Hon. Ratna Omidvar: Senator Gold, we’ve all read that the Government of Pakistan is forcing millions of Afghan refugees to return to Afghanistan. This is not just shocking; it’s against international law and puts many lives at risk.

I know there are Afghans who have been accepted into Canada as refugees but haven’t been able to leave Pakistan. Many of them are Hazara minorities. They are now being forced back to Pakistan, which puts them obviously at further risk of persecution by the Taliban.

What is our government doing to ensure these refugees are allowed to exit Pakistan and come to Canada?

Hon. Ratna Omidvar: Thank you, minister, for being with us today. My question is about Afghanistan. I asked this question last week of Senator Gold, your representative in the Senate, and I was informed that you were seized with the issue of providing a solution to the current conundrum of the anti-terrorism code and its impact on the delivery of humanitarian and other aid on the ground in Afghanistan because if Canadian non-governmental organizations, or NGOs, or Canadians did that, they stand in danger of being prosecuted under the Criminal Code.

I want to remind you that the U.S. and the U.K., the two most security-conscious nations in the world, have made exemptions to their anti-terrorism code to provide for the work of NGOs.

Can you kindly tell me when — and it is the “when” that is important, not so much as the how — are you going to table a solution?

Senator Omidvar: My question is about Afghanistan. I think we all appreciate the people of Afghanistan are suffering under brutal persecution by the Taliban. Added to that, there are food and medicine shortages, an earthquake that left 1,000 people dead, as well as other humanitarian issues. Canadian charities and NGOs on the ground in Afghanistan are ready and willing to help, but their hands are tied behind their backs and they are unable to do any work in Afghanistan because of a strict interpretation of Canada’s anti-terrorism law. That law effectively bans them from working on anything in Afghanistan because it is governed by the Taliban, which is listed by Canada as a terrorist entity. Therefore, anything they do runs the risk of being charged under the anti-terrorism law.

Other countries such as the U.S. and the U.K. have exempted charities and NGOs from similar laws so as to at least provide assurance that their work will not result in prosecution. Will the Canadian government do the same?

Hon. Ratna Omidvar: Honourable senators, my question is once again about Afghanistan.

We all know how brutal that regime is. As an example, a few weeks ago Yama Naseemi, a young 24-year-old boy who applied for protection to Canada, was shot brutally outside his home in Kabul. His application was supported by Operation Abraham, which is headed up by former minister of justice Irwin Cotler.

We know that we have promised to resettle 40,000 Afghan refugees. We know that roughly 13,000 have applied to come, but the point of protecting vulnerable refugees is that they need to be protected soon, and quickly. That should be our operating motto. Senator Gold, can you tell me what new efforts the government is making to extract those most vulnerable in Afghanistan and bring them to safety?

Hon. Ratna Omidvar: Honourable senators, my statement is a sister statement to that of Senator Ataullahjan’s last week on Afghanistan, but I would like to use my time to pivot and shine a light on the great efforts and contributions that are being made by ordinary Canadians to help Afghans get to safety. Many of these Afghans are individuals who assisted Canadian troops, diplomats, Canadian NGOs, Canadian journalists and our allies. Even though Canadian troops left Kandahar in 2014, we left behind many colleagues and co-workers who, wittingly or unwittingly, because of their association with us, are now targets of the Taliban. Our moral obligation to them is undeniable.

Thankfully, many Canadians have risen to the challenge, especially veterans of the Canadian military, including former generals who are shining a light on a daily basis on the precariousness of the lives we left behind. They have come together to identify the people at risk and their families, have set up volunteer networks to guide and house them in safehouses and, with the help of sophisticated technology and networks on the ground, they have planned their often very dangerous evacuation to Pakistan. They are doing so on a self-financed, volunteer basis through donations. They have been able to get hundreds out with many more to come. They have been active and delivered results, whereas our government has talked about processes, protocols and promises — not enough, I will conclude.

The same is true for many Canadian NGOs and media organizations like The Globe and Mail, that are working night and day to get their Afghan colleagues out of the country. Just recently we heard of the heroic efforts by the Rainbow Railroad, a Canadian-led initiative to provide safety to LGBTQ Afghan refugees. They have successfully evacuated members of their at‑risk community to safety to the U.K. — to the U.K., colleagues; not to Canada. Why? One might well ask.

I want to applaud these courageous and dedicated citizens. We, the Senate and our nation, owe them a debt of gratitude. Please help me commend these true heroes and urge our government to work alongside them, follow their lead and support their citizen-led efforts. Thank you.

Senator Omidvar: Senator Gold, I draw your attention to the safe houses in Kabul that are being operated by former members of the Canadian Armed Forces. Our veterans have stepped up to the plate and are raising money so that Afghan interpreters and their families can be safe while efforts are being made for their evacuation. Their money has run out and these safe houses are being closed.

Can you tell us whether the Canadian government is going to fund these safe houses to support the safety of Afghan interpreters, and their families, who worked alongside our troops?