Campus Event: Acclaimed human rights lawyer and Attorney General visits SFU
Alex Nataros, The Peak
Canadian Attorney General Irwin Cotler, an internationally acclaimed human rights lawyer, spoke at SFU last Monday to a packed audience of students and community members on issues ranging from the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and Canada’s “just society,” to the federal election and the lack of press and political coverage surrounding the crimes against humanity in Darfur.
Presented by the SFU Young Liberals and the SFU Humanitarian Coalition, Cotler’s talk was introduced by Bill Cunningham, Liberal candidate for Burnaby-Douglas, and Clement Abas Apaak, Simon Fraser Student Society president and the founder of Canadian Students for Darfur (CFS Darfur).
“Our common cause is to build a just society,” Cotler said, suggesting that the Charter of Rights and Freedoms was Canada’s “manifestation of commitment to equality,” which has had a “transformative impact” on Canada’s laws and lives. Reflecting on Canada’s history, Cotler noted that exclusion had been sanctioned by law — exclusion of women, Aboriginals, and minorities — and that the adoption of the Charter in 1982 was a “revolutionary act that moved Canada from a parliamentary to constitutional democracy” where power shifted from politicians into the hands of the Supreme Court.
Citing examples of successful Charter action, Cotler named equality rights of gay marriage, equality rights protection, and freedom of religion. “We are creating a society where there is no refuge for hate and no sanctuary for racism,” he added.
On the issue of the notwithstanding clause in the Charter — a clause that allows the government to override legal ruling — Cotler recalled writing an open letter as an academic at McGill University to former Prime Minister Pierre Trudeau prior to the adoption of the Charter in 1982, encouraging him to leave it out. The clause, he added, “puts minorities at the whim and caprice of parliamentary majority.” Trudeau agreed with Cotler, but said that it was a “constitutional compromise” needed for the support of the provinces — it would be “a charter with the notwithstanding clause or no charter at all.”
Megan Branson, a Capilano College student poverty activist in attendance, was unsure of what to expect coming in, but was intrigued by hearing Cotler’s ethical stance and “how it is woven into policy.” After the talk, Branson said that she had “appreciated his overview of constitutional law, human rights law, and his holistic vision for a ‘just society.’”
Apaak was impressed by Cotler, saying “He tried to keep it as [politically] neutral as possible, and he tried to focus on the importance of taking care of minority interests — in a democracy minority groups must never be left behind.” On the strength of the Charter, Apaak agreed with Cotler. “I would rather put my faith in the court than give it to some politician,” he said.
During his talk, Cotler also discussed the imperative of a human rights-based foreign policy to combat injustice abroad. Namely, he cited crimes against humanity in Darfur, “a situation where no one is sounding the alarm,” adding that, “when we say ‘never again,’ as with Rwanda and Yugoslavia, inevitably it happens again and again.” Additionally, he added, “I am disturbed that Darfur hasn’t been referenced in the election by any of the four leaders, nor in the national debates.” Darfur, and the state of Africa, he said, “is an appalling, horrendous moment on the human condition.”
Apaak, who has campaigned extensively for Canadian Students for Darfur to raise awareness and money for Oxfam’s aid programs in the region, said that, “it was refreshing to hear the Attorney General of Canada actually speaking for Darfur and speaking on what was needed for an immediate resolution to the conflict.” “To hear him say that he was not satisfied with the level of attention, politically and in the media, that Darfur is receiving is really quite telling,” Apaak added.
Nelson Chiu, an SFU student present at the talk, reflected, “It was inspiring to hear what [Cotler] has done in Canada as well as overseas.”