The Rule Of Law In Canada

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Locke’s works laid the groundwork for liberalism and a new era of governance. The next improvement on the rule of law came from France during the enlightenment period. Charles-Louis de Secondant, known mononymously as Montesquieu, was the first to truly advocate for the separation of powers in government—specifically separating a country’s judicial power from its executive and legislative authority. Montesquieu also argued in favour of more complex laws as he noted that despotic regimes tended to have simple laws that could be applied in whatever way the ruler saw fit. This emphasis on the value of complexity continues to fascinate modern theorists of the rule of law even to this day. The rule of law has been a constantly changing concept that has undergone a tumultuous past all leading to the current view that Canada has adopted.

For a nation that equality in a court of law is supposed to be a core principle of, Canada falls short in many areas. In 2016-2017, 30% of Canadians sentenced to correctional services were of Indigenous status1, this is despite them making up a mere 2.2% of the population.2 Status First Nations Peoples are incarcerated at rates 6-7 times the average, and are 3 times more likely to be charged and sent to court after an arrest.3While an argument may be made that Indigenous people are more likely to commit a crime due to past mistreatment and abuse by the Canadian government that has lead to high rates of alcoholism/addiction, it fails to explain the severity of sentencing that the Indigenous Peoples receive. While this may be an example of Canada failing to uphold its principles through the mistreatment of a population, the current Canadian government is surrounded by controversy over their attempts to hold a company to more favourable standards of the law. SNC-Lavalin is facing charges of fraud and corruption related to $48 million in payments to Libyan government officials. If the company is convicted, they would be barred from any government contracts for a decade. Where controversy arose was in Justin Trudeau’s unwillingness to convict. In fact, Trudeau has attempted to free SNC-Lavalin of the charges it faces going so far as to try to convince the Attorney General of the time to change a previous ruling. He argued that SNC-Lavalin provides too many jobs to the province of Quebec, and is too vital to the Canadian economy to impose such severe restrictions. Regardless of which side a person may stand on for this issue, it is still an example of Canada’s government ignoring the rule of law. Following Canada’s core principles, SNC-Lavalin should not receive any special treatment whether it vital to Quebec or not. It should be treated as if it was any other company, to do otherwise would undermine Canada itself.

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