Re: Screw the law! Elections Canada supports sharia voting!
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Posted by Ottawa Citizen on 09:20:30 2007/09/11
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Re: Bloc will pass law to outlaw veiled voting posted by Actuelites
Elections boss OKs veiled voting
Chief electoral officer says law doesn't forbid women from refusing to show face at polls
Elizabeth Thompson, with files Kevin Dougherty
The Montreal Gazette
Tuesday, September 11, 2007
Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand came under fire from MPs yesterday after announcing that Elections Canada would not prevent veiled Muslim women from voting in federal elections. 'In my opinion,' Mr. Mayrand said, 'it's not for the administrator of an electoral system to settle the current societal debate.'
Muslim women wearing face-covering niqabs or burqas will be allowed to vote in federal elections, Canada's Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand said yesterday, and if members of Parliament don't like it, they should change the law.
Faced with a growing controversy over the prospect of veiled women being allowed to vote without showing their faces, Mr. Mayrand said he has issued instructions to officials to be diligent about proving the identity of voters by asking women wearing niqabs or burqas to reveal their faces to an official in conditions that respect their religious values.
But if they refuse, Mr. Mayrand said, he has no authority under the law as it stands to stop them from voting, provided they can meet other provisions of the law that do not require a voter to reveal their face.
"I invite Parliament to review and, if it wishes to do so, amend the provisions governing the conduct of the vote in light of the many comments voiced by politicians and the public," Mr. Mayrand told reporters at a news conference.
"In my opinion, it's not for the administrator of an electoral system to settle the current societal debate. If I were to do so, I would assume a role that does not belong to me and usurp that of Canada's elected representatives."
Mr. Mayrand's explanations did little to appease members of the House of Commons committee on procedure and House affairs, which voted yesterday to call on him to reverse his decision and require everyone to show their faces to vote.
Bloc Québécois MP Michel Guimond, who proposed the motion, said Mr. Mayrand risks being called before the committee to testify this week if he doesn't reverse the decision.
The controversy over women who wear niqabs or burqas voting in federal elections erupted last week after Mr. Mayrand issued a public clarification of the identification Elections Canada would require for those who want to vote in next week's three byelections in Quebec.
Changes to the Elections Act that came into effect this summer introduced a requirement for photo identification.
While the new elections law does not spell out what officials should do if a woman wearing a niqab or burqa wants to cast a ballot, Mr. Mayrand drafted an elaborate set of guidelines to provide for that prospect.
If a voter chooses not to unveil, the guidelines call for her to furnish a second, original piece of identification from an approved list. An alternative is for another elector from the same polling division who can produce satisfactory identification to vouch for the woman's identity and the two must make a sworn statement under oath.
Once the guidelines for voter identification were drafted, Mr. Mayrand said he sent copies to the government and the Commons committee that had studied the law inviting feedback and informed all political parties in a conference call. There was not a peep from any of them, he said.
Yesterday, however, Transport Minister Lawrence Cannon called Mr. Mayrand's position "unacceptable."
"The interpretation of the law should be done in such a way as to avoid any suspicion of fraud."
Liberal leader Stéphane Dion said he disagrees with Elections Canada's decision, but will respect it. While Mr. Dion said he believes women should have to show their faces to vote, he was sharply critical of Prime Minister Stephen Harper, calling Mr. Harper's comments "excessive" and an attempt to divert attention away from a potential scandal involving the Conservatives.
"We believe that the prime minister went much too far by attacking Elections Canada like he did yesterday. In fact, I believe that the prime minister is trying to weaken Elections Canada's reputation at the moment when the prime minister and his party are themselves under examination for very serious reasons."
Elections Canada is investigating the Conservatives concerning a transfer of money during the last election from national headquarters to local ridings that had not yet spent all of the money they were allowed.
The money was then flipped back the same day to the national headquarters and used to buy election advertising.
Mr. Guimond accused Mr. Mayrand of misinterpreting the will of parliamentarians. He called on him to follow the lead of Quebec's electoral officer and use his powers to require that all voters who show up at polling booths reveal their faces.
New Democratic Party leader Jack Layton said he was disappointed in Mr. Mayrand's decision. While Mr. Mayrand adopted the NDP's suggestion that a woman unveil, but to a female elections official, Mr. Layton said the NDP disagrees with allowing women who refuse to remove their veils to still vote.
Mohamed Elmasry, president of the Canadian Islamic Congress, said the whole controversy has fuelled Islamaphobia and left Canadians with the erroneous impression that Muslims had asked for an exception to be made for some women.
"The Canadian Muslim community is caught in the middle."
Mr. Elmasry said most women who wear the niqab or burqa would willingly show their face to a female official. However, he described as "racist" the Bloc's contention that there should be no special provision for the verification to be should done by a woman.
© The Ottawa Citizen 2007
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