As Canada celebrates the 25th anniversary of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms this week, we do well to remember what was accomplished, but should not forget what remains to be done.

The hero of the Charter process was Doris Anderson, the leader of the women’s movement that secured adoption of a clause guaranteeing equal rights for women: Notwithstanding anything in this Charter, the rights and freedoms referred to in it are guaranteed equally to male and female persons. (Clause 28). Activists for women’s rights seized the importance of the moment, and forced those in power to back down.

Despite initial indifference, followed by outright hostility, once it was apparent the women’s movement was mobilizing support to shame governments into action, the victory for overall equality rights was also won: Every individual is equal before and under the law and has the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination and, in particular, without discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, age or mental or physical disability. (Clause 15).

The Charter protects political and civil rights, and makes French an official language of Canada, but falls short in protecting basic economic and social rights, as can be seen when it is set next to the Universal Declaration of Human Rights adopted by the United Nations in 1946.

Freedoms from arbitrary action by government — so-called negative freedoms — are well enshrined in the Charter, and landmark court decisions have included recognition of same sex marriage and abortion rights. But the right to work, to leisure and rest from work, to organize trade unions, to social security, to cultural activities, to benefits from scientific achievement, and the other distinct features of the Universal Declaration were omitted from the Canadian Charter. We are all poorer as a result.

The neglect of these basic rights, such as to free education, is all the more surprising when it is remembered that the Universal Declaration was drafted by a Canadian, John Humphrey, the first director of the Human Rights Division of the United Nations, a New Brunswick native, and professor of law at McGill.

The Universal Declaration is violated on a daily basis all over the world, but all members of the human family can aspire to the standards it sets out, especially Clause 28 which call for a social and economic order in which universal human rights can be realized.

The doctrine of parliamentary supremacy conflicts with the recognition of basic economic and social rights as over-riding obligations. Governments are loath to accept that their deliberations be shaped by international customary law, which is what the Universal Declaration represents.

The tradition of parliamentary socialism, so much a part of the CCF and NDP, envisages the protection of human rights. Indeed it was Canadian poet, lawyer and CCF/NDP stalwart F.R. Scott who influenced Pierre Trudeau’s thinking about the necessity for a Charter of Rights which would bind parliamentarians, and guide them in interpreting their authority under the Canadian constitution. But, 25 years ago, the NDP did not connect the need for a new social and economic model with entrenching individual economic and social rights.

Representative democracy builds on sovereign legislatures that grew out of opposition to the feudal monarchies; in fact, the divine right of kings is the ancestor of legislative sovereignty. The idea of enshrining in the constitution economic and social rights, such as are found in the Universal Declaration is seen as a threat to parliamentary supremacy, and also to the parliamentary socialism of the Fabian variety.

The French revolutionary tradition recognized that democratic rights had to lie with the people, and be derived from human rights, not from God or any sovereign authority, elected or not.

The political right uses the state and sovereign legislatures to protect ownership rights. The left mobilizes citizens to advance democratic human rights to meet human needs.

It would make great sense for Canada to enshrine economic and social rights in the Charter but we should not expect the idea to be welcomed by governments in this country.

Rather we should remember Doris Anderson, and think about how to make the idea of a right to a home, to work, to a standard of living that allows for human dignity, concrete objectives that all Canadians desire for each other, and that we can recognize are possible, indeed necessary for democratic life itself.

Power lies with the people, not the state. The women’s movement recognized that over 25 years ago, and we celebrate the winning of the equality provisions of the Charter again this week. Taking up the challenge of ensuring that governments recognize basic economic and social rights, including the very pressing issue of environmental protection, is the next great political task of the Canadian left.

Duncan Cameron

Duncan Cameron

Born in Victoria B.C. in 1944, Duncan now lives in Vancouver. Following graduation from the University of Alberta he joined the Department of Finance (Ottawa) in 1966 and was financial advisor to the...