July 5, 1999                                                                                                                                    For Immediate Delivery

BREITKREUZ PROTESTS B.C. COURT’S RULING
 "It’s our children that need protection not the pornography industry"

Yorkton – Garry Breitkreuz, Member of Parliament for Yorkton – Melville was appalled by a British Columbia Court of Appeal decision on June 30th. By a vote of 2 to1 the B.C. Court of Appeal upheld a January decision that said the law banning the possession of child pornography infringed on the rights of an individual. "The question is not one of individual rights but the impact this despicable material has on our society, especially our children. Allowing people to possess child pornography sends a message across the country that it is harmless. This fosters a disgusting industry and more children are being hurt," stated Breitkreuz.

Also, Breitkreuz is becoming increasingly concerned about who is making public policy decisions in this country. "Here we have a group of un-elected individuals (judges) setting public policy. Our citizens through Parliament are the ones responsible for creating the laws in this country that everyone should live by. Judges should not be overturning the laws of Parliament unless it can be demonstrated the law does not protect society. Child pornography clearly harms children," explained Breitkreuz.

The Prime Minister says he wants to wait and allow the Supreme Court to rule on the case. "We cannot wait any longer for the courts to play with this issue. It’s time to take a stance and protect the children of this country. That is why we want Parliament to reconvene to deal with the issue of child pornography and employ section 33 of the Charter (notwithstanding clause) or fix the current legislation to overturn this B.C. Court of Appeal decision. To do otherwise is to say it’s open season on our children," said Breitkreuz.

"I’ll allow Canadians the opportunity to voice their outrage to this decision. Petitions are going to be available from my office that will allow the public to call on their elected officials to take action and make it crystal clear that child pornography will not be tolerated. Possession of this material is harming our society. It’s really no different that the possession of heroin or cocaine," Breitkreuz declared.

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For more information, please call:

Yorkton Office: (306) 782-3309
Ottawa Office: (613) 992-4394
e-mail: breitg@parl.gc.ca