Harper Discusses Anti-Terrorism Measures, What's Next on the Agenda?

Prime Minister Harper, along side Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, Peter MacKay and Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness, Steven Blaney, will be making a national announcement on Friday, could be in regards to a Harper crackdown on anti-terrorism and extremism legislation?

According to a government press release, Prime Minister Stephen Harper participated in a roundtable discussion on how best to protect Canadians from the “evolving threats of terrorism and extremism."

During the roundtable, Harper heard from law enforcement officials on tools that authorities “need to prevent and investigate terrorist acts, deal with them when they occur, and ensure that laws are in place to punish the violent criminals who engage in such hateful crimes.”

Photo credit: Stephen Harper Facebook.

In the post-911 world, Canada's Anti-terrorism act is established as a means to prevent terrorists from getting into Canada and protect Canadians from terrorist acts; to bring forward tools to identify, prosecute, convict, and punish terrorists; to keep the Canada-U.S. border secure and a contributor to economic security, and to work with the international community to bring terrorists to justice, as well as address the root causes of violence.

“Our Government is serious about taking action to keep Canadians safe. The international jihadist movement has declared war on Canada, on our allies, and on our most sacred values and way of life,” said Prime Minister Harper. “That’s why our Government committed the Canadian Armed Forces to the broad international coalition against the so-called Islamic State. Canada will not stand on the side-lines while our allies act to deny terrorists a safe haven – an international base – from which they would plot violence against us.”

Canada's first counter-terrorism strategy was released in 2012, and since that time, additional legislation to “combat” terrorism and “strengthen” Canadian citizenship has passed.

However, last October's attacks in Ottawa suggest that Canada is not immune to the evolving threat of terrorism, said the Federal government. The government will continue to take the necessary steps to keep Canadians safe.

“I welcomed the opportunity today to participate in this important roundtable to discuss how we can prevent terrorism in Canada and neutralize terrorist cells, while ensuring that the rights and freedoms of law-abiding Canadians are respected. There is work to be done here at home as well. Tomorrow we will put legislation before Parliament that will help authorities stop planned attacks, get threats off our streets, criminalize the promotion of terrorism, and prevent terrorists from travelling abroad and recruiting others,” said PM Harper.

Harper's public event is scheduled for 12:30 p.m. EST in Toronto. More details to come following the event.