The Liberal government is proposing “draconian penalties” in the Criminal Code as part of its sweeping plan to target online hate, the Canadian Civil Liberties Association warns.
Justice Minister Arif Virani tabled the long-awaited bill earlier this week, billed as a way to address dangers that children face online.
It also includes the introduction of stiffer penalties for hate offences.
The bill proposes increasing the maximum punishment for advocating genocide to life imprisonment, and allowing sentences of up to five years in prison for other hate propaganda offences.
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Defining hate in the Criminal Code also helps spell out what it’s not, said Kyla Lee, a British Columbia-based lawyer who chairs the criminal justice section of the Canadian Bar Association.
Lee said as a national association, it advocates for criminal law not being wielded as an instrument to solve societal issues, noting that police-reported hate crimes have been on the rise since the arrival of the COVID-19 pandemic in 2020.
“It’s bowing to political pressure for more tools to be given to law enforcement to deal with the increase in hate,” she said of the changes.
In unveiling the potential life sentence for advocating genocide, Virani said he heard through consultation with stakeholders that the penalty should be increased.
