Hon. Pierre J. Dalphond: Honourable senators, I, too, would like to all too briefly pay tribute to the Honourable Jean Lapointe, an important figure in Quebec, known for his songs and for his great talent as a composer, comedian, impersonator and actor.

Though he is dead, he will continue to live on in the hearts and minds of Quebecers through the lasting memories he created and his remarkable philanthropic institution, La Maison Jean Lapointe, which, for 40 years, has been helping men and women escape the clutches of alcoholism as he did himself.

He joined this chamber rather unexpectedly in 2001 and held the position for nine years as “a Liberal in quotation marks,” as he was fond of saying. He never liked political posturing in the Senate and he was not shy about speaking out about the ways time was being wasted, something that still happens all too often today.

As Senator Saint-Germain pointed out, in his maiden speech in the Senate, Senator Lapointe proposed to reduce the time spent on the “tributes occasioned by deaths,” which he described as interminably long. Mr. Lapointe, wherever you are today, we’re listening to you and we allocated only 15 minutes to your tributes when you deserve hours of them.

Even though politics made him “unhappy” and “disappointed,” in 2022, he still saw the Senate as “the guardian angel of the people, of minorities and of the poor.”

He arrived in Ottawa a declared and staunch federalist, and said shortly after his retirement that he understood the realty of the two solitudes, saying about Quebecers, and I quote, “We don’t think the same way, we’re not made the same way.”

In an interview with Patrice Roy from Radio-Canada television a few months ago, he said, “One day or another, Quebec will be independent. That’s my wish.”

Those who worked with him unanimously describe him as spirited and tormented, but very compassionate. He sung to Quebecers about things they could relate to.

To his daughter Anne Elizabeth, to his son, Jean-Marie, and to the other members of the Lapointe family, I offer my deepest condolences on the passing of one of our greats.

Thank you.

[English]

Hon. Claude Carignan: Honourable colleagues, I rise today to pay tribute to a great Quebecer and a great Canadian who passed away on November 18, 2022.

Our former colleague Senator Jean Lapointe passed away surrounded by his loved ones at the age of 86. Following a brilliant career as a comedian, singer, songwriter, actor and philanthropist, Jean Lapointe was appointed to the Senate on June 13, 2001, by Prime Minister Jean Chrétien and sat in the Senate as a Liberal — he did have faults, after all — until his mandatory retirement at the age of 75 on December 6, 2010.

I want to extend my condolences to Jean’s family, to his many friends and colleagues in the arts and philanthropy communities, and to all Quebecers, because Jean Lapointe was truly part of our family for decades.

In November 2010, a few days before Jean retired from the Senate, I had the honour of paying tribute to him for the occasion. I looked him straight in the eye and said the following, and I quote:

The man I wish to pay tribute to here today is a wonderful friend to people struggling with various addictions, including alcohol, drugs and gambling, a man who understands, as his own song lyrics say, that “Everyone has a Story,” a man who encourages those people to grow, even inviting them to express themselves, saying “Sing me your Song,” a man who has helped and supported others by saying, “Let’s Sing Together.”

In 1982, Jean Lapointe very generously joined the fight against alcoholism by lending his name to a drug treatment centre that would become La Maison Jean Lapointe.

In 1983, he issued a call of hope to people struggling with addictions with the following words, “Bring your sick flowers; we will put them in the sun. Yes, now is the time for sick flowers to come back to life and experience a summer like no other.”

In 1984, my father was one of those flowers who answered his call.

Honourable senators, Jean Lapointe was an infinitely kind and altruistic man with extraordinary artistic talent.

I will close with this little anecdote that Guy Fournier, a Quebec artist involved in the world of communications, shared with us at the time of Jean Lapointe’s death. When Guy Fournier founded the television station Télévision Quatre-Saisons, he said that before going on stage for the big launch, he was overcome with stage fright. This is how he tells the story:

A few minutes before I left my dressing room, there was a knock at the door. It was Jean Lapointe.

“I came to give you a hug to make you feel better.”

I barely knew the guy, but he had guessed that I was scared to death. He hugged me for a solid minute, then whispered in my ear, “You have nothing to worry about. People will like you if they get the feeling you like them. That’s my secret to getting over stage fright.”

I doubt Jean Lapointe ever had stage fright, because Quebecers adored him.

Farewell, Jean.

Senator Boisvenu: Senator Gold, while legal immigrants are waiting up to 10 years to receive a positive response from the government, the RCMP has said that, between January and October 2022, nearly 31,000 migrants were intercepted in Quebec. I don’t know how many of them are criminals, but we do know that, in 2021, 469 criminals crossed into Canada at Roxham Road.

According to Mr. Duheme, the RCMP is mobilizing significant material and human resources to manage this massive flow of asylum seekers, which includes many criminals, when these resources could be used to manage crime throughout Canada.

Do you have an answer to the question I asked on October 20 about why the Canada Border Services Agency hasn’t investigated the 469 criminals who entered Canada illegally?

Also, do you know how many foreign criminals have been deported from Canada since 2020?

Hon. Raymonde Saint-Germain: Honourable senators, I rise today to pay tribute to a great Quebecer, an exceptional man who left his mark both on Quebec and the entire country. We are deeply saddened by the recent passing of the Honourable Jean Lapointe.

Above all, I want to express my deepest condolences to his family, his fans and all those from whom he commanded — and will continue to command — admiration and respect. During his maiden speech in the Senate, the Honourable Jean Lapointe shared his views on tributes like the one we are paying him today. He said, and I quote:

I humbly offer a suggestion that would no doubt reduce the time spent on the interminably long tributes occasioned by deaths, retirements, or celebrations of famous people.

I realize that on such occasions some of our colleagues use the opportunity to speak more about themselves. My suggestion is therefore as follows. In the event of a death, or when tributes are made to living persons, I suggest that both Senate leaders make a short speech to mark the occasion.

The good old times.

There may be exceptional circumstances, where people acknowledge that a colleague was a very close personal friend of the departed, and I can accept this.

As you can see, he was very diplomatic.

I’ll be brief, dear colleagues, in order to respect his wishes and in honour of his courage to speak to the Senate at the first opportunity made available to him about a matter of general interest. I’ll be brief, but I hope nevertheless to do justice to a man with such a brilliant and rich career.

Jean Lapointe was an artist of a thousand talents, a singer-songwriter, humourist and comedian, and throughout his professional life he was generous with his talent and his accomplishments, in this place and elsewhere.

The great success of his duo Les Jérolas earned him two invitations to “The Ed Sullivan Show,” in 1963 and 1967, which was a first for a Quebec duo. They made an appearance even before the Beatles on that prestigious American show, in addition to appearing twice at the Olympia in Paris, the ultimate venue at the time for francophone artists.

As a senator, Jean Lapointe dedicated himself primarily to defending the interests of people grappling with a gambling or substance addiction. This cause that he championed was a major theme throughout his personal and professional life.

He embodied a model of courage that required you to never deny, to get back up again and again, to succeed and to give back. His legacy will remain in our collective memory and live on through La Maison Jean Lapointe, which he established and which continues to help the vulnerable.

It is thanks to him that many people now find the strength to ask for help and receive the help they need. For this, as well as the artistic and compassionate legacy he leaves behind, my message to him is, “Bravo, Honourable Jean Lapointe.”

[English]

Hon. Julie Miville-Dechêne: Honourable colleagues, last week I used this time as an opportunity to bring some levity to the chamber and share the story of some Quebec cows in search of freedom.

However, today I have a much more serious message. I want to talk about human beings in search of freedom, for they are trapped in forced labour and child labour around the world. This Friday, December 2, is the International Day for the Abolition of Slavery. It is estimated that 50 million people are victims of modern slavery. This is 10 million more than in 2016. However, it is worth noting that Canada is making progress.

Yesterday, after years of stalling, the House of Commons Standing Committee on Foreign Affairs and International Development completed its clause-by-clause consideration of Bill S-211, An Act to enact the Fighting Against Forced Labour and Child Labour in Supply Chains Act. It should pass third reading shortly. This will be the culmination of nearly four years of work, in close collaboration with MP John McKay and the All Party Parliamentary Group to End Modern Slavery and Human Trafficking.

I’d also like to salute someone who’s with us in the Senate today, Stephen Pike, a lawyer and expert on governance issues who helped me examine Bill S-211. The Senate voted unanimously to ensure that companies operating in Canada do their part and are transparent about the risk that their supply chains have a captive labour force. That is a starting point.

Modern slavery is a complex problem. These violations of human rights originate in the poverty and vulnerability of one side, and the wealth and power of the other. As Senator Jaffer stated, a current example is the construction and renovation of eight soccer stadiums in Qatar, where fans are currently watching World Cup matches.

Over the pasts 12 years, hundreds of thousands of Nepali went to work at these construction sites. Known as good, cheap workers, they were assigned the most dangerous jobs according to an investigation by the newspaper Le Monde.

Many of these workers had to borrow large sums at exorbitant rates to obtain the necessary papers. They’re mostly working to repay the debt incurred to be able to work. It is the vicious circle of forced labour. Many Nepalese returned home injured or in caskets. Without any compensation, they have left their debts to their families.

In 2020, under pressure from the International Labour Organization, Qatar imposed the adoption of a minimum wage and allowed migrants to change jobs. These reforms were more than necessary.

All these stories were disturbing, of course, but not enough for a boycott. When the lights are up and the matches start, all that is forgotten. Unfortunately, and despite our legislative progress, these migrations of desperate humans, looking to feed their family, could be on the rise because of climate change and the conflicts it fuels.

For wealthy countries like Canada, we need to look reality in the face and show some integrity. I hope we will make the right choice. Thank you.