44th Parl. 1st Sess.
October 16, 2023 11:00AM
- Oct/16/23 2:21:14 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, the tragic loss of life at the hands of Hamas's evil has made us angry, sad and filled with unimaginable grief as we are left trying to comprehend the incomprehensible.
These terror attacks are the cruellest against the Jewish people, my people, since the Holocaust.
It is possible to live in a world where we strive for peace in the Middle East while at the same time being able to state in no uncertain terms that we condemn the rape, murder and kidnapping of innocent women, children and the elderly. We must be able to say this without the word “but” inserted to serve as the catalyst for some moral justification. There is no morality to be found in what it has done.
Even the lives of people whose interests Hamas claims to represent mean nothing in its pursuit of hatred and the eradication of the Jewish people. There is no question that we must uphold the value of all human life and extend to one another a sense of kindness and dignity as we struggle together in the days ahead.
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- Oct/16/23 7:41:07 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, the hon. member and I have indeed spoken on many occasions about our deep concern for peace in the region.
I would say that diversity is our strength in this country, but inclusion is a choice, and it is one that we must model each and every day. My own daughter is on a university campus and she took off her Star of David today. This is unacceptable. She also walked to school with her Muslim friend and had to be worried about her safety as well going through the streets to campus.
We have a collective duty as parliamentarians in the House to model the Canada we wish to see.
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- Oct/16/23 8:28:16 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I completely agree with everything that my dear colleague from the Bloc Québécois said. A humanitarian corridor is essential.
I especially want to thank him for underscoring the role of our country. That may be a bit hard for him to do, as a sovereignist, but he underscored Canada's historic role and leadership as a country in favour of peace and international law. For that, I thank him very much.
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- Oct/16/23 8:39:32 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, the concerns I want to raise are that we want to protect all lives. The outcome of war is more death and destruction. I quoted Vivian Silver, a peace activist who has spent her life trying to advocate ways for us to move toward peace and security. She herself suggested that conflict and war bring only more death and destruction.
While we unequivocally condemn the terrorist acts of Hamas, we continue to implore that the only way forward to save lives is peace, and we continue to be a voice to say that war will beget only more destruction, more despair and more loss. We have to find a better way forward.
Given the circumstances, given the conditions that are being imposed on the people of Gaza right now, who are without any proper access to resources like water, medication and food, the conditions are being set up for imminent and horrific despair, loss of life and tragedy. That must be avoided.
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- Oct/16/23 8:41:22 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, many human rights experts and the United Nations have expressed dire concerns about the conditions and the lives of people in Gaza. I share those concerns. Anyone who cares about the collective responsibility and the collective humanity we have to protect life will look at the circumstances right now of people in Gaza and say that without access to food, without access to water, without access to electricity and without access to the resources needed to run a hospital, the conditions being imposed are dire. This is something that is deeply concerning.
We know there are innocent people in Gaza, and the imposition of these horrific conditions on everyone in that community is deeply concerning. That is what the United Nations has expressed, and that is what we are expressing. What we want to be clear about is that our goal here should be to save lives. That is why we are calling for a release of all hostages. We are calling for a ceasefire. We are calling for a path to peace to save innocent lives.
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- Oct/16/23 8:43:40 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, we are in a very horrible time right now, and it is important to acknowledge how painful and how difficult this is. What my hon. colleague is pointing out is that the path we are suggesting is to look at our collective humanity, to not lose sight of the fact that every life is precious and dear and that we do not want to walk down a path that will result in even more death, destruction and despair.
That is the path we are on right now. That is the path the world is headed on. We are calling out, as difficult as it is and understanding how horrible the circumstances are, and saying that more war and more violence will result only in more loss of life. We need to find a better way forward. That is why we are calling for a release of all hostages. We are calling for a ceasefire. We are calling for a path of peace. The only outcome of more war is more death, and we have to prevent that.
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- Oct/16/23 8:45:13 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I understand that there are very real emotions and really serious concerns, and I respect and acknowledge that.
What we are concerned about are the conditions right now that are being imposed on the people of Gaza, the conditions which involve no more electricity, no more clean water, no more access to food and no more access to the resources necessary to run a hospital. These conditions being imposed on an entire population are very serious. The consequences of actions like that are very dire. The United Nations has pointed out that the consequences of a path where necessary resources are withheld from a population could be devastating and dire. That is what I am expressing as a very deep concern. That is why we reiterate our call. Release all the hostages. We need to ensure that there is a ceasefire. We need to see a path of peace because we need to save all lives.
Innocent lives have been lost. More will be lost if the steps that are being taken continue.
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- Oct/16/23 8:47:04 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, the only solution to conflict is a political and diplomatic solution, not war. That is what we are proposing because we know that war only leads to more more death, destruction and devastation. That is why we are calling for a ceasefire, the release of all hostages, and a path to peace and security. That is the only way to find a solution.
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- Oct/16/23 8:47:47 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, it seems like the NDP leader has essentially offered a defence of complete pacifism. He has stated, as a principle, that he seems to believe that war is never the solution, that more war is never going to lead to peace. I want to just clarify his views on that. Does he believe that there is no case in which war is necessary or just? If there is any such case, it would seem to me that a response to this kind of terrorist attack against civilians would likely qualify.
Does he believe there is such a thing as a just war, that there is any instance where the use of force against an aggressor is justified? What is that case, in his view?
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- Oct/16/23 8:48:37 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, we are denouncing and are concerned about an approach of collective punishment. Of course, there are serious concerns, and we denounce the terrorist attack of Hamas.
However, our concern is that there are many innocent lives that are being put in a condition of desperation and a dire lack of access to basic necessities. That is a serious concern. The approach that we have to take is one in which we resolve conflicts through peace and through a desire to achieve safety and security for everyone. That cannot be achieved with more war.
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- Oct/16/23 9:27:32 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I want to send my heartfelt sympathy to my colleague. As a Jewish Canadian, I know he is experiencing such incredible heartbreak right now.
While I am not Jewish, I empathize with every Jewish Canadian and with Jewish people around the world for the horrific things that have happened in Israel over the last several days.
Because I am not Jewish, I am going to quote from somebody who is a survivor of the massacre at the Kibbutz Be'eri, who asked, “How am I supposed to wake up every morning and know that 4.5 kilometres from me, from my home in Kibbutz Be'eri, in Gaza there are people for whom this is not over? If you hear my words, look deep, deep inside and ask yourselves what your values are. I know what I want. I want a just peace.”
Do the children in Gaza not deserve the same peace that we are all hoping for, for the Israeli people?
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- Oct/16/23 9:28:46 p.m.
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Mr. Chair, I know the NDP likes to do it, but it is important not to conflate Hamas with the plight of the Palestinian people. With regard to the plight of the Palestinian people, all I can really say to the member is that if she truly wants peace for the Palestinian people, she will get behind international calls for the eradication of Hamas.
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- Oct/16/23 9:37:21 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I want to thank my colleague for her sincerity, her conviction and her articulation of support for the pursuit of peace.
I understand the pain she is feeling and the fear she is feeling as a leader both in her religious and faith-based community and also in her responsibilities as a parliamentarian, broadly speaking. I think that all of us are feeling that way right now.
We will have differences in terms of the way in which we approach solutions to this very difficult conflict. On this side of the House, of course, there will be difficult conversations, as I imagine there will be on that side of the House.
In what ways can we, both within these walls and outside these walls, as colleagues and as parliamentary leaders, start to bring the temperature down in the country and work together, despite these differences, in order to restore a sense of security and safety for all Canadians?
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- Oct/16/23 9:39:41 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, as I said in my remarks, the only way to break out of this cycle of violence is for Israelis and Palestinians to work together for just peace that recognizes the rights of Israelis and Palestinians, who only want to live in peace, freedom and security.
We have a lot of work to do to get there. I hope that Canada plays its role in making sure of its call for lasting peace in that region.
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- Oct/16/23 10:13:11 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I will be sharing my time with the member for Toronto—Danforth, my friend within my party.
This debate, this moment and this week have been extremely difficult for all who are watching what is happening overseas. It has caused fear, trauma, anger and hurt. These are emotions that are flowing through all of us. These are emotions we have to recognize. These emotions are legitimate and valid. It is important that we take stock of them.
On Saturday, October 7, I attended a Shabbat lunch with a rabbi in my riding. It was in his home, which is also a synagogue. That morning, the full scale of what happened, with the escalation of violence and the terror caused by Hamas, was not fully realized. However, we sat together, and the rabbi said that they were honoured by guests from outside of the community and that their Sukkot is complete when they welcome those from outside the community. We are all part of the puzzle. We are all part of the human family. We complete each other. We all have a role to play.
One week after that, and then some, a lot has happened. We have seen terrible things within Israel and terrible violence within Gaza. People died and people are dying now, as we speak. It should disturb us deeply. It should keep us awake at night. Why is that? Is it because lives are being lost right now? We know that is not the end of it. We know violence will continue to be unleashed. Will this solve the question we are all trying to solve, which at its core, at its root, is to build a safe and peaceful environment within the Middle East for both Israelis and Palestinians?
Take it here, home to Canada. We have seen this manifest within our communities. I was speaking with a rabbi in my riding earlier today, and he was telling me how children stayed home on Friday because of a threat that came from overseas. Children did not go to school, because they were worried.
In my own family, my sister-in-law wears the hijab. This morning, as she was driving my nine-year-old niece, her daughter, to school, she was accosted. Two different people within my riding gave her the middle finger. One followed her. She thought it was too unsafe to complete that drive. She returned home. Things are happening within our communities. We have to recognize this. It is critical that we do so.
We should have vigorous debate within the House and even within our communities, but there are limits. There are bounds, and we must know those bounds and recognize those limits. To get to the nub of the issue, the core of it, how do we not find ourselves in this cycle that has continued for so long? We must, in the end, choose to ensure that everyone in the region lives in peace and dignity, and that happens only through the creation of viable states for both Israelis and Palestinians, with a viable state for Palestinians too. Once everyone in the region can live in peace and security, and when our neighbour can live in peace and security, only then will we live in peace and security.
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- Oct/16/23 10:21:00 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I think that dialogue is very important. We need to have conversations and build bridges with other countries to promote peace.
We also have to promote a viable solution.
It is very difficult to have this conversation today because of the war that is currently taking place. However, it is absolutely necessary that we maintain this objective.
It is absolutely necessary that we create a society and a world better than what we see at this moment.
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- Oct/16/23 10:57:46 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I would certainly agree that Hamas not only does not speak for the Palestinian people but also represents the greatest hurdle to peace in Gaza and the region. That is why it is imperative that we recognize that it is a precondition of peace that there is no terror. There is one organization, on October 7, that committed an act of terror, and that was Hamas.
What we seek now is justice for those who have fallen and, obviously, building back toward a path to peace. However, there can be no peace in the wake of terror, and we will continue to pursue justice.
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