Topics discussed on the show this week include the Supreme Court of Canada refusing an application by the City of Victoria for leave to appeal a decision by the BC Court of Appeal that the city lacked jurisdiction to ban plastic bags.
In addition, various politicians have mischaracterized the nature of an interim injunction prohibiting blockades, and other self-help remedies, by individuals opposed to the construction of a natural gas pipeline.
A federal Green Party member of parliament suggested that the premier of BC, or the Prime Minister of Canada, should \u201ccall off the RCMP\u201d from enforcing the injunction.\xa0
Neither the premier nor the prime minister, have the authority to \u201ccall off\u201d the RCMP. Because protesters had not voluntarily complied with a previous injunction, imposed a year ago, the BC Supreme Court judge hearing the case ordered the RCMP to enforce the injunction against physically blocking construction. \xa0
The obligation of the RCMP to prevent protesters from blocking the construction of the pipeline is a result of the court order and not a political decision.\xa0
A number of young people, who apparently misunderstood who had the authority to decide how the matter was going to proceed, occupied the Ministry of Energy, Mines & Petroleum Resources building in Victoria. After fifteen hours, the police carried the protesters out of the building and released them without charges.\xa0
In this context, a City of Victoria Councillor unfairly alleged that \u201cthere is always a high risk that police will use violence\u201d when dealing with protesters.\xa0
What appears to be either uninformed or politically motivated, mischaracterizations of the court-ordered injunction are most unfortunate.
It would be wise for anyone who is inclined to wade into the pipeline issue, the role of the elected first nations representatives, Wet\u2019suwet\u2019en hereditary chiefs, the RCMP, or the government, to actually read the judge\u2019s reasons for judgment.
The background, context and reasons really do matter.\xa0
Finally, a tribute to Ted Hughes, the former judge, and lawyer, who passed away on January 17, at age 92, after making a numerous contribution to the Canadian legal system.
Follow this link for a transcript of the show and links to the cases discussed, including the judge's reasons for issuing the injunction.