On 30 May 2018, a high-level group of Canadian Lawmakers committed to human rights convened a meeting to discuss the Campaigns and priorities of Parliamentarians for Global Action (PGA) and to reconstitute the PGA Canada National Group.

The meeting was co-convened by Mr. Randy Boissonnault, MP (Canada), PGA Member and Special Advisor to the Prime Minister on LGBTQ2 Issues, and Mr. Ali Ehsassi, MP (Canada), Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Prevention of Genocide and other Crimes against Humanity and PGA Member. While Hon. Ehsassi actively participated in the 39th Annual Forum of PGA, held in Milan, Italy, in November 2017 on the issue of preventing violent extremism and mass atrocities, Hon. Boissonnault worked in close collaboration with the PGA Campaign for Non Discrimination based on Sexual Orientation and Gender Identity (SOGI) in a side events to the April 2018 Commonwealth Heads of States and Governments meeting held in London, UK.

During the interactive debates on key priorities for the global PGA network and Canada's foreign policy - such the support for the ICC and the fight against impunity, the responsibility to protect fundamental human rights, and the universalization and domestication of the Biological Weapons Convention (BWC) -, an impressive number of prominent Canadian Lawmakers from majority and opposition decided to join PGA or reconfirmed their commitment to the PGA vision, which is to contribute to the creation of a Rules Based International Order for a more equitable, safe and democratic world.

Sen. Raynell Andreychuk, Chair of the Senate's Foreign Relations Committee, highlighted the many achievements of the Campaign for the Rome Statute of the ICC, including the ratification of the Rome Statute by 77 States in which PGA Members played an active role and the ability for PGA to arrange events in the all regions of the world, including the Russian State Duma in 2003. PGA's Secretary General Dr. David Donat Cattin highlighted how the events and strategies of the Campaign for the Rome Statute of the ICC were instrumental to the actual bipartisan agreement by policy-makers in countries targeted by the Campaign: For example, Leaders from Georgia's main parties made such an agreement in February 2013 in a private meeting facilitated by PGA at the margins of the regional conference on the ICC hosted by the Duma. Sen. Andreychuk recalled how a Member of Parliament from the Brazilian opposition worked with PGA since 1999 to facilitate a bipartisan agreement on ratification of the Rome Statute, which was actually achieved at the PGA Lisbon Conference in 2001: In 2002, Mr. Nilmario Miranda became the Minister for Human Rights of the new Brazilian Government and continued to work with the Campaign for the Rome Statute of the ICC in an effective manner.

Prof. Irwin Cotler (Raoul Wallenberg Centre for Human Rights), former Attorney General of Canada and former Chair of the PGA Canada National Group who hosted in 2002 the first Consultative Assembly of Parliamentarians for the ICC& the Rule of Law, made a forceful presentation of the fact-finding report that he presented on 29 May at the Organization of American States (OAS) on alleged crimes against humanity in Venezuela, calling for the referral to the ICC of this situation by OAS States Parties.

Prof. Cotler remarked how PGA contributed with its campaigns to the advancement of key foreign policy priorities for Canada, such as the ICC and the responsibility to protect. And in respect of the theatre of the largest mass atrocities in the last two decades, namely, the Syrian conflict, Prof. Cotler affirmed that there has been a direct correlation between the failure to intervene and protect the civilian populations of Syria, when the latter was protesting unarmed against the regime in 2011, and the escalation of violence and the armed conflagration that brought about over half a million death and approximately 11 million refugees and internally displaced persons. At its 2002 Annual Forum in Ottawa PGA had indeed two key agenda items: (1) the ICC and (2) the responsibility to protect: The "values" protected by these legal norms and political doctrines are even more relevant and cogent today. 

Co-organized by PGA with the All-Party Parliamentary Group for the Prevention of Genocide and other Crimes against Humanity and the Raoul Wallenberg All Party Parliamentary Caucus for Human Rights, as well as in cooperation with the All Party Democracy Caucus chaired by PGA Member Ms. Anita Vandenbeld, MP (Canada), the meeting hosted the launch of the Parliamentary Handbook on Preventing Violent Extremism and Mass Atrocities. This Handbook is one of the main results of the PGA Milan Forum (2017), co-organized with the Montreal Institute for Genocide and Human Rights Studies (MIGS) at Concordia University (Canada) and the Stanley Foundation (USA). MIGS' Executive Director Mr. Kyle Matthews forcefully presented the Handbook and called Parliamentarians to take the actions described in the Handbook (https://medium.com/@MIGSInstitute/human-rights-organizations-to-empower-parliamentarians-to-prevent-violent-extremism-499f12559e40). Dr. Phil Gurki, author of the Handbook on behalf of MIGS, highlighted the main features of this tool, which is meant to empower Lawmakers of all regions of the world. PGA's Secretary-General Dr. David Donat Cattin emphasized the importance of justice, not revenge, in addressing the consequences of atrocities perpetrated by violent extremist groups, as well as the imperative to punish the ideologists of atrocity-crimes committed in the name of extremist and totalitarian misrepresentations of a religious belief, as affirmed since 2014 by PGA Members elected in Parliaments in the MENA region (e.g. Morocco, Tunisia, Jordan and Iraq).

After an interactive debate with experts, Randy Boissonnault, MP, underscored the relevance of the PGA SOGI Campaign in supporting LGTB rights worldwide, highlighting specific achievements and challenges that Parliamentarians must address to make their legislative and political work effective in this critical area of human rights. He referred to the initiative that he is promoting with a British colleague to create an ad hoc network of LGTB leaders, Parliamentarians and allies to advance the causes of inclusion and equality. Mr. Boissonnault also emphasized the role that Canada is playing worldwide, starting with the G7 that Canada is chairing in 2018, to promote the equality and inclusion agenda, also making use of the PGA-UNDP Handbook on Inclusion [https://www.pgaction.org/inclusion/pt/].

The last agenda item was the reformation of the PGA Canada National Group. All participants agreed to the proposal to elect Hon. Ali Ehsassi as Chairperson of the PGA Group. Hon. Ehsassi reaffirmed his personal commitment to all the Campaigns and priorities of PGA, and highlighted how Canada should be able to play as special role - as it did in 1998 - on the 20th anniversary of the Rome Statute of the ICC to strengthen the fight against impunity for genocide, crimes against humanity, war crimes and the crime of aggression.