Centretown residents are clashing over a provincial bill aimed at helping police shut down properties allegedly being used for criminal activities in Ottawa.
The Safer Communities and Neighbourhoods Act is a private member’s bill sponsored by Ottawa Centre Liberal MPP Yasir Naqvi.
Although SCAN has garnered widespread support from local residents intent on cleaning up the community, it is now facing strong opposition from a grassroots movement planning to halt its passage into law.
John Hollingsworth, founder of People Against SCAN, an Ottawa-based group concerned about the constitutional legality of the bill, says crime is not a problem in his community.
He added that police statistics indicate the situation is improving.
“To anyone from a major city, the idea that there is a crime problem in Ottawa is laughable,” he says.
“If crime is decreasing, then what is SCAN but a solution in search of a problem?”
Hollingsworth, who lives in Centretown, says the act will inevitably affect innocent people and could lead to unwarranted evictions.
Under SCAN, cities would appoint a director with the power to investigate residents based on anonymous complaints.
If the director determines a property is being “habitually” used for illegal activities detrimental to the community, the director can apply to the courts for a community safety order.
If an order is granted, there are three remedies permitted under the proposed legislation: issuing an order to vacate the property, an order terminating the tenancy agreement, or an order closing the property for up to 90 days.
“You have a situation where a lot of people are already precariously housed, and if you make eviction easier than there is a potential to see homelessness rise,” says Yutaka Dirks, outreach co-ordinator for the Advocacy Centre for Tenants Ontario.
Dirks, whose organization is aimed at protecting the housing rights of low-income residents, says the act provides a tool for safety organizations to push marginalized individuals – those suffering from mental health disorders and drug addiction – out of the community.
At a recent panel discussion, Naqvi defended his bill, which is based on similar legislation in other provinces. He says the idea came from the community.
“Nobody wants to live next door to a crack house,” he says. “The purpose behind SCAN is community empowerment, including the vulnerable, to ensure that properties in our community are not being used for illegal activities.”
Supporters of SCAN applaud Naqvi's efforts.
Pam Connolly, chair of the Dalhousie Somerset Community Safety Committee, says Naqvi has been a great supporter of community safety and has kept all of his campaign promises.
Connolly says there is no valid reason to oppose SCAN, and objects to the idea that it will be used to force unwanted residents out of the community.
“I think it’s a sensible legislation and it stands the test of human rights,” she says. “The proof is that it’s working very well in other parts of the country.”
Naqvi says the legislation has existed in Canada since 2001 and in his opinion is constitutional.
Opponents of the bill, however, are not convinced.
Anne Lévesque, a lawyer with the East Ottawa Legal Aid Clinic and a member of People Against SCAN, says the proposed legislation breaches the individual’s right to security, guaranteed by section seven of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Although the bill would allow evicted tenants to file an appeal, Lévesque says she is concerned it will target low-income residents who cannot afford legal counsel – a requirement in Superior Court.
“Legal aid workers are already oversaturated with work,” she says. “SCAN is silent on this issue. There is no recommendation to provide tenants with legal assistance.”
In addition, Lévesque says the proposed law does not allow tenants to hear the evidence gathered against them or cross-examine the person filing the complaint.
Cheri Dinovo, MPP for Parkdale-Highpark in Toronto, told the panel SCAN is ineffective.
“In the jurisdictions where they have SCAN legislation, the criminal rate has not been affected one iota,” she said.
Dinovo says the first line of defence should not be community spies, but the police who are paid to enforce the law.
Lévesque agrees. “If police aren’t able to gather enough evidence to put those people in jail, what makes us think a civil servant can gather enough evidence to have them evicted?”
The SCAN bill, which passed second reading in October 2008, is now before the Standing Committee on Justice and Policy.