Hon. Marilou McPhedran: Honourable senators, before the fall of Kabul on August 15 — ironically on the same day that a federal election was called in Canada — a letter from women civil society leaders, such as Senators Mobina Jaffer, Rosa Galvez, Julie Miville-Dechêne, Donna Dasko, Paula Simons and me, went to Prime Minister Trudeau, to key cabinet ministers and to key ambassadors, urging Canada to take a strong international lead by applying our feminist foreign policy skills and resources to helping the people of Afghanistan, in particular to recognize that women leaders were at extremely high risk.

This week, every member of the Canadian women’s soccer gold medal team signed another letter to the Prime Minister, with many international sports leaders and organizations, calling for leadership and follow-through on evacuation and resettlement promises that Canada has made since mid-August, noting that Canada has helped fewer women athletes at extreme risk than Australia, Portugal, Switzerland and the U.K., for example.

Senator Gold, Afghanistan’s women athletes are targeted by the Taliban. “Athlete” is listed on their passports. I ask you “when?” Even though donations have poured in and there are planes waiting, why, after months now, are so many of these athletes still without their visas to Canada? When will Canada start issuing visas more efficiently to save those lives?