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Kanuckistan goes dhimmi: Legalize polygamy, study urges
A new study for the federal Justice Department says Canada should get rid of its law banning polygamy, and change other legislation to help women and children living in such multiple-spouse relationships.âCriminalization does not address the harms associated with valid foreign polygamous marriages and plural unions, in particular the harms to women,â says the report, obtained by The Canadian Press under the Access to Information Act. âThe report therefore recommends that this provision be repealed.â The research paper is part of a controversial $150,000 polygamy project, launched a year ago and paid for by the Justice Department and Status of Women Canada. The paper by three law professors at Queen's University in Kingston, Ont., argues that Sec. 293 of the Criminal Code banning polygamy serves no useful purpose and in any case is rarely prosecuted. Instead, Canadian laws should be changed to better accommodate the problems of women in polygamous marriages, providing them clearer spousal support and inheritance rights. âWhy criminalize the behaviour?â she said in an interview. âWe don't criminalize adultery. âIn light of the fact that we have a fairly permissive society ... why are we singling out that particular form of behaviour for criminalization?â Instead, there are other laws available to deal with problems often associated with polygamous unions, which are not legally recognized as marriages in Canada. âIf there are problems such as child abuse, or spousal abuse, there are other criminal provisions or other laws dealing with those problems that certainly should be enforced,â Ms. Bailey said. The Justice Department project was prompted in part by an RCMP investigation into the religious community of Bountiful in Creston, B.C., where polygamy is practised openly. Although the Bountiful case raises immediate issues, Canada is also faced with a rising tide of immigration from Africa and the Middle East, where polygamy is legally and religiously sanctioned. Immigration officers can refuse entry to individuals practising polygamy. Ms. Bailey said Canada should nevertheless offer some recognition to polygamous marriages that are legally valid in foreign countries to help protect women's rights here. Another paper for the project, by the Alberta Civil Liberties Research Centre, urges British Columbia to proceed immediately with a prosecution in Bountiful. âBased on the harms associated with polygamy as it is practised in Bountiful, there do not appear to be any alternatives to prosecution, however difficult it may be.â Posted by: Nimble Spemble 2006-01-13 |
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