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Decentralized Democracy

House Hansard - 232

44th Parl. 1st Sess.
October 16, 2023 11:00AM
Context: House Hansard - 232 - Oct/16/23
Mr. Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe (Lac-Saint-Jean, BQ)
  • Oct/16/23 2:46:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, we want to reiterate that the Bloc Québécois strongly and unequivocally condemns the Hamas terrorist attacks. We reiterate that Israel has a right to defend itself against Hamas. However, we need to distinguish between Hamas and the people of Gaza and Palestine. As early as last Tuesday, the UN was calling for a humanitarian corridor into Gaza for medical reasons. That is the very basis of the Geneva Convention relative to the Protection of Civilian Persons, which states in article 3, and I quote, “The wounded and sick shall be collected and cared for.” What concrete efforts is Canada making to obtain such assurances from Israel?
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Context: House Hansard - 232 - Oct/16/23
Mr. Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe
  • Oct/16/23 8:25:40 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I am going to borrow my leader's words to answer my colleague's question. As I said at the beginning of my speech, Israel obviously has the right to defend itself, and the Bloc Québécois strongly supports that notion. However, international law must be respected. I believe quite honestly that if we ever want the dream of two states in the region to become a reality, the State of Israel and the State of Palestine, Hamas cannot be part of the solution. Given what happened, Israel is right to want to uproot Hamas from the Gaza Strip. That said, it must do so while also upholding international law, and that obviously means ending the illegal blockade and giving people access to water, food and medicine.
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Context: House Hansard - 232 - Oct/16/23
Mr. Alexis Brunelle-Duceppe (Lac-Saint-Jean, BQ)
  • Oct/16/23 10:20:03 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my hon. colleague for his speech. We have worked together on a number of human rights issues, and that is exactly what we are doing again this evening. I might disappoint some people this evening and this might sound glum, but I doubt there are many people in Israel or Palestine who are watching us right now. I am trying to determine what we can actually do, what impact we can really have on what is happening right now. One thing is possible. Canada could exert pressure to create humanitarian corridors. I truly believe that this could be possible if my colleague's government were prepared to take action. I am sure my friend would like to see that happen. Does he know whether that is happening? If not, will my colleague put pressure on his own government to make it happen?
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