Nowruz  Mr. Speaker, today marks the spring equinox, otherwise called Nowruz, which marks the new year for Iranians, Afghans, Ismailis, Baha’is, Zoroastrians and over 300 million individuals across the world. Many around the world are excited to welcome spring and the promise of a new ye

Women and Gender Equality  Mr. Speaker, today I want to draw the House's attention to the ongoing tragedy of gender apartheid. In states around the world, most notably Afghanistan and Iran, women and girls are oppressed by regimes that seek to segregate them from society and treat them as second-class cit

Petitions  Mr. Speaker, as everyone in this House is fully aware, this weekend marked the second anniversary of Putin's unprovoked and illegal war on Ukraine. Given the unspeakable violence Putin has unleashed on Ukrainians, which I can speak to as someone who has been there three times sin

Committees of the House  Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 23rd report of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, entitled “Canada’s Sanctions Regime: Transparency, Accountability and Effectiveness.” Pursuant to Standing Order 109

Canada-South Korea Relations  Mr. Speaker, 2023 marks the 60th anniversary of Canada's diplomatic relations with the Republic of Korea. Several days ago, the Korean national assembly adopted a special resolution celebrating this significant milestone. The resolution mentioned the immense contributions of Cana

Committees of the House  Mr. Speaker, I have the honour to present, in both official languages, the 21st report of the Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development, entitled “Current Human Rights Situation in Iran”. It is in reference to an icon of the human rights movement in Iran

National Security Review of Investments Modernization Act  Madam Speaker, as the member is fully aware, I did make reference to three countries but the purpose of those references was to say that our regulations are to be fine-tuned every so often. The reason for that, as I tried to emphasize in my comments, is that we face a world that

National Security Review of Investments Modernization Act  Madam Speaker, yes, my hon. colleague has rightly emphasized that our regime, as a general rule, has thresholds in place that allow us to screen investments coming in. In other instances, it is sectoral because there are various sectors of the economy that are vulnerable to falli

National Security Review of Investments Modernization Act  Madam Speaker, I am pleased to rise in the House today to speak in support of Bill C-34, An Act to amend the Investment Canada Act. This bill would improve our ability to respond to changing circumstances that affect Canada's economic well-being and to remain vigilant in upholdi

Situation in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank  Mr. Speaker, yes, I do agree with the member. As we watch the situation unfold, we should all be concerned about the fact that Palestinians within Gaza are going through a very difficult time. That is precisely why many Canadians here are concerned. We should remind our good f

Situation in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank  Mr. Speaker, it is truly a great privilege to work with the member on the foreign affairs committee. As to the question asked, I have every confidence that our government is vigilant and is constantly aware of what those threats are. What I was speaking about today was the pain

Situation in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank  Mr. Speaker, that is a very insightful question. Yes, I would say that part of the reason the bonds of friendship and the amity exist between our country and the state of Israel is that we are democracies. Democracies are constantly aware of the fact that their actions and everyt

Situation in Israel, Gaza and the West Bank  Mr. Speaker, over the course of the past week we have all witnessed untold carnage. A moment of relative calm in the Middle East was punctured by a devastating wave of violence and rage. We in this House must be emphatic and unequivocal. The violence unleashed by Hamas on hundred

Firefighters  Mr. Speaker, allow me first to offer my most heartfelt congratulations on your election as Chair. I rise today because last week a fire broke out at a house under construction in my riding of Willowdale. While working to suppress the blaze, one of our courageous firefighters was

Mahsa Amini  Mr. Speaker, it is a great pleasure to be back in beautiful Ottawa with all my hon. colleagues. This weekend, members of the Iranian and Kurdish communities across Canada convened to mark the first anniversary of the death of Jina Mahsa Amini, a courageous Kurdish-Iranian woman