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Top Canadian Political Players of 2003Several people came to the forefront of Canadian politics in 2003. The following is a list of the most influential persons in Canadian politics for the past year.
Former Prime Minister Jean ChretienAfter more than 40 years of parliamentary service and ten years as prime minister, Prime Minister Jean Chretien retired from politics and from the country’s top political office in 2003. Prime Minister Chretien’s final year in office was an eventful one. While continuing to combat internal dissention within his own party, the Prime Minister managed to introduce contested domestic and foreign policies. Domestically, the Chretien government announced its intention to introduce legislation that would make same-sex marriage legal throughout the country. Prime Minister Chretien also introduced cannabis reform legislation under Bill C-38. The Bill provides for the decriminalization marijuana possession by requiring only small fines for possession of 15 grams or less. The proposed legislation was met with opposition both from the official opposition, and from members of Prime Minister Chretien’s own party. On the foreign affairs front, Prime Minister Chretien committed thousands of Canadian troops to Afghanistan. Prime Minister Chretien also set Canada apart from current American foreign policy under the George W. Bush administration. The Chretien government sided with the United Nations in opposition to the American invasion of Iraq. Further, in his final address at the United Nations, Prime Minister Chretien rejected unilateral approaches to international relations. The prime minister’s stance cooled relations between Canada and the United States. Feature – Legacy of Prime
Minister Jean Chretien Prime Minister Paul Martin2003 was a big year for Paul Martin, Canada’s new prime minister. Early in 2003, when it became clear that Martin would be becoming prime minister, he came under heavy criticism for his ownership of Canadian Shipping lines. The opposition suggested that Martin may have a conflict of interest while serving in office. The controversy resulted in Martin divesting his company’s interest to his sons. In November 2003, Prime Minster Martin was elected leader of the Liberal Party of Canada. While Shelia Copps contested the leadership with Prime Minister Martin, the leadership election had become almost a formality. Prime Minister Martin formally assumed the reigns of power on December 12, 2003, when former Prime Minister Jean Chretien officially stepped down. In an attempt to distance himself from his predecessor, Prime Minister Martin immediately overhauled the Cabinet, demoting most of Chretien’s cabinet members to the backbench. Prime Minister Martin also attempted to set a new tone for his government, including greater attention to western alienation and a more amicable relationship with the United States. Prime Minister Martin also announced a government spending freeze. The purpose of the freeze is to reorganize spending priorities, with the highest priority being given to health care. Political parties on both the left and the right have criticized the new Martin government. The Dew Democratic Party under Jack Layton has accused the Martin government of sliding to the right on the political spectrum. The Canadian Alliance and Progressive Conservative Party (soon to merge into the Conservative Party) has suggested the Martin government is simply a continuation of the old Chretien government. Spotlight on the New Martin Government Canadian Alliance Leader Stephen HarperLike McKay, Stephen Harper has had a large impact on the Canadian political right wing. After winning the Canadian Alliance leadership in 2002, Harper has overseen a reshaping of the Alliance’s image away from the strong social conservatism that had developed under former leader Stockwell Day. In Parliament, Harper led the Official Opposition for 2003. The Opposition has been hard on the Liberal government for issues such as the legal recognition of same-sex marriage, the decision not to join the American led invasion of Iraq and the subsequent chilling of US-Canadian relations, and alleged government corruption. In December 2003, Harper unofficially announced his intention to make a bid for leader of the new Conservative Party. Harper is the early favorite to take the position. Possible opponents that he may face include Jim Prentice, Peter McKay and Bernard Lord. Feature on the Canadian Alliance 2002 Leadership Race Progressive Conservative Leader Peter MacKayProgressive Conservative leader Peter MacKay came to the forefront of Canadian right-wing politics in 2003. In May 2003, MacKay became the PC Party’s 23rd leader when he edged out Calgary lawyer Jim Prentice on the fourth ballot. In the end, MacKay gained 64% of the votes, while Prentice received only 35%. MacKay’s win was largely due to an alleged deal between him and leadership candidate David Orchard, which saw Orchard shift his support to MacKay in return for a commitment to review the North American Free Trade Agreement. There is speculation that MacKay may make a bid for the new Conservative Party leadership. His main competition will likely be Canadian Alliance leader Stephen Harper. Spotlight on the Progressive Conservative Leadership Convention The Canadian JudiciaryIn 2003, the Canadian judiciary had a large impact on Canadian society with several high profile court decisions. In June 2003, the Ontario Court of Appeal struck down the common law definition of marriage. The Court found that the definition of marriage as between a man and a woman violated the gay and lesbians’ rights to equality under s. 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The Court changed the definition of marriage to the “voluntary union for life of two persons to the exclusion of all others.” In October 2003, the Supreme Court of Canada indicated that it agreed with the Ontario Court of Appeal decision by announcing that it would not hear appeals to that decision. The decision resulted in the federal government announcing that it would introduce a bill that would legally recognize same-sex marriages. The judiciary has also impacted government policy on marijuana. In January 2003, an Ontario judge dismissed two drug charges against a 16-year old boy, ruling that Canada’s law on possession of small amounts of marijuana was no longer valid because Parliament had failed to address problems with Canada's marijuana laws. In October, the Ontario Court of Appeal wrote new rules making it easier for sick people to get medicinal marijuana legally. However, the Court stepped back from requiring the decriminalization of marijuana, as it upheld laws that make marijuana possession illegal for recreational use. Feature on Same-Sex Marriage Canadian Military Troops AbroadCanadian troops performed their duty in several high profile operations across the world in 2003. In August 2003, over 1900 Canadian soldiers began providing security in the Afghanistan capital of Kabul under operation ATHENA. The Canadian troops were integrated into the International Security Assistance Force that was authorized by the United Nations in 2001, and recently taken over by the North Atlantic Treaty Organization. In July 2003, Canadian Brigadier-General Peter Devlin assumed command of the Kabul Multi-National Brigade, and in August 2003, Canadian Army Major-General Andrew Leslie became the Deputy Commander for the NATO mission to Afghanistan. Canadian peacekeeping troops were also stationed in several other parts of the world.
At the end of 2003 there are 3,500 Canadian Forces personnel stationed abroad on 13
missions. Countries were Canadian troops are stationed include Bosnia-Herzegovina, Golan
Heights between Israel and Syria, Cyprus, Jerusalem, Sinai, Democratic Republic of the
Congo, Liberia, Sierra Leone, and Senegal. Spotlight on Canadian Military Operations in Afghanistan Zahra Kazemi, William Sampson and Maher ArarIn 2003, three important cases highlighted the dangers Canadian citizens face in foreign countries. The cases also brought into question Canada’s protection of its citizens abroad. While critics have pushed for Ottawa to be more aggressive in protecting its citizens by means such as recalling ambassadors, Foreign Affairs Minister Bill Graham has defended Canada’s “quiet diplomacy.” Zahra Kazemi was Canadian citizen of Iranian birth who came to Canada in 1993. She was a freelance journalist who was arrested in June 2003 while taking photos outside a prison in Tehran, Iran. During her incarceration, she was beaten and lapsed into a coma. She died in July. Following the incident, the Canadian government recalled the Canadian ambassador from Iran and requested a full investigation. The Iranian government eventual arrested and charged a single intelligent officer with “quasi-intentional murder.” Canadian officials have suggested that it is unlikely the intelligence agent alone is responsible for Kazemi’s death. William Sampson is a Canadian citizen who was working as a consultant in Saudi Arabia. In 2001, Sampson was falsely convicted of carrying out bombings in that country. The bombing incident killed a British man and Sampson was sentenced to a public beheading. Sampson spent over two years in prison and was allegedly tortured by Saudi officials. In 2003, Sampson and five other British nationals were granted clemency by the Saudi government and released from prison. The British government played the primary role in the prisoners’ release. Following his release, Sampson has been highly critical of the Canadian government. In November 2003, he testified before a House of Commons committee that both Canadian Foreign Affairs and embassy officials had fallen well short of anything that could be considered supportive. Sampson further demanded an investigation of the case. Maher Arar, a Canadian citizen born in Syria in 1970, came to Canada in 1987. In September 2002, Arar was detained by United States Immigration and Naturalization officials at New York's Kennedy Airport while returning alone to Montreal from a family vacation in Tunisia. American officials allege that Arar has links to the terrorist organization Al-Qaeda. Arar was deported by the United States to Syria. Arar later stated that he was physically and mentally tortured and forced to confess that he spent time in Afghanistan. He was charged with membership in a banned Muslim organization. Arar was eventually released in October 2003. Following his return to Canada, Foreign Affairs Minister Bill Graham learned that both the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) and the Royal Canadian mounted Police (RCMP) has provided information about Arar to United States authorities. The Canadian government immediately launched an investigation of CSIS that will be conducted by the independent Security Intelligence Review Committee. New Democratic Party Leader Jack LaytonOn Canada’s political left, Jack Layton emerged as the new leader of the federal New Democratic Party. In January 2003, Layton won the NDP leadership race in a first ballot win. Many had predicted that Layton would not have sufficient support to be declared leader until a second or third ballot. Layton took 53% of the vote, doubling the support of second place candidate Bill Blakie. Saskatchewan MP Lorne Nystrom finished third with 9.3% of the vote. Layton has faced obstacles in his leadership of the New Democratic Party. The party has not had strong electoral success in two decades. Further, Layton has had to lead the party from outside of Parliament, as he hasn’t been elected to the House of Commons. In December 2003, Layton and the NDP received a positive boost when former NDP leader Ed Broadbent announced his return to politics and his intention to run for member of parliament in the next federal election. Broadbent had publicly supported Layton in his bid for NDP leader. Broadbent’s strong profile and reputation with voters may lead to better electoral results for the party. Spotlight on Jack Layton winning the NDP leadership
contest Finance Minister John ManleyIn 2003 John Manley served his first full year as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance, the second most important person in the Canadian government. In March 2003, he released former Prime Minister Chretien’s final budget, which was dubbed the “people’s budget” In 2003, Manley also contested for Liberal Party leadership. When he announced his decision to run in April, Manley disputed the widely held belief that Paul Martin was an automatic choice for leader. However, in July he pulled out of the race, citing insufficient party membership support. In November 2003, Manley announced his decision to retire from politics. While publicly stating that he was willing to participate in Prime Minister Paul Martin’s new government, it became apparent that the new prime minister would not be offering a Manley a Cabinet position. Prime Minster Martin did offer Manley the ambassadorship to the United States. However, Manley turned the offer down, citing his desire to be closer to his home in Ottawa. In December 2003, the government of Ontario appointed Manley head of three-person review panel to oversee a financial and operation audit of Ontario Power Generation, the province’s electricity generation corporation. The appointment is a short-term one, as the audit is due in early 2004. Feature on the 2003 Federal
Budget Quebec Premier Jean CharestJean Charest’s election as premier of Quebec could usher in a new era in both Quebec domestic politics and Canadian federal politics. In April 2003, Jean Charest’s Liberal Party defeated the Parti Quebecois in the provincial general election. In the election, the Liberals won 76 of 125 seats in the National Assembly and 46% of the popular vote. The Parti Quebecois won 46 seats and 33% of the vote, while the third place Action Democratique won on 4 seats and 18% of the vote. Charest’s election to Quebec’s top political office could have important implications for Canadian federalism. The former Parti Quebecois government supported some form of independence for Quebec from Canada. The PQ tended not to participate in pan-provincial and federal government programs and conferences. The Charest government is more strongly federalist, supporting a strong Quebec in Canadian federalism. Charest indicates that his government will participate more fully in inter-governmental relations within Canada. On the domestic front, Charest has already met his first obstacles. The Premier has faced strong labour and student opposition as he attempts to restructure the province’s finances and curb spending. Support for the Charest government dropped sharply in the last months of 2003. Feature on the 2003 Quebec General Election
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