Harper vows to outlaw "terror tourism" for Canadians
In a recent election speech, Harper vowed to outlaw “terror tourism” by making it a criminal offence for Canadians to travel to places “that are ground zero for terrorist activity."
He told supporters in Sunday’s security-themed campaign event in Ottawa that a re-elected Conservative government would take action to address the threat to Canada from within.
Harper went on to say that certain “declared areas” would be off-limits for travel. While there were no countries named at the time of the speech, a document released by the party stated that parts of Syria and Iran would likely be the first subjects of the ban.
It is unknown if other troubled regions like the Gaza Strip, Israel, or Saudi Arabia would also be disallowed. While terrorist activities have taken root in certain areas of these countries, it’s difficult to speculate what criteria the Harper government would use for inclusion on the “declared areas” list.
When questioned about the legal implications for constitutionally-protected mobility rights, Harper stated:
“There is absolutely no right in this country to travel to an area under the governance of terrorists. That is not a human right.”
Civil rights lobbyists are critical, challenging Harper’s proposed law as potentially discriminatory. Sukanya Pillay, the executive director and general counsel for the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, stated that her organization would like to learn more about the details.
“A blanket travel ban on all Canadians does, on its face, raise serious civil-liberties concerns,” Ms. Pillay said. “Liberty and equality rights may also be affected. Some groups or ethnicities will be disproportionately affected.”
Harper did state that there would be exceptions to the law for those with “legitimate reasons” such as journalists, aid workers, diplomats and other individuals with a justifiable reason to be there.
Image Courtesy of Flickr/Heather (CC 2.0)