Sikh dagger ruling approved by religious groups
By Chris Wiebe
THE SUPREME COURT of Canada has ruled that Sikh students can now carry ceremonial daggers, known as kirpans, in schools - and that doing so poses no undue danger to others.
The March 2 decision strikes down a Montreal school board's ban on kirpans, and a Quebec Court of Appeals ruling that had banned them from schools in the province. The Quebec court had said a limit on religious freedom was reasonable, given the safety concerns.
The decision was an 8-0 judgment, but left room for some restrictions on kirpans in the name of public safety. A blanket ban goes too far and violates the Charter of Rights, wrote Justice Louise Charron: "A total prohibition against wearing kirpans to school undermines the value of this religious symbol and sends the message that some religious practices do not merit the same protection as others."
Charron was vehement in her rejection of a contention by school board lawyers that the kirpan is emblematic of violence, calling that view "disrespectful to believers in the Sikh religion." The Supreme Court judgment is confined to school situations and does not apply to other areas.
The kirpan decision is being praised as a blow for religious freedom by some; others, however, maintain that political correctness prompted the court to go overboard in a misguided attempt at adapting Canadian society to another culture.
Tarlochan Singh Randhawa, spokesperson for the Gurdwara Sahib Kalgidhar Darbar temple in Abbotsford, expressed satisfaction with the ruling. "[We] are happy and satisfied with that - because if our students are baptized, they can carry the essential articles of faith as Canadian citizens. They can be more responsible citizens of Canada; otherwise they will feel frustrated about being baptized, and not be better citizens. If they are committed to their faith they will be committed to the rules and regulations of Canadian society and law."
Representatives of other faiths supported the decision. The Canadian Jewish Congress (CJC) issued a statement commending the court for "[reaffirming] that freedom of religion is a fundamental value." CJC president Ed Morgan noted: "It is important that the Court has recognized that individuals are entitled to have their religious practices accommodated, unless there is a compelling reason not to do so - so long as there is a sincere belief that the practice is a requirement of the faith."
"I think that the Supreme Court speaks for itself - and the decision is fine with us," said Tarek Fatah, communications director of the Muslim Canadian Congress.
"The issue of the kirpan's threat to peace in the classroom was without justification," he maintained. "Small pens are sharp objects in the classroom, and not lethal. There is a religious angle, but students can't be banned for carrying a kirpan into class."
Orthodox Sikhs, who make up some 10 percent of the estimated 250,000 Sikhs in Canada, are required by their religion to wear the kirpan at all times. It symbolizes the fight for justice; but there are religious prohibitions against using it as a weapon.
The Montreal dispute arose in 2001 when Gurbaj Singh Multani, then aged 12, first wore his kirpan to a Montreal elementary school. He accidentally dropped his dagger in the schoolyard. Concerned parents in the district pressured the school board to ban kirpans, because of the zero-tolerance weapons policy for their schools.
Authorities initially sought a compromise that would allow Multani to wear the kirpan. However, the governing council of the school board rejected a compromise and imposed a total ban on the daggers.
Multani transferred to a private school soon after; meanwhile, his parents sued, and the case made its way through the courts.
When the Supreme Court heard the arguments last April, several organizations - including the Canadian Civil Liberties Association and the World Sikh Organization of Canada - intervened to support the family. During that hearing, Multani family lawyer Julius Grey noted there had been no reported examples of any violent acts in schools as a result of a student wearing a kirpan.
