Brian Masse

Mr. Speaker,

 

On the eve of White Arm Band day, it is time to reflect on the Genocide Denial that continues to plague our world.

Petition 1837, which has obtained 2134 signatures, is an opportunity to examine the possible actions and initiatives the Government could take to combat this horrific behavior.

This House unanimously declared April Genocide Remembrance, Condemnation and Prevention Month and named the ones recognized by Canada’s House of Commons including the Srebrenica Genocide.

It’s time for the Government to extend resources to commemorate the victims and survivors of Genocide, educate the public and to take specific action to counteract Genocide denial, a pernicious form of hate which reopens wounds and reinvigorates division.

Truth is justice. Honesty is the path to reconciliation and peace.

  

 

 

 

MASSE CALLS FOR GOVERNMENT TO COMBAT GENOCIDE DENIAL

Action necessary to stop this pernicious form of hate

(Ottawa)- |Today Brian Masse M. P. (Windsor West), NDP Innovation, Science and Economic Development Critic, called on the Government to deploy resources and to take initiatives to fight genocide denial.

 In 2015, the House of Commons passed unanimously a historic motion to recognize the month of April as Genocide Remembrance, Condemnation and Prevention Month. The ones that have been recognized in the House of Commons include the Holocaust, the genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, the Ukrainian Holodomor, the Armenian genocide, the genocide of Yazidis, the Rohingya genocide and the Srebrenica genocide.

In 1995, more than 8,000 Bosnian Muslims were murdered in Srebrenica by the army, paramilitaries and police forces of the Republic of Srpska. The International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia and the International Court of Justice have ruled that this massacre was an act of genocide and is highlighted at the Canadian Museum of Human Rights.

In 2010, the House of Commons unanimously passed motion M-416, introduced by Masse, which recognized the genocide and established Srebrenica Genocide Remembrance Day in Canada.  A monument recognizing the genocide has been dedicated in Jackson Park in Windsor, Ontario.

As other countries in Europe such Belgium, Switzerland and Germany have taken steps to counteract genocide denial, Canada has yet to extend resources or implement new tools to address this.

Masse stated, after presenting the Petition 1837, “this in an opportunity for the government to examine all the options to combat this pernicious form hate which is exacerbated by misinformation and ignorance and could lead to violence.”