Speeches – 2008

The Honourable Jason Kenney

The Tibet Canada Women' s Foundation Annual Fundraiser Dinner and Silent Auction

Calgary, Alberta, March 15, 2008

CHECK AGAINST DELIVERY

Ladies and gentlemen,

It is a great pleasure to be with you for this year' s dinner and silent auction.

I want to begin by saying how much I appreciate the significant work being done by the Tibet Canada Women' s Foundation.  Whether promoting awareness of the situation in Tibet or helping newcomers settle in the Calgary region, your efforts contribute significantly to ensuring that ours is a compassionate society based on common understanding and respect for human rights.

The Government of Canada is committed to promoting democracy, freedom, human rights, and the rule of law – values that are so clearly reflected in the Tibet Canada Women' s Foundation' s work with vulnerable people.

Our Government is proud to support many initiatives that preserve and promote these very values. 

For example, we are a partner in the Canadian Museum for Human Rights in Winnipeg.  This national museum, the first to be built outside of the National Capital Region, will serve as a powerful symbol of this country' s commitment to recognizing, promoting, and celebrating human rights, at home and abroad.

And we were delighted when Canada was chosen as the site for the Aga Khan' s Global Centre for Pluralism.  The Government of Canada is supporting this institution, and we believe it will serve as a cornerstone of good governance, the rule of law, and human development in the years ahead.

And without a doubt, we consider His Holiness the Dalai Lama' s decision to locate the new International Centre for Peace and Education in Vancouver to be an important recognition of our country' s commitment to peace, harmony and understanding.

It was a very proud moment for me in 2006 when the Parliament of Canada unanimously adopted a motion granting His Holiness honorary Canadian citizenship.  This was an initiative I had worked toward for years.  The symbolic honour has been bestowed on only three other people: Holocaust hero, Raoul Wallenberg; anti-apartheid activist, Nelson Mandela; and Burmese pro-democracy activist, Aung San Suu Kyi.

While His Holiness was visiting Canada last October, he met with Prime Minister Harper and he also met with me on a separate occasion.  He praised Canada as a multicultural, multi-racial, and multi-religious society, and he spoke warmly about our ability to live in harmony. 

His Holiness' remarks reminded me of Prime Minister Stephen Harper' s comment that Canada' s history of accommodating minorities – regional, ethnic, linguistic, or religious – has been critical to our overall health as a country.

As the Secretary of State for Multiculturalism and Canadian Identity, I am proud to live in a country that embraces the many cultures and religions of the world.  A country in which groups such as the Tibet Canada Women' s Foundation can carry out the important work they do.

As you know, the funds raised this evening will go toward a project that supports orphans in the Himalayas.  Working to bring hope to vulnerable children is a wonderful way to celebrate the Tibetan New Year, and the Tibet Canada Women' s Foundation can definitely be proud of the work it has undertaken in this regard.

In closing, I want to thank the organizers of this dinner for inviting me to speak. An event such as this helps us learn from each other and underlines the importance of respecting the dignity of all people.  I appreciate the opportunity to be part of it.

Thank you.