British Columbia Civil Liberties Association | 17 March 2005 | For Immediate Release

BCCLA TO HOLD PRESS CONFERENCE TOMORROW ON "LAWFUL ACCESS" - GOVERNMENT'S PLAN TO REQUIRE TELECOMMUNICATIONS SERVICE PROVIDERS TO PROVIDE INTERCEPT CAPABILITIES TO POLICE AND CSIS

Vancouver - The B.C. Civil Liberties Associations (BCCLA) will hold a press conference Friday, March 18, 2005 at 10:00 a.m. to comment on the Federal government's "lawful access" proposal.

On March 15, 2005, federal government representatives met in Vancouver with a group of lawyers, telecommunications service providers and privacy advocates to present proposed legislative amendments that would require telecommunications service providers to provide interception capabilities to the police and CSIS and that would allow police to access subscriber information without a warrant.

Ostensibly for purposes of "updating" the Criminal Code to keep pace with changing technology, the proposal incorporates changes to Canadian law that are unprecedented in their impact on privacy and the way the government conducts surveillance.

The press conference:

Date: Friday, March 18, 2005
Time: 10:00 a.m.
Place: #550 - 1188 West Georgia, Vancouver

The press conference will include comments by BCCLA Policy Director, Micheal Vonn and lawyer Dan Burnett of Owen Bird. The BCCLA position on the original 2002 Lawful Access Proposal can be found at: www.bccla.org/othercontent/02lawfulaccess.html

 

British Columbia Civil Liberties Association
550 - 1188 W. Georgia Street
Vancouver, BC
V6E 4A2

E-mail: info@bccla.org
Web: www.bccla.org
Tel: 604-687-2919
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