Pam Goldsmith-Jones

[Business of Supply, June 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I know the member has a lot of experience. Why is his side of the House focused on the jets and that term when we have gone well beyond the jets? Our partners were only too willing to replace those and add more when they saw our commitment to military training, military intelligence, humanitarian aid, active diplomacy at the local level, and the stabilizing we are doing on the ground in Syria, in Iraq.

Second, we are already under way with the United Nations, so we are moving along. Why does the member opposite think we are somehow not being proactive?

[Business of Supply, June 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to ask my hon. colleague how he can reconcile what he has just said with our $1.6-billion comprehensive commitment to fighting ISIL together with 60 countries in the ISIL coalition.

[Foreign Affairs, June 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, how about an actual office of human rights, freedoms and inclusion? The new office expands on the work of the former office and holds a comprehensive vision to improve all human rights, of course, including the freedom of religion.

In order to support this approach, our budget dedicated to the promotion of human rights has tripled. Canadians are stronger not in spite of our differences, but because of them. Promoting acceptance and protecting the differences that make us so unique cannot be divided. They are universal, indivisible, and interdependent.

[Foreign Affairs, June 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, it is very important that we recognize the Armenian genocide and also that we recognize the fact that it was 100 years after the fact, which makes it a special, extraordinary circumstance.

Canada continues to stand side by side with our allies, including the U.S., the U.K., the EU, and the UN. We will contribute all we can to hold the perpetrators to account for their atrocities.

The Minister of Foreign Affairs has made a formal request to the UN. We have heard back from the ambassador from Iraq thanking our Minister of Foreign Affairs, our Prime Minister, and Canada for its strong stand against ISIL in Iraq.

The determination of genocide should be a legal—

[Foreign Affairs, June 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, let me be clear about what Secretary of State Kerry actually said, because the Conservatives on purpose leave out this paragraph. He said:

I want to be clear. I am neither judge, nor prosecutor, nor jury with respect to the allegations of genocide, crimes against humanity, and ethnic cleansing by specific persons. Ultimately, the full facts must be brought to light by an independent investigation....

That is what our government is doing, and that is why we sent a letter, and that is why we have received a response from the Iraqi ambassador thanking us for a strong stand against ISIL.

[Foreign Affairs, June 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, Canada strongly condemns the atrocities and widespread abuses perpetrated by the so-called Islamic State against religious and ethnic communities. Whether ISIL's crimes constitute a genocide is not for us to decide. It is not a political determination. The determination is a legal one.

That is why we share the view of the governments of the U.S. and the U.K. and the UN Special Adviser on the Prevention of Genocide to the Secretary-General, that the situation must be the subject of an independent investigation by a competent court or tribunal.

[Business of Supply, June 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the Pope is quite measured in his words. The Vatican has asked world governments to do more to prevent a possible new genocide in Syria and Iraq.

The first step has been taken in the form of the letter our foreign affairs minister wrote just last week. Therefore, I would ask the member opposite if she would like to comment on what the Vatican actually said.

[Business of Supply, June 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I have a lot of respect for the member opposite in her professional career as a diplomat. I know that her interest is in bringing parties together to tackle this tricky question.

I wonder about the member's comment with regard to the genocide convention, which contains an important obligation for states to take steps to punish genocide. It is important that any motion include language on accountability for serious crimes. She alluded to that in her speech, and I would like to hear more.

[Business of Supply, June 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, I am very happy to talk about consequences. That is why we do not throw words around loosely.

Five genocides have previously been recognized by our Parliament and referred to as genocides by ministers: first, Armenian genocide recognition resolution, April 2004; second, Rwandan genocide resolution, April 2008; third, Ukrainian Famine and Genocide Memorial Day Act; fourth, the Holocaust; and fifth, Srebrenica.

We are going through a process. We think it is an important process. It is in concert with our allies and that is quite different from using words loosely.

[Business of Supply, June 9th, 2016]

Mr. Speaker, the opposition throws around decisions made by states as though they are fact. I would like to correct the record.

In the U.K., the vote was taken without a single member of cabinet and the government's response has been to call for an investigation. Canada is acting in concert with its ally. In the U.S., Congress voted but the U.S. government has not recognized it. In the EU, there was a motion but governments have not recognized it. The UN special adviser on the prevention of genocide has said it is very important to have an investigation.