Annual Report for 1998 Annual General Meeting the Annual General Meeting of the B.C
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Journal of the British Columbia Civil Liberties Association Volume 32, Number 4 March 1999 Annual Report for 1998 Annual General Meeting The Annual General Meeting of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association will be held Thursday, March 25, 1999 at 7:30 p.m. in the Segal Centre (Rooms 14001410) at the Downtown (Harbour Centre) Campus of Simon Fraser University 515 West Hastings Street, Vancouver, B.C. Presentation of the Third Annual Reg Robson Civil Liberties Award will be made to the family of the late Tara Singh Hayer Guest Speaker: Joseph Tussman, Professor Emeritus of the University of Califonia at Berkeley The B.C. Civil Liberties Association takes pride that prominent individuals from a variety of backgrounds and political persuasions demonstrate their belief in the importance of the work of the BCCLA by lending their names to our list of Honorary Directors. David Barrett Ron Basford, P.C., Q.C. Thomas Berger, Q.C., O.C. Robin Blaser Kim Campbell, P.C., Q.C. Andrew Coyne Hugh Curtis Bill Deverell F.E. Devito John Fraser, P.C., Q.C. Gordon Gibson Patricia O. Hall Don Hamilton Mike Harcourt Walter Hardwick Rev. Phillip Hewett Art Lee Alex MacDonald, Q.C. Rafe Mair Darlene Marzari Harry Rankin, Q.C. Honorary Directors Honorary Father James Roberts Svend Robinson, M.P. Rev. John Shaver Homer Stevens David Suzuki 2 The Democratic Commitment 32:4 March 1999 The mandate of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association is to promote, defend, sustain and extend civil liberties and human rights in the Province of British Columbia. Contents A Brief History of the BCCLA ------------------------- 4 Presidents Message----------------------------------- 7 Kay Stockholder, 192898 -------------------------- 10 Reg Robson Civil Liberties Award ---------------- 11 Brickbats & Bouquets ------------------------------- 12 1998 Highlights -------------------------------------- 13 New Association Positions------------------------- 19 Casework ---------------------------------------------- 20 Board of Directors ----------------------------------- 30 Volunteers -------------------------------------------- 32 Staff ---------------------------------------------------- 34 Membership Report--------------------------------- 35 Treasurers Report ----------------------------------- 36 Auditors Report ------------------------------------- 37 Financial Statements-------------------------------- 38 B.C. Civil Liberties Association Annual Report for 1998 3 The 1960s he BCCLA was launched in 1962 The Board of Directors began creating Twhen a group of 80 people met to a series of position papers setting out the create an organization comparable to BCCLA’s views on a variety of civil the ACLU. A few months later, we liberties topics. were incorporated under the Society Among the earliest issues addressed Act, with a bank balance of $227.45. were: Throughout the 1960s the BCCLA n legal aid operated as a volunteer organization, addressing issues of local and n minority rights provincial concern, and began to n censorship publish quarterly issues of The Democratic Commitment. n police misconduct. The 1970s uring the 1970s the Association n played a major role in the development Dgrew both in influence and in of civilian complaint procedures under the financial stability. A small office was Police Act, and in the development of the opened, and we began to receive Human Rights Act — at the time each project grants for our work. Our work was the most progressive legislation of its was also financed by our 400–500 kind in Canada members. n mounted a constitutional challenge to The Board of Directors and other compulsory features of the Heroin volunteers continued to be the source Treatment Act of intellectual and public policy initiatives. n published three widely distributed handbooks: During this period the Association: • Arrest: Civil Rights and Police n acted as a prominent advocate for a Powers provincial Rentalsman and a provincial • Discrimination Ombudsman • Youth and the Law. A Brief History of the BCCLA the of History Brief A 4 The Democratic Commitment 32:4 March 1999 The 1980s he 1980s saw the BCCLA come •the establishment of the Canadian Tinto its own, both as an Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) organization with long-term financial n production of a major brief on policing viability and as a force in the public life the police of British Columbia. This growth was not without its ups and downs: in the n successful legal challenges to: mid-eighties we lost a substantial operating grant and were close to •the provincial government’s attempt to closing our doors. remove abortion from coverage under A commitment of funding from the the Medical Services Plan Law Foundation of B.C. – which •compulsory prayers in schools remains to this day – staved off • the disparate size of electoral ridings in disaster. This commitment, together B.C., and with an aggressive campaign to locate new supporters, brought the •the lack of absentee voter provisions in Association back to financial health. the Election Act Among the many accomplishments n development of the concept of in the 1980s, the following stand out: ‘catastrophic rights’– the rights of persons with terminal illnesses to greater access to n the publication of a detailed and experimental therapies – and the highly regarded study of racism in publication of the book Catastrophic Vancouver Rights n a well-received submission to the n publication of Liberties, a collection of Supreme Court of Canada on BCCLA position papers on controversial intervention by public interest groups in topics legal cases n a first of its kind study of AIDS n appearances before several discrimination in Canada and the Parliamentary committees, including publication of a widely distributed report those considering: of the study •a proposed Charter of Rights n publication of revised versions of the and Freedoms handbooks Arrest: Civil Rights and •the activities of the RCMP Police Powers, Discrimination, and (the MacDonald Commission) Youth and the Law. B.C. Civil Liberties Association Annual Report for 1998 5 1990 to 1997 hroughout this period the BCCLA’s influence n testified before a number of government Tcontinued to grow as a result of our impressive commissions and committees, including: track record in the courts, our taking of balanced •the Oppal Commission of Inquiry into positions on difficult issues, our willingness to act Policing in B.C. behind the scenes in a consultative role, and our increasing access to the media. •the Royal Commission on Electoral Reform We continued to benefit from stable funding •Parliamentary committees studying sources, including generous long term support from changes to the definition of sexual assault, individuals and a substantial operating grant from the the so-called “rape shield law”; Law Foundation of B.C. amendments to the Canadian Security During these years we: Intelligence Service Act; sentencing and corrections reform; amendments to the n intervened at the Supreme Court of Canada in: Young Offenders Act; and the regulation •R. v. Butler, a test of the obscenity provision in of new reproductive technologies the Criminal Code n produced and submitted to the Department •R. v. Cuerrier, a review of the law on consent of Justice two major briefs, one on euthanasia where important information (the HIV status of and assisted suicide, the other on the use of the accused) is not disclosed DNA for criminal investigation purposes •a reference regarding the constitutionality of n led the fight against the non-consensual Saskatchewan’s electoral boundaries collection and disclosure of sensitive information n with co-plaintiff Little Sister’s bookstore, in the PharmaNet data bank brought a major constitutional challenge to Canada n made a detailed submission to UBC criticizing Customs’ censorship powers to a 40-day trial in its handling of the McEwen Report into B.C. Supreme Court, and then to the B.C. Court allegations of racism and sexism on campus of Appeal n made several submissions to SFU on changes n were closely involved in consultations to its harassment code concerning the new Freedom of Information and n produced and distributed brochures on drug Protection of Privacy Act, and the creation of a testing in the workplace and writing a letter of new citizen complaint process under the Police complaint to the police Act n n made submissions to B.C. Corrections on organized a major conference on the Charter overcrowding in prisons, and the dispensing of of Rights and Freedoms, and published the methadone in prisons proceedings n n consulted with the Ministry of Children and wrote, published and distributed The Privacy Families regarding a complaints process, and Handbook, a practical guide to privacy rights in with the Ministry of Finance regarding the B.C. proposed sale of BC Online n intervened in Trinity Western University v. n developed and upgraded a web site B.C. College of Teachers containing a variety of information on the n intervened in the hearing of a complaint against BCCLA, its positions on various issues, and columnist Doug Collins before a B.C. Human placed online the full text of many position Rights Tribunal papers. 6 The Democratic Commitment 32:4 March 1999 “The most beautiful thing in the world is freedom of speech.” Even though these words were first spoken over 2300 years ago by Diogenes, the ancient Greek Cynic, they have a distinctly modern sound. After all, without free speech and other basic civil liberties, we would lack the cornerstones of by Andrew Irvine contemporary