Mr. Speaker, it is a pleasure to take part in this debate today. This is the second time this week, and we could have gone on with the debate a little longer. Besides, we are blaming the government for its decision to cut the time allocated for debate and to proceed very quickly with passage of this bill.
People are now watching the Liberal government and will come to the conclusion that it does not want to give them the opportunity to know about all the issues underlying this bill and what impact it will have on civil liberties.
The terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington must not change the principles guiding our way of living and doing things. That would be a great victory for the terrorists. We would then have yielded to terror. In our reactions and attitudes, we will above all have to maintain a balance between improved security measures and the tremendous importance of freedom in our society.
Let us recall that in committee, the Bloc Quebecois put forward 66 amendments, which were all rejected. As a matter of fact, those amendments sought to strike this balance between freedom and security.
On the face of it, I was completely against such an anti-terrorism bill. I knew for certain there would be excesses on the part of this government. Its determination to rush this bill through the House is proof of its bad faith.
The Prime Minister had said he was quite open to a sunset clause, but we know very well that what we now have is not a real sunset clause on all the provisions of the bill. This legislation will not be terminated after a certain number of years. The sunset clause applies only to two clauses. Therefore, it is not really a sunset clause that will automatically terminate this piece of legislation.
This bill also has implications for human rights and freedoms. We should have provided for a transparent and open review process, including the examination of day to day enforcement activities to identify any negative impact on civil society.
We are getting a little bit too easily caught up in the partisan war game the United States is waging in the Middle East. According to Professor Jean-Pierre Derriennic of Laval University partisan wars have three characteristics. They are:
—exaggeration of the importance of the issues, the ability to polarize society around a key conflict, the antiterrorist struggle between good and evil, between the civilized and the so-called uncivilized worlds.
Clearly we do not get very far with this view of the world in which good and evil are divided into two camps. This is simplistic sociology that rigidly links social realities when in fact things are much more complex.
The causes of violence are numerous, and the western world must not close its eyes. It is our job to explain to the public the responsibility for the economic inequalities among international systems. A number of people from different ridings have come to tell us at our offices what the attitude of the government and parliament should be to our responsibilities toward the Middle East, for example.
The war being waged at the moment in the Middle East is not the only solution to the problem, according to Laval University Professor Albert Legault, who said:
First the issue of the antiterrorism war as such must be dissociated from the operations in Afghanistan and, unfortunately, this is the linkage currently being made.
The government of the United States is also utilizing the horror of the events of September 11, events that cannot be justified. At the same time, however, these events must not serve as an excuse to encourage domestic and international support for these military operations. There are risks in this, according to Mr. Legault. I will quote him a second time:
The United States will have much to do to prevent the current conflict from turning into a worldwide civil war.
We pressed for this message to be put across to the government and that the Liberal government, namely the Prime Minister, put pressure on the United States.
Extreme caution is required in dealing with that part of the world. For example, when they planned their fight against the Taliban, the United States called upon two neighbouring countries hostile to one another, Pakistan and India. By allowing the northern alliance to play a major role in Afghanistan, they marginalized the majority ethnic group. Iran declared that it would never tolerate an international force in the region.
Moreover, it is reported that Iraq could be the next target of the United States. By voicing these concerns, I express the views of many of my constituents. Having met with members of the Afghan community living in Quebec City, I can say that they are very worried about the forces that will be in place in the post-Taliban regime.
Going to war, one always knows when it started but can seldom say when it will end. The same goes for anti-terrorism measures. This is why we should be very careful. The government is also trying to take advantage of the anti-terrorism mood to pass repressive legislation that might be used against innocent people.
We will recall that in October 1970, not that long ago, the power of arrest was abused. At that time, some MPs held their own, daring to go against the strong atmosphere of panic, and did support the War Measures Act.
A video was broadcast, which offers a very good explanation of how this psychosis among the population was stirred up in order to gain its acceptance of the war measures in Quebec City. People imagined terrorists at our gates, terrorists everywhere, maybe even living next door; anyone who belonged to the Parti Quebecois was suspect. Often sovereignist and terrorist were associated terms.
In the anti-terrorism legislation the government is trying to shove through, that same fear exists. This will be confirmed over the years. We will see how the government is going to be able to make use of it.
In the aftermath of September 11, critical thought has undergone a great deal of pressure. People felt as if there were pressure to be for or against the victims, for or against the U.S.
Our analysis must go far beyond the simplistic “for or against”. As well, we saw that there was no room for criticism. Members need just think about the harsh criticism of a former president of the National Action Committee on the Status of Women, who dared to speak her mind about the United States. Worse yet, because she was present but did not protest, the Secretary of State for Multiculturalism was taken to task by the press. In such a context, because she listened to someone expressing divergent opinions, she was found guilty by association.
This is one of the things that concerns us in this anti-terrorism bill: one can be found guilty by association. Talking about being guilty by association conjures up memories of the October crisis and the War Measures Act. In those days, being part of the sovereignist movement meant that one was a member of some FLQ cell. They deliberately tried to have the public believe that if sovereignists could be members of the FLQ, then they could pose a threat to society.
Even in wartime or quasi-wartime, we must protect our freedom of expression and our civil liberties if we want to safeguard our so-called liberal democracy—with a small “l” not to be confused with the Liberal Party. What is the use of protecting our democracy if we are going to break it down it at the same time?
Motion No. 6, which we are studying today, deals with the fact that a person would be bound to secrecy for an indefinite period, maybe even for life. We want that measure to be more flexible, so that a person would be bound to secrecy for only15 years.
This is the lesser of two evils, but we would have liked the provision to be much more flexible. Why is it so urgent to have the anti-terrorism bill passed just as it stands today? I do not believe it will wipe out terrorism in Canada.
We should have asked ourselves where terrorism is occurring in Canada. We should have discussed the issue. If we had been sufficiently watchful, given all the measures we already have at our disposal, we would not be forced into passing this anti-terrorism bill that is being rammed through the House and does not take basic freedoms into consideration.