Mr. Claude Bachand

Madam Speaker, my colleague has focused on some points I touched upon in my comments. It is true it was extremely difficult to find a compromise with the government on the issue of Afghan prisoners. I want to congratulate my colleague who sits on the committee. The Bloc Québécois signed the agreement but is now thinking that if the government does not deal with this matter before April 15, it is going to withdraw from the agreement. That would be perfectly normal. We have been waiting for these documents for eight months. What is happening? I cannot ask any questions of my colleague who, as everyone knows, cannot say anything about this matter. Perhaps I could ask the judges why there is no progress. I know the committee is working diligently and I trust my colleagues. This is another example of the secrecy and the lack of transparency of this government.

Mr. Claude Bachand (Saint-Jean, BQ)

Mr. Speaker, in March 1919, over 200 delegates elected by some 25,000 Jews met in Montreal, at the Monument-National, headquarters for the St-Jean-Baptiste Society of Quebec, to participate in the first assembly of the Jewish community in Canada.

This great democratic assembly led to the creation of the Canadian Jewish Congress, an organization that has played an important role in the fight for equality, civil rights, human rights and immigration policy reform in this country. The congress remains an important mouthpiece for the Jewish community, on both the national and international levels.

The goal of the Jewish Congress is to protect and improve the lives of Jews in Quebec, Canada and abroad. As part of its mandate, the organization helps develop an environment of mutual respect that fosters interfaith and cross-cultural dialogue. I should point out that in 2009, the Canadian Jewish Congress changed its name in Quebec to become the Quebec Jewish Congress.

Long live both of these organizations.

Mr. Claude Bachand (Saint-Jean, BQ)

Madam Speaker, I would like to ask my colleague a question. He maintains that the Bloc does nothing in the Canadian Parliament, that our party has no logic and no legitimacy. I will take myself as an example. This is the sixth time that the people of Saint-Jean have voted for me. Does the member consider that the 30,000 people of Saint-Jean who elected me and who represent 50% of the constituents of the riding are fools who vote for someone without logic or legitimacy? This is my question.

Mr. Claude Bachand (Saint-Jean, BQ)

In the meantime, Mr. Speaker, NATO allies are growing impatient and want to know Canada's plans for the training mission. The Minister of National Defence has still not submitted his plan to cabinet.

Is the minister's delay not explained by the fact that he is looking to buy time so that the public does not know the scope of the deployment before a potential spring election?

Mr. Claude Bachand (Saint-Jean, BQ)

Mr. Speaker, when the Conservatives, with the Liberals' help, decided to extend the mission in Afghanistan, we were told that the mission would be centred around Kabul. But now the Minister of National Defence is saying that he hopes to open training centres in Herat, Mazar-E-Sharif, and Jalalabad, a city on the border with Pakistan. That is nowhere near Kabul.

Why has the government hidden the truth from us yet again, if not to try and get the public to blindly accept that the military mission in Afghanistan is being extended?