Rule Of Law In Canada

The Rule of Law appears to be one of the single most important features of Canadian society―perhaps even in all of modern society. The very idea that criminal and civil penalties fall equally across the populace without regard to distinctions such as social class is one that is held highly, with one example being its place as a constitutional amendment in the United States. While this global adoption is a contemporary addition to humanity’s norms, with it beginning in England and spreading through colonialism, Rule of Law has taken to root surprisingly well. It is therefore disheartening that this esteemed cornerstone is subject to such rampant hypocrisy, even in the heart(s) of the so-called ‘Western World’. Despite the Equal Protection Clause

of the 14th Amendment, police and sentencing in the United States disproportionately investigates, charges, and convicts Persons of Colour and the poor. In Canada, there remains widespread use of solitary confinement and indefinite detention, exemplified with Omar Khadr, who was never charged despite being held for over ten years―a situation that the Prime Minister of Canada, Stephen Harper, remains affirmatively unapologetic about. Even the birthplace of the Rule of Law is not exempt from this tradition of hypocrisy, as the case of John Bingham (where the investigation into a murder was hampered due to Bingham’s position as a member of the aristocracy). If society is to truly be held to the Rule of Law, it cannot continue to be treated by officials in such a hypocritical manner. After all, if people lose faith in the institution of law, then one has failed to make law altogether.