Mr. Speaker, I rise today on a very serious issue that concerns all Canadians. I attended in September a memorial service honouring the law enforcement officers who gave their lives in the line of duty. One way of ensuring protection for peace officers and indeed all Canadians is to ensure that individuals who are convicted of first degree murder do not receive early release.
On September 29, the following day, I asked the Minister of Justice if she would stop worrying about the protection of criminals and do the right thing by repealing this offensive section of the Criminal Code.
Her answer certainly demonstrated little if any compassion for the families of victims. She basically told us at that time that in no way does she intend to repeal this section and that we will have to content ourselves with the amendments that were made by her government last year; that is, she intends to simply lock the issue up and throw away the key, something she refuses to do for first degree murderers.
If the Minister of Justice does not know it, Canadians do. Modifications made in January 1997, of which the Liberals are so proud, do not prevent dangerous criminals such as Paul Bernardo from applying for this early release. The answer should be, and the minister knows this, that people like Mr. Bernardo should not have the right to go through a judicial screening process in any way, shape or form. Going through this judicial screening process is in itself an extreme insult to the victims, their families and all victims and Canadians in general.
People like Mr. Olson and Mr. Bernardo have forfeited each and every right that every Canadian has and they should not have the possibility to rehash their crimes and offensive acts. This is not a right convicted murderers should have.
The minister needs to know and needs to be reminded of what occurred at the Olson hearing in British Columbia this summer. Let us remind the minister of this horrific hearing that took place in August 1997. It was a very sad and frustrating day for the families of Mr. Olson's victims who had to sit through this ordeal of the appeal hearing and relive the horror this man put their families through 15 years ago.
There is no justification in the world for a hearing like this to take place. It only underscores the need for the immediate abolition of section 745. Furthermore, it provided the media, in particular television, with the opportunity to sensationalize the coverage of this hearing. It shamelessly appealed to a number of people in the public who lust for vicarious enjoyment of the agony these individuals had to live through.
I understand that when this change to the Criminal Code was brought in and amended, this faint hope was permitted to continue. Although it was lessened, this was the intent of the changes that were made. This faint hope clause still exists in its present form. The argument that it is a useful tool for rehabilitative purposes is certainly lost on the families of those individuals who have to relive this process and have to undergo the further agony of having this person who committed these horrific acts be given media attention all over again.
Life sentences were initially a substitute for the taking of a life as retribution on occasions where first degree premeditated murders occurred. Let us live up to the intent of the life sentence. Let us put truth in sentencing. Those criminals who have gone through the process, been tried, convicted and put behind bars should be kept there. I remind the Minister of Justice that the opportunity is there and I put it to the minister that now is the time to live up to Canadians' expectations.