Pablo Rodriguez

[Privilege, November 3rd, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, as I said, the Liberal Party is the party of all those who feel it is possible to debate ideas without descending into personal attacks, insults and defamation of character.

I would like to briefly salute all the volunteers who have, and continue to have, the courage and desire to change the course of events, even when that means great sacrifice, as it often does. I also salute all that which is noble in politics: commitment, devotion, solidarity come what may, and selflessness.

As we have heard, the Bloc likes to appropriate the symbols of Quebec for itself. The Bloc members try to appropriate the flag of Quebec. They have made “Québécois“ part of their name, though they are far from representing all Quebeckers, far from it. Not content with that, they are also trying to appropriate the symbols of others as well. They did that by putting our party's logo on the infamous publication. Now they are trying to appropriate the motto of Quebec as their own.

Since it belongs to all Quebeckers, and not to the Bloc, I too will use that motto and tell them that I remember, Je me souviens , that there are not two categories of citizens in Quebec. I remember that there are not good Quebeckers and bad Quebeckers, depending on their opinion on unity. I remember that a person can be both a federalist and a Quebecker, without being marginalized and insulted. I remember that the sole purpose of the Bloc Québécois is to destroy the country. I remember that a person can be proud to be a Quebecker, and proud to be a Canadian, and that there is no contradiction whatsoever between the two things. I remember that the country represents something that is absolutely extraordinary for which we will continue to fight.

[Privilege, November 3rd, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Ahuntsic.

In recent months, the Bloc has done its best to damage the reputation of all Liberals.

It did so using the householder referred to here today, through unfair personal attacks by spreading rumours and misinformation about a lot of people.

Today we know the truth. Judge Gomery has decided what was rumour, allegation and fact. It is clear today that a small group of individuals committed reprehensible acts and will pay for it. The government and the Liberal Party have both taken the necessary measures.

There are limits to efforts at tarnishing a reputation, damaging a career and unfairly impacting on the lives of all those associated with our party. The Bloc has been going well beyond this limit for a very long time.

My father used to like to tell me that politics brings out the best and the worst in people. The behaviour of the Bloc and the vileness of their attacks are certainly among the worst.

In so doing, Bloc members attacked the integrity of all Liberal militants. These may not be better than those from the other parties, but they certainly are no worse. They stand for values that are different. Unlike the Bloc, they believe that people can be different but equal, different but united. They also believe that we can be proud to be Quebeckers and proud to be Canadians, without there being any contradiction in that.

Whether the Bloc likes it or not, we live in a free and democratic society where the presumption of innocence has always prevailed. Within this society, thousands of militants volunteer for one of the various political parties or another. We have to realize that, first and foremost, a political party is an organization comprised of volunteers who are involved in defending their values and advancing their ideas.

That is what the Liberal Party of Canada is. It was built on generation upon generation of men and women, young and old, whose sweat bears the depth and beauty of their beliefs and who have the courage and fortitude necessary to defend them. Today's generation is no different from the ones before it. The Bloc Québécois has attempted to tarnish their reputation, but it will not succeed.

The Liberal Party of Canada is often about ordinary people who managed to accomplish great things. It is about the volunteers in Montreal, Trois-Rivières, Chicoutimi and all across Quebec and Canada.

For me, the Liberal Party remains the party of everyone who believes that it is possible to make a difference. It is the party of everyone who refuses to give in to the status quo and believes in continuing to improve—

[Haiti, October 27th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the situation in Haiti remains both fragile and difficult. We know that Canada is among the key donors to that country, and has invested over $180 million to help restore security and stability.

With Haitian elections on the horizon, could the Minister of Foreign Affairs provide us with more details on Canada's commitment with regard to this elections?

[Immigrants, October 27th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, it is never an easy thing to leave one's country for another. The men and women who leave their countries by choice or, all too often, involuntarily, are setting out on an adventure fraught with many challenges.

The host community, which will benefit from the presence and contributions of these newcomers, must do everything it can to help them integrate fully.

The various governments try to do so, but they cannot do it all, hence the essential role played by the devoted community organizations that work so hard at helping immigrants to integrate.

I am thinking in particular of Carrefour Solidarité Anjou, an organization in my riding that is doing great things in this field. It works small miracles on a shoe-string budget, be it providing language training or skills development.

These organizations deserve our respect, as well as greater governmental support. As I have said many times before, they will always be able to count on my personal support.

[Éco de la Pointe-aux-Prairies, October 20th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to draw the attention of the House to the exceptional work being done by Éco de la Pointe-aux-Prairies, a organization based in my riding but having an impact on a large portion of eastern Montreal.

This organization, with its passionate leader, Robert Beaulieu, works with energy and conviction to promote and protect the environment. Éco de la Pointe-aux-Prairies designs, creates and implements innovative projects to inform the public and raise awareness and, more important still, encourage them to take concrete actions for the environment.

Thanks to the genius and dedication of its members, the organization is active on a number of fronts: recycling, composting and responsible consumption in particular.

The members of Éco de la Pointe-aux-Prairies want to make a difference, and indeed they are doing so. They are keenly aware of the urgency of the situation. The organization informs us, summons us to action, encourages us to question our usual ways of doing things, and most importantly keeps on reminding us of something we must never forget: concern for the environment is no longer an option, but an obligation for—

[Summit of the Americas, October 7th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the 4th Summit of the Americas will be held in Mar del Plata, Argentina on November 4 and 5. This summit brings together 34 democratically elected heads of state and government of the Americas in order to identify the main regional issues and define a joint plan to improve the quality of life of people living in the Americas.

This is an extremely important event although, currently, it receives little media coverage.

I want the Government of Canada to explain what are Canada's primary objectives for this important summit?

[Eastern Montreal Chamber of Commerce and Industry, October 5th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, the Eastern Montreal Chamber of Commerce and Industry is doing a wonderful job for the economic development of our region.

I have had the chance to work with several of its leaders on many issues, including soil decontamination and the creation of a niche in environmental technologies.

More recently, we have worked together on the issue of a commuter train for eastern Montreal. This initiative is a top priority for our region, which is suffering from a chronic lack of transportation infrastructure and from the absence of an adequate public transit system.

It is clear that a commuter train servicing eastern Montreal would greatly facilitate the movement of the working population while at the same time stimulating the competitiveness of businesses. This initiative would promote the use of public transportation, in direct keeping with our Kyoto objectives.

The chamber of commerce is made up of leaders, entrepreneurs, men and women who are passionately devoted to the economic development of eastern Montreal. I want to tell them that they have had and will always have my support and cooperation.

[Committees of the House, October 3rd, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to table, in both official languages, the third report of the Standing Committee on Official Languages.

Your committee adopted a motion, on Thursday September 29, 2005, recommending that the Minister of Canadian Heritage, the Minister of Labour and Housing, and the Minister responsible for Official Languages take necessary measures to encourage a speedy settlement of the lockout of CBC—Radio-Canada employees.

We are aware of the latest developments and we welcome them. However,we still wanted to table this report, as we feel this issue is very important.

[Young Liberals' Convention, September 28th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to draw the attention of the House to the highly successful young Liberals' convention held in Trois-Rivières, which brought together more than 300 participants from all the regions of Quebec.

Believe me, it feels great to see 300 young federal Liberals from Quebec coming together to discuss politics and share their hopes, challenges and vision for the future.

While not always in agreement with its youth wing, a political party has a duty to listen and pay attention to what it has to say, because parties that close the door to young members cut themselves off from their own future. That is something the Liberal Party has understood for a long time, and that is why it values its young members as it does.

Young people have important things to say and share. They are in the best position to identify the problems and challenges facing them. They also have a different outlook on the challenges of our times.

Let us not forget that, when we in this House talk about building the Canada of tomorrow, we are talking about their future, and we ought to listen to them.

[Haiti, June 20th, 2005]

Mr. Speaker, there is much concern about the political, social and economic situation in Haiti. The future of our Haitian friends is in their own hands, of course, but it also depends on the efforts of the international community.

Canada hosted the Montreal International Conference on Haiti on June 16 and 17. Could the Minister of Foreign Affairs tell us the outcome of this conference?