“Conscientious Objection Act”<\/p>\n
Introduced by Mr. Alex Atamanenko, M.P.
\nGiven first reading 28 November 2011 in the House of Commons.<\/p>\n
“According to this bill, once an individual registers with the Minister of National Revenue as a conscientious objector, he or she may then request that a portion of taxes for military purposes be credited to a special conscientious objectors’ account. This money would then be used for any non-military peace-building purposes.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n
Click here for more information on the bill.<\/a><\/p>\n
Bill C-373<\/h1>\n
“The Department of Peace Act”<\/p>\n
Alex Atamanenko, MP for British Columbia Southern Interior, BC, moved for leave to introduce Bill C-373, An Act to establish the Department of Peace.<\/p>\n
Mr. Speaker, I am pleased to introduce my bill, an act to establish the department of peace, to help advance the cause of peace in Canada and throughout the world.<\/p>\n
The idea that all people can live in peace may seem a bit utopian, but each generation must, on behalf of the next generation, do everything in its power to come as close to reaching this goal as possible.<\/p>\n
I would like to pay tribute to my former colleague, Bill Siksay, for introducing this bill in the last Parliament. He truly was and remains an inspiration for all of us.<\/p>\n
I would also like to thank the leader of the Green Party and the Liberal member for Scarborough\u2014Agincourt, as well as my fellow NDP members, for supporting this bill.<\/p>\n
I also thank the folks from the Canadian Department of Peace Initiative for all their hard work in advancing this cause, a number of whom are here today. I extend a special thanks to Bill Bhaneja, the co-founder of CDPI, as well as Theresa Dunn, co-chair of CDPI, Koozma Tarasoff, a Doukhobor writer, historian and long-time advocate of peace, and Laura Savinkoff of Grand Forks of the Boundary Peace Initiative, among others.<\/p>\n
This is truly a non-partisan issue. I urge all my colleagues on both sides of the House to join us in support of this important initiative. Let us give peace a chance.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n