Feds mark 33rd anniversary of Polytechnique shooting amid contention over gun control legislation
MPs are marking the 33rd anniversary of the École Polytechnique de Montreal shooting that left 14 women dead, while debate over the Liberal government’s gun control legislation — including which specific firearms should be restricted — is ongoing.
On this day in 1989, a gunman entered the engineering school and separated the women and men before opening fire on the female students, killing 14. More than three decades later, MPs are debating how to end gun violence in Canada, with the Liberals touting their Bill C-21 as the way to do it, while Opposition MPs are criticizing the proposed legislation.
Women and Gender Equality Minister Marci Ien started the day by addressing MPs in the House and marking the anniversary, saying the “horrific act of violence changed our country forever.” She also took the opportunity to list the government’s freeze on the sale, purchase, and transfer of handguns within Canada — a provision of bill C-21 that is already in effect — as another tool to fight against gender-based violence.
MPs from every party — including Bloc Québecois MP Andréanne Larouche, NDP MP Leah Gazan and Green Party Leader Elizabeth May — also made statements in the House on what is the National Day of Remembrance and Action on Violence Against Women.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the other party leaders also issued statements to mark the day.
“For 33 years, we have held them in our thoughts,” Trudeau wrote. He later attended the yearly vigil in Montreal with Quebec Premier François Legault, where 14 beams of light were projected into the sky above Mount Royal.
“Geneviève Bergeron. Maryse Laganière. Hélène Colgan. Maryse Leclair. Nathalie Croteau. Anne-Marie Lemay. Barbara Daigneault. Sonia Pelletier. Anne-Marie Edward. Michèle Richard. Maud Haviernick. Annie St-Arneault. Barbara Klucznik-Widajewicz. Annie Turcotte. We will never forget them,” Trudeau also wrote, naming the 14 women who were killed in the shooting 33 years ago.
Meanwhile the Liberal government’s highly contested Bill C-21 is currently at consideration with the House Public Safety and National Security Committee, where members discussed the act clause by clause Tuesday afternoon.
The legislation has been criticized by Opposition MPs and gun rights groups for unfairly punishing lawful gun owners and hunters, while not doing enough to address gang violence in major cities and gun smuggling at the border.
Some gun rights advocates have also expressed concern an amendment to the bill, tabled after second reading once C-21 had moved on to committee, would include guns used for hunting in the list of prohibited firearms.
While the Liberals have touted the bill as the critical to ending gun violence in Canada, Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino told Mike Le Couteur on CTV’s Power Play Monday his government is “keeping an open door” to work with committee to possibly pare down the list of prohibited guns.
With still a ways to go, Bloc Québecois MP Kristina Michaud said she’s disappointed “that industry doesn’t seem to have been consulted by the government” on the amendment, and at not being able to add more meetings to dig into the amendment and hear from more witnesses on the issue.
The committee later ran out of time before members could have all their questions answered, and decided to get back into the clause-by-clause discussion at its next meeting.
Polytechnique shooting survivor Nathalie Provost, who is also a spokesperson for the gun control advocacy group PolySeSouvient, told CTV’s Power Play she believes advocating for stricter gun control keeps the memory of the tragedy’s victims alive, and she’s concerned about how politicized the issue has become.
She said hunting is an activity that is “rooted in Canada,” and she’s not looking for hunting rifles to be outlawed, but rather to see an end to assault-style weapons. Provost said the Liberal government needs to be more clear in its list of firearms that would be prohibited under C-21.
As the debate continues to play out among Parliamentarians, outside of Ottawa, NHL goaltender Carey Price issued a statement on his Instagram acknowledging the anniversary of the École Polytechnique shooting and disputing an earlier claim he did not know about the tragedy in the first place.
Price had posted a photo of himself hunting with a caption calling out Trudeau for being unjust with the proposed gun control legislation, and stating he supports the Canadian Coalition for Firearm Rights (CCFR). The CCFR is a gun rights organization that had also recently been criticized for using the promotion code “poly” on its website, a move many called disrespectful of the École Polytechnique tragedy.
A spokesperson for the NHL later initially said Price was unaware of the shooting, which led to further criticism of the hockey player, who lived in Montreal for more than 15 years.
“While I have no control over the timing of the amendment to Bill C-21 I stand by the opinions I’ve shared, I acknowledge that amplifying any conversation around guns this week may have upset some of those impacted most by the events here in 1989 and to them I apologize,” Price wrote.
The CCFR, for its part, wrote on its website the promo code was “in no way a reference to the tragedy at École Polytechnique.”
Ien addressed the story in her commemoration speech for the École Polytechnique victims.
“At a time when the gun lobby is using the memory of this horrendous anniversary to promote its own agenda, we must stand firm to defend the memories and legacies of those gone too soon,” she told MPs in the House Tuesday. “There is so much to be done and we must all be part of the solution.”
IN DEPTH
'One of the greatest': Former prime minister Brian Mulroney commemorated at state funeral
Prominent Canadians, political leaders, and family members remembered former prime minister and Progressive Conservative titan Brian Mulroney as an ambitious and compassionate nation-builder at his state funeral on Saturday.
Trudeau, key election players to testify at foreign interference hearings. What you need to know
The public hearings portion of the federal inquiry into foreign interference in Canadian elections and democratic institutions are picking back up this week. Here's what you need to know.
Who is supporting, opposing new online harms bill?
Now that Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's sweeping online harms legislation is before Parliament, allowing key stakeholders, major platforms, and Canadians with direct personal experience with abuse to dig in and see what's being proposed, reaction is streaming in. CTVNews.ca has rounded up reaction, and here's how Bill C-63 is going over.
As Poilievre sides with Smith on trans restrictions, former Conservative candidate says he's 'playing with fire'
Siding with Alberta Premier Danielle Smith on her proposed restrictions on transgender youth, Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre confirmed Wednesday that he is against trans and non-binary minors using puberty blockers.
TREND LINE What Nanos' tracking tells us about Canadians' mood, party preference heading into 2024
Heading into a new year, Canadians aren't feeling overly optimistic about the direction the country is heading, with the number of voters indicating negative views about the federal government's performance at the highest in a decade, national tracking from Nanos Research shows.
Opinion
opinion Don Martin: Gusher of Liberal spending won't put out the fire in this dumpster
A Hail Mary rehash of the greatest hits from the Trudeau government’s three-week travelling pony-show, the 2024 federal budget takes aim at reversing the party’s popularity plunge in the under-40 set, writes political columnist Don Martin. But will it work before the next election?
opinion Don Martin: The doctor Trudeau dumped has a prescription for better health care
Political columnist Don Martin sat down with former federal health minister Jane Philpott, who's on a crusade to help fix Canada's broken health care system, and who declined to take any shots at the prime minister who dumped her from caucus.
opinion Don Martin: Trudeau's seeking shelter from the housing storm he helped create
While Justin Trudeau's recent housing announcements are generally drawing praise from experts, political columnist Don Martin argues there shouldn’t be any standing ovations for a prime minister who helped caused the problem in the first place.
opinion Don Martin: Poilievre has the field to himself as he races across the country to big crowds
It came to pass on Thursday evening that the confidentially predictable failure of the Official Opposition non-confidence motion went down with 204 Liberal, BQ and NDP nays to 116 Conservative yeas. But forcing Canada into a federal election campaign was never the point.
opinion Don Martin: How a beer break may have doomed the carbon tax hike
When the Liberal government chopped a planned beer excise tax hike to two per cent from 4.5 per cent and froze future increases until after the next election, says political columnist Don Martin, it almost guaranteed a similar carbon tax move in the offing.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
NEW Toxic forever chemicals in drinking water: Is Canada doing enough?
As the United States sets its first national limits on toxic forever chemicals in drinking water, researchers say Canada is lagging when it comes to regulations.
Why drivers in Eastern Canada could see big gas price spikes, and other Canadians won't
Drivers in Eastern Canada face a big increase in gas prices because of various factors, especially the higher cost of the summer blend, industry analysts say.
Arrest made, manslaughter charge pending in 2022 death of Calgary toddler
Calgary police have arrested a man and a charge is pending in connection with the death of a toddler in 2022.
How to avoid the trap of becoming 'house poor'
The journey to home ownership can be exciting, but personal finance columnist Christopher Liew warns about the trappings of becoming 'house poor' -- where an overwhelming portion of your income is devoured by housing costs. Liew offers some practical strategies to maintain better financial health while owning a home.
'A living nightmare': Winnipeg woman sentenced following campaign of harassment against man after online date
A Winnipeg woman was sentenced to house arrest after a single date with a man she met online culminated in her harassing him for years, and spurred false allegations which resulted in the innocent man being arrested three times.
When new leaders took over in ancient Maya, they didn't just bury the former royals. They burned their bodies in public
New archeological investigations in Guatemala reveal that the ancient Maya people had a ritual of burning royal human remains as a public display of political regime change.
Where did the gold go? Crime expert weighs in on unfolding Pearson airport heist investigation
Almost 7,000 bars of pure gold were stolen from Pearson International Airport exactly one year ago during an elaborate heist, but so far only a tiny fraction of that stolen loot has been found.
Prince William returns to public duties after wife Kate's cancer revelation
Prince William will return to public duties on Thursday for the first time since his wife Kate revealed she was undergoing preventative chemotherapy for cancer.
Russia reports downing 5 Ukrainian military balloons in Kyiv's latest apparent war innovation
Russian air defences downed what authorities described as five Ukrainian balloons overnight, the defence ministry in Moscow said Thursday, as the sides kept up long-range strikes that have featured heavily in what has largely become a war of attrition.
Local Spotlight
Marmot in the city: New resident of North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale a 'rock star rodent'
When Les Robertson was walking home from the gym in North Vancouver's Lower Lonsdale neighbourhood three weeks ago, he did a double take. Standing near a burrow it had dug in a vacant lot near East 1st Street and St. Georges Avenue was a yellow-bellied marmot.
Relocated seal returns to Greater Victoria after 'astonishing' 204-kilometre trek
A moulting seal who was relocated after drawing daily crowds of onlookers in Greater Victoria has made a surprise return, after what officials described as an 'astonishing' six-day journey.
Ottawa barber shop steps away from Parliament Hill marks 100 years in business
Just steps from Parliament Hill is a barber shop that for the last 100 years has catered to everyone from prime ministers to tourists.
'It was a special game': Edmonton pinball player celebrates high score and shout out from game designer
A high score on a Foo Fighters pinball machine has Edmonton player Dave Formenti on a high.
'How much time do we have?': 'Contamination' in Prairie groundwater identified
A compound used to treat sour gas that's been linked to fertility issues in cattle has been found throughout groundwater in the Prairies, according to a new study.
'Why not do it together?': Lifelong friends take part in 'brosectomy' in Vancouver
While many people choose to keep their medical appointments private, four longtime friends decided to undergo vasectomies as a group in B.C.'s Lower Mainland.
Grain-gobbling bears spark 'no stopping' zone in Banff National Park
A popular highway in Alberta's Banff National Park now has a 'no stopping zone' to help protect two bears.
Deer family appears to accept B.C. man as one of their own
B.C. resident Robert Conrad spent thousands of hours on Crown land developing an unusual bond with deer.
Doorbell video shows family of black bears scared off by dog in Sudbury, Ont.
A Sudbury woman said her husband was bringing the recycling out to the curb Wednesday night when he had to make a 'mad dash' inside after seeing a bear.