Public Safety committee  Being committed to fairness and the Constitution, and ensuring that truth is the end result—I think that is the commitment we should have to both victims and offenders. The fairness, the legitimacy, of the system—the way people will cooperate with it, in the knowledge that they w

Public Safety committee  Yes, sorry; I just want to say that one of the things that are not in the accountability framework...and I share very much the BCCLA's position on this. I will be happy to provide the committee with our assessment of the RCMP bill, which, on accountability, does not completely re

Public Safety committee  I would say a couple of things about these provisions. Number one, as you know, the definition of terrorist activities is at the Supreme Court now and being debated as to whether it's too wide or not. When you read the provisions, there is a certain ambiguity to it, a certain vag

Justice committee  Good afternoon. My name is Nathalie Des Rosiers. I am general counsel for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. I am accompanied by Michelle Thomarat, a student in our office.

Justice committee  We have to ask ourselves if we are not, in a way, changing the therapeutic approach that is necessary to treat mental illness and confusing it with a more punitive approach where punishment is the main thrust and the aspect of therapy, in the sense of managing the mental illness,

Justice committee  In a way, although it does aim to respond to the informational needs of victims, it does not respond to other needs, for example, financial help and support. It certainly addresses very little the need for prevention and the lack of access to mental services in Canada, a problem

Justice committee  One of the issues here is to avoid any changes in the message that will raise the danger of continuing to have misinformation about mental disorders. Particularly, the act does use the words “mental disorder” without specification, and I think that has contributed to the criticis

Justice committee  Glad you agree. Ha, ha!

Justice committee  I will speak in French first and then in English. Basically, I want to make three points.

Justice committee  First, it is the association's position that we need an approach that fully meets the needs of the victims; the need of the victims for information is certainly recognized here. It also recognizes that there are major gaps in support and financial assistance for victims and also

Justice committee  As our first point, to a certain extent, we feel that it would be preferable for this bill to have been set in a broader context of support, and to have as a strategy the protection of and support for people who are victims of crime and, specifically, a broader strategy of fighti

Justice committee  My three points are essentially these. Number one is the necessity that this act should be framed in the context of a larger strategy on mental health.

Justice committee  Are you trying to...?

Justice committee  Great.

Justice committee  I think everybody wants to have a system that has the right balance and reflects the need for public safety. Everybody is in agreement with this. Our position is that the bill responds to some of the victim's needs, but not all of them. It gives information rights, but it does no