At the Alberta Court of Queen’s Bench, on Tuesday, June 26, 1984, Mr. Justice Donald Medhurst ruled Bill C-169 unconstitutional under the Canadian Charter of Rights.
He stated, in part, “I believe that the sections … do limit the actions of anyone other than registered parties or candidates from incurring election expanses … and in this sense, there is a restriction on freedom of expression.”
Bill V-169, the series of amendments to the Canada Elections Act was passed by all three parties in the House to stop all advertising or leafleting by third parties during federal election campaigns.
The Bill made it illegal for groups such as Campaign Life to advertise the pro-life or pro-abortion position or to identify pro-abortion candidates.
During the debate on the Bill, several MPs admitted that a case could be made that Canadians were being denied their right of free speech. Despite these admissions, with one accord the parties quietly eased the Bill through the House in less than an hour. Now they had reserved to themselves absolute control over all printed or advertised material during campaigns.
Is it any wonder that a great many Canadians feel cut off from their elected representatives? Disenfranchised?
Our politicians are sworn to enact laws which protect the rights of all citizens. Laws which, instead, abrogate those rights under the guise of election housekeeping are worse than dereliction of duty. They are an attack on the state and its citizens. Self-seeking politicians are commonplace.
Let us redouble our efforts to defeat the self-seekers and those who seek to broaden the present law – a law which has resulted in the death of over 1,000,000 unborn Canadian babies.
Those MPs who act responsibly, who work tirelessly on behalf of the unborn, and who do not compromise moral principles, deserve our support.
On election day Sept. 4, let’s get out and elect them.
