January 26, 1998 Over The Edge Page 3 Canadian government could face lawsuit over MAI BY JEREMY NELSON WINNIPEG (CUP) — If a Canadian activist group has its way, members of the Liberal Party of Canada may soon find themselves in court charged with violating the very constitution they have sworn to uphold. The Defense of Canadian Liberty Committee, a Vancouver-based group, is presently preparing to wage a lawsuit accusing the federal government of violating Canadian law by negotiating the proposed Multilateral Agreement on Investment (MAI), The MAI is a far-reaching economic treaty presently being negotiated behind- closed doors by Canada and 28 other nations. As drafted, it will remove many of the powers of government to reg- ulate the activities of both for- eign and domestic corpora- tions. The agreement will also ban governments: from creating any new environmental or labour legislation that could be deemed harmful to the business of a domestic or for- eign corporation. According to Tim Madden, a legal and economic historian, the case against the MAI is clear cut, with many legal precedents to back it up. The Canadian constitution, he says, stipulates very clear- ly that governments cannot give away or transfer any of their powers, even if all levels of government agree to do so. “The federal government has a responsibility under Section 91 of the Constitution Act to make laws respecting commerce and _ trade,” Madden, who will be one of the chief researchers for the case, said. “The MAI is essentially the government abdicating its responsibility to react to wrongs with respect to trade and commerce, which is exactly what the Supreme Court of Canada has repeatedly said that you cannot do.” The legal foundation for the case comes from several court rulings, the most impor- tant of which was issued in 1951, when the Supreme Court ruled against a joint proposal made by Nova Scotia and the federal gov- ernment to swap several con- stitutional responsibilities. “The Constitution of Canada does not belong either to Parliament or to _ the Legislatures,” the unanimous ruling stated. “It belongs to the country and it is there that the citizens of the country will find the protections of the right to which they are enti- tled.” According to Connie Fogal, head lawyer on the case, the MAI would destroy many of the rights citizens are entitled to under the Canadian Constitution. “Under the MAI, if there’s something our government wants to do for its citizens that causes a company to lose money, we’re not going to be able to do that at all. And that’s insane,” she said. Much of the committee’s case will revolve around the dispute settlement section of the MAI, which would allow corporations to sue Canadian governments in closed-door tribunals where decisions are made by arbitrators, not by judges or juries. Fogal says If There’s Smoke at UNBC it would Pretty Much have to be a Fire. By Nicole Larson When you wander into the Corner Store, here on the UNBC campus, ‘you may notice the bright yellow sign above the shelves behind the counter. If you are a smoker the sign would have special significance to you because it says that on Wednesday, December 3rd, the President's council here at UNBC decided to discontinue the sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products on campus. There are still ciga- rettes for sale but after this shipment is sold out there will be no more. The buildings of UNBC have been smoke free since their opening in 1994. Last summer a task force was set up to look at the areas outside of the school which are most frequently used by smokers, but this decision was totally indepen- dent of that study. The reaction by student smokers has been varied. Comments ranged from , well | don’t usually buy my ciga- rettes there anyway to what will happen next? Will alcohol and fatty foods be the next to go. Few students have actu- ally tried to contact the per- son responsible for the removal of the cigarettes from shelves, Pat Hibbetts, the Vice President of Finance at UNBC. There have been, however, some complaints posted to unbc.general and two students went up to Pat Hibbetts office to talk to her about their concerns, but when they were told she was in a meeting and asked to return at a later time that afternoon, did not appear again. You may be asking, espe- ° cially if you are a Business major, but what about the financial side of the question? Won't discontinuing the sale of cigarettes negatively effect the profit margin at the Corner Store? . Continued on Page 4 the government of Canada would be overstepping its constitutional authority and undermining its sovereignty if it signed an agreement grant- ing corporations this right. But the government of Canada disagrees. It recently intervened in a case being heard by the U.S. courts cov- ering, similar issues. The plaintiffs in the case allege that President Bill Clinton and the U.S. Congress exceeded their constitutional authority by passing the North American Free Trade Agreement, which contains .provisions similar to those proposed in the MAI. “Both Canada and the United States have champi- oned the use of binding dis- pute settlement international- ly, and both have committed themselves to it as a matter of international law,” stated the Canadian government in a brief it recently released. “The development, adoption and implementation of the provisions of Chapter 19 of NAFTA (which allow corpora- tions to sue governments through trade tribunals) by both the United States and Canada were not abdications of sovereignty by either coun- try, but were intentional and fully authorized sovereign acts.” But Madden disagrees. “The question that needs to be put to them is not, “Is this legal to the court system?” but rather, “What has funda- mentally changed since the last time the courts told you no?” And the answer is noth- ing. It's the same constitu- tion.” It We Are 7<™ : THEATRE Nosri West Tickets: Mosquito Books & Studio 2880. Preview (Jan 21) all tickets $12.50 Regular prices $15.75 - $20.50 Call 563-6969 for student group rates