THUNDER BAY — Thunder Bay’s two Liberal MPs are being urged to oppose controversial amendments to federal firearms legislation that critics say could sweep up a number of commonly used hunting rifles in a proposed ban of “assault-style” guns.
MP Marcus Powlowski (Thunder Bay-Rainy River) and Minister of Indigenous Services Patty Hajdu (Thunder Bay-Superior North) both say the government is open to tweaks to ensure that doesn’t happen, but defended the overall legislation, Bill C-21, as an important step in addressing gun violence.
Local hunters are calling on the two MPs to commit to rejecting amendments tabled last month that have created what John Kaplanis describes as “a groundswell of opposition nation-wide.”
Kaplanis is the executive director of the Northwestern Ontario Sportsmen’s Alliance, which represents around 5,000 hunters, anglers, trappers, and sport shooters across Northwestern Ontario, mainly in the Thunder Bay area.
“Bill C-21, which originally started out as a measure seemingly to control handguns on the streets, to limit crime … It’s morphed into quite literally a ban that seems to be targeting hunters and their firearms,” he said, echoing sentiments expressed by similar organizations across the country.
Kaplanis noted those opponents have been joined by some conservation groups and the Assembly of First Nations. The AFN’s special chiefs assembly passed a resolution opposing Bill C-21 on Thursday, with members saying they’re worried the bill in its amended form could infringe on treaty hunting rights.
The blowback comes after the Liberals proposed amendments to the bill last month that would add a number of long guns to a list of banned weapons.
The amendments would effectively ban any long guns that could accept a magazine with more than five rounds, and those that can generate more than 10,000 joules of energy or have a muzzle wider than 20 millimetre, as well as other guns included on a newly-introduced list.
That list includes several guns that are commonly used for hunting, especially in Canada’s North, said Kaplanis.
The bill's original intent to ban the sale of handguns with few exceptions had already drawn determined opposition from sports shooters, who say it could wipe out their sport.
In an interview, Powlowski said it’s clear the proposed amendments are “not hugely popular,” saying he’d heard from over 200 constituents on the issue, with all but one opposed.
“I think the government has pretty well admitted we didn’t quite get it right with those amendments,” he said. “Our party has always maintained we weren’t going after genuine hunting rifles or farmers’ guns, and I think that wasn’t clear after the amendments.”
However, Powlowski also suggested some of the rhetoric about the impact of the legislation has been overblown.
“I think if you actually look at the facts, the vast majority of hunting rifles wouldn’t be prohibited, but there was a concern that some might be,” he said.
Hajdu went further, saying some lobby groups are pushing “misinformation” and “intentionally trying to create a very confusing conversation in Canada” in their opposition to the bill.
“Almost none of the guns are used by hunters,” she said. “The majority of them, no one would ever use for hunting — we have to be really clear about that. Having said that, there’s an opportunity through the process of the legislation to hear about specific models that might be more commonly used.”
Hajdu said she’s asked local hunting groups that have expressed concerns for feedback on whether the proposed list of banned firearms includes any commonly used for hunting.
“What I need … is to hear from hunters — go through the list, tell me the models that you think specifically are models that are commonly used in hunting, and I will for sure make sure the minister of public safety understands the perspective of Thunder Bay-Superior North hunters,” she said.
The party is committed to getting the legislation right, said Powlowski.
“Believe it or not, there are quite a number of Liberal MPs who actually own guns. So there’s been quite a bit of talk within the Liberal party itself about the changes … and what we can do in order to ensure hunting rifles aren’t on the list of banned guns.”
Kaplanis isn’t convinced by those reassurances, saying the Liberals seem intent on limiting gun ownership more broadly.
“The opposition to it is growing, because people just aren’t that stupid,” he said. “They know the Liberals have other intentions to target hunting. You could effectively call this an anti-hunting bill, not an anti-crime bill.”
He fears Bill C-21 is part of an “incremental whittling” down of gun owners’ rights.
“We’ve seen this type of draconian measures taken in other countries – New Zealand, for example,” he said. “We don’t want to go that route here in Canada.”
Asked what steps he’d like to see the government take instead to limit gun violence, Kaplanis said the focus should be on the flow of guns illegally imported from the United States, which many Canadian policing agencies point to as the biggest factor driving gun violence. Kaplanis said stricter sentencing for violent offenders should also be considered.
“I think ultimately, it comes down to scrapping the legislation altogether, and coming up with measures that are really, truthfully intended to fight crime,” he said.
With files from Sheri Leviski-Kotyk
