What are some of the safeguards built into the Anti-terrorism Act?
The ATA, like all Canadian laws, was crafted with due regard to the rule of law and the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms. The ATA includes a number of safeguards that balance the need to protect individuals from the threat of terrorist acts while ensuring their rights and freedoms are respected. Some of the safeguards in the ATA include: • the definition of “terrorist activity” requires that intent and purpose elements be satisfied. The definition expressly excludes “advocacy, protest, dissent or stoppage of work” (where these are not intended to result in serious forms of specified harm); • judicial review, appeals, and judicial oversight mechanisms are incorporated into provisions like the listing process and seizure, restraint and forfeiture of property; • section 145 of the ATA required a committee or committees of Parliament to conduct a “comprehensive review of the provisions and operation of the Act,” within three years from the date that the Act received Royal Assent, wh
