AhlulBayt News Agency (ABNA): The Canadian Liberal government’s proposal to eliminate the religious exemption from the country’s hate-speech prohibition has faced strong opposition from Christian communities and conservative parties, leading a parliamentary committee to suspend its review of the amendment.
The initiative, introduced at the request of the Bloc Québécois, sought to remove the “religious exemption” from Canada’s hate-speech legislation. However, the proposal encountered significant resistance from religious groups and political parties earlier this week. The sudden cancellation of a parliamentary committee meeting on Thursday has now cast uncertainty over the amendment’s prospects, as well as the future of the government’s broader hate-speech bill.
Under Canada’s current law, restrictions related to hate speech must remain consistent with freedom of expression; prosecutions require authorization from a provincial attorney general, and the legislation cannot impose limitations on religious freedoms.
The Bloc Québécois proposal has emerged amid growing sensitivity in Quebec toward visible expressions of Islam. In response to public objections to Muslims praying in shared spaces, the provincial government has suggested banning all forms of worship in public areas, including dedicated prayer rooms within government institutions, a ban that would inevitably apply to other faiths as well. This reflects the same approach that previously led to prohibitions on religious symbols for public employees, including the cross and the Star of David, to preserve an appearance of state neutrality.
Rising anti-Israel demonstrations following Israel’s assault on Gaza in 2023, along with instances of antisemitism, have further intensified tensions. Although some question whether amending the law would be effective, parts of the Jewish community support tougher legislation, even if it restricts religious freedoms. Conversely, Christian leaders, backed by the Conservative Party, remain firmly opposed to the amendment.
Critics trace Quebec’s stringent outlook to the French model of laïcité, a form of secularism that, in practice, limits religious symbols and rites rather than ensuring state neutrality. They argue that this model, now reflected in Quebec, has amplified sensitivities amid the province’s growing Muslim population and is seeking to regulate religious presence in public spaces through legislative means.
Meanwhile, reports indicate that Paris’s Notre-Dame Cathedral has attracted 11 million visitors in its first year of reopening after the fire, an example that analysts say underscores the enduring cultural and social significance of religious heritage and symbols, contrary to the narrative promoted by hardline secularism.
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