Sadia Groguhé

[Situation in the Central African Republic, February 12th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for her question.

Canada has a huge role to play, obviously. As a strong country, a strong advocate for peace that has taken an active role in previous conflicts, Canada must fully take its place when conflicts emerge.

In this case, the government is called on to stand by the African Union forces and to take action, as other countries, including France, have already done. I believe Canada needs to play an active role.

[Situation in the Central African Republic, February 12th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, we are here tonight to highlight the seriousness of the crisis that is unfolding in the Central African Republic.

I would also like to take this opportunity to draw the government's attention to the issues at play and to what it needs to do to help come up with a solution that is consistent with Canada's humanitarian tradition.

Before getting to the heart of the matter, I would like to echo the statement made by the Minister of Foreign Affairs on February 7 condemning sectarian violence and demanding that security be restored in the Central African Republic.

These are steps that must be taken in order to restore peace and start rebuilding. The fact that Canada is heading in that direction is a good thing.

However, as welcome as those words may be, they are not nearly enough. As we are comfortably debating the crisis in the Central African Republic, over there, blood is being spilled and the body count continues to rise.

That is why the NDP is calling on the government to take responsibility and to take a more decisive role in resolving the conflict. The reality of the situation, its dramatic escalation and the regional impact of the crisis leave us no choice but to intervene.

The result of the wait-and-see approach Canada has taken for more than a year is truly terrifying. After months of violence at the hands of predominantly Muslim Seleka fighters, Christian militias calling themselves anti-balaka went on the offensive in September of last year.

Originally designed as self-defence groups around the time of former president François Bozizé's overthrow, these anti-balaka militias are now taking unspeakable retaliatory action against Muslim minorities in the north.

NGOs have documented truly horrifying accounts of atrocities committed by both sides. Human Rights Watch released a detailed and comprehensive report on the massacres that have been carried out; I would like to draw your attention to these massacres.

Women and children in particular are systematically targeted, as we saw during the civil war that ravaged the Democratic Republic of the Congo, and as is commonplace in these kinds of conflicts.

The rape and mutilation of women and children are now being used as weapons of war. Belligerents deliberately target these innocent victims in the most despicable ways, leaving terror and destruction in their wake.

The situation continues to worsen in the Central African Republic, even though a transitional government has taken over, led by President Catherine Samba-Panza.

In the past few days, a hundred more people have been killed. A parliamentarian was even the victim of a cowardly assassination a few hours after he denounced all instances of interfaith violence. However, the massacres represent only a small part of what is going on in the Central African Republic.

There are now 825,000 refugees and displaced persons in this country of 5 million, according to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees. It has also indicated that 60% of them are children. More than half of these refugees are in the vicinity of Bangui. They are in need of everything: water, shelter, food, primary care. Two hundred and fifty-six thousand refugees have already fled to neighbouring countries that are very unstable themselves.

Without a real assessment of the security situation, it will be hard to find a solution to the devastating catastrophe in the Central African Republic.

We need to take action to secure the situation. African peacekeeping forces need help protecting civilians. The need for help is even more evident if we recall the Kosovo crisis, when 7,000 men were deployed to Mitrovica, a city of 100,000 people.

This crisis is exacerbating the situation in an already unstable region. Countries surrounding the CAR, in particular the Democratic Republic of the Congo and Sudan, are struggling with political crises and civil wars that are seriously compromising the stability of the region.

The fear is that this new surge of violence could trigger a regional conflict that could have disastrous consequences. That is why we must act now to stabilize this country.

To date, Canada has provided $6.9 million in humanitarian aid for the people of the Central African Republic. Yesterday, the government announced an additional $5 million in financial aid. Although necessary, these measures will not be enough to significantly change the situation.

In November 2013, the NDP asked the government to provide diplomatic and logistical support for the peacekeeping force so that it could end the conflict and human rights violations. Only a political solution can resolve the crisis by bringing together all those involved in the conflict and settling their differences. A political solution is the only way to achieve real and lasting peace.

That is why Canada must support the democratic transitional government led by Catherine Samba-Panza. We must also help implement the UN Security Council resolutions that call for democratic elections to be held in February 2015.

To that end, we are asking that short- and long-term observers be deployed through the Department of Foreign Affairs, Trade and Development's CANADEM program. These elections cannot be held in proper conditions until order is restored and the militias have laid down their weapons. There are simple ways to encourage them to do so.

For instance, Seleka soldiers should be integrated into the regular army. The army should also be paid. That would make it possible to stabilize the situation and to inject money into the local economy, which sorely needs it. A few million dollars might be enough to start restoring order.

Furthermore, this outbreak of violence is the result of a political crisis rooted in this country's extreme poverty and underdevelopment. It is imperative to tackle the root causes of the destabilization. Otherwise, any assistance we may send will be in vain in the long term.

Canada must get involved in the economic development of African countries. To that end, it must ensure that its partnerships with Canadian industries that extract raw materials allow for a fair distribution of profits to the local people, not just to the elite in those countries and to company shareholders.

Finally, we in the NDP call on Canada to sign the Arms Trade Treaty in order to prevent conventional weapons from fuelling conflicts.

Let me remind hon. members that, in a similar conflict that affected a neighbouring country, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, the combatants did not use any heavy weapons or weapons of mass destruction. However, the civil war that ravaged that country between 1998 and 2002 killed over 3 million people. It is the deadliest conflict since World War II.

It is therefore imperative to take every possible measure to put an end to small arms trade and trafficking. If we do not make an effort to do so, conditions will continue to exist so that political crises in African countries turn into civil wars time after time.

Those are the main actions that Canada should take to alleviate the humanitarian crisis right away and to strengthen the peace process in the longer term.

I urge the government to take these simple measures. They will send a strong message of support to the people of the Central African Republic and will mitigate the overall factors that lead to crises in Africa in the long term.

The gravity of the situation, our country's history and our humanist values require us to act. Let us not stand by and watch.

[Situation in the Central African Republic, February 12th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for his remarks.

As he probably knows, Christian and Muslim communities, the former under the leadership of the Catholic archbishop and the head of Evangelical churches and the latter under the leadership of the chief imam of the Central African Republic, are making major efforts to achieve reconciliation.

Given that peaceful initiatives are needed within and among communities, does my colleague think that this initiative supported by the Government of Canada could go be considered by the Office of Religious Freedom?

[Situation in the Central African Republic, February 12th, 2014]

Mr. Chair, I thank my colleague for her speech.

The situation is clearly very serious. This conflict, like so many others in Africa, has been characterized by killings. We know that women and children are the primary targets; they are vulnerable targets.

My colleague talked about compassion, but as the member for Ottawa suggested, does she think that, above all, we have to prevent these situations? There is no doubt that when it comes to taking action, we have very limited means.

Does she think that prevention would be a more useful and effective way to avoid this kind of conflict?

[Petitions, February 12th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present a petition concerning the protection of Gatineau Park. The petitioners call for legislation that would give Gatineau Park the necessary legal protection to ensure its preservation for future generations.

[Employment, February 12th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, at the beginning of the week, the Minister of Employment and Social Development said that he was having productive discussions with the provinces. His colleague, the Minister of Finance, contradicted him this morning. The provinces will no longer be able to opt out of the program with compensation. Taking unilateral action was not enough for the government. It also had to hold a gun to the provinces' heads. This new quarrel between the two ministers will not help to warm up their relationship. What is the reality: productive discussions with the provinces or the April 1st ultimatum?

[Intergovernmental Relations, February 11th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the facts speak for themselves. The Canada job grant has provoked another useless quarrel between the federal government and the provinces that is still to be settled.

The negotiations to review labour market development agreements have at least been mentioned in an introductory letter. However, there is no guarantee that the Conservatives will co-operate in working out the final agreement.

Will the Conservatives finally learn from their mistakes in labour market agreements?

[Intergovernmental Relations, February 11th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, on another matter, not only did the Conservatives create the labour market agreements fiasco, but they also decided to open a new front in their battle with the provinces, this time on job training. We heard this morning that the minister wants to review the labour market development agreements. Is the minister going to learn from his mistakes, and to consult and co-operate with the provinces, so that workers can receive training and boost our economy?

[Fair Elections Act, February 7th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, I would like to congratulate my colleague on her speech and point out that the Conservative Party is hurting our democracy. There have been over 50 time allocation motions, and one of them is for Bill C-23.

My colleague talked about the new voter identification rules that will prevent thousands of people from voting. Because of this bill, a person willing to vouch for someone they know and who is entitled to vote will not be able to do so.

Can my colleague explain to the government how this bill can possibly be democratic and protect the rights of those who are far away?

[Petitions, February 7th, 2014]

Mr. Speaker, the second petition concerns the need for a national public transit strategy. There is an urgent need, and Canada is already lagging far behind.