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Foreign Affairs Committee passes Keith Martin's motions to address three of the world's worst crises
Dr. Keith Martin, M.P
June 23, 2006

Ottawa, Ontario - Yesterday, at a marathon session of the Foreign Affairs Committee, three motions presented by Dr. Keith Martin, with support from the Bloc and NDP, were passed dealing with ongoing crises in the Congo, Darfur and Zimbabwe.

"The situation in the Congo is the most unrecognized humanitarian crisis in the world. 30,000 people per month, primarily civilians, are dying from treatable diseases, malnutrition and violence. Over 4 million people have dies in the last 6 years." said Dr. Martin. "Most observers are crying out for the international community to redouble its efforts in this forgotten corner of the world. In response to this, I presented a motion before the Committee in consultation with my counterparts in the Bloc and NDP to increase the government’s support to end this most dire catastrophe." The motion that passed read as follows:

For four years, Dr. Martin has been pushing to stop the murderous actions of Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe. Dr. Martin was able to get the Committee to pass a motion calling on the government to use its crimes against humanity legislation to bring justice to the millions affected by the despotic reign of President Mugabe. The motion was passed as follows:

"Despite agreements by the international community to stop the genocide in Darfur, the killings continue. Despite a take-note debate in the House of Commons, support by members of all parties, and statements by the Prime Minister, there has been little movement on behalf of the government to become actively involved in the planned United Nations peacemaking force," said Dr. Martin. "In response to this, I presented to committee the following motion;"

• That the Committee recommend that the government acknowledge that:
• The Darfur peace agreement, signed on May 5^th 2006, has already been violated by its signatories.
• That the African Union force has requested support from the United Nations and NATO to better help prevent violence in the region and protect aid convoys from interference or attack.
• Given the fragility of the recent peace accord, the people of Darfur can only be kept safe through the deployment of a robust Chapter 7 peacekeeping force as soon as possible.
• That the government prepare to support this mission through every available means, including diplomatic, economic and military.
• That this motion be tabled as a report in the House and that the government issue a response.

These three motions passed by the Foreign Affairs Committee gives the government clear direction to implement effective actions that will diminish the endemic cycle of violence and appalling human suffering occurring in these three areas of Africa. These motions make our responsibility to protect, an obligation to act.

"I would like to thank the Bloc Quebecois and the NDP for their support in helping to get the motions passed," remarked Dr. Martin, "By cooperating, we can effectively move important motions on pressing international issues through committee. I do hope that the members from the government support these types of motions in the future, supporting aid operations and halting ongoing humanitarian disasters should be non-partisan issues."

For more information: Please contact Robert Rosenfeld Office of Dr. Keith Martin, M.P. (613) 996-8092

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