Latimer appeal denied
Ottawa – The Supreme Court of Canada has refused to reconsider the conviction of Robert Latimer. Convicted of second-degree murder, Latimer is ineligible for parole for at least 10 years. The appeal was based on the claim that the court was wrong in its original case in saying that 12-year-old Tracy’s pain could have been effectively treated despite her severe disability. In upholding the conviction, the Court has reaffirmed the dignity and sanctity of the lives of all disabled children. As the Calgary Herald editorialized, “The court was right the first time. The legal issues need not be revisited.”
MP wants unborn defined as human being
Ottawa – Alliance MP Garry Breitkreuz introduced a motion in Parliament calling upon the Justice Committee to review the legal definition of “human being” in Section 223 of the Criminal Code with the intent of including the unborn child. It was debated but deemed not votable. Saskatoon StarPhoenix reports that Liberal MPs have informed Breitkreuz that Prime Minister Jean Chretien does not want pro-life issues brought to the floor of the House of Commons because they would be divisive.
Senator steps out of the closet
Ottawa – Senator Laurier L. LaPierre announced he is a homosexual during Senate debate on definition of marriage. LaPierre claims his opposition to a bill defining marriage as between a man and a woman has “nothing to do with my sexual happiness,” but is rather a matter of fairness. He says homosexuals “are part and parcel of the fabric of our national life.”
N.B. population declining
Fredericton – New Brunswick Premier Bernard Lord is planning ways to increase the province’s declining population, which, as reported by Statistic Canada, has dropped 1.2 per cent from 738,000 to 729,000 between 1996 and 2001. Worried about depopulation, Lord said he wants to make New Brunswick a more attractive place to work and live. Perhaps another route to restore its population would be to end abortion; from 1996-1998, more than 3,300 abortions were committed in the province.
Ontario ripped for adoption woes
Toronto – It’s been reported by child-care experts that Ontario is depriving more than 3,000 needy children of the right to be adopted. A national study found Ontario and Quebec to have the highest number of kids in care. There are 17,000 children in the care of children’s aid societies, with 7,000 of them classified as crown wards, meaning their parents are unfit. Many crown ward kids are not considered adoptable because of behaviour or medical conditions. “We’ve got to change our attitudes and put these children first. They deserve families, not more studies,” Judy Grove, executive director of the Adoption Council of Canada said.
Unmarried partners get rights
Edmonton – Bill 30 is being introduced in Alberta and if passed it would give any couple, whether it’s two sisters, two friends etc., who are financially and emotionally dependent on each other the same rights as married couples. Another bill, Bill 29, has already given same-sex partners those rights. Derek Rogusky, spokesperson for Focus on Family said, “It sends the signal that marriage is no different than any other relationship, whether it’s same-sex, heterosexual, or common-law or just two brothers that have grown old together.”