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Media Centre
Press Releases: May 18, 2006 May 18, 2006 For Immediate Release: Alghabra Supports the Troops, not the motion Ottawa – Last night, Omar Alghabra, Member of Parliament for Mississauga-Erindale voted against providing the Conservative government with a blank cheque for future military action in Afghanistan. The Conservative government called a surprise vote on a motion that will extend Canada’s military deployment in Afghanistan by two years until February 2009. "Canadians support our soldiers unconditionally" said Alghabra, "and our support must be expressed by being responsible when making serious decisions about their future deployments". Yesterday's motion came with no detailed plan about the future of the mission, no civil society investment and no exit strategy. Canadians are raising legitimate questions about the apparent change in tone and attitude displayed by this Conservative government with regard to the future of this deployment. These questions deserve answers. "Prime Minister Harper displays disrespect to our troops and all Canadians by rushing this motion through the House of Commons without detailing a convincing plan." Alghabra added "By providing the government with unconditional support, we cede our right to question their strategy, which is especially concerning since they did not provide one." Canadians are extremely proud of the work their troops are doing and care deeply about any mission assigned to them. Canadians expect their politicians to ensure that troops are sent on peace keeping missions with well defined goals and a clearly outlined strategy. The motion narrowly passed by a margin of 149 to 145. |
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