Conservatives flip on Canadians on Death Row

The Stephen Harper Conservative government has flipped on protecting Canadians who are on Death Row in the United States.

Canada does not have the death penalty, and has for the last few decades, regardless of the party in power, argued on behalf of Canadian citizens caught in the U.S. justice system.

Just so we are clear, Canada (and other countries) hasn't argued innocence or guilt, not has the country ever argued that a person should be freed. The objection is purely for the sentence (and culmination) of putting someone to death.

Here at Canadian Corner, we realize that those in the U.S. audience who thinks the death penalty is okay are probably horrified that Canada would step in to a U.S. situation. However, Canada does have a right and obligation to protest harsh punishments for its citizens around the world. Doesn't mean it will work, but refusing to do anything seems immoral.

In a possibly parallel twist, Canada has a law that allows it to prosecute sex crimes of its citizens, even if those crimes don't happen in Canada. If that law is okay, then the U.S. could wonder why Canada can reach out to crimes not on its soil, yet the U.S. can't sentence crimes on its soil.

Conservatives in Canada, though in a minority government, clearly are more harsh on many issues than the Brian Mulroney years when the Progressive Conservative Party was in charge from 1984-1993. It would never have occurred to Mulroney to not fight for Canadians to be spared the death penalty.