Mark Warawa
Long-time pro-life MP Mark Warawa (Langley-Aldergrove) passed away June 20 after a brief battle with cancer that infected his lungs, colon, and lymph nodes. He announced his retirement earlier this year and in April went public with information about his illness as he asked for prayers: “I need your prayers for a miracle,” he said.
Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer said Warawa “was an example to which all parliamentarians should aspire,” noting his former colleague was “a strong defender of his principles.”
Another colleague, MP Ed Fast (CPC, Abbotsford) said Warawa loved and served his country, family, and God. “I think he would have encouraged all of us to appreciate and value what we have in this country, our democratic institutions, our freedoms, the human rights that we uphold and defend,” Fast told CBC. “He was a passionate promoter of Canadian values.”
Warawa regularly attended the National March for Life in Ottawa, enthusiastically giving thanks to those who participated in the largest annual pro-life demonstration in the country.
In 2013, Warawa’s private member’s motion, M-408, condemning so-called gendercide abortions. The motion stated: “That the House condemn discrimination against females occurring through sex-selective pregnancy termination.”
A subcommittee of the Standing Committee on Procedure and House Affairs, which decides whether private members’ bills and motions can be voted on in the House of Commons, ruled against M-408, reportedly under pressure from then-Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s office. Warawa chose not to appeal the committee’s decision.
Instead, he began fighting for the rights of parliamentarians to speak freely on important topics in the House of Commons, a battle that would eventually lead then-Speaker of the House Andrew Scheer to rule that MPs did not have to gain the permission of their party’s leadership to seek recognition from the chair to address topics dear to their own or their constituents’ interests. Warara said in a speech on the floor of the House, “each of us has that responsibility to represent our communities, the people who elected us. We need to have those rights to be ensured that we have the opportunity to properly represent our communities.” But later when he attempted to make a short, 60-second speech on sex-selective abortion, the Conservative leadership withdrew his speaking spot that day, effectively thumbing its nose to the Speaker’s decision.
In the last few years, Warawa focused on opposing the Liberal government’s efforts to legalize euthanasia, and Warawa used his final speech in Parliament to urge MPs to ensure better access to palliative care for all Canadians.
Campaign Life Coalition national president Jeff Gunnarson told The Interim that “Warawa was a rare breed of politician who genuinely wore his faith and pro-life commitment on his sleeve.”
Warawa is survived by his wife of 46 years, Diane, and their five children and 10 grandchildren.
