February 25, 2015 – At home in Alberta, we have all been concerned about the recent release of a propaganda video from the terrorist organization Al-Shabaa calling for jihadist attacks to be targeted at a series of shopping centers in the West, including West Edmonton mall. Shortly after the threats were released, the Edmonton Police Service and RCMP responded stating that while there is no imminent threat, police are taking the issue seriously.
According to media reports following the threats, while visitors to the mall noticed an increase in security presence, there has been no detectable drop in the number of shoppers. As your Member of Parliament, I am proud that our fellow Albertans north of us are not intimidated. Under the leadership of our Prime Minister Stephen Harper, our government has been steadfast insisting that the Government of Canada, our military and security forces, and Canadians themselves will not be intimidated by threats from any terrorist organization.
Canada’s national security agencies will not hesitate to take all appropriate actions to counter any terrorist threat to Canada, our citizens and our interests around the world. It is however important that we remain vigilant.
The international jihadist movement has declared war on us. We are being targeted simply because these terrorists hate our society and the values we represent and hold dear.
That is why we have put forward legislative proposals for Parliament to debate that will work to protect Canadians from jihadi terrorists. Canadians want to maintain a good balance between the rights and freedoms that define our society and the need to protect ourselves from the harm being threatened by jihadists. That is also why Canada is not sitting on the sidelines – as some would have us do – and we are joining our Allies in supporting the international coalition in the fight against ISIL.
At the end of March, Parliament will be asked to consider further efforts that may extend and expand the current mission against ISIL– and whether Canada should extend our mission to Syria and Libya. We will need to assess what our nation can contribute and how we can best be of assistance to the efforts of our allies who are continuing the flight.
Previous generations of Canadians have grappled with these issues. In WWI, the world learned about Canada’s willingness to help from the great heroics and sacrifice of our nation.
In the ensuing global conflicts (WWII, Korea, and most recently Afghanistan) the world learned that Canada is serious about protecting our way of life. While we live in a peaceful and strong democratic nation that we built together under the rule of law, we must defend our freedoms – freedoms such as the right to privacy, lawful advocacy, protest, dissent and artistic expression, as we have always done historically. With that said, let’s go to the mall!
