44th Parl. 1st Sess.
September 19, 2023 10:00AM
- Sep/19/23 7:17:28 p.m.
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Madam Chair, certain legal, legislative provisions allow the possibility of designating certain organizations as terrorist organizations. Our colleague has raised very legitimate concerns. If, at the end of a serious assessment, we are confident that these concerns are warranted, I feel it would be appropriate to consider including this organization on the list of terrorist organizations. For the time being, however, the matter requires further clarification. Again, I think we need to get to the bottom of things before moving forward on this matter as well.
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- Sep/19/23 9:34:49 p.m.
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Madam Chair, in forming my thoughts, I find this a very difficult topic because we have had allegations of foreign interference and now nothing could be more disturbing, troubling and unacceptable than the murder of a Canadian on Canadian soil. However, we have obligation as parliamentarians to stay calm and to allow the investigation to take place. We must, and I think we all are united in this, insist on justice being done and that the perpetrators be found.
I have questions at this point, as we stay calm and seek the facts. What on earth is going on with our security agencies that they were unable to keep Mr. Nijjar safe on Canadian soil? They had warnings. They knew. That is a question that I have in my mind, and I hope that we can get to the bottom of that as well. We need to know for a fact whether the Indian government was involved in killing a Canadian. We need to know, and we do not know that yet.
I am reminded of the Air India inquiry. The Air India inquiry, of course, looked into the 1985 bombing, which is the single largest terrorist attack ever in Canada. It killed 329 people. However, Mr. Justice Major's report, and I remember this with great clarity, told us that we could have averted that bombing if only CSIS and the RCMP had communicated with each other to avert the attack. Now we know that in June Mr. Hardeep Singh Nijjar was murdered and our security forces had advance warning, but they did not prevent his killing. I want to ask some of those same questions. Were they talking to each other? What steps were taken? What steps were not taken?
I am also quite shocked by the news that has come out through the CBC from comments made by the Minister of Emergency Preparedness that the Prime Minister chose to tell us this yesterday because otherwise the information was going to be in the media. Therefore, once again, we are drawn back to not a suggestion but the reality that in our security agencies we have people who think it is okay to leak information to the media. I go back to the report of the Right Hon. David Johnston, former special rapporteur. We know how that went, but Mr. Johnston made it very clear that we have to find out who leaks information from our security agencies because it brings Canadian security information and our security forces into disrepute with our Five Eyes partners. Security agencies need to understand—
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- Sep/19/23 9:50:20 p.m.
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Madam Chair, I will be sharing my time with the member for Windsor—Tecumseh.
Canada offers a promise to live in a democracy where fundamental rights are safeguarded and guaranteed. That is why Canada is home to so many Canadians who have come from every corner of our planet, with many proudly represented in this House. They come to Canada because they know that we protect the rights of minorities and that Canadians have the right to express their views peacefully. Standing up for human rights should not label one as a terrorist.
Canadians understand that this country thrives because we listen to each other and work together, even when we disagree. I would say especially when we disagree. I have always said that it does not matter if one came to this country 300 years ago, 30 years ago or three years ago; we are all immigrants to this land. Only the first nations of these lands can say these lands were their original home. As Canadians, we share a common value. We are stronger when we learn from each other and peacefully share different ideas. It is crucial that these principles be safeguarded.
The potential involvement of the Indian government and the killing of a Canadian citizen on Canadian soil is a grave violation of our sovereignty. It goes against the principles that we hold so dear. The perpetrators of the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar need to be brought to justice, and protecting the integrity of the investigation is crucial. I want to thank the law enforcement and intelligence agencies for the work they are doing on behalf of Canadians. Our government keeps working to modernize and enhance Canada's security and intelligence organizations, and we are providing them with the tools to take action and disrupt foreign interference and threats. I have complete confidence in their work, and I know that they will do everything in their power to protect Canada's sovereignty.
As we move through this extremely difficult time, my message to Canadians who were originally born in India, or whose families originally came from there, is to stress that calm, kindness and unity are of the utmost importance right now. I say this to Sikhs, Hindus, Muslims, Buddhists, Christians and more. Let us not give a foreign state an opportunity or reason to point a finger at us. Those who seek to undermine Canada's sovereignty will do and say things to delegitimize and undermine our existence as Canadians. To that I say the following: Whatever our faith, we are Canadian; whatever the colour of our skin, we are Canadian. We are Canadian, and Canada is a free and strong democracy.
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- Sep/19/23 9:59:19 p.m.
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Madam Chair, many families, including my own, have very similar stories to this. I was 14 years old at that time, and I remember trying to serve my country in the military and constantly being attacked and being accused of being a terrorist. Fortunately for me, I had ability as a police officer and status as a member of the military. However, many Canadians do not have that, and every time they stand up for human rights, they are called out.
One of the things we will always do is stand up for fundamental human rights. We will also stand up for the rule of law in our own country.
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