NEWSPAPER ASSOCIATION WANTS TO LOOSEN REINS ON JOURNALISTS

Ottawa

The Canadian Newspaper Association will ask the federal government today to repeal national security legislation it says “ criminalizes journalism.” Association vice-president David Gollob is expected to tell a House of Commons committee reviewing post-Sept. 11 anti-terrorism laws that certain provisions exist only to intimidate media and violate the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. At issue is Section 4 of the Security of Information Act, which makes it a crime to disclose or have unauthorized possession of information the government deems sensitive. Although the heavily criticized section has existed in some form for more than six decades, it achieved a new level of notoriety when it was used to justify RCMP raids at the home and office of

Ottawa Citizen reporter Juliet O’Neill in January, 2004. Ms. O’Neill, pictured, had written a front-page story about the Mounties’ investigation of Maher Arar — a Canadian citizen detained by U.S. officials and deported to Syria — based on a leaked RCMP dossier. The police said their investigation was aimed at finding the source. In addition to scrapping Section 4 in its entirety, Mr. Gollob will also call on the government to draft a replacement that narrows the scope of secrecy “ to what is strictly essential, erring on the side of openness.” He also asks officials to decriminalize the act of receiving secret information, and to specifically exempt journalists, publishers and all journalistic activity from sanction.