B.C. Supreme Court Chief Justice Robt. Bauman,
Assoc. Chief Justice Anne MacKenzie,
Mr. Justice Joel Groves,
Jill Leacock, law officer.
May 12, 2010
Copies distributed widely.
My Lords, My Lady, and Ms. Leacock:
With the very deepest regret I am writing to you about what I have to believe is one more expression of administrative chaos at the Supreme Court of British Columbia (or, perhaps, far, far worse – what may be perceived as active prejudice and partisanship at the highest levels of the court).
I refer to what you name the “Accreditation Process For Journalists”, a process (June, 2002) by which “accredited journalists” may “take recording devices into B.C. Supreme Court trials in order to assist them to report accurately….”
I have been denied accreditation by a committee of four chosen by the Court (all four committee members are employees of one single, notoriously reactionary media conglomerate which I criticize publicly!), and I reject the decision out of hand.
I request, formally, that you overturn the decision of the committee without any delay and inform me of the overturning without any delay.
The rejection of my application raises questions very much larger than the particular case of my rejection.
Is the whole basis of the “accreditation” process in place created to prevent ordinary citizens from recording Open Court proceedings – for baldly commercial reasons and not to assure privacy, accused rights, or any other reasons? The monopoly operators of transcript production are (notoriously) reported to charge outrageous rates for transcripts. Is the Supreme Court of British Columbia constructing “processes” like the one named here in order to increase the profits of the private corporate monopoly (or monopolies)?
Many Canadians believe, with me, that private (for profit) corporations have no place whatever in the administration of justice in Canada!
In fact, any Canadian should be able to record all proceedings of B.C. Supreme Court trials (the great Open Court system to assure fairness, equity, justice, and responsibility in the conduct of the law in Canadian courts). Restrictions on broadcast of recorded materials and other reasonable restrictions could be placed on ordinary citizens, as they are placed on journalists. To forbid Canadians from recording trial procedures is to brand them as people so likely to act criminally in regard to court procedures that they must be restrained by those appointed to serve them. Canadians must be denied their fundamental rights because court officers (without the power to do so) decide Canadians will use those rights for criminal purposes.
Such a decision by court officers is an insult to all Canadians and a vile restriction of the freedoms of Canadians.
No other explanation can be made for the denial of recording rights to any Canadian attending a B.C. Supreme Court trial.
In my particular case, I have been attending the BC Rail Scandal court proceedings and reporting widely on them (specifically, but not only, for two Canadian websites) for a period of more than three years. I have been in the courtrooms involved more than any of the four members of the committee which has denied me accreditation.
The make-up of the committee is a scandal.
The four members of the committee are all employees of the notoriously reactionary CanWest conglomerate (generally believed to be a solid supporter of the Gordon Campbell government). CanWest is presently in a state of fragmentation – but that fact has nothing whatever to do with this particular matter or the odious restriction of freedoms placed on ordinary Canadians attending B.C. Supreme Court trials.
I will not protract this letter. I will, however, report to you something you know very well already. In B.C. the Supreme Court has (I can say this at a glance and without the least research on the matter) many other places from which to select committee members to oversee the “Accreditation Process For Journalists”. Just for instance, there is the CBC, the Globe and Mail,
The Georgia Strait, Tyee, Black Press papers, university and college journalism faculties, Communications Department faculties, Canadian historians, political scientists… and many, many others .
Without moving from their offices, committee members could act with full responsibility by using (as the “Accreditation” system already provides) the resources of the internet – which allows all “meetings” and deliberations to go on without actual physical meeting of the committee.
For the Supreme Court of British Columbia to constitute a committee for the “Accreditation Process For Journalists” from one only private media corporation is scandalous. For the choice to be the notoriously reactionary CanWest Corporation is almost unbelievable (and provides a perception of extraordinary bias on the part of the highest Court officers).
The trial of Dave Basi, Bobby Virk, and Aneal Basi begins on May 17. I ask you to act BEFORE THAT DATE to grant me accreditation for the trial, and to inform me that accreditation has been granted.
Respectfully,
Robin Mathews
520 Salsbury Drive,
Vancouver, B.C.
V5L 3Z7
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