On Wednesday December 9, 2020, MP Kwan delivered the following statement:
HANSARD: Privilege Issue with Conservatives intimidations
"Mr. Speaker, even before the pandemic, gendered violence was already a national issue. Red Women Rising, the National Inquiry into Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women and Girls and the TRC all identified the need to protect the safety of women and girls, through safe housing and spaces, as paramount to ending violence. However, little has been done.
The unconscionable violence faced by women in the Downtown Eastside is rising. Imagine one's daughter being sexually assaulted in broad daylight and no one intervening. Imagine one's mother giving birth to baby in a porta-potty and no one noticing. It should shock everyone to their core that such incidents have happened. We cannot let such brutal violence be normalized like this. There is no question that violence experienced by women in the Downtown Eastside is further exacerbated by COVID-related restrictions, which have reduced the number of safe spaces for women.
Advocates are calling for an immediate task force with all levels of government to ensure the safety of women. The Liberal government needs to show leadership and lead this work. The lives of women depend on it as our collective humanity hangs in the balance."
