Canada’s Liberals to repeal law that revokes citizenship in terror cases

Canada’s Liberal government on Thursday introduced a bill to stop stripping citizenship from dual nationals convicted of terrorism and other serious crimes, moving to scuttle a measure introduced by the previous Tory administration.

“This law created two classes of Canadians,” Immigration Minister John McCallum told a press conference. “We believe very strongly that there should be only one class of Canadians, that all Canadians are equal, that a Canadian is a Canadian is a Canadian.”

“Under the previous law, there was also a risk of a slippery slope. If one crime made you eligible for revocation this year, what crimes could be added next year?”

The proposed policy change in Ottawa comes as French lawmakers decide on a measure that would strip citizenship from dual nationals convicted of terrorism, while British law allows the government to take away the citizenship of terrorism suspects even if it leaves them stateless.

The French proposal, made in response to the November attacks in Paris that left 130 dead, has sharply divided public opinion and led to the resignation of Justice Minister Christiane Taubira, who vehemently opposed it.

Similar measures for dual nationals are in place in Spain, Belgium and a handful of other countries, while the United States allows for nationality to be stripped in cases of treason.