Hon. Mary Jane McCallum: When you talk about the challenge of getting it right in terms of legal issues surrounding Indigenous people, it has always been — and continues to be — problematic, especially with racial profiling. To me, 27% finding contraband is very low. How long will the guards have to search for these sites that are often super-encrypted? If we are going to be fair, don’t you think it should apply to all Canadians?

Hon. David M. Wells: Honourable senators, my question is for the government leader in the Senate. Senator Gold, on April 5, 2022, just over three weeks ago, while conducting a commercial air charter, crew members of Pivot Airlines, a Canadian company, discovered suspected contraband in a maintenance compartment of the aircraft during the course of their normal duties at the Punta Cana International Airport in the Dominican Republic. In keeping with Transport Canada policies and international laws, the crew immediately reported the discovery to local and Canadian authorities.

Despite reporting the suspected contraband to authorities, the five crew members were immediately detained. Pivot Airlines and the three unions representing the crew were able to secure their release on bail. However, they must remain in the Dominican Republic until the matter is resolved. It’s essentially a house arrest due to the nature of what they found and, frankly, the nature of the smugglers.

The airline, the unions and the crew’s families all remain deeply concerned for their safety and security while they remain in the Dominican Republic under continued threats of harm and the ongoing possibility of prosecution.

Furthermore, this situation also raises serious concerns for all Canadian travellers and, in particular, Canadians who travel to this region as part of their employment.

Can the leader please tell the chamber and, frankly, the families, what the Minister of Foreign Affairs has done and will do by way of intervention in this urgent matter, including asking the Dominican government to immediately release the crew and allow them to safely return to Canada for the duration of the investigation?