Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I have never denied that there were problems with human rights in Cuba. Respecting human rights is a problem for all countries in the world, including the United States and Canada. Even Canada was singled out by the Commission on Human Rights. No country is perfect, and that is why we are all working together to try and improve things.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Mr. Chairman, I think that the United Nations Commission on Human Rights is probably as right as it is wrong. It is trying to assess a situation. It is drawing information from various sources, and it is as right as it is wrong in condemning Canada for not respecting aboriginal rights.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  —from the outset, Ms. Christine Chanet identified that as being the cause—

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  The issue deals with the definition of political prisoners and with what you say about that. You quoted Ms. Chanet's report, which discusses the impact of the tension between the United States and Cuba, the impact of U.S.-Cuba relations on human, civil and political rights. I do think that logically, as you pointed out in your quote earlier, anything Canada can do to reduce this tension can only help the civil and political rights situation in Cuba.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I cannot support them until they are put in their proper context. You know full well what you can do with a quote. If I were to modify them, the same recommendations could apply to the United States, that carries out 100 times more death penalties than Cuba—

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Yes, Mr. Chairman. I invite you to read the previous paragraph of the comprehensive report. I was not able to summarize it: I was referring to the full report, which I consulted once again last night on the United Nations' website. In the first paragraph of the first chapter, the United States' blockade is discussed.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I'll give you a very short answer. Canada is only 1 of the 192 member States of the United Nations. We don't pretend to believe that we have the ability and the power to manage what is happening in Cuba. As a country—as Ms. Savoie was saying earlier on—it is not Canada's tradition to interfere in the affairs of others, to decide on behalf of the population of another country.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Let me simply state that I take great care to stick to the facts and to avoid voicing opinions. My sources are not the Cuban authorities, they are exclusively international organizations or international press reports. I do not think that AFP, Reuters, Associated Press, the United Nations and UNESCO can be considered as unreliable sources with regard to the Cuban regime.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Yes, absolutely. Some people have indeed been jailed in Cuba for posing a threat to Cuba national security. Canada is using security certificates to do the same thing. However, Cubans have the right to a trial and to legal counsel, which is not the case for people arrested in Canada by using a security certificate.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I am not the one saying this. Several international organizations say that the United States' blockade against Cuba is attempted genocide.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I understand you very well, Ms. St-Hilaire. When I first went to Cuba in the year 2000, I asked more or less the same questions. When I read the newspapers, I wondered whether it was heaven or hell. This is why I have spent nearly 25% of my time in Cuba over the past seven years.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Part of Bush's plan on Cuba is to provide significant financial resources to encourage individuals to support the U.S. anti-Cuba policy, and to hire dissidents to support this policy, some of whom are disguised as so-called independent union representatives. They are not representatives.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  I have nearly finished. But the United States is not satisfied with this illegal blockade, which has been almost universally condemned by the international community. The achievements of Cuban workers, retired persons and those on social assistance are threatened. The president, Mr.

Subcommittee on International Human Rights committee  Good morning. First of all, I would like to thank the members of the committee for having invited me to take stock of the human rights situation in Cuba. First, if I may Mr. Chairman, I would like to inform committee members about the witness who preceeded us, Mr. Nelson Taylor Sol of the Cuban Canadian Foundation.