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BY LifeSiteNews.com   OTTAWA, February 6, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) – The Chief Justice of the Canadian Supreme Court, Beverly McLachlin, has warned Canada’s new Prime Minister Stephen Harper not to “politicize” the appointment system to the Court. In comments to the Ottawa Chamber of Commerce on Friday, when asked if Parliament should have more of a say in the appointment of Supreme Court Justices, McLachlin said, “The short answer is no.”“The courts are not just a mirror of Parliament and I think in order to preserve the public confidence in the impartiality of the courts, we should avoid politicizing” the appointment process, said McLachlin. McLachlin’s definition of “politicizing” may be open to interpretation however. Gwen Landoldt, head of Real Women of Canada, said that when McLachlin says “politicization” she means democratizing the selection process. Landoldt said to LifeSiteNews.com, “The only reason the Justices sit on the bench is because of their ties with the ruling party. In what way is this not politicized?”Landoldt said, “What else is it but a political appointment? It has more power and influence than any other court in the world. She doesn’t want anyone who will be deferential to Parliament.”Greater public input in the selection process was not one of Prime Minister Harper’s campaign issues, but the newly appointed Justice Minister, Vic Toews has long been a vocal critic of McLachlin’s “unfettered” activist court. McLachlin has been a staunch opponent of more transparency and democratic input in the justice system in general and the selection process in particular. She has long been a voluble enthusiast of leftist judicial activism in which Canada’s courts have reconstituted much of the legal environment of Canada. In a speech last December to a group of New Zealand law students, McLachlin said the Courts must not be subject either to the scrutiny of Parliament or the constraints of the written law. McLachlin said, “The rule of law requires judges to uphold unwritten constitutional norms, even in the face of clearly enacted laws or hostile public opinion.”  Vic Toews responded, “It concerns me very much to hear our Chief Justice say that judges don’t have to follow what is set out in the law for them. If judges don’t have to follow the constitution, what will guide them?”“I’m hoping that she was taken out of context, that she was not suggesting that she can ignore the very clear requirements of the constitution,” said Toews. “Only Parliament is qualified to change the constitution.”  Stephen Harper said during the campaign, “When I appoint judges, what we’ll be looking for is what I call the judicial temperament, and that is the ability to competently and shrewdly and wisely apply the laws that are passed by the Parliament of Canada.”Read related LifeSiteNews.com coverage:  Canada’s Chief Justice Says Courts Must Ignore Written Laws in Favour of Judge-Decided Unwritten “Norms”http://www.lifesite.net/ldn/2005/dec/05120604.html http://www.lifesitenews.com/news/activist-supreme-court-chief-justice-lectures-canadian-prime-minister-on-co/

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