As you know recently the Supreme Court of Canada struck down the current prostitution laws in Canada and gave the government until Dec. 19th, 2014, to come up with new legislation.
Minister Peter MacKay has announced that new legislation will be brought forward. We do not yet know what kind of legislation it will be. Most are agreed that the best model internationally is that which is known as the Nordic Model.
Because of the Supreme Court ruling several provinces have announced that they will not be upholding current laws even though they are technically still in effect until Dec. 19th, 2014. Reports are that these provinces include Ontario, New Brunswick, Newfoundland-Labrador, Alberta and British Columbia. In response to these provincial announcements Justice Minister MacKay issued a statement reminding provinces that prostitution laws remain in effect.
There are a few important ways we need to make our voice heard on this issue. Please join us in acting today.
ACTION POINTS:
1 - Please take a moment to e-mail the Minister of Justice and thank him for his attention to this important issue. Please also encourage him to consider the Nordic Model when drafting his legislation.
E-mail: Minister Peter MacKay - peter.mackay@parl.gc.ca
2 - Please take a moment to e-mail your Provincial Premiere and MLA (or MPP) to ask them to do whatever they can to ensure the current laws are upheld in your province until the new is brought in.
To find this contact information a simple Google search will normally do the trick. If you need help finding your Premiere, MLA or MPP please let us know and we will do our best to assist you.
3 - Joy Smith is doing a post card campaign to promote the Nordic Model in Parliament. Please join us in supporting this campaign. You can do so by signing a postcard (please also pass them around) and then send them to Joy Smith's office. She will be tabling these signed postcards in the House of Commons. Click here to get postcards now.