Among Canadian politicians, the debate over a sweeping new anti-terror bill has focused on parliamentary oversight. Both New Democrat and Liberal MPs say Bill C-51 should be amended to let a committee of parliamentarians, sworn to secrecy, monitor Canada’s intelligence agencies. They note that other countries, such as Britain and the U.S., do this. Implicit in…
Bill C-51 does not explain precisely what the “disruption” powers in the proposed Bill entail. It gives CSIS licences to engage in break-ins, computer hacking, draining bank accounts, ripping up passports, “smear campaigns,” kidnapping, indefinite detention or much more that violates constitutional rights – so long as in advance judges sign off, based only on a…
In October, 2001, the first so-called anti-Terrorism legislation was passed by the Liberal Party following the beginning of George Bush’s “War on Terror.” The expanded powers were highly controversial due to widely perceived incompatibility with the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, in particular for the Act’s provisions allowing for ‘secret’ trials, preemptive detention and expansive…
How was the Canadian Security Intelligence Service created, and why? There are two ways to tell this story. The one we are most familiar with is from the side of the Canadian ruling class, and its state which created CSIS. In this version, CSIS exists to protect all Canadians. From exactly what we’re being protected is…