Citizen Groups From Niagara And Across Canada Press Ontario Government To Prevent Lawsuits Aimed At Shutting Down Freedom Of Expression And Public Dissent

A Foreword by Niagara At Large publisher Doug Draper

They have become more and more common over the past 30 or so years. And it has reached a point where they and members of the legal fraternity that launch them for whatever deep-pocket clients hire them, could scare all too many Canadians away from exercising whatever right they have left in this country to a free expression of their views.

If we lose that right, God damn it, we might just as well go live some God-awful piss hole of a place like Syria, North Korea, China or Russia.

So what this post is all about, whether you are a liberal or conservative or something else or none of those, is about is protecting what is left of what past generations of our country people fought for on the beaches of Normandy and elsewhere in this world where they laid their lives down for democracy

This is about asking all of you to support Canadian public interest groups like the Niagara-based Marineland Animal Defense (MAD), the Council of Canadians, members of Canadian Journalists for Free Expression, Greenpeace, and more than 130 other citizen groups across this country to urge your Ontario MPP and the Ontario government at large to do what is right. It is about askng asking this Ontario government of Kathleen Wynne to do what other provinces across this country and many states across our neighbouring United States have already done and make it harder for those with deep pockets to hire lawyers with few principles that have anything to do with the spirit of this great country to shut the rest of us up with what are called SLAPP suits or Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation.

We have witnessed this again in Niagara with the SLAPP suits filed against a number of people, including former employees, who have expressed their concerns about alleged mistreatment of mammals at Marineland in Niagara Falls, Ontario. Among other things, these “defamation” suits are intended to shut people who believe that concrete tubs in places like this is no place for whales and other marine mammals.

What is amazing so far, is that it hasn’t shut them up. If anything, citizens across this country of Canada and the United States are rallying to their defense. When will the Ontario government by putting an end to SLAPP suits that do little more than enrich lawyers and cost taxpayers more to support our court system, and most of all, strive to kill or chill free expression in a province and country that is supposed to stand for democracy for all!

Now here is a news release posted today by Marineland Animal Defense, Greenpeace Canada, The council of Canadians and Canadian Journalists for Free Expression on behalf of groups representing hundreds of thousands of citizens across this great country.

140 groups call on Ontario legislature to make public advocacy bill top priority

September 18th, 2013 (Toronto) – Over 140 groups, including environmental organizations, unions and freedom of expression advocates, are calling on the Ontario legislature to adopt strong legislation to prevent Strategic Lawsuits Against Public Participation (SLAPPs) from being used to limit freedom of expression, public participation and prevent the abuse of libel laws.

These legal suits are all about stopping this. Canadians who believe in freedom of speech have to stand up against SLAPP suits now.

Anti-SLAPP laws, which have already been adopted in Quebec, a majority of U.S. states and several other countries are designed to prevent powerful companies and individuals from lodging meritless lawsuits, often for defamation, which are designed not to protect reputation but to silence critics. These lawsuits burden defendants, often public interest advocacy groups, with massive legal fees, draining their resources and distracting them from their core work. As such, they exert a chilling effect on freedom of expression and make it more difficult for civil society to act as watchdog of the powerful.

In May, Attorney General John Gerretsen submitted Bill 83, the first government-sponsored anti-SLAPP bill in Ontario. This follows a 2010 report by the Ontario Anti-SLAPP Advisory Panel which found that SLAPPs deter people from speaking out against what they see as social wrongs.

“With MPPs back in the legislature, it is time to move quickly to protect Ontarians when talking about the issues that matter most to them,” said Shane Moffatt, forest campaigner for Greenpeace Canada. “These meritless lawsuits tangle up our courts and waste taxpayers’ dollars.”

The over 140 groups – including Greenpeace Canada, Canadian Journalists for Free Expression, Council of Canadians, Marineland Animal Defense, and the Centre for Law and Democracy – have presented a petition to Ontario MPPs expressing their concern at the increasing use of SLAPPs and denouncing it as an abuse of the court system. The groups stand behind Greenpeace and other organizations’ right to freely express opinions on issues of public interest, including the future of Canada’s forests, without fear of lawsuit.

“Deep pocketed corporations must be prevented from attacking organizations or individuals with abusive lawsuits to shut down public debate,” affirmed Maude Barlow, national chair of the Council of Canadians. “They undermine the court system and impose a chilling effect on public debate.”

Several of the supporting groups have been targeted by SLAPPs. Greenpeace Canada is currently fighting a $7 million lawsuit brought by logging giant Resolute Forest Products, while Marineland Animal Defense founder Dylan Powell faces a $1.5 million SLAPP from Marineland, in both cases for engaging in public interest criticism. The issue first gained prominence in Ontario when Big Bay Point residents were hit with a $3.2 million lawsuit by developers.

“Our organizations play a crucial role in shining a light on issues the public would otherwise never be aware of,” explained Powell of Marineland Animal Defense. “Unfortunately, case law offers little protection and this legislative void will be used as leverage until anti-SLAPP legislation exists.”

“The need for effective anti-SLAPP laws has been proven around the world,” added Toby Mendel, Executive Director of the Centre for Law and Democracy and Annie Game, Executive Director of Canadian Journalists for Free Expression. “It is critical that Ontario and other Canadian jurisdictions bring themselves into line with these global developments.”

For the petition and full list of supporting organizations visit http://www.greenpeace.ca/antislapp

Read the proposed Bill 83 at http://www.ontla.on.ca/web/bills/bills_detail.do?locale=en&BillID=2810

View the full 2010 report by the Anti-SLAPP Advisory Panel at   http://www.attorneygeneral.jus.gov.on.ca/english/anti_slapp/anti_slapp_final_report_en.pdf

If you are part of an organization and would like to sign onto the letter, please visit www.greenpeace.ca/antislapp.

(Niagara At Large invites anyone who dares to share their real first and last name to also share their views on this post in the comment area below.)