GOVERNMENT OF CANADA INTRODUCES ANTI-TERRORISM ACT

OTTAWA, October 15, 2001 - The Government of Canada today introduced in the House of Commons a new package of anti-terrorism measures as part of its Anti-Terrorism Plan. This package takes aim at terrorist organizations and strengthens investigation, prosecution and prevention of terrorist activities at home and abroad.

The Honourable Anne McLellan, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, the Honourable Lawrence MacAulay, Solicitor General of Canada, and the Honourable John Manley, Minister of Foreign Affairs, announced the details of the proposed Anti-Terrorism Act.

"The horrific events of September 11 remind us that we must continue to work with other nations to confront terrorism and ensure the full force of Canadian law is brought to bear against those who support, plan and carry out acts of terror - we will cut off their money, find them and punish them," said Minister McLellan. "

The Government of Canada Anti-Terrorism Plan has four objectives:

• stop terrorists from getting into Canada and protect Canadians from terrorist acts;
  
  
• bring forward tools to identify, prosecute, convict and punish terrorists;
• prevent the Canada-US border from being held hostage by terrorists and impacting on the Canadian economy; and
  
  
• work with the international community to bring terrorists to justice and address the root causes of such hatred.
  
  

"As a nation, we must be prepared to ensure our safety and security. This legislation will provide our law enforcement and national security agencies with additional tools to identify and dismantle terrorist organizations and prevent terrorist acts," said Minister MacAulay.

"These measures are in keeping with the actions of our allies," said Minister Manley. "They are an important element in Canada's commitment to join its international partners in confronting and stamping out terrorism around the world."

The proposed Anti-Terrorism Act includes measures to identify, prosecute, convict and punish terrorists, such as:

• defining and designating terrorist groups and activities to make it easier to prosecute terrorists and those who support them;
  
  
• making it an offence to knowingly participate in, contribute to or facilitate the activities of a terrorist group or to instruct anyone to carry out a terrorist activity or an activity on behalf of a terrorist group;
  
  
• making it an offence to knowingly harbour a terrorist;
  
  
• creating tougher sentences and parole provisions for terrorist offences;
  
  
• cutting off financial support for terrorists by making it a crime to knowingly collect or give funds, either directly or indirectly, in order to carry out terrorism, denying or removing charitable status from those who support terrorist groups, and by making it easier to freeze and seize their assets; and
  
  
• ratifying two UN anti-terrorism conventions, the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism and the International Convention for the Suppression of Terrorist Bombings, as well as the Safety of United Nations and Associated Personnel Convention.
  
  

The bill will give law enforcement and national security agencies new investigative tools to gather knowledge about and prosecute terrorists and terrorist groups, as well as protect Canadians from terrorist acts, including:

• making it easier to use electronic surveillance against terrorist groups;
• creating new offences targeting unlawful disclosure of certain information of national interest;
• amending the Canada Evidence Act to guard certain information of national interest from disclosure during courtroom or other judicial proceedings;
• amending the National Defence Act to continue and clarify the mandate of the Communications Security Establishment (CSE) to collect foreign communications;
• within carefully defined limits, allowing the arrest, detention and imposition of conditions of release on suspected terrorists to prevent terrorist acts and save lives;
• requiring individuals who have information related to a terrorist group or offence to appear before a judge to provide that information; and
• extending the DNA warrant scheme and data bank to include terrorist crimes.

These necessary measures target people and activities that pose a threat to the security and well being of Canadians. This is a struggle against terrorism, and not against any one community, group or faith. Diversity is one of Canada's greatest strengths, and the Government of Canada is taking steps to protect it. Measures will be included in the bill to address the root causes of hatred and to ensure Canadian values of equality, tolerance and fairness are affirmed in the wake of the September 11 attacks. These include:

• amending the Criminal Code to eliminate online hate propaganda and create a new offence of mischief against places of religious worship or religious property; and
  
  
• amending the Canadian Human Rights Act to clarify that the prohibition against spreading repeated hate messages by telephonic communications includes all telecommunications technologies.
  
  

The proposed Anti-Terrorism Act includes rigorous checks and balances in order to uphold the rights and freedoms of Canadians. For example, the scope of Criminal Code provisions is clearly defined to ensure that they only apply to terrorists and terrorist groups. The Act will also be subject to a Parliamentary review in three years.

The scope of the proposed Anti-Terrorism Act is consistent with Canada's legal framework, including the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the requirement for due process, and the consent of the Attorney General and judicial review where appropriate. These measures are also in keeping with actions taken by Canada's international partners against terrorism.

"The measures we are introducing strike the right balance between civil liberties and national security, and signal our resolve to ensure that Canadians will not be paralyzed by acts of terrorism," said Minister McLellan.

The Act builds on Canada's longstanding and continuing contribution to the global campaign against terrorism. Under the Criminal Code, terrorists can already be prosecuted for hijacking, murder and other acts of violence. Canadian courts also have the jurisdiction to try a number of terrorist crimes committed abroad to ensure that terrorists are brought to justice, regardless of where the offence was committed. Canada has already ratified 10 of 12 United Nations counter-terrorism conventions and, with this bill, will be able to ratify the remaining two. The proposed legislation also builds on regulations introduced by the Government of Canada on October 3, 2001 following a UN Security Council resolution, to cut terrorists off from their financial support.

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Ref:

Farah Mohamed
Minister McLellan's Office
(613) 992-4621

Dan Brien
Minister MacAulay's Office
(613) 991-2924

Sanjeev Chowdhury
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Foreign Affairs
(613) 995-1851