Statement made on 10 March 2011 by Senator Roméo Dallaire
Hon. Roméo Antonius Dallaire:
Honourable senators, my question is for the Leader of the Government and brings us back a bit to a previous question, but I will ask it in order to elaborate on the matter.
I wish to raise the question of the evacuation of Canadians out of Libya. We have learned from previous experience that, for example, we should not entertain the possibility of instilling a no-fly zone on a country that is in conflict and imploding until we are sure that our own people have been evacuated for a series of obvious reasons. We have witnessed the length of time it has taken to move Canadians out of Libya and, as of today, we are still not sure whether or not they have been completely evacuated.
From previous experience, we know that embassies are to hold registers of all Canadians in the country, which are continuously updated by their staff; a network of wardens for communications purposes, for fanouts and so on; and an active evacuation plan that can be exercised in a moment of crisis.
Can the leader tell us whether or not those three fundamental requirements were established and functioning at the embassy in Libya?
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