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Dosanjh Calls For Sex Offenders Registry

A P Kamath

Ujjal Dosanjh, who could become the first Asian premier in Canada, is urging the establishment of a sex-offenders registry nationwide. He has also asked the federal government to raise the age of consent for teenage sex, so that child prostitution can be effectively fought.

Dosanjh, currently the attorney general of BC, is known for his tough stance against crimes involving children and young adults.

His high-profile crusade against crime has made him the top favorite in opinion polls to be British Columbia's premier. His opponents want him to step down from his position as the attorney-general till the New Democratic Party holds its convention in February and chooses the leader who automatically becomes the premier. They say that whatever Dosanjh says and does as the attorney-general could boost his image -- and privately they say he could make grandstand declarations in order to further boost his ratings.

He also wants stiffer punishment for stalkers; he has been advocating tough anti-stalker laws since Poonam Randhawa, a high school student, was killed in broad daylight by a man who has been stalking her for over two years.

Dosanjh reiterated his favorite themes as provincial and federal justice ministers from across the country are to meet in Vancouver later this week. He wants the creation of a Hate Crime Team to monitor the activities of hate groups. Recently a British Columbia court sentenced five men who were responsible for the assault on and death of Nirmal Singh Gill, the caretaker of a gurdwara in Surrey.

The federal government is expected to release a discussion paper this week that suggests establishing a wide range of new legal penalties to punish those who victimize children.

The options include making it a separate offense for the emotional abuse of children and raising the age of consent for sexual activity from 14 to 16.

Though many parents want the age of consent to be made 18, they are prepared to accept 16. Raising the age of consent would make it easier to prosecute pimps who recruit child prostitutes. Child prostitution is rampant in Vancouver and smaller British Columbian cities.

"This is an issue that has been raised by BC,'' Dosanjh said. "I am pleased that it is part of a discussion paper... I think there is consensus on this issue right across the country.''

Dosanjh made national headlines last year when he took the unprecedented step of going to Ottawa's Supreme Court of Canada to appeal against a lighter sentence given to Bert Stone who had stabbed his wife 47 times. Stone had argued that he had been provoked when his wife taunted his sexual prowess.

Dosanjh failed in getting a stiffer sentence for Stone. But he now wants legislation to ban the use of provocation as a defense in criminal trials.

This week, Stone, who received four years in jail in 1995, will be set free.

The top court had voted unanimously to uphold the sentence.

But Dosanjh's crusade against provocation defense will continue.

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