Education and awareness are moving forward through the development within Canada and to Canadian embassies in the form of posters and information pamphlets which are both available in 14 different languages.

Training and education about human trafficking began with a training seminar in March 2004. This program was co-hosted by the Department of Justice Canada and the International Organization for Migration. A similar seminar was also hosted by the RCMP in May in Vancouver.

I support Bill C-49 because it demonstrates our commitment to bringing human trafficking to an end. The bill serves to protect millions of women and children and would hold traffickers accountable. I hope all members recognize the importance of the bill and vote in favour of this important legislation.

[Simon Wiesenthal, September 27th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, recently the world lost a truly great man with the passing of Simon Wiesenthal. Simon Wiesenthal was responsible for bringing to justice over 1,100 war criminals who might otherwise have avoided being brought to account for their crimes.

This past summer I had the opportunity to visit the Yad Vashem memorial to those who died in the Holocaust. One has only to spend a brief moment at the Yad Vashem memorial to understand just how important Simon Wiesenthal's work was to the world.

As a Holocaust survivor himself, Simon Wiesenthal ensured that the memory of those who died was honoured by his efforts to hold those responsible to account. His work, as well as the Simon Wiesenthal Centre, will continue to live on as a tribute to his remarkable life.

[Civil Marriage Act, June 28th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the members of the opposition continue to talk about the traditional definition of marriage which they wish to uphold. Yet they know very well that the traditional definition of marriage has changed over the years. Up to a few years ago, a Protestant and Catholic could not get married in Canada. Is that the tradition they wish to uphold of marriage? I doubt it.

The opposition members speak about accommodation of gays and lesbians. What gays and lesbians want is not accommodation. It is full equality under the law. Equality as I have stated before is not the cherished exclusive privilege of a few. It is the cherished gift of all citizens.

Is it not disturbing and disappointing that equality could have so many enemies? Four times in the House I have asked the question, yet I have not received an answer from the opposition members. What are they planning to do with the 5,000 legally issued licences to gays and lesbians across the country? Do they plan to take those licences away from those citizens who were granted those licences?

[Civil Marriage Act, June 28th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, we have to stop this debate and argument about how there is somehow a great fear, about how an incredible situation is going to take place in our country if the civil marriage bill becomes law.

It is already the law in many places in the country. It is the law in Ontario, my home province, and it has been the law for over a year. I do not see marriages breaking up all over the place.

There is this incredible fear being presented by the opposition. It is terrible to build that on the unity of this country. We should speak to the betterment of the country, to what it is all about. It is about a country of tolerance and hope, one that respects people's rights and dignity. It is not a country that wants to create barriers between one group and another. I am concerned about some of the arguments stated by the opposition member.

I want to again ask a question of the members of the official opposition. I have posed this question twice already and have yet to get an answer. Maybe the hon. member will answer. It has to do with the fact there have been over 5,000 licences issued in the country. What is the Conservative Party view of what to do with the 5,000 licences that were legally issued to citizens in good standing of this country so they could get married civilly? What is her plan? What does her party plan to do with those licences? Do the Conservatives plan to have them nullified?