From CP via CTV.ca:

NDP Leader Jack Layton wants Parliament to take a stand in support of an Afghan journalist sentenced to death for allegedly insulting Islam.

In an interview Sunday, Layton complained the Conservative government has been largely silent on the case of Sayad Parwez Kambaksh, convicted by a court in northern Afghanistan two weeks ago.

"We have every right as a country to speak out on this issue," said the NDP chief.

"We have soldiers who have lost their lives on a mission that was supposed to be helping to build democracy. It doesn't get much more fundamental than this."

Neil Hrab, a spokesman for Foreign Affairs Minister Maxime Bernier, said diplomats at the Canadian embassy in Kabul have expressed their concern to the Afghan government about the sentence meted out to Kambaksh, and Ottawa continues to "actively pursue" the matter.

"Canada frequently stresses the need for the Afghan government to fulfil its obligations to promote and protect human rights, including freedom of expression and religious belief," said Hrab.

Layton, however, maintained that a more public expression of Canadian sentiment is needed.

He said he's hoping to get all-party support for a resolution being prepared for tabling in the House of Commons that will condemn the death sentence and call on Afghan President Hamid Karzai to intervene in the case.