Your time and efforts can better be spent on lobbying the AG of Ontario, a French Canadian woman. Wynne has now passed the political hot potato to her. Firstly, she is a lawyer and she will surely assess the constitutionality of c36 based on legal grounds. She is a woman and she may or may not think like MP Smith and other housewives but she would likely place high importance on the safety issue of sex workers. More importantly, she is also minister in charge of French culture in Ontario. As far as I know, French culture is different from Harper, Mackay and MP Smith's puritanical mindset. Mackay, for example, considers sex work as gross. French culture looks at sex differently and more importantly, the joy of life is highly valued. I would suggest the emphasis now,for MP/agency owners and hobbyists, is to focus on lobbying the AG of Ontario.
Finally!! City of Toronto speaks against C-36!!!! city councillors appeal to Wynne!
- Thread starter MPAsquared
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Soon after the bill was introduced Joy Smith said Peter Mackay was doing a very good job. It sounded to me like she was talking about a dog, "there's a good boy!" I almost felt sorry for him at that point. She also said the same thing about Rick Hansen at the HOC hearings.
If Joy Smith has such great confidence in the law she should welcome a court challenge.
Let's not forget that the Supreme Court Justices include women, and especially the Right Honourable Justice Beverly McLaughlin, an Albertan by birth, as well.
The vote was unanimous as to confirmation of the rights and freedoms of sex workers.
And Justice Susan G. Himel is a woman, as well.
She also had served as the Assistant Attorney General of Ontario.
Looks like Wynne is caving?
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/...law_despite_concerns_says_kathleen_wynne.html
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/...law_despite_concerns_says_kathleen_wynne.html
She has not changed her position. She cannot proclaim that the Province would not enforce the law, as that would create a constitutional crisis. However, it is very possible that the Attorney General could direct police forces and Crown Prosecutors to spend their resources on matters more cost-beneficial to society.
Referring to matter to her Attorney General is the proper way to go. If the opinion of the AG is that it is likely unconstitutional, then the Province has every right to bring the matter to the Ontario courts.
In any case, as Alan Young said, Crowns may be very leery of prosecuting someone who can afford the lawyers to defend himself, as such a challenge will probably result in the law being ruled unconstitutional, and losing the law altogether as a tool for enforcement. As with the original Bedford case, after the Himel decision, LE did not go out of their way to enforce the affected sections.
The French culture is as varied as the English culture. Canadian French culture is as different to European French culture as the difference between the UK and the US. Within Canada, Franco-Ontarians think differently than Quebecers. Premier Couillard of Quebec recently said that notwithstanding what individual municipalites may say, the law is going to be enforced. His female Minister of Justice said also that prostitution is exploitation. So go figure.
Best bet is action from BC politicians, followed by Ontario.
its a hot potato. nobody wants to touch it. nobody wants to hold on to it for very long. its just going to be handed from one politician to another. from one judge to another. from one court to another. from one police chief to another, from one province to another. until it gets abandoned and left to be enforced until people give up and leave it to stay.
not even Wynne wants to touch it or hold on to it. cos she knows it'll smear her precious public image if she tries to kill it. everyone will think she's a prostitute lover. or sees prostitutes herself. whichever comes first.
bottomline is: we lost.
the bill is here to stay for a very long time. for years. nobody is going to kill it.
...and yet, has anyone been charged yet? That will be the test. Will the courts actually be willing to put someone away for five years for the "crime" of paying a willing adult person to have sex?
Sooner or later this law will be crushed under the weight of its own stupidity. Even the Conservatives must know that the spectacle of locking away an otherwise law abiding man for the "crime" of paying for sex is going to show the ridiculousness of this law.
The truly frustrating aspect of all this is that there is NO controversy when it comes to protecting women who truly don't want to be in the business or anything to do with children. Everyone would get behind a law that protected those groups, but by lumping consenting adults in with those who abuse women and kids, Harper and Smith et al have passed a worse than useless law.
I think Harper is a competent administrator, but this issue is a crystal clear example of how his government refuses to listen to reason or experts on an issue and instead choose to be guided by conservative morality. Whether it's climate science, drug addiction treatment or prostitution, these guys will not listen to reason.
Sooner or later this law will be crushed under the weight of its own stupidity. Even the Conservatives must know that the spectacle of locking away an otherwise law abiding man for the "crime" of paying for sex is going to show the ridiculousness of this law.
The truly frustrating aspect of all this is that there is NO controversy when it comes to protecting women who truly don't want to be in the business or anything to do with children. Everyone would get behind a law that protected those groups, but by lumping consenting adults in with those who abuse women and kids, Harper and Smith et al have passed a worse than useless law.
I think Harper is a competent administrator, but this issue is a crystal clear example of how his government refuses to listen to reason or experts on an issue and instead choose to be guided by conservative morality. Whether it's climate science, drug addiction treatment or prostitution, these guys will not listen to reason.
just out of curiosity, is it customary for LE to announce that they are enforcing new laws or do they just do it?
they dont have to announce anything. first you hear about it is on the newspaper where there was some mass raid in a strip club or something.
