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Will Canadian MP's Once Again Cave in to Dictatorial Prime Minister on Gay Marriage?

Canadians urged to forcefully lobby all MPs to defeat Liberal gay marriage bill

OTTAWA, January 6, 2005 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Sun Media is reporting that Canadian Prime Minister Paul Martin will not reconsider a decision to force his cabinet to vote in favour of legislation to redefine marriage.

Despite promises during his Liberal leadership campaign, of more democracy and free votes for his caucus members, Martin, according to spokesman Amy Butcher, has reneged on his promises and told Liberal cabinet ministers they must vote for the bill, even if it violates their faith and conscience.

While the Prime Minister originally vowed a free vote on the marriage bill, it was disclosed late last year that there actually will be no free vote for the nearly 70 of just over 308 members of Parliament. Cabinet members and their parliamentary secretaries are being told they must vote in favor of the homosexual 'marriage' legislation or face loss of Cabinet post, special parliamentary privileges or other arbitrary penalties.

Campaign Life Coalition National President Jim Hughes told LifeSiteNews.com, that Martin's harsh about face on the free vote shows that the Liberal Government is seriously worried about losing the gay marriage bill vote. "Obviously the Liberal numbers are showing the possibility of losing the vote," he said.

Hughes added, "The fact that the government has quietly backed away from the Justice Minister's announced attention to call for a vote on the bill early this month is another sign that should encourage us. Pro-family Canadians must work overtime to convince our Members of Parliament, including all Cabinet members, to vote against the government's proposed legislation."

"Any punishment that the Liberal government can hand out to MPs," warns Hughes, "will not be as significant as their defeat in the next election, which is a very strong possibility for those MPs, of any party, who fail to stand up for real marriage," he said. "Their names will be forever recorded, whether they vote or stay away from the vote, as having betrayed the people of Canada by undermining the nation's basic social foundation of marriage and family life."

Hughes also said that now is the opportune time for MPs and Canadians to address the dictatorial trend of consecutive Liberal regimes which has been corrupting our Parliamentary government system.

"It's appalling that a man who promised a new openness in the House of Commons, who campaigned on that, is behaving in the same underhanded fashion we had come to expect from previous Liberal leaders," Hughes said. "Our democracy is gradually fading away under these leaders and so far the MPs and the Canadian people have allowed them to get away with it, but perhaps this will be the straw that broke the camel's back," he predicted.

Martin, referred to repeatedly by the media as a "devout Catholic," is putting himself in the place of God, said Hughes. "This so-called decent man is behaving like the best of the pagans."

Hughes challenged Liberal cabinet members and parliamentary secretaries to courageously resist Martin's unjust restraining of their duty to serve the good of the nation as elected representatives of the people.

"If not," the national pro-life political leader warns, "it could be that this time they will be held accountable for cowardice in the face of oppressive and dangerously undemocratic actions by their leader." Given the minority status of the government, an election could happen at any time, warns Hughes.

Parliament resumes sitting on Jan. 31.

jhw

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