Hello, and thank you for having us.
The BCCLA is Canada's oldest and largest civil liberties organization. While we have many concerns about the state of freedom of expression in Canada, I'll focus today on two urgent human rights aspects, because for civil liberties to be real for everyone, we must fight not only for the rights of the privileged but also for those who are most marginalized in our society.
While the charter guarantees everyone freedom of expression, including protest as democratic participation, this right is not applied equally. Evidence shows that certain communities are disproportionately surveilled and targeted by Canada, suppressing their freedom of expression.
First, the BCCLA has long raised concerns about Canada's targeting and criminalization of indigenous land and water protectors. We're one of 60 indigenous and civil society organizations calling for the dismantling of the RCMP's paramilitary unit called the critical response unit, the CRU, formerly the community-industry response group.
Amnesty International's 2023 report highlighted the ongoing human rights violations against Wet'suwet'en land defenders opposing the coastal gas pipeline. The CRU has used unlawful surveillance, disturbingly excessive force, harassment and dispossession, despite the Wet'suwet'en's legal right to oppose projects on unceded land without consent.
Similar violations occurred at the Fairy Creek blockade, where the arbitrary and illegal exclusion zones violated charter rights, including the freedom of expression of the media.
Disturbing recordings played in court revealed that CRU officers were referring to indigenous land defenders as “orcs” and “ogre” while mocking missing and murdered indigenous women. All of these actions contradict Canada's commitments to the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples and have been condemned by a collection of UN special rapporteurs.
The CRU is currently subject to over 500 citizen complaints, serious lawsuits and an outstanding investigation by the chairperson of the Civilian Review and Complaints Commission for the RCMP. The CRU is now collaborating with local police to target Palestine solidarity demonstrations without any public transparency.
This brings me to the second pressing issue: the extreme chill and political expression that we are witnessing on free expression when it is in solidarity with Palestinian human rights or is critical of the State of Israel.
This year, the International Court of Justice ruled that Israel is likely committing genocide in Gaza, as well as committing ongoing apartheid and illegal occupation of Palestine. The UN Special Committee has now found Israel's warfare consistent with genocide, including the use of starvation as a weapon of war, yet Canada continues to support Israel and provide arms to it.
We have written numerous letters to police and Crown prosecutors regarding unconstitutional or disproportionate criminal charges and police response against protesters. For example, the CRU labelled Palestine solidarity protests as “pro-Hamas” and terrorist-supporting, an untrue smear that fuels anti-Palestinian racism. Such language has also been used by many politicians and police. Recently, the Department of Canadian Heritage published the “Canadian Handbook on the IHRA Working Definition of Antisemitism”, which advocates the implementation of policing across society. This deeply problematic and controversial definition of anti-Semitism goes beyond citing anti-Semitism proper—a goal we all share—to conflate political critique of Israel with Jewish people, promoting anti-Palestinian racism.
The BCCLA stands alongside many international and national human rights organizations and Jewish groups, such as Independent Jewish Voices Canada, the United Jewish People's Order and the Jewish Faculty Network. Such a conflation of Jewish people with the State of Israel is itself anti-Semitic and opposes Jewish freedom of expression. The IHRA definition and handbook has disturbing, censorious consequences and needs to be immediately revoked.
Dr. Ge's testimony before this committee is but one example of the regular calls we receive from people who are losing their jobs or are facing discipline, harassment or unjust police charges for exercising their charter rights. I, myself, personally have fear of speaking publicly before the committee on this issue. As a person who is half Jewish and half Lebanese, I believe that human rights and the liberation of all people are never in opposition but are interconnected, because suppressing one group's rights leads to suppression of everyone's rights.
Controversial debate is essential and healthy for democracy. A true democracy is measured by how it handles dissent, particularly when that dissent challenges the government or entrenched political interests. We call on Canada to abolish the CRU, improve police accountability, respect the rights of indigenous people, stop political and policing efforts to suppress expression and solidarity with the people of Palestine, and revoke the IHRA definition of anti-Semitism so that we can have freedom of expression for all.
Thank you.