Toronto (Canada), Jan 26 (EFE).- The Canadian government on Thursday appointed human rights activist journalist Amira Elghawaby as the first special representative for the fight against Islamophobia, an appointment that comes days before the sixth anniversary of an attack in a mosque. in the country where six people were killed.

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said in a statement that the appointment of Elghawaby as special representative for the fight against Islamophobia “is an important step” in the fight against all forms of hatred.

“No one in our country should suffer hatred for their religious beliefs,” Trudeau added.

The Canadian government had already announced last June its intention to create an agency to fight against Islamophobia in the country.

Elghawaby will advise the government on policies and legislative projects, in addition to proposing programs and regulations to combat “Islamophobia, systemic racism, racial discrimination and religious intolerance”.

Elghawaby’s appointment comes three days before the sixth anniversary of the massacre at the Islamic Cultural Center of Quebec.

On January 29, 2017, Alexandre Bissonnette, an anthropology and political science student at Laval University, “methodically and professionally” fired at people inside the mosque, killing six people and seriously injuring five others.

Following the massacre, the Canadian government took a series of measures to combat Islamophobia in Canada. ECE

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