[ Page 2843 ]

The House met at 10:04 a.m.

Prayers.

Hon. A. Petter: Later today at the University of Victoria, a ceremony will be held to commemorate the life and contribution of Murray Fraser. When Murray Fraser died on March 12, 1997, of heart failure at the age of 59, this country lost a man who played a major role in the education of thousands of Canadians and thousands of British Columbians.

Born in Liverpool and raised in Nova Scotia, he received undergraduate degrees in arts and law from Dalhousie University, a master's in law from the University of London in the United Kingdom and honorary degrees from Dalhousie, the University of Victoria and the Memorial University of Newfoundland. He was made a Queen's Counsel in Nova Scotia in 1979 and has won a long list of other awards. The University of Victoria honoured him again just last year by naming the law school lecture hall the F. Murray Fraser Auditorium.

Murray Fraser was a tremendous teacher and a tremendous leader. He taught law at Queen's, Dalhousie and the Universities of Victoria and Calgary. I think, to those in this province, he is probably remembered for the years in which he took on the role of founding dean at the University of Victoria and turned the University of Victoria from a university with no reputation in law into one that now enjoys a national and leading reputation in law.

Having successfully founded and established the University of Victoria faculty of law, he went on from that role to become the vice-president, academic, at the University of Victoria and saw the university through some difficult and challenging times in an exemplary fashion. In 1988 he became president and vice-chancellor of the University of Calgary. In 1996, after serving for eight years, he stepped down from the university to start work in the private sector and was appointed president emeritus.

Murray Fraser made so many contributions to his community, to academe and to the students he served that it's hard to point to any of them, but I think many have noted the incredible contribution he made to the advancement of legal education generally -- turning legal education into a more humane and socially aware pursuit than it had been previously -- and, in particular, his commitment to women's equality. His work with the family law project of the Law Reform Commission of Canada attacked inequities in the way women and children were treated under the law. At the University of Victoria he advanced the university's commitment to women's equality on campus and worked to develop the equity issues office and policy.

As a fundraiser, he displayed charisma and fortitude. At UVic he convinced the Law Foundation to provide $2 million for the law library, which has become a tremendous resource for the entire community. In 1991 he led the University of Calgary's first national fundraising campaign and raised $46 million -- $6 million more than the target -- at a time when that university was sorely in need of those funds. Murray Fraser worked to become a community leader wherever he taught. He reached out to the community; he integrated the community into his work.

But as someone who was a former student of Murray Fraser's, I must say that to me he was, in every sense, most of all an educator. By deed, by example, in every way, he showed how every life experience was a learning experience. He provided an example to students as to how they could achieve things that were never imagined as being achievable. He pushed people to be the best that they could be, and he stayed with his students well beyond their years in the universities in which he taught.

He'll be missed by many, many people in this community and across this country. A memorial service at the University of Calgary last month was attended by some 4,000 people. I know his family has received thousands of letters from across the country. But as British Columbians, I think we owe a special debt of gratitude to Murray Fraser for the legacy he has left to us, for the work he did to enrich our community and for the vision he had of a more humane community and a more progressive vision of how the law can work to serve that community.

Murray is survived by his wife of 37 years, Anne, and their sons Scott, Andrew and Hugh. I think all British Columbians owe him and his family a tremendous debt of gratitude.

G. Plant: I rise to join in the expression of gratitude that the Minister of Finance has just made -- and said, I must say, with great eloquence. Murray Fraser will be remembered for a long, long time as one of Canada's leading academics. For my part, I think the contribution for which we as British Columbians should be most grateful is his contribution to the construction and development of the University of Victoria law faculty, which in a relatively short period of time has developed, as the minister says, an international reputation.

What is special about the University of Victoria law faculty -- and I think this is in large measure a result of Murray Fraser's contribution -- is that from the beginning it had the courage to develop its own approach to the teaching of law and to the importance of law faculties as centres of research and centres of development of legal excellence across a broad range of spectrums, and not simply turning out people who would become good legal practitioners. I think that in the years since the University of Victoria law faculty was established, it has continued to grow and develop with that spirit. That is an important legacy for anyone to attempt to leave, and I share the Minister of Finance's view that we as British Columbians owe a debt of gratitude to Murray Fraser and his family for making that contribution.

I hope that the Minister of Finance, if he has the opportunity to do so, will express those sentiments to Murray Fraser's family on behalf of the opposition.

M. Coell: In the chamber today we have 14 guests, international exchange students from countries as diverse as Croatia, Brazil and Germany. They're studying in the Seattle area, and they're here today with their chaperons to see how this House functions. Would the House please make them welcome.

Hon. A. Petter presented a message from His Honour the Administrator: a bill intituled Capital Region Water Supply and Sooke Hills Protection Act.

Hon. A. Petter: I am happy to present the Capital Region Water Supply and Sooke Hills Protection Act for first reading, 

[ Page 2844 ]

especially since this is Earth Week. Bill 17 builds on the extensive consultation process undertaken by the Special Commission on the Greater Victoria Water Supply. With this bill we are achieving a number of important goals. The legislation will more than double the amount of protected parkland in the capital region, once again demonstrating this government's commitment to a sustainable future in British Columbia.

At 4,900 hectares, the new Sooke Hills Wilderness Regional Park will be larger than the municipalities of Esquimalt, Oak Bay and Victoria combined. The new park will further protect the area's natural heritage and unique ecosystems, which include Douglas fir, Garry oak and many rare plant species. The park will further provide a buffer that will ensure the capital region continues to have a pure and plentiful water supply well into the future.

The bill provides, as well, for a new framework for managing the regional water supply. The legislation dissolves the greater Victoria water district and transfers its assets, rights, property and obligations to the CRD. The CRD will establish a commission that will ensure the distribution of high-quality water while encouraging water conservation. The bill simplifies and enhances local governance without increasing administrative costs to government.

I am pleased to say, hon. Speaker, that the bill has been a product of much consultation and effort, and we are joined in the gallery today by John Bergbusch, who, as mayor of Colwood and chair of the implementation team, has been working closely with government in pursuing these goals.

With this legislation, the government of British Columbia confirms its commitment to a new relationship with local government: new participation, new accountability, new parkland. This bill provides another step towards meeting the challenges of a rapidly growing population on southern Vancouver Island, while ensuring that we preserve the purity and sustainability of the water and land that surrounds us.

I move that Bill 17 be placed on orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

[10:15]

Bill 17 introduced, read a first time and ordered to be placed on orders of the day for second reading at the next sitting of the House after today.

T. Stevenson: I rise to speak on Prevention of Violence Against Women Week. It is a very great honour for me to have been asked by the Minister of Women's Equality to speak today on this extremely important issue of violence against women, for I believe it is crucial for men to be speaking up on this issue -- not only speaking up but also becoming more and more informed about the very real horror of violence in so many women's lives and the fear that many women live with.

As a stepfather of three daughters aged, 16, 18 and 20, I have over the past several years become increasingly aware and concerned about violence against women. This one week is set aside each year to focus our attention on violence against women and to give us the opportunity to rededicate ourselves as individuals, as communities and as a society to do everything we can to prevent violence against women.

Over the past 20 years, people have become more and more aware that we have inherited and live in an essentially patriarchal society and that power lies mainly in the hands of men. Thanks primarily to the feminist movement, in the past few decades we have learned to think in new ways about gender and about power. There are still men, though, who deny and denigrate the efforts of women to reach equality. There are still men who don't understand the effect of centuries of misogyny on women -- women who are our daughters, our wives, our sisters, our mothers, our friends.

During Prevention of Violence Against Women Week, I believe it is important for men to talk to each other about violence against women, to take a look at our own behaviour and to reconsider the ways men give permission, even by our silence, to men who cling to the notion that violence against women is proof of their manhood, that it is the way it is and always has been, or that it is of little significance. But first we must face the horrific facts about violence against women head-on, not in order to beat ourselves with these facts, not to use them as weapons to elicit guilt, but rather to become aware of the depth and breadth of the problem so that as men we might challenge one another about our attitudes and work with women to overcome this societal problem.

The facts about violence against women are indeed staggering. One in two women, 51 percent, experience one incident of male violence after the age of 16 -- one in two women, hon. Speaker. Women of all ages and from all social strata experience violence, with younger and poorer women being more vulnerable.

Contrary to popular opinion, violence against women is usually not at the hands of some stranger in the dark. Over 64 percent of women who experience violence are assaulted by men who know them. The attackers are often spouses, boyfriends, dates and neighbours. One in three women in violent relationships fears for her life due to the severity of the violence. Astoundingly, 23 percent of the women who experience wife assault are assaulted during pregnancy.

Unfortunately, the highest rate of violence -- nearly 60 percent -- is reported in British Columbia. This is not a figure our province can be proud of. But in Canada as a whole, a women is raped every 17 minutes. Every 17 minutes, a woman is raped in Canada. One in four women will be raped in her lifetime. One in eight girls will be sexually assaulted before the age of 18.

These are shocking statistics, statistics that many men haven't known, or if we have, we've not allowed them to sink in. Men need to understand that the individual who murdered 14 female engineering students in Montreal on December 6, 1989, was not just an isolated, one-time phenomenon occurring somehow in a vacuum. Every time and every place has produced Marc Lepines or Mark Chahals.

It is our challenge here in British Columbia to revise the way we think, the way we behave and the way we accept or refuse to accept responsibility for the behaviour of others, and to create a society that has zero tolerance for violence against women, a society where men and women are equal and free from violence and from the fear of violence. Prevention of Violence Against Women Week is an appropriate time for men to begin to engage in the dialogue with each other, because violence against women is perpetrated by men. Men have to be a part of the solution because we are the problem.

Many years ago, I learned that because of the fact that I'm a very large person, my physical presence could be frightening or intimidating to some women, and my booming voice 

[ Page 2845 ]

could also be frightening and intimating. I began to realize that the behaviour I saw as merely forceful and assertive was seen and felt by many women as threatening. So I learned to modify the way I presented myself and to take into account the differences that gender can make, even unintentionally.

This is not a partisan issue, hon. Speaker. We need to be working together 52 weeks of the year to make our friends and neighbours aware that violence against women won't be tolerated anymore.

This week the Minister of Women's Equality and the Attorney General announced a campaign to inform the public about the crime of stalking. It has only been in the Criminal Code for four years, so this campaign will raise public awareness of the fact that stalking is a crime, not an act of love. The Attorney General and the Minister of Women's Equality also announced an amnesty for weapons, including firearms, and I hope members will let their constituents know about these initiatives. Reducing the number of weapons in circulation will save lives. Providing information about services for women who are being stalked will help police to investigate and charge people who commit the crime of criminal harassment. We have to spread the word to one another and to our families, in our workplaces, our social clubs and our churches and throughout entire communities, because that is the only way attitudes will change.

The Speaker: Thank you, member. Your time has expired.

T. Stevenson: I ask members to look closely at this and begin to help one another to bring about real change in communities.

L. Stephens: I'm pleased to rise this morning to respond to the member for Vancouver-Burrard's statements on family violence. It is appropriate this week that this is a subject we should all be thinking about, and we should all rededicate ourselves to finding some solutions to make sure that this particular issue is something that women across Canada, and in British Columbia particularly, no longer have to face.

I want to remark that I appreciate the member's comments, particularly when he talks about the role that men have to play in this issue. In fact, he's absolutely correct when he talks about men needing to become involved and part of the solution to what is faced every day through many women's lives.

The commitment that the government has shown is a modest commitment around the weapons amnesty, the criminal-stalking provisions and the educational programs that the ministry is currently undertaking. These are welcome. They're modest, but they are a start. I would encourage members opposite to speak with their minister and with the Attorney General and lobby for proposals that come forward from this government to address this very serious problem. Women still depend on police for the enforcement, and they still depend on the police to investigate. I would suggest this is one of the areas where the members opposite could lobby their particular ministers.

There's a lack of coordinated victim services around domestic violence. Street people and aboriginal women and prostitutes have no power and no advocates, so they receive no protection or service from the police. I think women have been given a false sense of security about what is in place now. When we find that Crown prosecutors won't charge if the women won't testify, and when we find that the Violence Against Women in Relationships policy is not supported and is not enforced consistently around the province, we have to turn our attention to those issues.

But I do want to congratulate again the member opposite for his comments, and I want to stress this: because men are part of the problem, they do have to be part of the solution. Members on this side of the House recognize that, and I want to say that members opposite, through this member, have demonstrated an awareness of what needs to be done. I congratulate them on that.

T. Stevenson: I thank the member for Langley for her remarks. To show the severity of this issue, I want to relate two situations that I have come across in the past couple of weeks. One is a trial that just concluded within the last day or so, where a father wanting to damage his wife somehow went to their children and beat one to death with an axe and severely injured another. This horrendous violence, directed to the woman but taken out on the children, is incomprehensible.

Just as incomprehensible was an incident that was related to me this week by a health care worker, because I'm dealing with the Adult Guardianship Act, as members know. This health care worker said they were dealing with a situation of abuse in a seniors home. This couple who are in their eighties live side by side. They have two separate bedrooms with a washroom in the middle. One night within the last couple of weeks, the staff heard a noise and went into the wife's room. She was 85. They found the husband in the room with this woman, smashing her across the face in her bed. He had abused his wife all his life, and even in the seniors home at this late time in her life, he continued to abuse her -- a pattern that was obviously learned long ago in his own life and that he had never dealt with.

It was shocking for me to hear these. But this is the reality that women live with, and this is the reality that we men need to become aware of and, as the member opposite said, in partnership with women, learn to find ways of communicating this and finding solutions.

W. Hurd: I'm pleased today to rise to speak to a topic that I've entitled Deadly Missiles. It really refers to the motor vehicles in the province that are under the control of people who are impaired by drugs and alcohol.

First, I want to dedicate my statement today to a constituent of mine, Ken Roffel, whose son Mark was killed in a tragic motor vehicle accident on March 13 in Langley. Ken's son Mark was westbound on 16th Avenue and was struck and killed at a controlled intersection at 232nd Street. From that tragedy, Ken's determination grew to see a change in the province's laws affecting drunk driving. With the help of a family friend, Ken Roffel erected a sign at 232nd Avenue and 16th which says: "A drunk killed our son here on March 13, 1996. Help change the law to keep drunks off the road." That sign is still there to this day, and it is at that intersection as a reminder of the tragedy that family experienced.

[10:30]

When Ken came into my office to talk about his son, he asked if I, as his MLA, would do some research into this growing and tragic issue in our province. I did that, hon. Speaker, and had legislation sent to me from the province of Saskatchewan, which had one of the worst records of drunk-driving offences and accidents in the country. I talked to Ken for some time about this legislation.

[ Page 2846 ]

I thought it would be appropriate just to read into the record some of the changes that have occurred in Saskatchewan to deal with that very real problem:

"The new law, which came into effect August 1 of last year, lowers the blood alcohol limit on roadside suspensions from .06 to .04. It imposes mandatory education and addiction screening for drivers who exceed .04. It raises licence suspensions to one year from six months for a first drunk-driving offence, to three years for a second offence and to five years for a third offence."

In British Columbia, it's clear that we have a serious medical and social issue on our hands. According to the latest statistics provided to me by ICBC, impaired driving costs British Columbians a total of $359 million each year in medical and legal costs; 40 percent of all fatal crashes in the province involve alcohol; 20 percent of injury crashes and 15 percent of property damage crashes in the province are attributed to the abuse of alcohol or other substances.

Five hundred people die in motor vehicle accidents in British Columbia each year, so that means that more than 200 people in our province die each year as a result of accidents involving alcohol. These are young people in many cases. They are brothers, sons, fathers and daughters. I think the impact on B.C.'s families over the years has been devastating. Many high school annuals contain the pictures of young drivers who do not graduate because they have been killed or seriously injured in these kinds of accidents. I resolved to Ken that as his MLA I would do what I could to raise this issue on his behalf in the Legislative Assembly today.

There's a coalition of groups in our province that have come together to advocate changes to our drunk-driving laws. It involves organizations like the British Columbia Automobile Association, which recently surveyed its entire membership and concluded that there was a dramatic and determined conviction that we needed to change our laws. It involves the B.C. Safety Council, ICBC, the police, youth workers -- those who feel that the time is right in this province for us to make substantive changes in the way we deal with drunk drivers.

I think the comments of BCAA are appropriate at this time. According to its president, Bill Bullis:

"It's time we started treating the root of drunk driving. More than 60 percent of the people charged with impaired driving are repeat offenders. Clearly, the threats of arrest, conviction and suspension aren't doing anything to change the behaviour of these people. That's because many of them have serious drinking or other substance abuse problems, and until we treat those problems, we're not going to get impaired drivers off the road."

One of the hallmarks of the Saskatchewan legislation, and the legislation that has been brought forward in Washington State, is the requirement for mandatory rehabilitation and drug counselling for offenders, people who are convicted of drunk driving. It's absolutely essential, I believe, that people who are convicted of this serious offence be required to demonstrate to the government that in fact they've been able to conquer this habit, which causes them to get behind the wheel of a car and play Russian roulette with the lives of so many people they may come in contact with.

So, hon. Speaker, I just want to say on behalf of Ken, who has tirelessly gone forward with a desire to see these laws changed, that as an MLA I continue to work on that and to pressure the government to make change. I know that the Attorney General is contemplating some of the changes that have occurred in other provinces, and I commend him for that. I say it's time in British Columbia that the lives of the 200 people who are killed each year who are killed as a result of drunk drivers are taken seriously and that we make a determined effort to get drunk drivers off the roads of our province.

R. Kasper: I think everyone in this House and those who are watching the debate in the Legislature would wholeheartedly agree with the member. It's my hope that none of us have to experience the devastation that results from the tragedies that all of us have seen in the news media, in the newspapers and driving by accident scenes. The impact on families and friends carries on forever because of the memories associated with loved ones who are lost as a result of individuals who have driven impaired.

The whole question of impaired driving is very serious for all people in this province. Fatalities and injuries associated with impaired driving result in insurance claims of over $337 million per year. I think it's important that we recognize what the Insurance Corporation and government have been doing to eliminate, to help reduce, the impact of impaired drivers.

In 1996, ICBC provided extraordinary funding to pay for police to increase roadchecks in 19 jurisdictions across the province. Over two million drivers passed through these roadchecks, and police laid nearly 9,000 charges related to drinking and driving. The return on the investment that was made is $3 for every $1 that was paid for that increase in roadside checks.

Driver prohibition and vehicle impoundment -- I'm pleased that ICBC. . . . Effective May 5 a driver who is charged will be suspended from driving for three months, and if that driver is found driving under suspension, the vehicle driven will be impounded. As I said earlier, this program will take effect May 5.

Not only is it action like that. . . . I think we have to look to the future. I think that impaired-driving roadcheck enforcement should be extended to the entire province year-round, with full-time police personnel. That's the way we're going to get this nipped in the bud. The hon. member raises a concern that affects or could affect anybody in this room. Not only that, we should implement an impaired-driver assessment, referral and treatment program and possibly include the application of ignition interlock technology. Those are important steps that should be taken, and not only there. When we have people who are caught driving impaired, we have to beef up our court system by establishing courts and Crown who are specifically dedicated to impaired-driving prosecution -- once and for all, to drive that message home loud and clear.

I think I'd be remiss if I didn't take this opportunity to acknowledge the work of the hon. member for his deliberations and involvement in this Legislature. Today may be his last opportunity to speak in the House because of events that are unfolding, perhaps Sunday. I would like to thank the hon. member for his deliberations. I know that I worked very closely with him in 1992 on the whole question of manufactured home legislation, and I'd like to take the opportunity to wish him well in his future endeavours.

W. Hurd: I'll resist the temptation to talk about the member's last comments and deal with a brief wrap-up of the member's statement.

In conclusion, I want to say that death by drunk driving is the leading cause of criminal death in the province. I think there are many British Columbians who may read the news- 

[ Page 2847 ]

papers and will not realize that. Far more people each year are killed in our province by drunk drivers, which is a criminal offence, than by any other cause.

It's also important to acknowledge the work that's been done by the B.C. Automobile Association with respect to this. The BCAA pointed out to me that they believe that all drivers whose licences are suspended should undergo a mandatory assessment for alcohol or drug abuse and that those found to have a substance abuse problem should be required to complete a mandatory rehabilitation program prior to having their driving privileges returned. It's important to note that B.C. is the only province in Canada that does not have some form of compulsory rehabilitation for impaired drivers. That's a cause that I think is important for all members of this House to endorse should it come forward this spring. The BCAA also polled its entire membership on this issue and uncovered an overwhelming amount of support for this type of legislation.

So I say to Ken Roffel, who has campaigned tirelessly since the death of his son, that I believe changes are happening in our province. It's through the dedicated efforts of families like the Roffels and others that this kind of change will occur.

R. Neufeld: Just a few comments about this issue. I agree wholeheartedly that we must put stiffer penalties in place to prevent drunk driving -- if we can. But this is not the only way we have to combat this. We have to do it through a societal change within the community, much the same as for spousal abuse, which the member for Vancouver-Burrard spoke about earlier. Until we as a society start realizing what happens on our highways when we drink and drive, it will always continue. Mandatory treatments only work for a certain period of time. Unless the person who is taking the mandatory treatments wants to accept them, they are of no use. So it becomes more of a societal change that we have to deal with on this issue.

E. Gillespie: This morning I want to talk about celebrating May 1. While I might be tempted to let everybody know that May 1 is my birthday and there's every good reason for celebration, there's actually a much more important reason for celebrating May 1. It's for that particular reason that I've always been very proud to share my birthday on that day.

There are two very significant days acknowledging the working people of this country and of the world that are coming up next week. The first day is April 28, a national day of mourning. April 28 is the day on which we remember all those workers who have lost their lives or have been injured on the job. Even as we work to increase awareness and safety issues within the workplace, a high price continues to be paid by workers who lose their lives or their livelihood.

Between 1888 and 1964, coalmining disasters claimed the lives of 295 workers. Harsh, unsafe working conditions and relentless production schedules contributed in large measure to this toll of tragedy. That toll is for one small village, population 1,853. But it stands for thousands in B.C. and Alberta collieries. In 1887, 157 men perished in a single blast at Nanaimo. In 1901, 64 died in Cumberland. In 1902, 128 died at Coal Creek near Fernie. In 1914, 189 died at Hillcrest. In 1917, 34 died at Coal Creek. In 1923, 34 died at Cumberland. In 1967, 15 died at Michel, and so on.

[10:45]

These are only deaths related to mining in British Columbia. In 1996 an average of seven workers under the age of 25 suffered disabling accidents each and every week. In 1996 the total number of injury claims to the British Columbia Workers Compensation Board declined by just under 2,000 claims. In 1995, 147,223 injuries resulted in lost-time claims. In 1996 that number fell to 145,278. The total number of fatal cases declined to 182 in 1996 from 200 in 1995.

We are seeing significant progress in lowering these numbers. However, the numbers of injured are not just numbers; they are men and women who feed and shelter and love their families. The untimely loss of a loved one through workplace injury takes an immeasurable toll on all who wait for them to come home at day's end.

Hon. Speaker, the second day that is coming forward next week, May 1, a day in which we honour the workers of the world, is a day that is being celebrated in Cumberland for the first time in decades.

I want to tell you just a little bit about May Day. For many workers around the world May Day is not a time for merry-making and reviving of old customs; it's a day dedicated to the interests of the labourer. It's observed in practically every advanced industrial country except the United States and Canada and is a public holiday in several countries of western Europe such as France, Germany and Italy.

On this continent the first strong link between May Day and labour was formed when, in 1884, a number of American trade unions chose May 1. . . . From that day on, "eight hours shall constitute a legal day's labour." Labour's struggle against opposition to enforce its right to an annual May Day holiday has led to frequent and bloody battles abroad. May Day is not only a day in which we celebrate labour and workers. It is also a celebration and demonstration of the determined will of the working people to destroy class distinctions through social change and to enter on the road, the only road, leading to peace for all people -- the road to international peace.

In 1986 it was reported in the Times -- not the Victoria Times, hon. Speaker -- that three Tories had said the day of May 1 should be retained, since its unfailingly foul weather is a poignant warning of socialism's grim austerities. A Labour MP replied that the wet, miserable and cold weather is a true reflection of the miseries suffered by so many as a result of the policies of the Tory administration.

I would like to speak about May Day in Cumberland. May Day in Cumberland is being celebrated this year with a bean-bake dinner in remembrance of the great strike of 1912-14, a strike that was so profound that even the government felt sorry for the families of the Cumberland miners and sent a trainload of dried beans to them. This year on May 1 the people of Cumberland will celebrate and reminisce about their past and look forward with confidence to a work and community environment which supports free collective bargaining, where hours of work are regulated. Health benefits, pension benefits, unemployment benefits and holidays are a common resource for all of them -- a common benefit in the lives of many working people in this province.

Cumberland will celebrate its greatest martyr, Ginger Goodwin. But even more importantly, the village of Cumberland will celebrate its fathers and mothers, its brothers and sisters: the fathers and brothers who worked in the mines; the mothers and sisters who fed them, who bathed their wounds, who grieved for them, who suffered with them. The village of Cumberland will celebrate the strength that has come through its collective activity and organized labour.

Most people are workers, are parents. Teachers, doctors, school crossing guards, bus drivers, rock stars, baseball 

[ Page 2848 ]

players: they're all workers. Most workers work for somebody else. They have a boss. They work for government, or they work for the school, the hospitals, small business.

The Speaker: Member, may I ask you to please wrap up. Take a sentence, if you wish, to end it.

E. Gillespie: Okay, thank you very much.

Nearly half of those people are union workers; out of every ten workers, four of them carry a union card.

M. de Jong: Thank you, Mr. Speaker, and to the member for Comox Valley for reminding us of the significance of the day coming shortly. As a respondee, the disadvantage one has is to try to anticipate what aspect of that particular day the member will be concentrating on.

I'm happy to learn -- and to extend best wishes to her -- that it will be her birthday. In conducting some rudimentary research for today's debate in this chamber, I can advise her that she shares that distinction with the Duke of Wellington, who was born on the same day in 1769, and Kate Smith, who was born on that day in 1909. Scott Carpenter, who was one of the first astronauts -- and I'll not make any allusion to being in space or in outer space -- was born in 1925. Batman was born on the same day in 1939. You remember Batman, Mr. Speaker: the sort of dark, sinister individual who you'll recall wanted to hide the fact that in his other identity he was Bruce Wayne, a rich capitalist. Again, I will resist the temptation to allude to the NDP's corporate fundraising wing. She shares the birthday with the wife of the member for Okanagan-Penticton, and in recognizing both of your birthdays I am mindful of those sage words of advice from Robert Frost, who defined a diplomat as one who never forgets a woman's birthday but always forgets how old she is.

An Hon. Member: There are people alive who belong in the nineteenth century.

M. de Jong: If the member for Vancouver-Fraserview doesn't appreciate Robert Frost, that's his problem.

I was happy to hear of the celebrations that will take place in Cumberland, because they remind me of a similar celebration that will take place in Bradner, a small community within my riding which has long celebrated May 1. It is interesting that the original celebrations much predate that period of time that we would think of as the industrial revolution, which I think the member spent considerable time focusing upon in her remarks. For many centuries it was actually a Latin-Germanic celebration that really amounted to the welcoming of spring. I'm sure that in Cumberland the children will be dancing around the maypole, as they will in Bradner, and it is a festive occasion, focusing on a seasonal change as much as anything else.

It's been recently -- I would say in the last 125 years -- that May 1 has taken on a new significance, and I think that you can trace much of that to the latter part of the last century, particularly in eastern Europe when the ideas of Engels and others evolved into a more coherent political ideology or doctrine we now refer to as Marxism. The idea of the dialectic and the class struggle and the pursuit and enhancement of socialist doctrine was all part and parcel of a greater consciousness amongst what we would call the working class, and it's very much a part of the movement that I think gives significance to that component of the May 1 celebration that the member for Comox Valley was addressing in her remarks.

I don't want to dwell on the resources that have been spent in the conflict between capitalism and communism. I think it was an Armenian radio broadcaster who said that under capitalism man exploits man; under communism it's exactly the opposite. I don't think there's a great deal to be gained by engaging in that debate. Suffice it to say that the member has correctly focused our attention today on the travails of working people and the struggle to achieve reasonable working conditions.

But let us not forget -- and she ended her remarks with a reference to the significance of organized labour -- that there are other working people. There are those who work for themselves. I think of my father. Let us not forget those who struggle to work and support their families without the benefit of the supporting apparatus that is the organized labour movement.

E. Gillespie: I am pleased to respond, in particular to the last comments of the member opposite. What I would like to say about that is that it is the work of organized labour, of working people who over the years have fought for and have achieved things that benefit all of us in society -- things like health insurance. In the early 1930s the labour movement was struggling very hard to achieve some kind of health insurance. The eight-hour workday, pensions, unemployment insurance, minimum wage, the right to organize and collectively bargain, safe working conditions and child care are some of the many things that have been brought forward through the labour movement -- things that have been fought for. Some of those we have achieved and have done well with; there's lots more work to do. But yes, hon. member, those things that have been achieved have been achieved for all of us.

In my community, the labour leadership works not only on behalf of labour but to support young people in the workplace, ensuring that they know their rights and responsibilities and that they know where they can get support. They work to support and advocate for the poorest in our community. They focus our attention on local, national and international issues which affect the rights of working people.

On May 1, my heart will be in Cumberland, celebrating the gains of labour and encouraging the ongoing fight for respect and equality and for the safety of working people.

L. Stephens: This past week has been designated Prevention of Violence Against Women Week in British Columbia. This is an important proclamation, because family violence is an important issue. There are tremendous human and economic costs to society in terms of health care, the justice system, the lost wages of women and the trauma to children. I believe that much of the violent crime that exists in society today is being learned or fostered by violence in the home, and I believe that substance abuse, youth crime and child prostitution are problems rooted in family violence. That is why I believe we must intervene at the earliest possible opportunity to provide help for families, because we simply cannot allow such violence to be learned and practised in the future.

B.C. has the highest rate of violence against women in relationships, and an average of 110 women are killed each year by partners or ex-partners. Assault by a male partner 

[ Page 2849 ]

or ex-partner is the single most common cause of injury to women. And much of that violence is still hidden. It can take up to 35 incidents of violence before a woman will call the police, and only 14 percent of all incidents of violence are reported to police. The root of the problem is men's violence towards women, and for me the most disturbing aspect is that the responsibility for change continues to be placed on women rather than on their partners and families.

The criminal harassment and basic awareness and safety procedures that were announced this week by the Attorney General and the Minister of Women's Equality are very worthwhile. Yet the onus is on the woman to take action. No wonder women do not feel safe, no wonder women believe that the justice system does not protect them, and no wonder women lose self-esteem and feelings of self-worth, because they continue to get the message that it's all their fault.

[11:00]

Equality cannot be achieved when women continue to live in fear of violence simply because they are women. The fact of the matter is that the Violence Against Women in Relationships policy is not working. It's not being administered consistently around the province, and there is a lack of coordinated victim services and family issues. We need training programs for the police, for lawyers, for judges, for probation officers and for victim services workers, so that they understand the dynamics of domestic violence.

It is a very complex issue, and it is usually very frustrating for service providers to deal with. We need mandatory treatment programs for assaultive men. We need a risk assessment procedure to make better decisions around the potential violence of offenders if they are released on bail. We need an adequate watchdog for women to monitor police practice and government legislation and policy. But most importantly, we need to implement the recommendations of the coroner's jury in the Gakhal family murders in Vernon.

Since that tragic day on April 5, 1996, more women have been stalked and violently attacked by ex-partners. Sharon Velisek in Vernon was shot twice and survived. She contacted the Vernon police 12 times, with very little response. Bonnie Mooney of Prince George -- in April of '96 her ex-partner smashed his way into her home, shot her friend, wounded her daughter, set the house on fire and then killed himself. Debbie Monahan of Langley -- in February of this year, on Valentine's Day, she was beaten to death in her mother's home in Tsawwassen by her estranged husband, who then hanged himself. Each and every one of these women were harassed and stalked. We must stop the physical, sexual, emotional and economic abuse of women that destroys so many lives in this province and in this country.

J. Kwan: I thank the member opposite for her comments regarding the prevention of violence against women. Indeed, this is a significant week for all British Columbians. It was initiated some three years ago in conjunction with the Ministry of Women's Equality and the B.C.-Yukon Society of Transition Houses. The aim is to educate and raise awareness of violence against women and their children.

Violence against women costs the B.C. economy at least $385 million a year. On the impact on human lives, it robs women of full participation in their homes, schools, workplaces and community. It does, in fact, impact women's lives significantly. But more tragic than that, it impacts the children's lives equally significantly. Approximately 40 percent of the children witness abuse in violent relationships. Women whose partners' mothers were abused are three times more likely to experience abuse at the hands of their partners. These are the things that we must work together to stop. We must stop the cycle of violence in the family, and we must stop the cycle of violence for the children.

Having said that, the question becomes: what are we doing to assist the women and the children to deal with the significant problem? I am very proud to say that the Ministry of Women's Equality, along with the Attorney General's ministry, has worked hard and has come up with many initiatives to deal with these issues.

For example, we have 78 transition houses, safe home programs and second-stage houses to provide safe places for women leaving abusive relationships, including B.C.'s first specialized transition house for women with alcohol and drug misuse problems; funds to develop a transition house on Haida Gwaii; a new Victims of Crime Act, providing victims with new rights, including the right to information about their cases from investigation to prosecution. There is a new community-based prevention program -- A Safer Future for B.C. Women -- which supports women's organizations to work in partnership with other community groups to break the cycle of violence. There is an updated policy to stop violence against women in relationships, which places greater responsibility on police to arrest and on the Crown to prosecute offenders. The policy implementation strategy includes improving training for police, Crown counsel, victim service workers and firearm officers to reduce the risk of violence against women in relationships.

In addition to the many Violence Against Women in Relationships policies, in consultation with the Ministry of Women's Equality, the Ministry of Attorney General has taken action to protect women, their children and their families from violence. They have established a central registry of protection orders to help police protect victims from future crimes. They have provided new public education materials to help women identify and deal with stalking. They have urged the federal Justice minister to raise the maximum sentence for criminal harassment to ten years in jail from the current five years. They have assisted the Vancouver police to establish a criminal harassment unit. Along with the RCMP, they have provided training for justice system personnel on the investigation and prosecution of criminal harassment cases. They have provided funds to encourage community representatives and criminal justice system personnel to coordinate and collaborate on Violence Against Women in Relationships policy implementation throughout the province, and have provided funds and treatment services for assaultive men. We have provided funds for 50 counselling programs for children who witness abuse in the home. There are many, many initiatives which this government has initiated to deal with this issue.

We have to remember that the ownership for dealing with the issue rests not just on women or on the women and children who face violence in their homes, but on all the members in our communities. We must stand together with a strong voice to show our support to those people who are suffering in their homes as a result of that threat. We must make sure that they do not feel ashamed of this, and let them know that the fault is not theirs but that of the offenders. I ask all of the members opposite to work with this government and the community to end violence against women and children.

L. Stephens: I want to thank the member for Vancouver-Mount Pleasant. I know she understands the importance of protecting women and children, and I want to say that her 

[ Page 2850 ]

comments have been greatly appreciated. But the information we're receiving from the front-line transition house workers tells me that despite the Attorney General's policy, it's really not being followed. I want to urge all members opposite to make some phone calls and talk to transition houses in their own ridings, and I'm sure they will tell them the same things.

The core issue around domestic violence is that men abuse women. I think many of the men want to stop, but they don't know how. I believe that it is extremely important that we have counselling programs for women and children. But I think it's also important that we have counselling programs for men, and we simply don't have enough of those.

There's a group of individuals in Vancouver who have taken up the task of providing that kind of counselling around the province on as broad a base as possible, and they're the B.C. Association of Counsellors of Abusive Men. They've come up with a program that I think is quite exciting, and I would like to share a bit of this with the members in the House today.

They're talking about the principles of abusive men's counselling. Some of these principles are that they give the highest priority to the safety of women and children, they hold the abuser responsible for the abuse, and they're not willing to accept explanations which neutralize or rationalize abuse in the context of relationship dynamics or personal history. So they've made some tremendous breakthroughs in this kind of research.

Some of the treatment models out there now are teaching anger management and appropriate social skills. These are important as well, but we need to go far beyond that. This organization believes that confronting abusive beliefs is the key to changing the belief systems of abusive men. They do that by a process of bringing those beliefs to the awareness of the men, confronting those beliefs, creating dissatisfaction with those beliefs and showing them alternate and more satisfactory beliefs, because many abusive men hold a particular belief that determines the way they believe and interpret events and justify their abusive actions. There are three traits or characteristics that they have found around these relationship beliefs. The first one is the self as central and separate -- concerned only with self -- then disregard for others and a lack of connection with the internal other.

There's a whole range of other means of addressing this issue that this particular organization has undertaken, which I think has some extremely valid research out there that we need to be concerned about. I would encourage all members, if they are interested in this particular issue, to investigate it, and I would be happy to provide the information to any member interested in this particular concern.

W. Hurd: I'm pleased to table a copy of Bill 17, An Act to Amend the Highways and Vehicles Statutes Amendment Act, from the province of Saskatchewan, and also a copy of "Traffic Safety at the Crossroads," a report from the B.C. Safety Council.

Hon. J. Pullinger: I wish everybody a good weekend. I hope that the rain stops, and I now move that the House adjourn.

Hon. J. Pullinger moved adjournment of the House.

Motion approved.

The House adjourned at 11:12 a.m.

Copyright © 1997: Queen's Printer, Victoria, British Columbia, Canada