Procedure and House Affairs committee  It is imperative that whoever is physically present in the electoral process should be able to identify themselves. It is not a requirement of Islam that Muslim women stay covered completely. They would be more than willing to lift their veils if that is the requirement. I would also like to speak a bit about the social backdrop that allows the veil in public spaces.

National Defence committee  At that time, the situation suggested the possibility of positive cooperation between the international community and a nascent Islamic democracy. But that situation has changed, and the troops, it must be admitted even though this is indeed a fairly sombre view, are now seen as occupation troops. This is a conclusion we've drawn from the interviews we conducted with thousands of people living in Kandahar and Helmand, in southern Afghanistan.

Public Safety committee  Arar was an Islamic fundamentalist, or extremist, using their terminology.

National Defence committee  This resolution is both a unanimous declaration of international support for the elected government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and a mutual commitment to the future of the country. Both documents address the problems of Afghanistan using a strategic framework that includes three pillars or lines of operation: security; governance, rule of law, and human rights; and economic and social development.

Emergency Management Act  There is a deep and profound angst and hurt within the Muslim community that some individuals are hiding behind the religion of Islam and purporting to kill innocent civilians in the name of God and Islam. They recognize full well that it is not the case. That is why it is very important for us, and I certainly hope that the government will continue with the process which we started, to work with moderate leaders in communities within our country.

Public Safety committee  Why John Williams, one of our colleagues in the House of Commons, was also on the American no-fly list, as was Senator Edward Kennedy? Why the singer Cat Stevens -- I do not know his Islamic name; I liked his music a lot when I was young...

Questions Passed as Orders for Returns  With regard to detainee handling in Afghanistan: (a) at what time was Canada first granted formal access to Afghan monitor detention facilities in Kandahar; (b) how many Correctional Service of Canada (CSC) officers were in Kandahar in August 2005, and what was the number for each month since; (c) did CSC direct their officers to specifically monitor detainees taken by Canadians and held in Afghan custody, and, if so, what form did that direction take; (d) what type of investigation was begun by the Department of National Defence and the Canadian Forces following the publishing of reports of torture in the Globe and Mail on Monday, April 23, 2007, and when was it commenced; (e) what is the number of detainees transferred to Afghan custody since the signing of the December 18, 2005, “Arrangement for the Transfer of Detainees Between the Canadian Forces and the Ministry of Defence of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan”; (f) following the processing of transfer documents and the release of a detainee to Afghan authorities, how are National Defence Headquarters, the Chief of the Defence Staff (CDS) and the Minister of National Defence informed of this transfer respectively; (g) when was information about the Department of Foreign Affairs country reports, starting in 2002, describing torture and inhumane treatment in Afghan prisons as “common”, first released outside of the Department and when were i) the current and previous Foreign Affairs Ministers made aware, ii) the current and previous Defence Ministers made aware, iii) the current and previous Prime Ministers made aware; (h) when were negotiations begun on the arrangement for monitoring access announced by the Minister of National Defence on Wednesday April 25, 2007, and i) when were negotiations concluded, ii) when was the CDS made aware of the arrangement, iii) when was the Minister of Foreign Affairs made aware of the arrangement, iv) when was the Prime Minister made aware of the arrangement; (i) what monitoring and capacity building has taken place on the part of the Government of Canada with respect to the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission (AIHRC); and (j) what has the AIHRC reported to Canadian officials regarding the condition of prisons and prisoners in Kandahar, and what have they reported regarding the treatment of detainees transferred by Canada to Afghan custody?

Foreign Affairs committee  What I find is the support for the Taliban in southern Afghanistan is not ideological. It's not about Islam, anti-westernism, or culture; sometimes it's phrased in those terms, but it is fundamentally very practical. It is that people want a predictable life, one in which they know what the rules are and what they will be punished for and what they will be rewarded for.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I remind you that this 400-page report, which was tabled by Colin Powell in 2004 and then by Condoleezza Rice last year, increased the funding to Cuban civil society organizations to the level of $40 million, without defining what civil society is. This is done openly. Try to imagine the Iranian government or some Islamic organization deciding to openly finance a Canadian political party, to the tune of millions of dollars, with the objective of furthering the cause of Arab or Taliban rights. It would really be terrible.

Foreign Affairs  Pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I am tabling consent to table copies of a document entitled “Arrangement for the Transfer of Detainees Between the Government of Canada and the Government of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan”. I am tabling this in both official languages.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  If Canada were to arrest people funded by the Government of Iran, Pakistan, or Saudi Arabia for having caused a transition from a peaceful democracy to an Islamic republic, how would we deal with those people? Many organizations that defend human rights would describe the people arrested using security certificates as political prisoners. Should other countries then put an end to their economic or government relations with Canada?

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Imagine if tomorrow morning Canada found out that Saudi Arabia or the government of Iran or Pakistan were paying Canadians four or five times the minimum wage to help Canada make a peaceful and democratic transition to an Islamic regime because those countries feel that our monarchy is obsolete. I think that the Canadian government would not stand for it. This is exactly what is happening in Cuba. People caught receiving $200 or $300 a month—I already mentioned the cost of living in Cuba—have been jailed.

Business of Supply  I would like to quote from a very good report done by James Laxer, in the “Mission of Folly”, where he says: The war in Afghanistan, like the struggle in Iraq, is doing more to promote the cause of terrorism throughout the Islamic world than it is doing to win the so-called War on Terror. The argument made by some that to advocate withdrawal is appeasement and that we have a choice between fighting this enemy in Asia or on our own doorstep is a completely phony one.

Business of Supply  The reason we are committed to that mission in southern Afghanistan is because it is important for the stability of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan, the government that President Karzai is heading. It is very important that we remain engaged in that theatre to ensure the stability of that government. Beyond that date, our government has also indicated that we have taken no decisions.

Business of Supply  However, there have not been convincing arguments to suggest how this move would enhance the stability of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan and thereby contribute to the Karzai government's goals of establishing a civil society and a government that will be able to control all parts of the country, so that we do not have the return of an unstable regime that will foster radical groups that may come back to harm our interests here in Canada.