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When the fiery 17th century
Scottish preacher Samuel Rutherford wrote Lex Rex, Charles
II was enraged at being forcibly reminded that it is the
law of God, not the king's whim, which is the final authority
on earth and in heaven. The king had the book burned publicly
in several large cities of England. But in today's democracies,
many people reject God's laws and instead clamour for their
"rights," an arbitrary list of privileges which
they mistakenly think will create a "fair" society
and ultimately a perfect paradise.
Consider the irony of how,
in the last three months various Canadian human rights
commissions have proven themselves a greater danger to
human rights than any other government entity. The Saskatchewan
provincial human rights commission fined Tim Houk $400
for hate-mongering. His crime? While working as a contract
carpet cleaner for the Saskatchewan Confederation of Tribal
Nations, the North Battleford resident told Cree Confederation
employee Lillian Thunder, "If you ask me, there shouldn't
be any reserves," and stated that in his opinion
the Reform party would do a better job than the federal
Liberals in administrating native affairs.
In an ongoing case, the B.C.
Human Rights Commission told Bill Bercheld of Okanagan
Lake, B.C. to take down signs he had had on his property
that were critical of the Westbank Indian Band. Lawyer
Doug Christie, who has taken the case to the B.C. Supreme
Court, is putting forward the argument that the human
rights code denied Mr. Bercheld's right to free speech.
But law professor Kathleen Mahoney rejoined that because
Canada has signed the International Declaration of Human
Rights, which makes criticism of minority groups illegal,
Mr. Bercheld's right to free speech is no longer absolute.
The Ontario Human Rights
Commission (OHRC) targeted print shop owner Scott Brockie
for refusing to print the stationary for the Lesbian and
Gay Archives. Mr. Brockie told the Ottawa Times that he
distinguished between doing business with homosexuals,
which he says he has always done, and accepting a job
that would aid in the promotion of homosexuality. Nevertheless,
after sitting on the complaint for more than three years
the OHRC announced in November that he had one month to
respond to the charges against him. Mr. Brockie has hired
a lawyer.
It was also the OHRC that
two years ago sent London, Ontario mayor Diane Haskett
and the mayor of Hamilton to a human rights tribunal where
both were fined for refusing to issue "Gay Pride"
proclamations in their respective cities.
Canadian Grand Chief Phil
Fontaine has complained to the Alberta Human Rights Commission
over an article in Alberta Report which stated that sexual
abuse did not occur in the majority of Native residential
schools. Chief Fontaine said the article was equivalent
to "holocaust denial" and suggested the law
should prohibit such things.
Even the Federal Court of
Canada is questioning the role of human rights commissions.
The Court recently ruled that the Canadian Human Rights
Commission was biased, and over-ruled a sexual harassment
complaint brought forward by a former TV anchor. As more
and more evidence comes to light revealing the political
bias and incompetence of Human Rights Commissions, we
can only hope the government will overhaul these tribunals.
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