RM of Rosthern passes bylaw to regulate conduct from 'difficult individuals' toward council, staff
A new bylaw governing interactions between the Rural Municipality of Rosthern Council and the public might be over-reaching, according to both a resident and a University of Saskatchewan professor.
The bylaw, passed Tuesday, addresses some concerns of safety and harassment. It prohibits members of the public from conduct which causes another person to fear for their safety; repeatedly following from place to place a member of the RM council or staff; or watching the home or place of work of a member of the RM.
But a resident of Neuanlage, which falls in the RM, said she’s concerned that the bylaw also labels submitting inquiries or requests for service that are “frivolous or vexatious” as inappropriate conduct.
“It seems like a lot of overreach for what they need,” said Sara Unger.
“There are already laws in place against harassment and that sort of thing but it just feels like this gets us to a place where it discourages anyone from bringing a legitimate concern to the RM.”
Unger added she’s afraid her requests for service from council might be seen as frivolous in council’s view and it could land her in trouble.
“They are the ones deciding what is frivolous and what is vexatious and not listening to the public when we are bringing concerns forward,” Unger said.
Associate professor of sociology at the University of Saskatchewan Scott Thompson said he sees an issue with council deciding both what is inappropriate conduct as well as enforcing the bylaw.
“This makes them both the makers of the rule and the judges of the application and in our society that’s a distinction or a separation we have in our justice system, not having the people that make the rules enforce them,” Thompson said.
Thompson said the bylaw may create a barrier to those who bring legitimate concerns to council if council deems them as frivolous.
“Yes this will make things more efficient if you can stop people from speaking, however in a democracy sometimes things aren’t efficient and this inefficiency is important to ensure we hear the voices of all people within our society,” Thompson said.
He said if a member of the public is deemed as inappropriately emailing, calling and interacting with elected officials, RM council may take these methods of communication away, forcing individuals in different directions to have their voices heard.
Thompson said there’s a long-standing tradition in social justice in making change through non-violent disruption of processes.
“And this is the concern, if you take this tool away people are going to have to turn to other types of solutions in order to make themselves heard by the council.”
Unger, she tells CTV News she’s not confident the officials elected to office will deal with the tough decisions, rather than sweeping them under the rug.
“They are in the public service position it is literally their job to listen to the public and take our concerns seriously and to deal with them,” Unger said.
The RM council said in a statement to CTV News that the bylaw would be a secondary option in “dealing with difficult individuals” in “extreme circumstances.”
“To date, the kind of conduct that would be regulated by the proposed bylaw has been addressed on an ad hoc basis,” the statement said.
“At the recommendation of the Ombudsman Saskatchewan, and after having to defend itself (successfully) in court, it is the strong preference of the RM to have a clear bylaw that allows the RM to be able to deal with these sorts of serious concerns, and which provides appropriate guidance to elected officials, staff and members of the public in terms of what sorts of communications are appropriate and what recourse the RM may have in the event that these guidelines are not adhered to.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Pilot reported fire onboard plane carrying fuel, attempted to return to Fairbanks just before crash
One of the two pilots aboard an airplane carrying fuel reported there was a fire on the airplane shortly before it crashed and burned outside Fairbanks, killing both people on board, a federal aviation official said Wednesday.
'One of the single most terrifying things ever': Ontario couple among passengers on sinking tour boat in Dominican Republic
A Toronto couple are speaking out about their 'extremely dangerous' experience on board a sinking tour boat in the Dominican Republic last week.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
7 surveillance videos linked to extortions of South Asian home builders in Edmonton released
The Edmonton Police Service has released a number of surveillance videos related to a series of extortion cases in the city now dubbed 'Project Gaslight.'
Ukraine uses long-range missiles secretly provided by U.S. to hit Russian-held areas, officials say
Ukraine for the first time has begun using long-range ballistic missiles provided secretly by the United States, bombing a Russian military airfield in Crimea last week and Russian forces in another occupied area overnight, American officials said Wednesday.