Concerns about C-71

Re: Goodale defends firearm legislation, May 9

While criticism of Public Safety Minister Ralph Goodale’s attempt to “fight crime” by using law-abiding firearm owners as proxy rather than aiming at criminals is justified, everyone seems to be missing the elephant in the room. The Firearms Act of 1995 granted sweeping powers to the Justice Minister to “proscribe” any device without limit — this through Orders in Council, and without Parliamentary supervision. Please note that this is not limited to firearms, and could, at the whim of the minister, include cellphones or communication devices, and it remains the most controversial aspect of the Act.

Now Goodale plans to cede that very same power to the RCMP, to allow them to make regulations and ban the legally owned property of law-abiding citizens. Last time I checked, it was Parliament charged with making laws; the court’s job is to protect the people against unconstitutional laws, and the RCMP’S job is to enforce the laws, not to make them.

I truly believe that the thinking behind this grant of sweeping powers to a police agency is designed to shield the Liberal Party of Canada from the political consequences of an accelerated firearm ban, which is surely in the works. C-71 cannot be allowed to pass Parliament. Robert S. Sciuk, Wellesley, Ont.