Trudeau stands by terror-bill stance
Says decision was balancing act on rights, security
OTTAWA • Liberal Leader Justin Trudeau has strongly defended his party’s decision to vote in favour of controversial anti-terror legislation, saying he was acting in the “best interests” of Canadians even though the bill has flaws.
Moreover, Trudeau insisted Wednesday that if the Liberals win the Oct. 19 election, they will move quickly to introduce legislation to amend Bill C-51 so that it better protects the rights of Canadians.
Trudeau made the comments in a wide-ranging interview on Parliament Hill with the Ottawa Citizen and National Post.
Asked if he has regrets about his position, Trudeau indicated he thinks he made the right move — despite criticism from his political rivals — and that Canadians will ultimately decide on the matter.
“We took a position based on what is in the best interests of Canadians. And ultimately this is a line of work in which you have to know that if you’re making decisions and taking positions that are reasonable and that flow from your values and your fundamental principles, then people will make informed choices.”
In recent weeks, the Liberals have watched their firstplace standing in public opin- ion polls slip to third — behind Tom Mulcair’s New Democrats and Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s Conservatives.
Pollsters credit part of Mulcair’s surge to the dynamics associated with Bill C-51, which the governing Conservatives introduced in the months following the attack by a gunman on Parliament Hill.
The bill gives powers to Canadian spies to disrupt suspected threats to the nation, in many instances without the need for warrants. It also lowers the threshold for police to detain suspected extremists without charge and to impose conditions on their release.
Critics have complained about the lack of oversight on the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and police, and that Charter rights could be in jeopardy.
While the NDP categorically opposed the bill and voted against it, the Liberals voted for the bill and promised to fix it if elected.
One of Trudeau’s own candidates in Nova Scotia has stepped aside because he disagrees with his party’s stance.
But Trudeau indicated he believes he made the right decision.
“One of the things we said from the very beginning, in the aftermath of the shooting on Parliament Hill and throughout the debate, is we don’t want to see this issue more politicized than it has to be.
“Now, perhaps that was overly idealistic in an election year but, at the same time, I know that Canadians want both their physical security protected and their rights upheld.
“What came before us is a bill that brought in definite measures to immediately increase the security of Canadians but didn’t do enough to uphold and protect people’s rights.
“And we made a call that we were going to support the bill, push to have it amended, but try and remove it from political debate.”
Trudeau said that, by comparison, the Conservatives and NDP are on either side of the spectrum and are “blasting away” at the Liberals.
“Mr. Harper is playing up fear of terrorists. Mr. Mulcair is playing up fear for Islamic communities, for environmentalists, for First Nations. But they’re both playing politics of fear.”
Trudeau said his approach to politics is rooted in the conviction that he will not “play the politics of fear.”
“You won’t hear me say, ‘Mr. Mulcair, who voted against physical security, doesn’t care about Canadians’ safety.’ And yes, it’s a position that is more easily attacked than the other positions are. But it’s also the right position. Because we are in a position of saying, ‘We will do both. We will protect Canadians’ physical security and uphold their rights and freedoms by demonstrating that we will repeal the parts that are problematic with C-51.’”
Trudeau said a Liberal government would bring in “proper oversight” and a clause that requires review of the law every three years.