TORONTO – The League for Human Rights of B'nai Brith Canada, which was the only human rights body to be granted intervener status by the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal in the matter, has called on the Crown to appeal the decision of the Saskatchewan Court of Appeal regarding David Ahenakew.

The Canadian Jewish Congress (CJC) expressed disappointment at the decision.

Ahenakew, the former national chief of the Assembly of First Nations was convicted of willfully promoting hatred when he called Jews a “disease,” while being interviewed by a reporter at a conference. The Saskatchewan Court of Queen’s Bench overturned the conviction finding that the trial judge had not properly assessed his intent in all the circumstances. The Saskatchewan Court of Appeal upheld that decision Monday in dismissing the Crown’s appeal. 

Frank Dimant, executive vice president of B'nai Brith Canada, stated, “The matter cannot rest here. The intervention of the Supreme Court of Canada is essential to clarify the law. We call on Canada’s highest court to recognize clearly the hate-filled messaging of Ahenakew’s remarks. In Canada, hate speech and the potential to incite others is not without consequences. The courts must call a spade a spade by not shying away from recognizing the hatred imbued in Ahenakew’s words.”

Steve Slimovitch, national legal counsel for B’nai Brith Canada, who represented the organization on the appeal said, “These lower decisions must be re-examined. As we argued, the decisions constitute a dangerous precedent in which the standard for conviction could be set inappropriately high. As the courts themselves have recognized, these hate-filled words were ‘shocking, brutal and hurtful.’  Further proof of motivation is simply not needed. Additional elements introduced in these decisions such as the need to consider whether the remarks were spontaneous or not, is a step in the wrong direction that the Supreme Court of Canada must set straight.”

Bernie Farber, CJC CEO, expressed confidence that the Saskatchewan Crown attorney’s office will review the decision carefully, and act appropriately.

“The public utterances of Mr. Ahenakew, an important and once respected Canadian, had the effect of targeting and isolating the small Jewish community in Saskatchewan. After a thorough review, if the Crown believes there may be room to appeal this decision to the Supreme Court of Canada we certainly hope it does so.”