No second class citizens in my Canada
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- Published on Thursday, 12 June 2014 13:00
- Written by editor
"Bill C-24 appears to divide Canadians into two classes: those that hold Canadian citizenship, and those that hold more than one passport. And somehow, that doesn't ring true. A citizen is a citizen, right?" said Jian Ghomeshi on this Monday's edition of "Q" on CBC Radio.
According to the BC Civil Liberties Association, the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers and their nearly 30,000 petition signers, Bill C-24 will grant the Federal Government "the unprecedented power to strip any Canadian with dual citizenship of their Canadian citizenship under certain circumstances."
Bill C-24 is only a few steps away from becoming law but there's still time to add your name to the petition and let the Federal Government know what you think of their efforts to re-define what it means to be Canadian.
For more information on Bill C-24, to sign the petition, or listen to Jian Ghomeshi's essy on "Q" scroll down or check out www.change.org/secondclasscitizens
Hon. Chris Alexander, PC, MP: Canadian Government: Stop Bill C-24! Don't turn millions of us into second class Canadian citizens
By Josh Paterson; BC Civil Liberties Association; Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers
Vancouver
Sign Our Petition
What rights are you guaranteed as a Canadian citizen? For millions of Canadians the answer to that question could change dramatically -- and without their knowledge -- in only a few weeks.
As I write this, our federal government is quietly pushing through one of the most dangerous laws we've seen yet -- a new law which will create a second class of Canadian citizens who have fewer rights than others.
Through Bill C-24, the government is trying to grant itself the unprecedented power to strip any Canadian with dual citizenship of their Canadian citizenship under certain circumstances. This will apply even to those who were born here. Most frighteningly, according to the bill, they would not even have to take the matter before a court in many cases, leaving millions of Canadians potentially vulnerable to faceless government bureaucrats abusing their power.
Taking rights away from Canadians because of where they were born, or where their parents come from? This is not the Canada I know and love. That's why I launched this petition on Change.org with the BC Civil Liberties Association and the Canadian Association of Refugee Lawyers to stop the passage of Bill C-24 and protect the right to equal citizenship for all Canadians.
Most Canadians have faith in our rights and in our government to protect us, and for most people nothing will go wrong. But as a lawyer and the Executive Director of the BC Civil Liberties Association, I've worked with hundreds of people who have faced abuses of power in ways they never imagined possible. Here are a few possible scenarios to illustrate how dangerous this bill is.
Take me, for example. I was born here but because my mother is English I have dual citizenship. This law makes my Canadian citizenship, and anyone whose parents are from a country that automatically grants citizenship, less secure. The United States, Egypt and the UK are three examples among many.
Or say, a new Canadian from China who now needs to move abroad for school or work. The way this new law is written, that person could be at risk of losing their newly-earned citizenship if a government official assumes that moving away means they never intended to live here and that their application was fraudulent.
Or imagine a human rights advocate who opposes a brutal dictatorship in their country, escapes to safety in Canada and eventually begins a new life here as a Canadian citizen. If the undemocratic country puts them on trial for their opposition and convicts them, they could be at risk of losing their Canadian citizenship.
This law will take Canada back to the dark ages, when exile and banishment were used as punishments. One part of the law allows citizenship to be taken away from dual citizens who commit serious crimes. That’s just wrong. If a Canadian is accused of a crime, they should face justice right here in Canada.
This law will take us down a very dangerous road – dividing Canadians up, and giving some people fewer rights than others. I believe it's possible to halt Bill C-24, or at least remove the worst parts. Earlier this month the federal government amended another controversial law, the Fair Elections Act, after nearly tens of thousands spoke out. If we act fast we can protect strong and equal citizenship for all Canadians.
Thank you,
Josh Paterson
Executive Director
BC Civil Liberties Association
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