Ottawa, ON — The Hon. Michael Chong, Conservative Shadow Minister for Foreign Affairs, Raquel Dancho, Conservative Shadow Minister for Public Safety, and Pierre Paul-Hus, Quebec Political Lieutenant, issued the following statement today, calling on the Trudeau government to support the Iranian people’s struggle for a free and democratic Iran by immediately listing the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps (IRGC) as a terrorist organization:
“Following the protests in Iran since the death of Mahsa Amini, Conservatives are calling on the Trudeau government to support the Iranian people’s fight for a free and democratic Iran by listing the IRGC as a terrorist entity under the Criminal Code of Canada.
“The murder of Mahsa Amini adds to the long list of violations of human rights committed by the Iranian regime.
“The torture and death of Montrealer Zahra Kazemi, execution of wrestler Navid Afkari, imprisonment of lawyer Nasrin Sotoudeh, the shooting down of the Ukrainian International Airlines Flight 752 that killed dozens of Canadians, and now the murder of Mahsa Amini, are a pattern of a regime that has no respect for its own citizens or those of other countries.
“The IRGC is part of this regime and is instrumental to its continued existence. The IRGC has terrorized the people of Iran for decades and has openly declared support for other terrorist organizations such as Hezbollah and Hamas – both listed in Canada as terrorist entities.
“In June 2018, the Trudeau government, including Prime Minister Trudeau, voted to list the IRGC as a terrorist entity. Despite the motion being adopted by the House of Commons, and despite the IRGC downing Flight 752 one thousand days ago, the government has yet to list this organization as a terrorist entity.
“The time for empty words and hollow announcements is over. It’s time for the Trudeau government to take action to support the Iranian people’s struggle for freedom and list the IRGC as a terrorist entity.
“Conservatives stand with the people of Iran in their fight for freedom. It’s time for the Trudeau government to do the same and list the IRGC as a terrorist entity.”
