Close X
Sunday, November 10, 2024
ADVT 
National

Justice minister says Canada remains 'open' to criminalizing coercive control

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 17 Aug, 2023 01:01 PM
  • Justice minister says Canada remains 'open' to criminalizing coercive control

The federal government remains open to criminalizing a pattern of behaviour known as coercive control, Canada's justice minister says in a new letter, calling gender-based violence an "epidemic" that must be stopped.

The recent letter from Arif Virani to Ontario's chief coroner outlined the Liberal government's response to a series of recommendations that came from an inquest into the 2015 slayings of three women in the rural Renfrew County area, about 180 kilometres west of Ottawa.

Carol Culleton, Nathalie Warmerdam and Anastasia Kuzyk were all murdered that September by Basil Borutski, who had a criminal history of violence against women. 

Borutski, who had prior, separate relationships with all three of his victims, had been released from prison the year before the murders. 

Last summer, a coroner's inquest into the deaths heard that at least one of the women had been trying to learn of his whereabouts once he was released, and that Borutski had been deemed a high-risk offender while in custody. 

The inquest resulted in more than 80 recommendations directed at different levels of government in the hopes of preventing similar homicides.

One called on Ottawa to create a new offence in the Criminal Code that targets coercive control, which experts on intimate partner violence say is the controlling behaviour that an abuser exerts over someone. 

Virani's letter points to a commitment the government made in response to a 2021 report from a parliamentary committee that explored the possibility of criminalizing controlling behaviour, saying the Liberals are still "open" to creating a new offence.

"Gender-based violence … including intimate-partner violence … is unacceptable and has no place in our country," he wrote in a letter dated Monday.

"The government of Canada is committed to ending the (gender-based violence) epidemic in all its forms, and is working to address any gaps in the Criminal Code to ensure a robust justice system response." 

Virani pointed to the government's existing commitment to monitor how making coercive control a criminal offence is working in other jurisdictions, such as Scotland.

Experts in Canada and around the world define coercive control as set of behaviours ranging from harassment and intimidation to isolating someone from family and social supports to keep them under the abuser's control. 

Many believe such tactics can escalate to physical violence, with researchers and police having long accepted there are often early warning signs in cases of intimate partner violence. 

And many high-profile cases, including homicides and murder-suicides, have highlighted that many people sensed victims were in danger before they were killed.

Federal statistics from 2018 show that 44 per cent of women who have been in relationships reported experiencing some form of abuse from a partner. 

Canada already has a provision under the Divorce Act that says a court should factor in family violence, including "coercive and controlling behaviour," when it comes to issuing contact orders around children. 

An additional recommendation out of last summer's inquest was for the federal government to work to find alternative ways for domestic violence complainants to testify in court.

Another called on Ottawa to explore adding the term "femicide" to the Criminal Code. 

"I note that, while there is no single agreed-upon definition of 'femicide' in the national or international context, the term is widely understood to refer to the killing of women, primarily by men, because of their gender," Virani wrote in his letter. 

"I agree with the United Nations and the Canadian Femicide Observatory for Justice and Accountability when they note that femicide is the most extreme form of violence and discrimination against women and girls."

MORE National ARTICLES

BC Coroners Service blames illicit drug supply for 184 deaths in June

BC Coroners Service blames illicit drug supply for 184 deaths in June
The BC Coroners Service says 184 people died in the province in June due to the toxic, unregulated drug supply that has claimed more than 1,200 lives in the first half of this year.  The coroners service says the numbers show how risky it continues to be for users who access their drugs on the illicit market. 

BC Coroners Service blames illicit drug supply for 184 deaths in June

Federal Labour Minister Seamus O'Regan says port workers strike illegal

Federal Labour Minister Seamus O'Regan says port workers strike illegal
The International Longshore and Warehouse Union Canada says "employers have not addressed the cost of living issues" faced by workers in the last few years. The tentative four-year deal that was rejected had been proposed by a federal mediator at the instruction of O'Regan.    

Federal Labour Minister Seamus O'Regan says port workers strike illegal

Arson in Green Timbers Park

Arson in Green Timbers Park
Police in Surrey are investigating multiple fires set in Green Timbers Park early yesterday.  Officers conducted foot patrols after a citizen reported a fire and they found several other blazes. 

Arson in Green Timbers Park

Surrey Police decision coming today

Surrey Police decision coming today
The decision by Solicitor General Mike Farnworth comes amid a tug of war that saw city council vote for the Mounties despite a provincial recommendation they stay with the Surrey Police Service.

Surrey Police decision coming today

B.C. port strike back on after union rejects deal, saying four-year term is too long

B.C. port strike back on after union rejects deal, saying four-year term is too long
Rob Ashton, the president of the International Longshore Workers Union Canada, says in a statement that its caucus does not believe the deal can protect jobs "now or into the future." Ashton also says the four-year agreement is "far too long" given the uncertainties in the industry and the economy overall.  

B.C. port strike back on after union rejects deal, saying four-year term is too long

BC's police watchdog investigating after man shot by police in hospital

BC's police watchdog investigating after man shot by police in hospital
B-C's police watchdog is investigating the death of a man after he was shot by police in a hospital Wednesday. Mounties say an "interaction" between the man and officers occurred at the Fraser Canyon Hospital in Hope, resulting in one officer discharging their firearm.  

BC's police watchdog investigating after man shot by police in hospital