Mr. Speaker, I rise today to present a petition on behalf of the thousands of Canadians who have called in to MPs' offices in regard to Bill C-9.
Bill C-9 would amend the Criminal Code to address hate propaganda and hate crimes, but the Liberals are proposing an amendment to remove the religious exemption that protects good-faith expression of beliefs based on religious texts. Removing this exemption would criminalize Canadians for expressing sincerely held religious beliefs, undermining freedoms guaranteed by the charter. This change could lead to legal action against clergy, educators and individuals for quoting or teaching from sacred texts without malice.
Therefore, the undersigned citizens and permanent residents of Canada call upon the Government of Canada to reject any amendments to Bill C-9 that would remove the religious exemption from Canada's hate speech provisions, protect Canadians' constitutional rights to freedom of religion, and express and ensure that legislation does not criminalize good-faith religious discourse or teaching.