Madam Speaker, I know my hon. colleague is a lawyer, as he pointed out, and knows that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms stands as an important bulwark to protect Canadian citizens against the state. It regulates governmental actors.
Section 2 states:
Everyone has the following fundamental freedoms: ...
(b) freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press;
(c) freedom of peaceful assembly; and
(d) freedom of association.
Of course, there is also the legal right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure, the right not to be arbitrarily detained or imprisoned, and the rights on arrest to be informed promptly of the reasons and to retain and instruct counsel without delay.
In Toronto this summer, hundreds of Canadians were deprived of those very rights. We know that. Journalists were assaulted and forcibly removed, violating freedom of the press. Canadians who gathered peacefully to express their opinions in public, exercising their right to assemble and express themselves, were arrested and detained. Canadians were not told the grounds for their arrests and were not allowed to contact lawyers. I wonder if my friend is concerned about that.
He says he stands up for the charter and believes in it. Does he stand up for the rights of those Canadians this summer to have their rights respected, and will he join with the New Democrats in calling for a public inquiry to find out why there was such a mass violation of charter rights?