Thursday, November 4, 2010

NDP Excessively Cavalier About Essential of Western Jurisprudence

NDP (Socialist) M.P. Olivia Chow wants to steal a page from both Stalin and Canada's "human rights" tribunals and do away with the presumption of innocence. But don't worry. It's only for one specific and particularly heinous group of individuals who really don't deserve it. From the National Post:

Accused human-smugglers would be considered guilty until proven innocent under an NDP amendment to proposed federal legislation. Olivia Chow, the NDP's immigration critic, says she wants the Tories' Bill C-49 reworked to penalize "those who prey on the vulnerable," while also protecting the migrant victims. Any ship captains who arrive in Canadian waters with more than 40 passengers and lacking identification should have to prove they are not smuggling their human passengers, Ms. Chow, pictured, told a news conference yesterday. "Putting the onus on them will make it easier to obtain a conviction," she said. Later, opposition parties hit the pause button on a separate piece of immigration legislation, adjourning a committee meeting that was supposed to begin clause-by-clause study of a bill designed to put "bogus" immigration consultants out of business.
I'm no fan of human smugglers or bogus immigration consultants (who is?), but must we (again) jettison centuries of jurisprudence dating back to the Magna Carta to bring them to justice? Have we learned nothing from the example of our wretched "human rights" kangaroo courts--that once the presumption of innocence goes out the window, there goes any semblance of justice? Or is this the NDP's sneaky way of making us go Soviet Socialist even quicker?

3 comments:

paladin3001 said...

I hear you on this one. As much as I loathe and despise human smugglers, the minute we take away their legal rights and create a separate class of criminal the easier it is to create other classes of "despicable" people that don't deserve rights.

scaramouche said...

Exactly. Slippery slope and all that.

Unknown said...

Any ship captains who arrive in Canadian waters with more than 40 passengers and lacking identification should have to prove they are not smuggling their human passengers,...

A little detail jumps out... how about a ship arriving in Gaza waters carrying 40 passengers lacking identification, oh like the Mavi Marmara for example? Would Chow demand the captain of that vessel be presumed guilty with the onus upon him to prove they were not smuggling jihadis & weapons into Gaza?

For some reason the NDP sided with the smugglers in that case.