Here's the rush of Liberal bills that will establish Canada's digital cage:
C-8 - Cyber Security (Royal Assent, becoming law this week) This new law gives the government broad secret-order powers under the rationale of cybersecurity over telecoms, banks, and energy companies, including permitting government ministers to direct telecom providers to suspend services or disable equipment by order.
C-9 - Hate Speech (Passed Parliament and awaiting Royal Assent) This new law amends the Criminal Code to provide new measures to manage hate propaganda and hate crime. It redefines hate, criminalizes intimidation or blocking access to schools, places of worship, and other community spaces, bans certain hate and terrorism symbols, and streamlines the justice system to administer hate-propaganda charges. Critics state the law has the potential to criminalize peaceful protests, chill free speech, and hinder Muslim and Islamic and even Christian religious expression, potentially exposing faith leaders to legal action for preaching traditional beliefs. So many Christians have spoken out against this one.
C-11 - Broadcasting Act amendments (Royal Assent, became law in April 2023) This Trudeau-era law established new broad measures for the CRTC to regulate digital content in Internet video and streaming services. The CRTC can now compel foreign streaming services to make expenditures towards the production of Canadian content.
C-18 - Online News (Royal Assent, became law in June 2023) This Trudeau-era law established a framework for the CRTC to regulate digital news content on online platforms. It empowered the CRTC to compel digital news intermediaries (i.e. Google search engine, Meta - Facebook to pay Canadian news sources for content accessed on their platforms - resulting in Meta blocking news on its Facebook and Instagram services.
C-22 - Lawful Access (Currently in the Senate) This legislation enhances warrantless access and police and security agencies surveillance of an individual's digital content. It requires telecom and Internet providers to retain user metadata and to install "backdoor" systems enabling government access. Conservative MPS, tech firms, civil liberties groups, and a number of progressives here have all raised objections to the potential overreach of government and security agencies.
C-34 - Digital Security (Introduced last week) This legislation creates mandatory identification controls (either government ID or face scans) for access to the Internet and bans social media for persons under 16 years of age. It also creates a new Digital Safety Commission with sweeping (undefined) powers to set the online access rules, manage compliance of platforms (everything from Facebook to Snapchat), and approve or deny exemptions. The commission will have the authority to instruct platforms to censor content deemed to undermine "social stability" - defined by the government.
C-36 - Digital Privacy (Introduced this week) This legislation empowers the new Digital Safety Minister with sweeping (undefined) powers to regulate digital content. It transfers authority from the Privacy Commissioner of Canada (an independent agent of Parliament) to the new cabinet-appointed commission (created by Bill C-34). Critics fear government overreach and abuse, as the legislation has the potential to usurp private sector privacy laws.
Future internet use in Canada is going to suck hard.
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