44th Parl. 1st Sess.
May 3, 2023 02:00PM
- May/3/23 2:20:07 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I rise today to highlight the phenomenal work of My Voice, My Choice. The women of My Voice, My Choice have courageously sought justice through a system that we know is retraumatizing. They have continued to courageously advocate to make sure other survivors have a choice when it comes to publication bans.
Currently, there is no obligation to inform or get consent from a victim-complainant when a ban has been placed on their name. If they choose to speak out about their own experiences, they can face criminal charges. This is outrageous.
I stand with them today as a sexual assault survivor who chose not to go through the legal system, knowing that this system is not kind to victims. As MPs, we have a responsibility to listen to survivors and to reform these systems. My Voice, My Choice advocates have fought tirelessly, and their work has led to the introduction of Bill S-12.
They are here in Ottawa with a clear message that we must amend and strengthen this bill to ensure that survivors never face criminal charges for sharing their own story and that they are always given the choice.
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- May/3/23 3:10:58 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, there are still too many victims of sexual violence.
We know how important it is for police forces to have access to tools such as the national sex offender registry, to investigate and prevent sexual violence. We also know that the criminal justice process can be daunting for victims.
Could the Minister of Justice tell us more about the bill we introduced to protect Canadians and empower victims?
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- May/3/23 3:11:34 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I thank my colleague from Vancouver Granville for his question and his French.
We recently introduced Bill S-12 in the Senate to strengthen the national sex offender registry. Offenders will have to register, unless they can prove that they do not pose a risk to public safety.
Bill S‑12 also gives victims more choice over publication bans by clarifying the process. Some victims want to protect their identity, others want to tell their stories. It is their voice and it should be their choice.
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Mr. Speaker, I am really pleased to stand today to bring a number of petitions forward all on the same topic, again in regard to Bill C-311. It is well established that the risk of violence against women increases when they are pregnant. We all agree on that in this House and we know that to be the case.
Currently, in the injury or death of a woman and the child that she is carrying as victims of crime, pregnancy is not considered an aggravating circumstance for sentencing purposes in the Criminal Code of Canada. It is true Canada has no abortion law and it is still a huge discussion in our country. However, the majority of Canadians, crossing all those boundaries, agree that this legal void is extreme and we must protect pregnant women from abuse and from murder that impacts their lives and the lives of the children they are choosing to carry.
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- May/3/23 4:04:17 p.m.
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Mr. Speaker, I have a petition signed here by many Canadians that is similar to the ones we have just heard about.
The petitioners recognized that there is a legal void in our legislation that does not recognize preborn children as victims of crime in the event of violence against a pregnant woman. There is recognition that pregnant women are more prone to violent attacks. What these petitioners would like is recognition, in the case of a pregnant woman being attacked, that there be an aggravating circumstance in the sentencing of the perpetrator.
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- May/3/23 10:22:19 p.m.
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- Re: Bill S-6
Madam Speaker, I believe the indigenous community, as well as other communities in Canada, and business communities are the victims of red tape and regulations.
The red tape and the bureaucratic processes are so thick that they are basically stopping oxygen from getting into the body. That is how I describe it.
We need to open up. We need to realize that we cannot continue doing what we are doing, because the longer this takes, the more risk we have of killing the body. I hope that is not going to be case, but we need to do better and we need to do it faster.
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