NEWS RELEASE

November 30, 1999                                                                                                       For Immediate Release

WHERE’S THE EQUALITY IN THESE SENTENCES?

"They all challenged CWB’s monopoly - One farmer gets an absolute discharge, the rest get fined."

Ottawa – Garry Breitkreuz, MP for Yorkton-Melville, used scarce time during Question Period to deplore the inequality before the law that exists in the Canadian justice system. "Two farmers, similar offence, similar comments by the presiding judge, one farmer gets a big fine the other gets an absolute discharge. Guess which farmer is aboriginal?" asked Breitkreuz.

Here’s the statement Breitkreuz made in the House of Commons:

Mr. Garry Breitkreuz (Yorkton—Melville, Ref.): Mr. Speaker, last Monday 27 farmers were found guilty of illegally exporting grain in a Regina court. These farmers received thousands of dollars in fines. In September an aboriginal farmer from Lethbridge, Alberta was found guilty of illegally exporting grain, but instead of receiving fines he was given an absolute discharge because the justice presiding over the case said he only did it to challenge the Canadian Wheat Board's marketing authority. We have two different standards in this country. This group of 27 farmers was also challenging the Canadian Wheat Board's marketing authority, yet they received huge fines. Even Provincial Court Judge Bruce Henning said the farmers were only testing the law. He said "I accept that they were sincere in believing they were not breaking the law because they believed it was invalid". The courts are playing favourites. In the meantime our government does nothing. It is time the government ended this unfair treatment of the people who feed this country. When will the government end its autocratic rule over western Canadian farmers?

 

"The key issue underlying these two court judgements is that we don’t have equality before the law. Canada should be a democracy where fundamental rights and freedoms and equality before and under the law are protected by the government." Breitkreuz concluded, "The court system sent the wrong signal to Canadians in their handling of these cases. Unequal race-based fishing policies won’t work on the east coast. Entrenching unequal race-based treaties won’t work on the west coast. And, unequal race-based court judgements won’t work on the prairies. The only policy that will work is: Equality for all - special status for none."

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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