Women's groups outraged over exclusion from Senate hearings on long-gun registry

Women's groups say they were shut out of Senate committee hearings about the repeal of the long-gun registry, legislation they say will only increase gun violence against women.

The bill to kill the registry passed its final vote in the Senate Wednesday evening by a vote of 50 to 27, and will likely be given royal assent Thursday.

While a number of women's groups were invited to testify at the House of Commons hearings on controversial bill, their requests to be heard at the chamber of sober second thought were denied.

"This blatant exclusion is extremely troubling," said Brenda Wallace, president of the Canadian Federation of University Women. "Women's organizations were shut out completely"

Wallace said the government did not conduct a "gender-based analysis" of Bill C-19's impact, but should have.

"We believe it is extremely important for the Senate to hear from all groups affected by the changes in this legislation and take steps to address their concerns, particularly those of women experiencing violence," she said. "Failing to do so shows that they have not done their due diligence."

Liberal Senator Celine Hervieux-Payette said the Conservatives used time allocation to limit the amount of debate that was held on Bill C-19. She said it is not fair that witnesses who supported the bill were allowed to testify, but not opponents.

"They were bullied," she said. "When we're dealing with very important matters, you don't muzzle."

Pamela Harrison, who works at the Transition House Association of Nova Scotia, said many women's shelters applied to testify, but all were denied. She said shelters across Canada are unanimous in their opposition to the bill.

"This is not an emotional issue. This is safety issue for women," she said. "We know for a fact that men use guns to threaten and harm their partners. They do it all the time."

YWCA Canada CEO Paulette Senior said bill weakens the state's ability to seize guns from men.

"This bill seriously weakens the ability of police to remove weapons from men who pose a threat to their families, and makes it much easier for them to purchase long guns with fake or invalid licences," she said. "This is a very dangerous change for the women we serve."

Tory Senator John Wallace, the chair of the Senate Legal and Constitutional Affairs committee — which examined the bill — could not be reached for comment.

Original Article
Source: canada.com
Author: Jeff Davis