Mr. Speaker, I like to think Canadians live in a democratic and just society. I like to believe Canada is a country which respects the rule of law.
However when I look at our Constitution including the Charter of Rights and Freedoms I become concerned. Property rights constitute the most fundamental of rights: the right to keep what we earn, to acquire what we need through fair exchange and to enjoy those freedoms while respecting the rights of others.
Thomas Bethell wrote in Property and Justice : ``There is a close relationship between the operation of a private property system and the idea of justice itself''. As Canadians we believe we have an inherent right to justice. That means if a criminal steals something we expect to be compensated and we expect the criminal to be punished. If neither happens we are morally outraged.
It is our fundamental belief in justice that has motivated many Canadians to demand stiffer penalties for criminals, to demand more accountability of government spending of their tax dollars, and to demand the retrenchment of their property rights.
In a just society the weak do not have to fear the strong or the corrupt because they know their rights will be respected and the rule of law will protect them. In a just society the state will defend individual property rights from those who would take them. One reason for the state having a police force is to prevent criminals from violating the rights of other citizens.
Likewise when the state arbitrarily confiscates private property without regard to the rule of law justice has failed. Our justice system is built on the concept of private ownership, on the premise that when someone takes something from another they have broken a fundamental law of our society. This is because or possessions are privately owned, not commonly owned. Property can generally be state owned, privately owned or commonly owned. In Canada we like to think we have private ownership, but how can we guarantee it without constitutional protection?
A system of common ownership is by its very nature unjust. Anyone can take the fruits of our labours but it is not called stealing. It is called redistribution because everyone in the community owns whatever is produced. This ultimately leads to a society where justice means from each according to his ability and to each according to their need. Have we heard that one before? Inevitably under this system the needy are merely the greedy and the honest workers are the destitute.
In a society where the state claims ownership or control over property and arbitrarily denies its citizens the right to use and enjoy their property then it has broken its covenant with the people.
Individual liberty and freedom is lost and a state that does not respect the rule of law is a tyranny. Sometimes Canadians have a hard time defining what it is to be Canadian but I do not think communal or state ownership of property fits with that definition.
There is something wrong when Canadians have a fundamental belief in property rights and yet nowhere is that right expressly protected. Why does the government not recognize this right?
There is something wrong when a minister can arbitrarily impose his personal beliefs on society and enact legislation to deprive law-abiding citizens of their property because he does not like guns. This means that Canadians are being governed by people who do not believe in basic property rights. This is not comforting.
In support of M-301 I would sleep better at night knowing that my property rights were protected. I therefore wholly support this motion.