Mon 10 Sep 2007
Mayrand Kills Common Sense
Posted by kaqchikel under bureaucracy , democracy , elections , federal politics , human rights , multiculturalismAccording to Elections Canada, there is nothing in the current law requiring Canadian voters to show their face when they exercise their right to vote. Right in public view, Chief Electoral Officer Marc Mayrand has killed common sense by choosing to interpret the legislation in the narrowest possible sense.
“It can be observed, therefore, that there are various methods provided for by this legislation allowing people to vote and that some of these measures do not require visual identification of the voter and it’s the voter that has the choice of which method to use,” Mr. Mayrand said.
I am thinking of wearing one of these come the next election. I am choosing this particular one because it’s called the Baffin Balaclava, furthering the Canadian theme.
Why not have a fixed election date of Oct. 31 and we can all wear our Halloween costumes? Better yet a person could start a business of saving people the hassle of voting, just give me your I.D and i can show up and vote your desired candidate.
There’s no obligation by Elections Canada to extend the courtesy of their narrowly defined laws beyond the scope of the Muslim people. So if you try a stunt like that, they’ll probably refuse you at the polls and that’ll be that. Now if you had a powerful Islamic lobby behind you…
Interestingly, most Muslims (including those who wear a veil) would agree that Parliament should require voters to be visually identified before being allowed to vote.
Too bad Parliament didn’t write a law that require that eh?
You are right, Raphael. But since there is nothing in the law compelling one to show one’s face, then, I can appeal to the courts as a victim whose rights have been violated. Where is the court challenges program when I need it?
You could show up at the poll acting like a jackass. In your case that might be sufficient proof of identification in itself. ;)
It’s more than just the fact that there is nothing in the law compelling one to show one’s face. There’s also nothing in the law compelling one to show photo ID.
How is Elections Canada supposed to “read in” a requirement that Muslim women must show their faces at polling stations so that election workers can compare their face to their photo ID, if there’s ALSO no requirement to show photo ID??? If there was a requirement to show photo ID, Elections Canada would indeed be going against the will of Parliament, since allowing women to vote without lifting their veils would be clear violation of the intent of the legislation to require visual identification of voters before allowing them to vote (in other words, why require photo ID if the person can just wear a veil!?!?). HOWEVER, and this is important, there is NO REQUIREMENT IN THE LAW TO SHOW PHOTO ID!!! There is no justification for Elections Canada to “read in” a requirement that voters show their faces at the polls in order to facilitate the visual identification of voters if there IS NO REQUIREMENT FOR VOTERS TO BE VISUALLY IDENTIFIED BEFORE VOTING. And there clearly isn’t, as you are not required under the law to show photo ID (again, making showing your face or covering it a moot point, since you aren’t required to show anything for workers to compare your face against!).
What would be the point in “reading in” that particular restriction? We have no idea what the person you claim to be looks like, and you’re not required to show us photo ID, but you MUST show us your face nonetheless so that we can visually identify you, despite the fact that there is no way to establish that your face is the one of the person you’re claiming to be.
It’s ludicrous.
This is a problem in the law, and a problem for Parliament. Elections Canada is just following the law Parliament wrote. It’s not the fault of Elections Canada if Parliament is incompetent, and it is CERTAINLY not the role of Elections Canada to place restrictions on voters that are not laid out in the laws passed by our democratically elected Parliament.
If a JUDGE were attempting to establish different rules for voting than those laid out by Parliament, conservatives would be going BALLISTIC! But somehow it’s EXPECTED that Elections Canada would “read in” restrictions not actually laid out in the law???
As I said, ludicrous.
RT seems to speak from experience, as usual.
LKO
I disagree with your analysis. Is there a difference between the law and the operational policies of Elections Canada?
Kaqchikel,
Not in as much as the “operational policies” of Elections Canada follow the electoral laws of Canada. In fact, the operational policies ALREADY go somewhat beyond the legislation, as the CEO has instructed poll workers to first ask veiled voters to lift their veil to prove their identification using photo ID, something not required by the legislation Parliament passed. Again, that Parliament allows voters to use alternatives to photo ID to establish their identity, and said NOTHING about whether people are required to show their faces at polling stations is a failure of PARLIAMENT, not Elections Canada.
What you seem to be asking for here is that Elections Canada establish a policy that requires something of voters that the laws of Canada do not, as presently constituted, require. How does it make any sense that Elections Canada be given that kind of arbitrary power over our Electoral process?
Our Election laws don’t require voters to show their faces at polling stations, and don’t even require voters to present photo ID at polling stations. THAT’S THE LAW. How can Elections Canada simply add a restriction regarding who can and cannot vote, and under what circumstances, through “operational policies”???? Is that really what we want? Parliament enacts Election laws and Elections Canada just adds on restrictions to voter eligibility on their own???
Parliament is perfectly capable of enacting a law which states that voters must show their faces to officials at polling stations. They’re perfectly capable of enacting a law which says voters must show photo ID in order to visually identify themselves and confirm their eligibility to vote at a particular polling station. Parliament has enacted legislation that does NEITHER of those things! (Despite the fact that many of the Members seem to be claiming today that they did, which leads me to believe that many, including disturbingly enough the Prime Minister, haven’t actually read the Election laws the enacted!!!).
The Chief Electoral Officer of Canada warned Parliament in July that the laws they enacted required neither the presentation of photo identification, nor the uncovering of an electors face to a polling official. That no one in Parliament seemed to care until it became a topic on talk radio in the Quebec by-elections is disturbing. That once they realized the legislation they enacted was insufficient they blamed Elections Canada for following the laws they actually wrote, is shocking!