PUBLICATION:              Windsor Star

DATE:                         2003.11.01

EDITION:                    Final

SECTION:                  OPINION

PAGE:                         A12

SOURCE:                   Windsor Star

ILLUSTRATION:     Scales of Justice

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Property rights belong in Charter; Governments have broken the pledge to protect veterans

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I read with great interest Lorne Gunter's column, Property Rights are In Jeopardy In Canada. He refers to the distressing decision of the Supreme Court of Canada in the Authorson vs Canada case. In that case, the Supreme Court, with weary resignation, stated that the commandment, "thou shall not steal," does not apply to the government.

I am one of the legal counsel for the plaintiff in that case and I am gratified to see that there are other voices out there lamenting the sorry state of constitutional protection for property rights in this country.

The Authorson case is a dramatic illustration of how our ancient rights and liberties are being dramatically eroded.

It should be remembered that, in a parliamentary democracy like Canada, a majority of seats in the House of Commons is, more often that not, elected by less that 50 per cent of voters across the country.

Individual members of parliament have very little scope for initiating legislation. Control of the legislative agenda for parliament is concentrated in a few powerful hands in cabinet. Senior civil servants and a few powerful ministers effectively decide what will be put before Parliament.

Confiscatory legislation, such as the section in the Department of Veterans' Affairs Act which was at issue in the Authorson case, is thus initiated, for reasons which the Supreme Court noted were never explained to the public and rushed through parliament with no indication that it effectively deprived profoundly disabled veterans of hundreds of millions of dollars of their own money.

This legislation, as we proved in court, (one judge labelled it pernicious) was brought forth in an attempt to erase a very large and unforgivable mistake made over many years by federal mandarin who knew better.

They utterly failed to meet the obligations of trust placed upon them to take care of and reasonably manage the veterans' life savings.

Power corrupts and absolute power corrupts absolutely. The Authorson case should be a wake-up call to all Canadians, much less persons who do business with the government. Great power will be abused if not unchecked.

Robert Borden, Canada's prime minister at the time, addressed Canadian troops at Vimy ridge in April 1917. Just before that historic battle, he made the following pledge:

" ... you need have no fear that the government and the country will fail to show just appreciation of your service to the country and that no man will have just cause to reproach the government for having broken with the men who won and the men who died ..."

Disgracefully, successive governments did break that faith and have continued to do so. Despite the promise made to take care of disabled veterans and to safeguard their property, the government utterly failed to do so. Additionally, it simply tried to eliminate its responsibility.

If a government can simply ignore its sacred pledge and obligation to those who, in the service of their country, scarified their humanity, then we should not be surprised if tomorrow, our governments turn on us.

A person's right to use and enjoy their own property is one of the ancient foundational pillars of a free and democratic society.

In 1215, at Runneymeade, the Barons of England took their King to task for doing the very thing our government has done.  The Magna Carta was a check on the power of the sovereign, to prevent him or her from confiscating their subjects' property and inheritances at his or her whim.  It is time for Canadians to demand the same of our governments. We must take them again to Runneymeade.

It is time to put property protections in our own Charter of Rights, as part of the supreme law of the land.  We cannot rely on governments to check their own power by themselves. Canadians must do it for them.

RAYMOND COLAUTTI

Windsor

 

BREITKREUZ’S 10-YEAR FIGHT FOR PROPERTY RIGHTS

http://www.cssa-cila.org/garryb/property.htm