Vancouver Province
for September 17, 1999

The Reform Party’s in a steep decline meaning that the Liberal Party will gain strength in B.C. notwithstanding its idiotic decision to expropriate Nanoose Bay. Why do I say this?

Several reasons.

Reform was to be a party for Western Canada, though it wound up being a party of the Far West only. A great many of its supporters wanted it to be no more than that unless it could expand into other provinces without sacrificing that basic principle. But after it became the Official Opposition, Preston Manning got ambitious and now seeks a deal with Joe Who? whereby the Tories and Reform can unite, under Preston Manning of course, and take Ontario away from the Liberals and thus form a government. Not only isn’t this going to happen, many Reformers in Alberta and B.C. see negotiations with the Tories as treating with the enemy.

But there’s another fundamental flaw in the Reform machinery and this will undermine it’s position more than dealing with Joe Clark. The Reform Party was, without question, set up by the right wing, Ted Byfield being the founding guru and the most right-wing man in Canada if not beyond. But the electoral support it got in 1993 and 1997 didn’t just come from the right wing and the bottom feeders they attract, but from disgruntled Liberals and Red Tories – a loose bloc which probably makes up over half the electorate in this Province. Reform has consistently refused to recognize this fact. That’s probably because in electing Reform, the center-right in fact sent some right wing gorillas to Ottawa who assumed that, instead of being just mad at the Liberals and Tories, the electors actually agreed with their basic philosophy. Now that Reform’s shown its true colours, small "l" liberals and Red Tories see the party they supported as entirely out of synch with their own political philosophies. They see Reform Party’s Justice policy represented by Art Hanger’s visit to Singapore to assess the benefits of caning. The very mention of the word "gay" or "homosexual" sends many Reform MPs whirling into outer space in paroxysms of spluttering rage. They see the Alberta "cowboys" baiting French Canadians in the "Flag" incident.

But nothing has marked out the illiberality of Reform more than the recent "boat people" incident where men like John Reynolds and Randy White, always protesting to the contrary, have played the "race" card while intentionally ignoring the facts.

Fact:- Those who reach our shores claiming refuge, wherever they arrive and with whatever documentation or lack of it, are not criminals as repeatedly they’ve been called by John Reynolds. No less an authority than the Supreme Court of Canada has made that clear.

Fact:- We are not able, under the laws of Canada, to turn these refugee claimants away without giving them "due process".

Fact:- If we wish to change the situation we can do one or both of two things. We can put more resources into the Refugee assessment segment of Immigration Canada or Parliament can, by necessity using the "Notwithstanding" clause, pass a law sending all refugees packing without hearings (thus abrogating our obligations to the United Nations.)

Fact:- Those who seek refuge in Canada and arrive on our shores are not, repeat not illegal immigrants. The famous Singh case of 1986 makes that clear. Arriving on our shores is the only practical way a person can seek refuge.

Fact:- It’s an "either/or" situation. Either we provide refugees with "due process" or we pass laws denying it to all who seek refuge in our country.

Without doubt Reynolds and White have the mouth breathers in the community on side but if my feedback is any indication – and I get a lot of it – more and more people are reverting to their pre Reform Party ways and saying, in essence, "we may always like how it works but Canada believes in "due process".

The impression Reform gives off is of ultra right-wing Christians ever ready to dump on minorities and the less fortunate. This is grossly unfair to men like Chuck Cadman and Keith Martin but politics is a question of optics and feel – and the Reform Party looks and feels insensitive, racist and sharp edged.

Reform may soon go the way of the Progressives and the old Alberta based Social Credit Party. From that, lamentably, only the Liberals stand to profit.