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Mr. Pierre Paul-Hus (Charlesbourg—Haute-Saint-Charles, CPC)

Dec/7/21 12:51:30 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I think it is important I begin by providing some background so that people can understand why we are debating a motion today about what happened in Afghanistan. Let us remember that exactly 20 years ago, Canada was part of an international military coalition seeking to combat terrorism in Afghanistan. At the time, in the wake of the September 11, 2001 attacks, Canada decided to join our partners from the United States, Great Britain and other countries in fighting the al-Qaeda forces that had gathered in Afghanistan and that were being harboured by the Taliban government in power. The coalition obviously included the United States, Great Britain and Canada. Upon their arrival, they had one main mission, a combat mission. It was the first time in years that Canada was officially at war and that our soldiers were being called upon to fight al-Qaeda Taliban terrorists. Many of the troops on the ground, many Canadians, engaged in direct combat. We never really saw any figures and so, even though the information exists, we never really found out how many terrorists Canadian soldiers killed outright and wiped off the face of the earth, something I see as a good thing. It is also worth remembering that hundreds of Canadian troops lent a helping hand. Those who were fighting the enemy had an extremely difficult, complex and dangerous job, but there were also troops deployed there to help the Afghan people, girls and women in particular, to rebuild schools, and to repair drinking water sources and infrastructure that had been demolished by the Taliban, who are completely insane. In the 10 years or so that Canada was directly involved, our troops on the ground devoted all their energy to fighting on the one hand and helping the Afghan people on the other. The Afghan people were under the total control of the Taliban and members of al‑Qaeda, some of whom even came from other countries to settle directly in Afghanistan, where they could have land and train as terrorists. Let us not forget that 158 Canadian troops lost their lives in Afghanistan. Hundreds, if not thousands, of others were injured. A very good friend of mine blew up three vehicles by driving over improvised explosive devices. He walked away with his life, which is frankly a miracle, because most of the time, once is enough to be fatal. Fortunately, my best friend survived. This shows once again, in addition to the 158 men and women in uniform who died either from explosive devices or otherwise, that there are dozens and hundreds of people, like my friend, who almost died for the cause and in order to help. They were there as good Canadians who were deployed on a mission. When Canada deploys on a mission, it is to help. Fighting is one thing, but helping people is what motivates us the most. That is what we did, and Canada’s military has never wavered. I was in the military at the time. I personally had to train soldiers who were deployed to Afghanistan, here in Canada, and even in the U.S. The training was on counterterrorism response and how to go into villages and fight the enemy lying in ambush. I was also trained on how to go and inform a family that a soldier had been killed. I learned how to deal with the family of a soldier killed in action. Canadians can be very proud of what the military has done and what Canada has done. Some 40,000 Canadian troops were deployed during those years, both the regular and reserve forces. These were moments of great pride. It was dangerous, but the troops who trained and deployed had the great honour of doing that job. Canada stopped fighting in 2011 and left Afghanistan in 2014. We completed our mission. We did what we could with the resources that Canada had. It was very difficult and very demanding, even though it was a source of pride. However, it still seriously challenged the ability of the Canadian Forces to do what we did, and we stuck with it until the job was done. The United States, Great Britain and other countries stayed longer to ensure that Afghanistan stabilized and that the government could remain in place. Unfortunately, as we saw this summer, the country collapsed. Everyone left Afghanistan on August 31, 2021, and the Taliban has taken power once again. What happened over there? How, after 20 years of work, did we wind up completely losing control over the situation? After all of that, how did the Taliban regain power? We need to investigate this and gather as much information as possible, but most importantly, we must look back to understand why Canada did nothing to help our allies on the ground, the Afghans who worked for us, people like Wali and Mohammed and their families. These people worked as our interpreters and cooks, putting their lives at risk. Let us not forget that, during the 10 years that we spent there, hundreds of thousands of Afghans risked their lives to help us. As soon as an Afghan was associated with the Canadian Armed Forces, they were considered an enemy by the Taliban. These people helped us accomplish our mission, helped Canada and the allies save their country, at great risk to their own lives and those of their families. We knew that this was coming. Months before August 31, 2021, we knew that there was a problem and that these people's lives were being threatened. The NGOs warned Canada and the coalition countries. Everyone was warned. The Americans prepared to help the people of Afghanistan who helped them, but in Canada, there was complete radio silence. We were in the middle of an election campaign. Then all of a sudden, Canada realized that we had friends there and that we had abandoned them. The Prime Minister thought the election campaign was more important. We got the feeling that he did not care about what was happening in Afghanistan, that he did not care about those people. Perhaps that is not the case, but that is the impression that we got from what the Prime Minister and the Liberals were saying. It did not seem as though they had any consideration for the Afghans who helped Canada for so many years. However, warnings were issued. Everyone knew that the danger was coming and it was time to act. Of course, it is complex to intervene, but the time to act was when the Americans and the British were still over there. There is no sense in waiting until August 31, when everyone has withdrawn, and then arriving late and saying that it is complex to intervene, as the Prime Minister told me during question period. Of course it is complex, but what were the Liberals doing when it was time to act? That is why the official opposition, hopefully with the support of the other two opposition groups, will get a special committee established. The purpose is to get to the bottom of this. I agree with my colleagues in the Bloc Québécois that immediate action is needed, and I hope the government across the way is moving on this. I hope that the Liberals are moving quickly and doing everything they can to help people like Wali and their families come here. We need to investigate and find out why our government did not take more effective action, to understand what was not done and why it happened, so that it does not happen again. That is why we as parliamentarians have a job to do. The special committee to be set up will be able to carry out the necessary investigative work to help us understand. If the government needs to be reprimanded, it will be. If there was no other possible action, we will find that out. The important thing is to get to the bottom of this, and that is why we are here today. In order to shed light on what happened, all parliamentarians have to vote in favour of this motion. I agree with the Bloc Québécois that we must act now. However, it is up to them, on the other side of the House, to hurry up and get the Afghans whose lives are currently in danger out of their country.

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