The War Measures Act (Human Rights)

Kellock-Taschereau Royal Commission of Inquiry

katherine — Fri, 17 May 2024 16:12:19 +0000

Kellock-Taschereau Royal Commission of Inquiry katherine Fri, 05/17/2024 - 13:12

Kellock-Taschereau Royal Commission of Inquiry

The intel from Igor Gouzenko regarding the Soviet spy operations was withheld from the public and from Prime Minister King's cabinet until February 1946.
Shortly afterwards, Prime Minister King appointed two Supreme Court justices to lead the Kellock-Taschereau Royal Commission of Inquiry, which is formally known as the Royal Commission to Investigate the Facts Relating to and the Circumstances Surrounding the Communication, by Public Officials and Other Persons in Positions of Trust of Secret and Confidential Information to Agents of a Foreign Power.
This commission was given a broad mandate and extraordinary legal powers, which brought forth concerns over the Commissioner's conduct during interrogations and it sparked fear in Canadians over the government's ability to infringe upon basic human rights.
The Commission led to the arrest of twenty-six Soviet agents for treasonous activities, and nearly half were convicted.
The October Crisis (1970) and the proceedings conducted during this commission are remembered as two of the most extensive human rights abuses during peacetime in Canadian history.

Citation

Canada. Privy Council. The report of the Royal Commission Appointed under Order in Council P.C. 411 of February 5, 1946 to Investigate the Facts Relating to and the Circumstances Surrounding the Communication, by Public Officials and Other Persons in Positions of Trust of Secret and Confidential Information to Agents of a Foreign Power / Robert Taschereau and R.L. Kellock, commissioners. [Ottawa, ON]: Privy Council, 1946. https://publications.gc.ca/site/eng/472640/publication.html

Further Readings

For an alternative format of the Royal Commission: https://secretlaw.omeka.net/items/show/75

For the University of Toronto's Declassified Collection of the records released by Igor Gouzenko: https://declassified.library.utoronto.ca/exhibits/show/gouzenko/introduction

For more information on the Commission and its controversy: https://www.degruyter.com/document/doi/10.3138/9781442679238-007/pdf

Overlapping Topics

Military, Defence, and Peacekeeping

Policy Sub-Topic

The War Measures Act (Human Rights)

Policy Type

Royal Commission

The Gouzenko Affair

katherine — Fri, 17 May 2024 16:10:31 +0000

The Gouzenko Affair katherine Fri, 05/17/2024 - 13:10

The Gouzenko Affair

The Gouzenko Affair was a significant event of both Canadian and international importance and which had major implications at the onset of the Cold War and sparked discussion around the use of government powers and civil liberties.
On September 5, 1945, a Soviet Defector named Igor Gouzenko, who was working as in the cipher section at the Soviet Embassy in Ottawa, walked out of the embassy carrying over 100 documents revealing the existence and extent of Soviet espionage in Canada.
Igor Gouzenko revealed this secret information to the Canadian Government, which later resulted in the government enacting the War Measures Act (during peacetime) to detain, interrogate, and prosecute several suspected communist spies.
The government suspended habeas corpus, suspects were arrested and interrogated for weeks on end, the suspects were denied legal counsel, they were kept in tiny cells, held under suicide watch, and had constant surveillance.
The Canadian Government, under the leadership of Prime Minister William Lyon Mackenzie King, was initially suspicious of Igor Gouzenko's motives as they did not want to make any decision that would threaten the Soviet-Canada relations following the uncertainty after the Second World War.
However, once the documents were uncovered and Gouzenko was interrogated, the Canadian Government understood the true extent of espionage being conducted by the Soviets and how it also threatened the security of our American and British allies.
This event sparked National Debate over the ethics of suspending civil liberties and human rights no matter the circumstance and it led to the formation of several civil liberties associations.
In 2004, the Historical Sites and Monuments Board of Canada marked the "Gouzenko Affair" as an event of national historic significance and unveiled a corresponding plaque in Dundonald Park in Ottawa, which is across from the building where Igor Gouzenko lived where he defected the Soviets.

Citation

Canada. Parks Canada. Louis S. St. Laurent National Historic Site: Gouzenko Affair. Modified April 21, 2022. https://www.pc.gc.ca/en/lhn-nhs/qc/stlaurent/culture/histoire-history/evenements-events/natcul2e

Further Readings

For more information on the Gouzenko Affair Plaque: https://www.pc.gc.ca/apps/dfhd/page_nhs_eng.aspx?id=1968&i=54642

For more information, background and resources of the Gouzenko Affair: https://historyofrights.ca/history/gouzenko/
& https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/igor-sergeievich-gouzenko
& https://www.historicalsocietyottawa.ca/publications/ottawa-stories/personalities-from-the-very-famous-to-the-lesser-known/the-gouzenko-affair
& https://www.collectionscanada.gc.ca/obj/008001/f2/cold-e.pdf

Overlapping Topics

Military, Defence, and Peacekeeping

Policy Sub-Topic

The War Measures Act (Human Rights)

Policy Type

Historical File

The October Crisis

katherine — Fri, 17 May 2024 16:06:44 +0000

The October Crisis katherine Fri, 05/17/2024 - 13:06

The October Crisis

The October Crisis refers to events that took place in the Fall of 1970 and the series of terrorist acts committed by the Front de libération du Québec (FLQ) who was a Quebec independence militant group/movement.
The October Crisis was one of the only instances where the War Measures Act was implemented during peacetime and was invoked by former Prime Minister of Canada Pierre Trudeau.
This is the official television broadcast on october 16, 1970, where Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau announces the use of the War Measures Act.
The War Measures Act was invoked on October 16, 1970, following the kidnappings of British trade commissioner James Cross and the kidnapping and later killing of Quebec cabinet minister Pierre Laporte.
The use of the War Measures Act outlawed the FLQ, suspended civil liberties and authorized (without charge) several arrests and detentions of suspected FLQ members without charge.
This decision was highly criticized by many political figures, including former PM John Diefenbaker, PC leader Robert Stanfield and NDP leader Tommy Douglas, however, it was largely supported by the public at the time.
The suspension of civil liberties under the War Measures Act in response to the kidnappings was highly controversial for years and decades following the crisis.
In total, 497 individuals were arrested under the War Measures Act and the Public Order Act (which replaced the War Measures Act), and 435 people were released and only 62 were charged.
In the spring of 1971, the Government of Quebec announced a $30,000 compensation to around 100 people who were unjustly detained during this crisis.
Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau promised to revise and limit the Act to make it more suitable for internal conflicts, however, he never ended up doing so.
The War Measures Act was repealed and replaced by the Emergencies Act in 1988 to create more suitable powers for the government in times of crisis/emergency.

Citation

Trudeau, Pierre. "Pierre Trudeau War Measures Broadcast - October 16th 1970." BC Iconoclast. October 16, 1970. Accessed August 9, 2022. Youtube Video, 19:23. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mbdsn_sp0Vw

Further Readings

For more information and documents relating to the October Crisis: http://faculty.marianopolis.edu/c.belanger/quebechistory/docs/october/index.htm
& https://historyofrights.ca/history/october-crisis/
& https://historyofrights.ca/archives/october-crisis/
& https://opentextbc.ca/postconfederation/chapter/9-10-the-october-crisis/
& https://www.historymuseum.ca/history-hall/october-crisis/
& https://www.cbc.ca/history/EPISCONTENTSE1EP16CH1PA4LE.html

For the proclamation of the War Measures Act on October 16, 1970: https://historyofrights.ca/wp-content/uploads/documents/FLQ_appendixl.pdf

Overlapping Topics

Military, Defence, and Peacekeeping

Policy Sub-Topic

The War Measures Act (Human Rights)

Policy Type

Video

Defence of Canada Regulations

katherine — Fri, 17 May 2024 16:03:32 +0000

Defence of Canada Regulations katherine Fri, 05/17/2024 - 13:03

Defence of Canada Regulations

On September 3, 1939, the Canadian federal government imposed the Defence of Canada Regulations (DOCR), which was a set of emergency measures implemented under the War Measures Act one week prior to Canada entering the Second World War.
The Defence of Canada Regulations opened up new discussions of and issues relating to human rights it was the second time the War Measures Act was ever utilized.
While both wars highlighted the state's excessive use of power, the Second World War was much more extensive.
According to historian Ramsey Cook, the Defence of Canada Regulations "represented the most serious restrictions upon the civil liberties of Canadians since Confederation."
The DOCR was introduced as a war measure to protect national security and loyalty to the state while ensuring the suppression of any threats.
This meant that threats identified by the media, the RCMP, and political leaders, which included minority and controversial groups, soon became targets.
The measure was used to intern opponents of the war including fascists and those who opposed conscription (such as Quebec nationalists), it was used to detain some German and Italian Canadians, and the measure was also used to intern Japanese Canadians and to confiscate their property during the war.
The DOCR led to the censorship of 325 newspapers and periodicals, the ban of over thirty religious, social, ethnic and political organizations, the internment of 2,423 Canadians, the arrest of hundreds of citizens who spoke out against the war or who distributed banned literature, and allowed the police to arrest and detain individuals without charge or trial.
This policy, among other wartime measures, led to countless instances of human rights violations and discriminatory practices.

Citation

Canada. Parliament. House of Commons. Committee on Emergency Legislation. Defence of Canada Regulations. [Ottawa, ON]: J. O. Patenaude, I.S.O. Printer to the Kings Most Excellent Majesty, 1939. https://archive.org/details/defenceofcanadar1939cana/page/n3/mode/2up?view=theater

Further Readings

For the University of Toronto School's book on the Defence of Canada Regulations: https://librarysearch.library.utoronto.ca/discovery/fulldisplay?context=L&vid=01UTORONTO_INST:UTORONTO&search_scope=UTL_AND_CI&tab=Everything&docid=alma991106418982006196

For an alternate version of the full text of the Defence of Canada Regulations (1939): https://archive.org/stream/defenceofcanadar1939cana/defenceofcanadar1939cana_djvu.txt

For Ramsey Cook's quote it is titles "Canadian Freedom in Wartime" pages 37-54 in the book edited by W. H. Heick and R. Graham titled His Own Man: Essays in Honour of A.R.M. Lower published in Montreal by McGill-Queen's University Press: https://www.biblio.com/book/his-own-essays-honour-arthur-reginald/d/658964202

For more information on the DOCR: https://historyofrights.ca/encyclopaedia/main-events/1939-world-war-two/
& https://web.archive.org/web/20090324003626/http://www.chrc-ccdp.ca/en/timePortals/milestones/41mile.asp

Overlapping Topics

Military, Defence, and Peacekeeping

Policy Sub-Topic

The War Measures Act (Human Rights)

Policy Type

Parliamentary Committee Record

The War Measures Act

katherine — Fri, 17 May 2024 16:01:44 +0000

The War Measures Act katherine Fri, 05/17/2024 - 13:01

The War Measures Act

The War Measures Act was a federal law enacted by Canadian Parliament in August 1914 in the beginning of the First World War, which gave the Government of Canada extra powers during times of "war, invasion, and insurrection, real or apprehended [feared]."
The Act transferred power from Parliament to the Cabinet allowing them to pass laws and regulations through an Order-in-Council, which means it did not need to be granted permission by Parliament.
This Act was in place for four years and it suspended habeas corpus (the right to a fair trial before imprisonment), imposed strict censorship laws, heavily restricted newspapers, banned strikes, and interned or jailed thousands of 'enemy aliens' or anyone who opposed the mandatory conscription, among other measures.
The Act was used to suspend the civil liberties of people in Canada who were suspected to be enemy aliens (term used to describe people from other countries or who had roots in other countries that were at war with Canada), yet this excess power ultimately led to major abuses and unwarranted internment of citizens long-after the war for little to no reason.
This Act has been subject to scrutiny and controversy over its use (although infrequent) and has uncovered major debates regarding human rights and civil liberties during war and peacetime.
Since the War Measures Act was used deny citizens of their civil liberties and right to fair trial before detention, it allowed the government to intern who they deemed as 'enemies' of war during both World Wars, which included over 8,500 in the First World War and around 24,000 during Second World War.

Citation

The War Measures Act, 5 George V. Chap. 2, Assented to 22nd August, 1914. https://primarydocuments.ca/war-measures-act-sc-1914/

Further Readings

For the pdf version of The War Measures Act: https://learning.royalbcmuseum.bc.ca/wp-content/uploads/2015/06/War-Measures-Act.pdf
& https://historyofrights.ca/wp-content/uploads/statutes/CN_War_Measures.pdf
& https://www.abebooks.com/first-edition/MEASURES-ACT-1914-confer-powers-Governor/30695745036/bd

For a detailed outline of the key points of The War Measures Act: https://www.historymuseum.ca/wp-teachers-zone/wp-content/uploads/2021/11/01_WWI_War-Measures-Act-Key-Points_EN_v2-okd-by-Xavier-14avril2021.pdf

For more background and details of The War Measures Act and its repercussions: https://historyofrights.ca/encyclopaedia/main-events/war-measures-act/
& https://tc2.ca/uploads/backgroundbriefs/BBOverviewofwarmeasuresact.pdf
& https://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/war-measures-act

Overlapping Topics

Military, Defence, and Peacekeeping

Policy Sub-Topic

The War Measures Act (Human Rights)

Policy Type

Federal Statute

Emergencies Act

katherine — Fri, 17 May 2024 15:56:37 +0000

Emergencies Act katherine Fri, 05/17/2024 - 12:56

Emergencies Act

The Emergencies Act received royal assent in July 1988 and it subsequently repealed and replaced the War Measures Act.
The War Measures Act was first repealed when the Bill of Rights became law in 1960, however, Section 2 of the Bill stated that Parliament could override the rights afforded by the bill using a 'notwithstanding' clause, which was used during the October Crisis (1970).
Under Prime Minister Brian Mulroney's government, Canada completely repealed the War Measures Act and replaced it with the Emergencies Act.
The purpose of the Emergencies Act is to give the government specific and more limited powers in the event of a national emergency while still protecting civil liberties.
It is used when provincial, territorial, and federal tools can no longer effectively deal with the issues relating to the national emergency.
This Act covers four types of emergencies: a public welfare emergency, a public order emergency, an international emergency, or a war emergency.
This Act differs from the War Measures Act in that cabinet orders and regulations must be reviewed by Parliament.
Thus, cabinet cannot unilaterally dictate a certain policy measure, which protects the government from abusing its power.
This Act also provides a structure for compensation for individuals impacted by government actions during an emergency, and the Act is subject to both the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Canadian Bill of Rights.

Citation

Emergencies Act, R.S.C., 1985, c. 22 (4th Supp.). https://laws-lois.justice.gc.ca/eng/acts/e-4.5/page-1.html

Further Readings

For an in-depth explanation of the Emergencies Act and its use, impact on individual rights, oversight and accountability measures, etc: https://www.canada.ca/en/department-justice/news/2022/02/canadas-emergencies-act.html
& https://publications.gc.ca/Collection-R/LoPBdP/BP/prb0114-e.htm

Overlapping Topics

Military, Defence, and Peacekeeping

Policy Sub-Topic

The War Measures Act (Human Rights)

Policy Type

Federal Statute