Peace River—Westlock MP Arnold Viersen has added his voice to the calls of concern regarding a recent Supreme Court of Canada ruling.
In a 5-4 ruling on Oct. 31, the Supreme Court of Canada determined the one-year mandatory minimum jail sentence for accessing or possessing child pornography violated the Charter of Rights.
The ruling involved two cases of men who possessed hundreds of images and videos of children as young as three-years-old being exploited, Viersen commented.
“The idea that one year in jail is ‘cruel and unusual punishment’ for someone who possesses horrific content of child sexual abuse and torture is a stunning blow to justice,” he stated. “Each image is an act of violence to the child in it.”
Moving forward, Viersen said he will continue working with his colleagues to advance Bill S-209, the Protecting Young Persons from Exposure to Pornography Act, Bill C-412, the Promotion of Safety in the Digital Age Act, and his bill, the Stopping Internet Sexual Exploitation Act.
Meantime, Justice Minister Sean Fraser has rejected calls to use the Constitution’s notwithstanding clause to override the ruling. He said other solutions are available, such as policy and legislation changes. For example, the federal government is considering new legislation with harsher penalties for the online sexual exploitation of children, Fraser added.
