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CANADA House of Commons Debates VOLUME 144 Ï NUMBER 081 Ï 2nd SESSION Ï 40th PARLIAMENT OFFICIAL REPORT (HANSARD) Tuesday, September 15, 2009 Speaker: The Honourable Peter Milliken CONTENTS (Table of Contents appears at back of this issue.) 4987 HOUSE OF COMMONS Tuesday, September 15, 2009 The House met at 10 a.m. Ï (1010) QUESTIONS ON THE ORDER PAPER Prayers Mr. Tom Lukiwski (Parliamentary Secretary to the Leader of the Government in the House of Commons, CPC): Mr. Speaker, I ask that all questions be allowed to stand. ROUTINE PROCEEDINGS The Speaker: Is that agreed? Ï (1005) Some hon. members: Agreed. [English] FOREIGN AFFAIRS *** Hon. Stockwell Day (Minister of International Trade and [English] Minister for the Asia-Pacific Gateway, CPC): Mr. Speaker, pursuant to Standing Order 32(2), I have the honour to table, in both REQUEST FOR EMERGENCY DEBATE official languages, the following reports: a report entitled “Canada's Engagement in Afghanistan”; “March 2009 Free Trade Agreement HOG INDUSTRY between Canada and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan”; “Agree- ment on the Environment between Canada and the Hashemite The Speaker: The Chair has received a request for an emergency Kingdom of Jordan”; and “Agreement on Labour Cooperation debate from the hon. member for Malpeque. I will hear the between Canada and the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan”. submissions of the hon. member on this point now. *** Hon. Wayne Easter (Malpeque, Lib.): Mr. Speaker, I have made PETITIONS a request for an emergency debate on the hog crisis in this country. Members of all parties have been hearing from farmers right across TRAFFICKING OF PERSONS Canada, from coast to coast. It is one of the worst crises the hog Mrs. Joy Smith (Kildonan—St. Paul, CPC): Mr. Speaker, today industry has faced in our lifetime. I have with me 5,859 petitions calling on Parliament to encourage everyone to support Bill C-268, An Act to amend the Criminal Code In my area in Atlantic Canada we have only 14 hog producers left (minimum sentence for offences involving the trafficking of persons in P.E.I., which is down from 600 ten years ago. There are only under the age of eighteen years), which is coming up at the private seven producers in New Brunswick, and they are down to four in members' session this afternoon. Nova Scotia. We are at the point that we may not even be able to feed the one remaining plant in Atlantic Canada. These petitions come from all over Canada, a number of them from Quebec, and call on parliamentarians to support Bill C-268. There were 600 producers from western Canada at a meeting in Over the break, 4,562 people presented this and had it in my office Manitoba in the spring, which members of the government and we, for me to present today. as the official opposition, attended. Those farmers are extremely worried about their future. They are losing their assets; they are NATIONAL MEMORIAL losing their livelihood. This country is losing an industry with Mr. Inky Mark (Dauphin—Swan River—Marquette, CPC): tremendous potential. Mr. Speaker, I have the honour this morning to table, on behalf of hundreds of people across Canada, a petition calling on Parliament to I have made the request for an emergency debate so that all parties provide a suitable area of public lands to be used for a memorial wall can participate and outline the concerns of primary producers in the of the names of Canada's fallen and to consider a shared funding hog industry and what it means to the Canadian economy. The public arrangement with the registered charity established by Mr. Ed should be aware of these issues. The government could report on Forsyth, of Toronto, for the creation and future maintenance of this what it is or is not doing relative to this crisis and bring greater national shrine. profile to the emergency that the hog industry faces in this country. 4988 COMMONS DEBATES September 15, 2009 Government Orders The Speaker: The Chair has carefully considered the remarks Ï (1015) from the hon. member for Malpeque and also the letter he sent Mr. Peter Julian (Burnaby—New Westminster, NDP): Madam indicating his interest in pursuing debate of this matter in the House. Speaker, it is inconceivable to me that Conservatives would vote for While I have no doubt that there is a crisis in the hog industry in this a privileged trade relationship, as the member for Windsor West country, it is not something that in my view is new. It has been going mentions, with a government that has such an appalling human on now for many months, in fact. rights records. The hon. member says it is worrisome, and I agree that it is, but I am not sure it meets the exigencies of the Standing Order in terms of It has the highest rate of killings of labour activists on the entire being a sudden, blown-up crisis. It is a continuing and very serious planet and a president who was named by the United States Defense difficulty that is faced by them. Intelligence Agency as 82nd on the list of Colombian narcotraffick- ers. In the Defense Intelligence Agency's internal memos, he was I would urge the member to look at the possibility of having defined as a Colombian politician dedicated to collaboration with the hearings in committees or other routes that are available rather than Medellin cocaine cartel at the highest government levels. Con- this one, because I am not sure it meets the exigencies of the servative MPs want this privileged trading relationship with Standing Order at this time. somebody who is defined by the U.S. as a narcotrafficker. He was Accordingly, I am going to decline the member`s request at this 82nd on the list. moment, despite his able arguments. The Conservative government tries to defend this by saying it has put in protection side deals. The member for Edmonton—Strathcona spoke very eloquently yesterday about the fact that the environ- GOVERNMENT ORDERS mental side deal offers no environmental protection. [English] However, the most egregious aspect of the deal is the provision CANADA-COLOMBIA FREE TRADE AGREEMENT that one can kill a trade unionist and pay a fine. As the killing of IMPLEMENTATION ACT labour activists continues, the Colombian government will essen- The House resumed from September 14 consideration of the tially have to pay a fine to itself. That is the great provision the motion that Bill C-23, An Act to implement the Free Trade Conservative government and the Minister of International Trade Agreement between Canada and the Republic of Colombia, the have provided as a protection for human rights. Agreement on the Environment between Canada and the Republic of Colombia and the Agreement on Labour Cooperation between Imagine if Conservative MPs were trying to defend the same thing Canada and the Republic of Colombia, be read the second time and in their ridings, saying that one can kill people but they will have to referred to a committee, of the amendment and of the amendment to pay a fine afterwards. That is absolutely appalling. I am glad the the amendment. member for Windsor West asked that question. The Speaker: When this matter was last before the House, the Mr. Tony Martin (Sault Ste. Marie, NDP): Madam Speaker, I hon. member for Burnaby—New Westminster embarked on want to follow up on the answer to the question by the member who questions and comments following his remarks. There are five has been driving the effort to stop this free trade agreement and who minutes remaining in the time allotted for questions and comments has so far been successful in stopping it from getting through the for the hon. member for Burnaby—New Westminster. I therefore call House. on questions and comments. The hon. member for Windsor West. I am surprised that any member in the House would support a free trade agreement with a country that has seen 27 trade unionists killed Mr. Brian Masse (Windsor West, NDP): Mr. Speaker, I want to as well as 60 to 70 extrajudicial murders in 2009 so far. I got these make sure that we start this correctly. Could my colleague outline statistics from my local steelworkers. As a country that respects and some of the sidebar agreements this deal has that are very unusual lives according to democratic principles, why would we want to and create some concern? The environment and labour practices in enter into any agreement of this nature with a country? particular, which have been dominant in this agreement, will allow for greater exploitation. Yessika Hoyos Morales, the daughter of one of the trade unionists Why would the Government of Canada go into a privileged who was killed, was in my office last year pleading on behalf of the trading relationship? It is very important that we define that. We families of trade unionists who are simply exercising a right that we currently have trade with Colombia and we will continue to have take for granted in this country and so many other jurisdictions trade with Colombia, but by agreeing to this type of a deal in the way around the world. She visited some other members as well. She that it is struck right now, we will be moving to a privileged trading pleaded that we stop this nonsense and not give credence in any way relationship with a government that has had labour and civil society to a regime that is doing this kind of killing. problems that have not been rectified.