Re: Politicians & citizens opposed - Who is pushing this garbage?
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Posted by National Post on 08:52:59 2007/09/08
In Reply to:
Re: Politicians - Reverse veil decision! posted by Montreal Gazette
Dion adds voice to call to pull back veils
National Post
September 08 2007
"We do believe that when they are casting a vote in elections, Canadian citizens have a responsibility to fully reveal their identities," Stéphane Dion said. "For this reason, we would ask Elections Canada to reconsider its decision, and to require veiled women to unveil their faces to confirm their identities."
Stemming from a bill to amend the Elections Canada Act that was given royal assent last June, the new stipulations use gender-neutral language and focus on "the identification of electors wearing face coverings for religious practices."
Under the new regulations, the voter presumably a woman wearing a niqab or burka will need to present a valid piece of identification with a photo and address as well as a back-up document that meets the standards of an authorized list.
"This is a new requirement for all voters," Mr. Enright said. "We're not singling out one segment of the votership."
If she does not have these two documents, she can have her identity vouched for by another voter in the same polling station. Both parties would have to be voters in the same polling division and would be required to make a sworn statement under oath.
If these conditions are not met, she would have to show her face.
The rules do not apply to provincial contests, which are not governed by Elections Canada.
Many groups have already registered their dismay over the decision.
"It's part of a greater threat to undermine democratic institutions," said David Harris, a senior fellow at the multifaith, Ottawa-based Canadian Coalition for Democracies. "At some point some of our ostensible freedoms must have limits."
When Elections Quebec introduced a similar proposal last March, it was met with vociferous opposition before chief returning officer Marcel Blanchet was forced to retrench.
The province's three parties all oppose the idea; Mr. Blanchet received threatening phone calls, brought in two personal bodyguards and assigned security officials to survey the building where he worked.
Some Quebecers at the time argued that such a move would send the province down a slippery slope of tolerance and set itself up for some bizarre scenarios. Would, for example, someone in a Darth Vader mask be able to vote without identification?
"If someone came in wearing a Halloween mask or a Darth Vader mask, they'd be asked to remove it," Mr. Enright said. "If they refused to remove it, they would be asked to leave."
When asked if a man could vote while wearing a head covering, Mr. Enright responded that he would first be asked to provide identification.
The Sept. 17 byelections are in the Montreal riding of Outremont, the rural riding of StHyacinthe-Bagot and the Roberval-Lac-St-Jean riding north of Quebec City.
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