CHANDIGARH: The Canadian Government has enacted a law to combat hate crimes targeting identifiable groups, including those based on religion, by countering hate propaganda and introducing stricter measures against those who prevent access to places of worship or intimidate devotees.
The Combating Hate Act (Bill C-9) received Royal Assent and will come into force on July 18. The legislation is likely to help address the issue of pro Khalistan groups protesting outside temples in recent years and displaying overt symbols of the movement, including images of terrorists.
The move comes amid rising concerns over antisemitism, Islamophobia, homophobia and transphobia, which have left many people feeling unsafe in their own communities.
The new protections make it a crime to intimidate or obstruct people from accessing places where communities gather, including places of worship, schools and community centres.
The law also strengthens provisions in the Criminal Code dealing with hate motivated crime and the public display of certain terrorism and hate symbols.
Sean Fraser, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada and Minister responsible for the Atlantic Canada Opportunities Agency, said, “As hate continues to rise in Canada, communities have been calling for stronger protections against hate crimes. Those protections are now law. We’ve seen synagogues struck by gunfire, places of worship vandalised or burned, and people being targeted in their own communities. That is unacceptable. We cannot allow that kind of hate to become normal in Canada. These changes will help people worship and gather safely in their own communities, while supporting law enforcement with clearer tools to respond.”
Pro Khalistan elements in Canada have staged multiple demonstrations outside Hindu temples this year, including one at the Lakshmi Narayan Mandir in Surrey, British Columbia, earlier this month.
These groups have also displayed images of Talwinder Singh Parmar, considered by Canadian authorities to be one of the masterminds behind the bombing of Air India Flight 182, Kanishka, on June 23, 1985, which claimed 329 lives. The attack remains the deadliest act of terrorism in Canadian history.
An official statement said, “People now have stronger protections from intimidation and obstruction when accessing places where communities gather as it makes it a crime to intimidate or obstruct people from accessing places of worship, as well as schools, community centres and other places primarily used by an identifiable group.”
“Now law enforcement will have stronger tools to respond to hate motivated crime and protect communities. The law makes hate motivated crime a specific offence, ensuring such conduct is more clearly denounced and that offenders are held accountable. It also defines ‘hatred’ to clarify what conduct constitutes a hate crime in the Criminal Code and makes it a crime to wilfully promote hatred against an identifiable group by displaying certain terrorism or hate symbols in public, namely symbols principally used by or associated with listed terrorist entities under the Criminal Code, two Nazi symbols, or a noose,” the statement added.
The legislation states, “The intimidation offence makes it a crime to engage in any conduct with the intent to make someone afraid in order to prevent them from accessing a religious or cultural institution and other specified places. This could include threats, acts of violence, or other intimidating behaviour. This offence is punishable by a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment, or two years less a day for less serious offences.”
“The obstruction offence makes it a crime to intentionally block or interfere with another person’s lawful access to the same places. This includes, for example, deliberately blocking doors, driveways or roads used to access religious or cultural centres, or preventing a person from entering those places. The offence is punishable by a maximum penalty of 10 years’ imprisonment, or two years less a day for less serious offences,” it added.
The legislation notes that it is carefully designed so that it does not apply to people who are simply communicating information, peacefully protesting or otherwise not engaging in criminal activity around religious and cultural centres and other specified places.
The changes do not prohibit protest or assembly, nor do they unreasonably affect an individual’s freedom to voice concerns safely and peacefully.
“The hate crime offence applies to anyone committing a federal offence motivated by hatred based on specific grounds, such as race, sexual orientation, religion or sex. The escalating penalty structure for the new hate crime offence reflects the harm caused by the illegal act, providing higher maximum penalties for more serious crimes. For example, the offence of uttering threats carries a maximum penalty of five years’ imprisonment on indictment. If prosecuted under the new hate crime offence, the maximum penalty would increase to 10 years on indictment. Sentencing courts must impose a penalty that reflects the seriousness of the offence and the degree of responsibility of the offender,” it states.
