Momentum is building behind a group of B.C. women calling for changes to the rules on court publication bans in sexual assault cases.
A petition launched by the group, who have formed a collective called My Voice My Choice, closed on Friday (March 10), with the number of signatures nearly doubling in the final week to 4,900.
Petition e-4192, sponsored by Victoria NDP MP Laurel Collins, calls on the federal government to make a number of changes on how victims are kept informed of publication bans on their sexual assault cases, give victims a choice on whether a publication ban is implemented or not and help them lift those publication bans if they wish.
Members of the group have been raising awareness of the petition for months. Victoria resident Kelly Favro has spoken about the issue on a wide range of platforms, including an Australian podcast and the Canadian True Crime podcast, which helped fuel the petitionB次元官网网址檚 tally rise. She was heartened to see the numbers increase and also the warm response she received.
B次元官网网址淭he listeners were very supportive,B次元官网网址� Favro said. B次元官网网址淚 donB次元官网网址檛 think I saw one negative comment on social media, which is a huge rarity for somebody whoB次元官网网址檚 going through a sexual assault because TwitterB次元官网网址檚 a nasty place.B次元官网网址�
The women involved have been advocating around this issue for years, but momentum has started to build as the petition closes.
The group is now turning its eyes to the federal government to make legislative changes.
B次元官网网址淥ne of the very positive things about the work that weB次元官网网址檝e done and how publicly weB次元官网网址檝e been doing it is that weB次元官网网址檝e been able to connect with more people who have been affected by publication bans, and weB次元官网网址檙e able to provide support to each other,B次元官网网址� said Morrell Andrews, a Vancouver woman who was one of the first to get involved.
Andrews says sheB次元官网网址檚 seen encouraging signs from the government. Speaking after the federal justice committee backed two of the petitionB次元官网网址檚 recommendations in December, Justice Minister David Lametti said he looked forward to working with their recommendations.
B次元官网网址淚B次元官网网址檝e been having conversations with colleagues from multiple different parties,B次元官网网址� said Collins. B次元官网网址淚 think once people hear about this issue, I think everyone can agree that this is something that needs to be changed.B次元官网网址�
Collins is eyeing June 23 as the deadline to get legislation tabled in Parliament, as thatB次元官网网址檚 the end of the current session before Parliament goes on break for two months.
B次元官网网址淚n a minority Parliament, we never know how long the government will last and when the next election will be,B次元官网网址� said Collins. B次元官网网址淪o the sooner we get legislation tabled, the sooner it can pass, and we can rest assured that it will actually get fixed.B次元官网网址�
As well as the petition, Collins plans to table a unanimous consent motion in May, calling on the government to move ahead with legislation.
The group is also planning a week of events in Ottawa in the first week of May B次元官网网址� sexual assault awareness month B次元官网网址� including a press conference, virtual event and town hall.
B次元官网网址淲e will continue to keep pushing for legislative change so that it doesnB次元官网网址檛 have to be victim-to-victim sending documents, back and forth on WhatsApp,B次元官网网址� said Andrews. B次元官网网址淚t can just be a simple fix, and hopefully, in the future people like us wonB次元官网网址檛 have to know each other. They can just go on with their lives and not have to find other people to find a way out of the ban.B次元官网网址�
- with files from David Fraser/The Canadian Press.
READ MORE:
Vancouver Island women push to end court-ordered silence of sexual assault victims
Federal committee backs B.C. womenB次元官网网址檚 calls for change to publication ban rules
bailey.moreton@goldstreamgazette.com
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