The Charter of Rights and Freedoms Continued

Section 3-5 Democratic Rights

Found in section 3, the right to vote (also referred to as the “franchise”) is not an absolute right; in other words, it is subject to reasonable restrictions. For example:

• age (must be 18+)• mental capacity (cannot be deemed insane)• residence (must be living in riding for 6 to 12 months)• citizenship (must be a Canadian citizen)• registration (Elections Canada---voter’s list)

• In this century, many groups of Canadians who had once been denied the right to vote have become enfranchised:

• women (varies by province...from 1916 in Manitoba to 1940 in Quebec)

• Chinese and Japanese Canadians (1947 ; 1948)• Inuit peoples (1948)• Native peoples (1949-1969)• age to vote reduced from 21 to 18 (1970)• prison inmates (1993; overturned in 1996; 2002)

• Case Reference (p. 47 text):

• Sauve v. Canada {Chief Electoral Officer} (2002)• Sauve was a prison inmate who wished to participate in voting during

a provincial election• he won his case at trial level, lost appeal, but his right to vote was

reinstated in a 2002 Supreme Court of Canada decision

• Section 4 forces the federal House of Commons and any provincial legislative assembly to hold an election AT LEAST every five years.

• Section 5 requires that the federal Parliament, as well as all provincial legislative assemblies, hold a session at least once a year.

Section 6 Mobility Rights

• recognizes that every Canadian has the right to: leave and return to this country, and move freely throughout the country.

• International extradition laws place some limits on these rights. These laws state that persons in Canada who face criminal charges (other than capital offences) in another country may be ordered to return to that country to stand trial.

• In addition, under section 6 (3) and (4), provinces can create programs which specifically benefit citizens of that province. For example, a province may choose to only grant social assistance (welfare) to those citizens who have lived in that province for a minimum of two years.

Sections 7-14 Legal Rights

• Section 7: Right to life, liberty, and security of the person.

• Section 8: Right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure.

• Section 9: Right to not be arbitrarily detained or imprisoned.

• Section 10: Rights when being arrested or detained, including:- to be informed of the reason for the arrest/detention- to retain and instruct counsel without delay, and to be informed of that right-to have the validity of the detention/arrest determined by way of habeas corpus, and to be released if the detention/ arrest is not lawful

• Section 11: Rights during criminal proceedings, some of which include:

- to be informed of the offence the accused is charged of- to be tried within a reasonable time- to be presumed innocent until proven guilty- not to be denied reasonable bail without just cause

• Section 12: Right to not be subjected to cruel or unusual punishment.

• Section 13: Right not to have given testimony used against you in a further court proceeding.

• Section 14: Right to an interpreter during any legal proceedings.

Legal Issue: Does prohibiting euthanasia (doctor-assisted suicide) violate one’s right to life, liberty and security of the person under section 7 of the Charter? Case Reference: Rodriguez v. British Columbia {Attorney General} (1993) Under section 241 of the Criminal Code, it is an offence to counsel (suggest), aid (help) or abet (encourage) suicide, although suicide itself is no longer an offence:

241. Every one who:counsels a person to commit suicide, or aids or abets a person to commit suicide, whether suicide ensues or not, is guilty of an indictable offence and liable to imprisonment for a term not exceeding fourteen years.

Ms. Rodriguez sought to have section 241 struck down (removed from the Criminal Code) on the grounds that it prohibits a terminally ill person from committing physician-assisted suicide. She argued that her right to “life, liberty and security of the person” – which, in her view, included the right to control the method, timing, and circumstances of death – were denied by section 241.

By a 5-4 majority the Supreme Court of Canada affirmed that the challenged provision was constitutional (valid) and did not violate the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

The validity (justness) of section 241 under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms was challenged in the 1992 case of Sue Rodriguez, a woman suffering from a disease called amyotrophic lateral sclerosis (ALS), also known as Lou Gehrig’s disease.

November 9th 1992 Television Clip: “Dying on her own terms” (14:04)

http://www.cbc.ca/archives/categories/politics/rights-freedoms/sue-rodriguez-and-the-right-to-die-debate/dying-on-her-own-terms.html

Gloria Taylor• In 2011 Taylor joined the B.C. Civil Liberties Association in reviving “The Right to

Die” debate

• On Dec. 16, 2012 the B.C. Supreme Court ruled that the section of the Criminal Code which prohibits Doctor Assisted Suicide was unconstitutional

• Suicide was decriminalized in 1972; violates right to life, liberty and security of the person as it applies to the right to avoid an excruciating and entirely inescapable death

• Global News:• http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=epH-QnvDZEU

• The Fifth Estate Special• http://www.cbc.ca/player/Shows/Shows/the+fifth+estate/ID/2290617245/

• The Federal Government is appealing this decision to the S.C.C.