Hon. Barbara McDougall (Secretary of State for External Affairs):

Madam Speaker, before I answer the question, which I will as usual in a veiy precise manner, let me just say there has been a lot of talk today in the Chamber about women, the leading role they have played and their role in the House with the leaders of two national parties being women.

I recognize that you are not the first woman to occupy that chair, but I do think on this day I would like to acknowledge what a great job you have done as well.

Mrs. McDougall:

In response to the hon. member's question, let me just say that I apologize for not checking the "blues" because that is the opposite of what I said. What I said was that the decision had not been made.

I had always said that we are close to the end of our capacity to send people, that we would look at what we had. We have not reached a decision because we have had no request from the United Nations to be a part of that additional troop. However it is well aware of the limits of our capacity to provide additional troops and resources, and that if we were to do so it would be small rather than large. My answer was intended to be that we had not yet reached that determination.

I apologize to the hon. member and the House for not checking that Hansard was correct.

Hon. Barbara McDougall (Secretary of State for External Affairs):

Madam Speaker, late last week we learned of the article in the Managua newspaper Barrica-da which featured photographs of Christine Lamont's ID cards. The article itself described documents that were found with a large arms cache that was discovered recently in Managua.

The newspaper claimed that the documents concerned plans to kidnap a number of prominent Latin American business and political leaders. At the same time Nicaraguan authorities informed our ambassador that there were 306 foreign passports found with the arms cache, including three Canadian passports. They asked Canada to verify the authenticity of the Canadian passports. The passport office has confirmed the authenticity of two passports issued to Christine Lamont in Ottawa in November and December 1988 and one passport issued to David Spencer at the same time. One of the passports had been altered.

I want to say that this development does not affect our approach to the Lamont-Spencer case. We will continue to be governed by our respect for due process and fairness to all Canadians imprisoned abroad. We will continue to press Brazil to ratify as quickly as possible the transfer of offenders treaty which would allow Miss Lamont and Mr. Spencer to return to Canada to serve their sentences.

That treaty has passed the lower house of the Brazilian congress and is now under consideration in the senate. I also want to assure all hon. members that while we are proceeding with that process, we will provide all possible consular services to Miss Lamont and Mr. Spencer and monitor prison conditions as we do for others who find themselves in this situation abroad.

Hon. Barbara McDougall (Secretary of State for External Affairs):

Madam Speaker, before we get the precise description from the United Nations as to what might be required of Canadians who are doing such an excellent job in Bosnia and in Croatia it is very difficult for us to say what we might do by way of additional resources or equipment for them.

Let me assure the hon. member and Canadians that we have never yet sent troops to accomplish a mission for which we have not equipped them adequately, and we will do that again. We will not allow our troops there to be inadequately equipped. We have never done that and we will not do it now.

Mrs. McDougall (for the Minister of Justice) moved

that the bill be read the third time and passed.