Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms

The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedom is a part of the Constitution which is the supreme law of Canada. In general, all other laws must be consistent with the rules in the Constitution.
The Charter contains the rights and freedoms that Canadians believe are essential in a free and democratic country.

Some of the Rights and Freedoms in the Charter include:

·         Legal rights of people accused of crimes

·         Freedom of Expression

·         The right to live and seek employment anywhere in Canada

·         Equality

·        The right to a democratic government

Section 1: Guarante of Rights and Freedoms: The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees the rights and freedoms set out in it subject only to such reasonable limits prescribed by law as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society.

This allows the government to put some limit to Charter rights. This Section states that other laws may limit the rights and freedoms written in the Charter as long as those laws are reasonable and justified in a free and democratic society.

The Rights and Freedom in the Charter can be limited in order to protect other rights or important national values. For example, freedom of expression may be limited by laws against hate or pornography.

The Supreme Court of Canada states that limits on Charter Rights is acceptable if The limit deals with a pressing and substantial social problem and The government’s response to the problem is reasonable and demonstrably justified

Section 2: Fundamental Freedoms: Everyone has the following fundamental freedoms:
2 a ) freedom of conscience and religion;
b ) freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communication;
c.) freedom of peaceful assembly; and
d.) freedom of association.

Democratic Rights

Section 3: Every citizen of Canada has the right to vote in an election of members of the House of Commons or of a legislative assembly and to be qualified for membership therein.

Section 3 guarantees to all citizens of Canada the right to vote and run for public office.

Section 4: MAXIMUM DURATION OF LEGISLATIVE BODIES / Continuation in special circumstances:

No parliament or legislative assembly can continue to sit for longer than five years. Only under extraordinary circumstances, such as a war or national emergency, may a government stay in office for a period longer than five years.

Section 5: There shall be a sitting of Parliament and of each legislature at least once every twelve months

The government must explain its actions to the people. This section ensures that elected members and the public has the chance to question government actions on a regular basis.

Section 6: Mobility Rights: MOBILITY RIGHTS OF CITIZENS

Section 6 protects the rights of Canadians to move from place to place, and come and go as they please. Extradition laws place some limits on these rights.
Section 6 (2) Gives all Canadian citizens and permanent residents the right to move to, and live in, any province or territory to work or to set up business.
Section 6 (3) The provinces may decide to give social benefits only to persons who have lived in the province for a certain period of time. The province may also pass employment laws that require workers to have the necessary qualifications to practice their profession or trade.
6. (1) Every citizen of Canada has the right to enter, remain in and leave Canada.
(2) Every citizen of Canada and every person who has the status of a permanent resident of Canada has the right
(a) to move to and take up residence in any province; and
(b) to pursue the gaining of a livelihood in any province.
(3) The rights specified in subsection (2) are subject to
(a) any laws or practices of general application in force in a province other than those that discriminate among persons primarily on the basis of province of present or previous residence; and
(b) any laws providing for reasonable residency requirements as a qualification for the receipt of publicly provided social services.
(4) Subsections (2) and (3) do not preclude any law, program or activity that has as its object the amelioration in a province of conditions of individuals in that province who were socially or economically disadvantaged if the rate of employment in that province is below the rate of employment in Canada.
Legal Rights

Sections 7- 14 set our rights that protect us in our dealings with the justice system. They ensure that individuals who are involved in legal proceedings are treated fairly, especially those charged with a criminal offence.
Section 7: LIFE, LIBERTY AND SECURITY OF PERSON: Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of the person and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice.
This section demands that governments respect the basic principles of justice whenever it intrudes on those rights. This section of the Charter comes into play in criminal matters because an accused person faces the risk that his or her liberty will be lost.

Section 8: SEARCH OR SEIZURE: Everyone has the right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure.

This section of the Charter means that those who act on behalf of the government, such as police officers, must carry out their duties in a fair and reasonable way.

Section 9: DETENTION OR IMPRISONMENT: Everyone has the right not to be arbitrarily detained or imprisoned.

This section of the Charter says that government officials cannot hold individuals without a good reason.

Section 10: ARREST OR DETENTION: Everyone has the right on arrest or detention
(a) to be informed promptly of the reasons therefor;
(b) to retain and instruct counsel without delay and to be informed of that right; and
(c) to have the validity of the detention determined by way of habeas corpus and to be released if the detention is not lawful.

When a person is detained or arrested. They have a chance to challenge the lawfulness of their arrest. The police must immediately tell them the reason for their arrest. The arrested people have the right to talk to a lawyer for legal advice and the police must tell them what legal aid services are available for them.

Section 11: PROCEEDINGS IN CRIMINAL AND PENAL MATTERS: Any person charged with an offence has the right
(a) to be informed without unreasonable delay of the specific offence;
(b) to be tried within a reasonable time;
(c) not to be compelled to be a witness in proceedings against that person in respect of the offence;
(d) to be presumed innocent until proven guilty according to law in a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal;
(e) not to be denied reasonable bail without just cause;
(f) except in the case of an offence under military law tried before a military tribunal, to the benefit of trial by jury where the maximum punishment for the offence is imprisonment for five years or a more severe punishment;
(g) not to be found guilty on account of any act or omission unless, at the time of the act or omission, it constituted an offence under Canadian or international law or was criminal according to the general principles of law recognized by the community of nations;
(h) if finally acquitted of the offence, not to be tried for it again and, if finally found guilty and punished for the offence, not to be tried or punished for it again; and
(i) if found guilty of the offence and if the punishment for the offence has been varied between the time of commission and the time of sentencing, to the benefit of the lesser punishment.

• Persons accused of a crime must be told what offence they are charged with.
• Persons accused of a crime cannot be forced to testify at their own trials.
• The trial must be conducted fairly before a court which is unbiased.
• Persons accused of a crime is entitled to a reasonable bail.
• Persons accused of a very serious crime has the right to trial by jury.
• If the law doesn’t specifically say something is illegal, you cannot be arrested for doing it

Section 12: TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT: Everyone has the right not to be subjected to any cruel and unusual treatment or punishment

Section 13: SELF-INCRIMINATION: A witness who testifies in any proceedings has the right not to have any incriminating evidence so given used to incriminate that witness in any other proceedings, except in a prosecution for perjury or for the giving of contradictory evidence.

Witnesses who give evidence in court cannot have their testimony used against them in other proceedings. If the testimony of a witness shows that he or she has committed a crime, that evidence cannot be used by the prosecution to prove that the witness committed an offence. Unless the witness commits “perjury”—the offence of lying to the court.

Section: 14: INTERPRETER: A party or witness in any proceedings who does not understand or speak the language in which the proceedings are conducted or who is deaf has the right to the assistance of an interpreter.

Equality Rights:

Section 15 (1) Every individual is equal before and under the law and has the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination and, in particular, without discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, age or mental or physical disability.
(2) Subsection (1) does not preclude any law, program or activity that has as its object the amelioration of conditions of disadvantaged individuals or groups including those that are disadvantaged because of race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, age or mental or physical disability.

Enforcement: ENFORCEMENT OF GUARANTEED RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS / Exclusion of evidence bringing administration of justice into disrepute.

Section 24 (1) Anyone whose rights or freedoms, as guaranteed by this Charter, have been infringed or denied may apply to a court of competent jurisdiction to obtain such remedy as the court considers appropriate and just in the circumstances.
(2) Where, in proceedings under subsection (1), a court concludes that evidence was obtained in a manner that infringed or denied any rights or freedoms guaranteed by this Charter, the evidence shall be excluded if it is established that, having regard to all the circumstances, the admission of it in the proceedings would bring the administration of justice into disrepute.

OTHER RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS NOT AFFECTED BY CHARTER
Section 26: The guarantee in this Charter of certain rights and freedoms shall not be construed as denying the existence of any other rights or freedoms that exist in Canada
Parliament and the legislatures are free to create rights beyond those that are in the Charter. By entrenching basic or minimum rights, the Charter does not restrict the creation or enjoyment of other rights.
Section 28: RIGHTS GUARANTEED EQUALLY TO SEXES. Notwithstanding anything in this Charter, the rights and freedoms referred to in it are guaranteed equally to male and female persons.

Note: The Federal, Provincial, and Territorial governments have their laws that provide rights and freedoms. There are also rights and freedom laws that cover consumer protection laws, environmental law, criminal law and laws against discrimination in employment and accommodation

Some information was taken from a publication of the Department of Canadian Heritage.

This entry was posted on Monday, November 16th, 2009 at 8:17 pm and is filed under Constitutional Law. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.