India has advised Canada to tighten its laws against the ‘misuse of freedom of expression’ in order to deter violence, stop attacks on racial minorities and places of worship, and deal with hate speech and crimes. KS. The suggestions were presented last week in Geneva during the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) review meeting by Mohammed Hussain, First Secretary of the Permanent Mission of India.
India ‘welcomes and thanks the delegation of Canada for the presentation of their national report’ to combat human trafficking, as stated by Hussain, the head of the Indian mission, in his speech. ‘We note the enactment of National Housing Strategy Act, 2019; Accessible Canada Act; and the National Strategy to Combat Human Trafficking 2019-2024,’ he stated.
‘In the spirit of constructive dialogue, India recommends the following to Canada – one, further strengthen the domestic framework to prevent misuse of freedom of expression for inciting violence and disallow activities of groups which are promoting extremism. Two, effectively prevent attacks on places of worship of religious and racial minorities, strengthen legislative and other measures to address hate crimes and hate speech,’ Mohammed Hussain said at the UNHRC meeting.
Moreover, India advised Canada to ‘address disparities in access to services by all children’ and end ‘structural discrimination against children belonging to indigenous groups.’
India’s proposal was made not too long after a UN study condemned Canada for ‘modern slavery.’ Canada’s foreign worker initiatives were deemed a ‘breeding ground for contemporary forms of slavery’ by the report, which raised alarm over them. The UN human rights body called on Canadian authorities to ‘offer a clear pathway to permanent residency for all migrants,’ address discrimination that also facilitates exploitation, and ‘do more’ to protect workers.
Following Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s recent remarks regarding the diplomatic ties between the two nations over the death of Khalistani terrorist Hardeep Singh Nijjar, India has made a recommendation to Canada. He declared that his nation would ‘always stand up for the rule of law’ and restated his accusation that India was involved in Nijjar’s murder in Canada.
In light of the deteriorating diplomatic ties between the two nations, Trudeau also attacked India for its decision to expel forty Canadian diplomats, claiming it violated the Vienna Convention. Referring to Nijjar’s murder as ‘very serious,’ he stated that he had contacted allies, including the US, to look into Canada’s allegations and that he had reached out to India ‘to get into the bottom of this matter.’
Since Trudeau said in September that there was ‘potential’ for Indian spies to have been involved in Nijjar’s June death in the Canadian province of British Colombia, tensions between India and Canada have been high on the diplomatic front. Nijjar was sought in India. He was the leader of the banned Khalistan Tiger Force.
Post Your Comments