Ms. Judy Sgro, Canadian MP, and Minister of Citizenship and Immigration (2003-2005) addressed the first day of the Free Iran World Summit on July 1, 2023.
Judy Sgro: We Are on Our Way to Democracy in Iran
The full text of Canadian MP, Judy Sgro’s remarks, is as follows:
Madam Rajavi, it’s so wonderful to be back here with you again. To my colleagues in government, our friends in the US and the UK, it’s great to be together because we are all united. 26 countries, with over 3,600 signatures on these letters. It has to be sending a very strong message back to the regime that their time has come. They’ve done enough damage. It’s time to move on. And as Iranians across Iran take to the streets and demand freedom, women, life, freedom. Those are signs that are throughout Canada in so many ways.
Madam Rajavi, your movement has made great sacrifices over the last 44 years, and I certainly don’t have to mention very many of them. I was fortunate last year when I was in Albania to visit the Ashraf 3 again and to see so many people that go back to when I was the Minister of Citizenship and Immigration. And they were just being brutalized. And so whenever I look at them, tears come to my eyes because they suffered so much. You all have suffered so much, and yet you’re here. You’re fighting every single day. And there are just not words enough to ever express the appreciation of the world, not just the Iranian people.
In the last 44 years, more than 120,000 lives were among Iran’s most patriotic and freedom-loving people. I’ve seen their supporters in Canada for decades. And happy Canada Day to all the Canadians, by the way, because today is Canada’s birthday.
Madam Rajavi, your Ten-Point Plan is a true example of democracy, and I’m so happy to see so many countries have recognized that. But I wanted to give you a short update on some of the things that Canada has done just in the last couple of months, some of the diplomatic actions, sanctions, and other punitive measures.
The human rights situation in Iran, of course, remains a key area of focus for Canada. Canada has led the United Nations General Assembly resolution on the situation of human rights in Iran, which was adopted in December 2022 for the 20th consecutive year.
In October, Canada hosted a meeting of women foreign ministers on the topic of human rights violations in Iran.
In November, at a special session of the UN Human Rights Council, focused on the deteriorating human rights situation in Iran again, Canada supported the initiative to establish an international fact-finding mission to investigate alleged human rights violations in Iran related to the recent protests, with particular focus on women and children.
In December, Canada supported a U.S.-led initiative to expel Iran from the U.S. Commission on the Status of Women. Canada, with its coordination group partners, the U.K., Ukraine, and Sweden, drives efforts to hold Iran accountable for its downing of Flight PS752, which caused the death, as my colleague has mentioned, of many Canadian citizens and others with particular ties to Canada.
Since October 2022, Canada has implemented another 11 rounds of autonomous sanctions targeting Iranian individuals and entities key to the regime’s domestic repression, weapons proliferation, and propaganda apparatus.
To date, 192 entities and 156 individuals are listed under the Special Economic Measures Iran Regulations. Canada continues to share information and coordination on sanctions with the U.S., EU, and the U.K.
We will continue to work together with all our partners. We are on our way to the road to democracy. You can count on Canada and all your other partners that we’ll be on that road to democracy together.
Thank you very much.
