SoVote

Context: House Hansard - 116 - Oct/24/22

Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Oct/24/22 4:14:30 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, I have a number of petitions to table before the House. The first petition highlights concerns about the protection of conscience. It notes that coercion, intimidation or other forms of pressure intended to force physicians and health care workers to become parties to something that goes against their conscience, such as euthanasia or assisted suicide, should not be allowed. It would be a violation of the fundamental freedom of conscience. There are a number of other key facts highlighted in this petition, including that if somebody has a conscientious objection to a procedure or an act, there are likely others who would carry it out. Therefore, the undersigned call upon the Parliament of Canada to enshrine in the Criminal Code the protection of conscience for physicians and health care workers from coercion or intimidation to provide or refer for assisted suicide or euthanasia.

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Context: House Hansard - 116 - Oct/24/22

Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Oct/24/22 4:18:35 p.m.
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Re: Bill S-223

Madam Speaker, I will table my last petition on forced organ harvesting and trafficking in support of Bill S-223. This bill would make it a criminal offence for persons to go abroad and receive an organ taken without consent. It has been before the House in various forms for 15 years and petitioners are hopeful this Parliament will be the one that gets it done.

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Context: House Hansard - 116 - Oct/24/22

Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Oct/24/22 4:18:35 p.m.
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Madam Speaker, the next two petitions I am tabling both deal with human rights issues in Afghanistan. Some of the particular issues cover a slightly earlier period. The petitioners on the first petition highlight the persecution of Hazaras that goes back well over 100 years, sadly. There are instances of Hazaras being targeted and facing all kinds of genocide and persecution. That persecution was an issue before, but it has become much worse since the Taliban takeover. Petitioners want the government to support Hazaras and other minorities in Afghanistan as they are victims of Taliban violence and also recognize past acts of genocide. Petitioners call on the government to formally recognize the 1891-93 ethnic cleansing perpetrated against Hazaras as a genocide and to designate September 25 as Hazara genocide memorial day. The next petition deals with the rights of the Sikh and Hindu minorities in Afghanistan. Sadly, many of these signatures were gathered prior to the Taliban takeover, at a time when it would have been more realistic for the government to take action. Petitioners ask the government to create a special program to allow vulnerable minorities from Afghanistan in the Sikh and Hindu communities to be sponsored directly to come to Canada and call for engagement from the government on that persecution issue. As for the Hazaras, we are seeing escalation and worsening of that persecution.

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Context: House Hansard - 116 - Oct/24/22

Mr. Garnett Genuis (Sherwood Park—Fort Saskatchewan, CPC)

Oct/24/22 4:18:35 p.m.
Watch

Madam Speaker, the next petition is about a proposal put forward in the Liberal Party of Canada's 2021 platform to deny charitable status to organizations that have convictions about abortion that differ from the Liberal Party's views. This could jeopardize the charitable status of hospitals, houses of worship, schools, homeless shelters and other charitable organizations that have a different opinion. This mirrors the values test used in the past by the government to discriminate against worthy applicants for the Canada summer jobs program. Petitioners believe that charities and other not-for-profit organizations should not be discriminated against on the basis of their political views. They should not be subject to a politicized values test. Therefore, they call upon the House to protect and preserve the application of charitable status rules on a politically and ideologically neutral basis without discrimination on the basis of political or religious values and without the imposition of another values test, and to affirm the right of Canadians to freedom of expression.

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