Canada bill would reinstate controversial anti-terror measures News
Canada bill would reinstate controversial anti-terror measures

[JURIST] The Canadian government introduced a bill [S-3 text] Tuesday that would revive two controversial anti-terrorism provisions of the Anti-terrorism Act [materials] that expired earlier this year. The bill, brought forward in the Senate, would force anyone with relevant information on terrorist actions to go before a judge and would allow police to detain any person thought to be planning an attack. Several safeguards have been added to the provisions, including the requirement that police demonstrate to a judge that they have exhausted all other means before asking for an investigative hearing.

On Monday, the Canadian government also introduced [JURIST report] a new bill on security certificates [PSC backgrounder] in response to a February Supreme Court decision [text] that gave it one year to re-write existing law or have it voided as unconstitutional. Security certificates allow the Canadian government to detain and deport foreign terrorist suspects in private hearings without the presence of the suspects or their lawyers. The Supreme Court of Canada ruled [opinion text] in February that the government's use of security certificates violated the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms [text; CDCH materials]. The Globe and Mail has more.