Hon. Pierre De Bané:

Honourable senators, on December 4, 5 and 6, I had the honour of attending a conference held in Cairo, Egypt, by the League of Arab States, which had invited people of Arab descent from countries all over the world to attend the First Conference of Arab Expatriates under the theme: "A Bridge for Communication."

This is the first time an event of this nature has been held by the League of Arab States, thanks to the initiative of the leagues Secretary-General, His Excellency Amre Moussa, Egypt's former Minister of Foreign Affairs and a distinguished diplomat. His Excellency has always impressed me with both his thoughtful analysis and his political courage.

Honourable senators, for the last three weeks, Egypt, where both my parents were born, has been going through the most serious crisis since it gained full independence. I am not surprised that Mr. Amre Moussa is now a key player in convincing government authorities to urgently implement the reforms that the people, especially the young generation, are calling for.

This conference gathered citizens of Arab origin from all continents: Argentina, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil, Canada, China, Cuba, Cyprus, Denmark, Dominican Republic, Ethiopia, France, Germany, Ghana, Italy, Ivory Coast, Liberia, Netherlands, Nigeria, Romania, Russia, Slovenia, South Korea, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, U.K., Ukraine, U.S.A., Venezuela; 32 countries, as well as from the 22 Arab countries, which all had delegated government representatives, including many at the ministerial level.

This meeting between Arab emigrants and the current citizens of their original homelands is a welcome and a natural thing. What, perhaps, is less natural is that they had not met officially until now!

Honourable senators, I strongly applaud this initiative taken by the tireless statesman, His Excellency Mr. Amre Moussa, who believes that every culture should be open to all other cultures. It should influence them and, conversely, be enriched by them, especially in our era.

We live in the era of communication, which has made the whole planet a global village where the world becomes smaller year after year, to the point where we need to be instantly and continuously connected. In today's world, there are more than 200 million people living in countries different from their birthplaces. These emigrants could form a natural bridge between nations, all the more so if there is a political will to enrich the world consciousness and to enhance the dialogue of cultures rather than focus on the so-called clash of civilizations, which is so divisive, especially in a country of immigrants such as ours.

In Canada, we are fortunate to have a vibrant Canadian-Arab community exceeding 600,000 people. They are as diverse as the richness of the Arab world itself, for it is in some way misleading to speak, as many do, in general about Arabs as if they constitute a single monolithic entity. Many of those who today live in and, as a result, are influenced by the Arab world are not necessarily of pure Arab origin. They can also be Kurds, Assyrians, Berbers, Africans or, due to historical reasons, even Armenians and Greeks. Nor are they necessarily of the same religion. They could be Sunni Muslims, Shia Muslims, Roman Catholics, Eastern rites Christians, Anglicans, Jews, Druze, Animists, Yazidis and so on. They certainly do not all speak or dress alike and, importantly, have not shared a unique historical experience. Former colonizers have left distinct imprints, legacies and tradition in each area. In fact, to be an Arab in the same way it is to be Canadian, is to be part of a rich civilization. It is much more a cultural state of mind and linguistic identity than a racial characteristic.

Canadian Arab immigrants are proud people — proud of their original heritage and proud of belonging to Canada. They are, of course, forever grateful for having been invited to become Canadian citizens. In return, immigrants, and in this case, immigrants of Arab descent, have contributed immensely to the development and prosperity of our country.

We find Canadians of Arab descent in all walks of life, in the public sector as well as in the private sector. Among public figures, I mention the Premier of the Province of Prince Edward Island, the Honourable Robert Ghiz, and his father, who also was elected premier of the same province. Canadians of Arab descent are members of both houses of Parliament, as well as members of the provincial legislatures, ambassadors, numerous distinguished members of our diplomatic crops, deputy ministers, mayors, municipal councillors, police officers and so on.

Among academics, I mention the Vice-President of the Research Department at the University of Ottawa, the Vice-Rector and Chair of Arabic Studies at the University of Ottawa, the Director of French Theatre at the National Arts Centre, the President of York University, the former interim president of Carleton University and a number of deans of faculties and university professors.

Among professionals, there are well-known writers, artists, movie and theatre directors, doctors, lawyers, teachers and engineers of Arab descent.

When I was Minister of Fisheries and Oceans and had an overview of the business world in Canada, which is the second-largest country in the world, I was often surprised to meet Canadians of Arab descent in the most remote corners of the country, who were managing their businesses in the Arctic or in other remote communities.

We are the descendants of a people with a very rich past, a population that invented the alphabet and taught it to the rest of the world, one that built cities and historical monuments that still exist today— the Pyramids, Petra, Byblos, Damascus, Carthage and more — and that helped to advance science in the fields of mathematics, medicine and astronomy. During the twelfth century, Arabic numerals were introduced to the western world in Latin translations. Arabs also translated and preserved the texts of Greek philosophers and spread them throughout Europe.

Now many of us live in Canada, as first-class citizens, like all immigrants, determined to protect our new country and keep it safe, thriving and prosperous for many generations to come.

That is why I would like to propose replacing the term "expatriate" with the term "immigrant." In its broader sense, an expatriate is an individual who lives in a country other than his or her own. However, in common parlance, the term is used to describe professionals sent overseas by their employers, in contrast with local employees, who might also be foreigners. All immigrants, without exception, have explicitly asked a country to welcome them. Almost no immigrants move to a country only temporarily and pledge their allegiance and loyalty to that country. On the contrary, while always maintaining very close ties to their country of origin, they are generally very eager to set down roots and prosper in their new country.

The goal of the First Conference of Arab Expatriates was to encourage immigrants from Arab countries to fully integrate into their adopted countries, to faithfully abide by those countries' laws and regulations, to fulfil all their civic duties and responsibilities and to work to build a solid bond with their homeland for the greater good of all involved.

That is what many dynamic communities in Canada have done, for instance, the Jewish, Italian, Polish, Ukrainian and Irish communities. The creation of a reciprocal relationship is advantageous because it helps to foster a better understanding of both countries' concerns, facilitates trade, and broadens Canada's spheres of influence. It is now up to Canadians of Arab descent to put aside temporary internal frictions in their countries of origin and take the high road for the greater good of both countries and of humanity as a whole.

[English]

Among my recollections of this historic conference held at the headquarters of the League of Arab States, I would like to report to you above all, the appreciation and enthusiasm of the participants when I informed them that the supreme law of our country states that the Canadian Constitution:

. . . shall be interpreted in a manner consistent with the preservation and enhancement of the multicultural heritage of Canadians.

In other words, honourable senators, the Canadian Constitution states that there is absolutely no contradiction whatsoever between our loyalty to Canada and the maintenance of our cultural heritage. No small-added benefit is that the First Conference of Arabic Expatriates was an occasion to express publicly my strong allegiance to my country, Canada, as well as an opportunity to establish new and beneficial relations with citizens from all over the world, including from countries of the Arab League and members of the Arab Expatriates Department. That department is led by the dynamic director Ms. Samiha Mohey Eldine and her dedicated assistants. Enas Mostafa El Fergany, Lobna Essam Azzam, Amina Tawfik El-Sheibany and Rana Mohammed Essam.

At this time, I ask leave of all honourable senators to be allowed to table, in both official languages of Canada, English and French, the final communiqué of this conference outlining the main conclusions and decisions reached by the conference.

The Hon. the Speaker pro tempore: Honourable senators, is leave granted to table the documents?

Hon. Senators: Agreed.

Senator De Bané: Honourable senators, I had the honour to meet with His Excellency Amre Moussa when he was the Minister of Foreign Affairs of Egypt, a position he held for 10 years. His analysis then of the top Foreign Affairs challenges showed his grasp of the most important issues that threaten world peace and future events and show his great foresight. Like all the other participants of this conference, I am fully conscious that our meeting and its success are due to his leadership and vision.

Mr. Amre Moussa has been inspirational to so many of the young generation in Egypt who lived his legacy when he was Minister of Foreign Affairs between 1991 and 2001. His charisma is immediately felt, and he is a pragmatist with a clear vision for what must be done to connect Egypt with all the world while reasserting the pride and dignity of the Egyptians. He inspired the young diplomats in the ministry because of his empowerment to all those who are skilled, which enabled them to understand and live the process of decision making and participate in solving crisis through dialogue and sound policy.

Mr. Moussa comes from one of the most prominent and politically distinguished families in Egypt in the 1930s and 1940s that fought for the liberation of Egypt from the British occupation. The enabling society and his ability to reach out to the various strata in the Egyptian society gave him the opportunity to understand the aspirations of those who were deprived of wealth. He lifted the hopes of the people to reach their dreams for a liberated Egypt and later for aspiring to a more capable Egypt where the wealth can be equally distributed. The current wave in Tahrir Square resonates with Moussa's call for acquiring for the people of Egypt their basic rights with dignity and freedom. He went to the people in Tahrir Square to express his full support as a "proud Egyptian."

Speaking to reporters at the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, on January 25, Mr. Moussa said the following:

There is turmoil in the Arab world for so many reasons, internal as well as regional, and even international. The Arab citizen is angry, is frustrated. That is the point. So the name of the game is reform.

That is why, honourable senators, many political analysts and so many media outlets all over the world, including over a dozen Canadian newspapers, have concluded that Mr. Moussa is the most credible statesman to shoulder the responsibility to lead his country.

I hope this conference will become a permanent and regular institution with new participants, so that gradually in each country there will be a core of active members who will spread in their community the guiding principles and spirit of this conference.

I am profoundly convinced, honourable senators, that we, Canadians, must encourage such endeavours that promote understanding, mutual respect and harmony, and that strengthen the allegiance of new immigrants to our great democracy, while making the dialogue of cultures a duty of every citizen of our country in these troubled times.

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