Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Welcome, Dr. Carrie, to the justice committee. Thank you for the passion with which you stand behind this important piece of proposed legislation.
I listened very carefully to what you said. All of your content was very informative. The biggest takeaway for me, and I guess the most startling aspect of what you had to share with us, is the statistics that exist. Notwithstanding the prevalence of this scourge that you've properly identified in society—it's a worldwide phenomenon, and Canada tends to be a hotbed of criminal activity, particularly in this area—and the popularity of this particular crime, unfortunately the criminal justice system has failed too many victims, particularly vulnerable victims from marginalized communities, speaking of indigenous women and girls and LGBTQ community members.
I think this is an important step along the way of trying to address these wrongs. I know that, as a prosecutor, I never really had the ability to prosecute a person charged with human trafficking per se. Inevitably, the police, recognizing the limitations prosecutors would have in order to be able to prove these offences, would often look at other offences in the Criminal Code to perhaps ease the burden that prosecutors would face.
I'd like to hear your thoughts on this aspect, this particular question. I took some time to review Senator Ataullahjan's interventions in the Senate during one of the committee studies, and what stood out in my mind was her comments that in her view this would lead to a greater ability of prosecutors to be able to prove the case, that this would, in her view, tend to allow more victims to come forward without the element of fear needing to be proven in court. She also mentioned that it would remove the burden of proof on the prosecutor and actually relay that or transfer that to the accused.
I have some concerns about the latter aspect, but I'd like to have your thoughts on the first two.