(CJFE/IFEX) – The following is a 14 November 2001 CJFE press release: November 14, 2001 CJFE DEMANDS SUBSTANTIAL REVISIONS TO ANTI-TERRORISM BILL The federal government’s proposed anti-terrorism legislation is “deeply flawed” and needs substantial revisions to protect Canadians’ right to freedom of speech and the practice of journalism, Canadian Journalists for Free Expression said today. […]
(CJFE/IFEX) – The following is a 14 November 2001 CJFE press release:
November 14, 2001
CJFE DEMANDS SUBSTANTIAL REVISIONS TO ANTI-TERRORISM BILL
The federal government’s proposed anti-terrorism legislation is “deeply flawed” and needs substantial revisions to protect Canadians’ right to freedom of speech and the practice of journalism, Canadian Journalists for Free Expression said today.
CJFE, a national organisation of journalists and free expression advocates, urged the government not to pass Bill C-36 as it stands.
“Several sections of the bill contain serious assaults on the principles of free expression,” CJFE says in a submission to the House of Commons standing committee on justice and human rights. “We question the need to rush passage of a bill that makes significant inroads on long-standing principles of Canadian justice, in the absence of a demonstrably imminent threat to Canada or Canadians.”
CJFE issued its call on the eve of a Newsmaker Breakfast at Ottawa’s National Press Club (November 15 at 7:45 am). The chair of CJFE’s Canadian issues committee, Paul Knox, will participate in a panel to discuss the implications of the bill on freedom of expression and journalism in Canada.
CJFE believes Bill C-36’s proposed restrictions on freedom of expression, far from enhancing security, are likely to breed insecurity, forcing dissent underground and eroding confidence in Canada’s security forces. “Citizens’ rights to peaceful dissent and freedom of association would most likely be curtailed by provisions in the bill which could interpret a protest group’s activities as intending to intimidate or endanger public safety,” its submission says. A citizen who might want to peacefully express unpopular opinions could be smeared by government action and face a lengthy, expensive procedure to clear his name.
If Bill C-36 becomes law, it will grant the government and law enforcement officials extraordinary powers that could be used for purposes unrelated to counter-terrorism. “Law enforcement and security agencies already have extensive powers to investigate crime, conduct surveillance and restrict access to information,” the CJFE brief says. “We have watched, over our 20 years of existence, as governments employ extraordinary powers to restrict free expression in the name of fighting security threats. Almost invariably, they cause at least as many problems as they solve. And they lead to abuses that bring enormous discredit to the responsible authorities.”
Sections in Bill C-36 that are of grave concern to CJFE and journalists include those allowing law-enforcement officers to initiate investigative hearings aimed at the prevention of terrorist acts. CJFE notes that journalists whose professional duties bring them in contact, knowingly or not, with known or suspected terrorists, could be compelled to testify under this section.
Similarly troubling is the bill’s proposal to increase the powers of the Communications Security Establishment to monitor communications between Canadians and foreign entities. Although the bill says the surveillance only targets foreign entities, CJFE believes power “is far too broad and will have the effect of impairing Canadians’ right to privacy.” In effect, journalists who communicate with foreign sources will no longer be able to assure them confidentiality.
In addition, amendments to the Official Secrets Act, renamed the Security of Information Act, would make it an offence punishable by life imprisonment to communicate certain types of information to terrorists. This could lead to the prosecution of any journalist or Canadian who receives and distributes information the government is “taking measures to safeguard,” even if its publication is clearly in the public interest.
CJFE emphasises that “it is essential to keep the citizen’s right of appeal and review paramount,” and says the principle of judicial review should be maintained. CJFE also believes the anti-terrorism law should expire in a maximum of five years, and adds: “We urge the government to allow more time for Canadians to consider this legislation and make representations on it.”
CJFE is a private, non-profit organisation of journalists and freedom of expression advocates dedicated to the defence of persecuted journalists and the promotion of free expression in Canada and around the world.
To view CJFE’s brief in its entirety, see www.cjfe.org
