President's Reports 2008

I am pleased once again to provide my annual report at the end of another successful year for MARL. The past year reaffirmed just how important organizations such as MARL are in a society that cherishes fundamental human rights and civil liberties. We tackled issues as wide ranging as threats to the right to protest at City Hall, non-consensual blood testing, euthanasia, public surveillance cameras and civilian oversight of police powers.

Manitoba is the only province in Canada where the opportunity for public participation in the law making process is mandatory. MARL’s Charter Rights and Legislative Review Committee regularly exercises this right to have direct input on bills impacting rights and liberties. MARL made submissions on a number of bills addressing matters such as mandatory reporting of child pornography, access to information and privacy, and allowing certain persons to seek mandatory court orders to test the blood of another individual with whom they have come into contact for HIV and other pathogens. I was told that MARL’s oral and written presentations were well received and taken very seriously by the legislative committees. Aside scrutinizing new legislation, MARL continued to play an important watchdog role on matters impacting civil liberties. For example, we spoke out against a city councillor’s proposal to stifle political expression by limiting public protest outside City Hall. We criticized the proposed proliferation of surveillance cameras in public places as an undue infringement of privacy. MARL also researched and advocated for effective civilian oversight of police and we continue to work with the Inner City Safety Coalition to that end.

Another key part of MARL’s mandate is to educate the public, in particular young people, about the need to promote and vigilantly safeguard our rights and freedoms. The Education Committee has made great strides towards developing an exciting new human rights education initiative with the generous financial support of the Winnipeg Foundation. Debra Chorney was hired as a consultant and has taken the task on with great energy. The program will focus on educating high school students and fostering leadership in the area of human rights and civil liberties. Stay tuned for further details as this important pilot project develops.

MARL has been very fortunate to recruit some excellent new talent to join the Board. Jacques Marcoux and Angie Conrad (whom you can read about in the latest newsletter) recently joined us and are running for election. They bring great enthusiasm, energy and new ideas. I also want to recognize Joseph Nnadi whose term on the board came to an end this year. Over the past 6 years, the Board has benefited from Joseph’s sage advice, hard work and commitment to human rights. We will miss him.

Our Executive Director, Valerie Price is the public face and voice of MARL. As always, she has worked tirelessly to keep MARL running smoothly and advance our goals. Valerie ensures the board stays on top of important issues and makes our job a lot easier. We are lucky to have such a dedicated Executive Director. On behalf of MARL, I want to thank Valerie for all of her hard work.

Of course, I must also extend a sincere thank you to the United Way. Your continued support, both financially and otherwise, makes MARL’s work possible. The United Way shares our passion of striving together to make our community better, fairer and more just. We are grateful for your support.

Finally, I would like to thank our valued members for their continued support over the past year. Your generous contributions of time and money are critical to MARL’s ability to achieve its goal of promoting and defending human rights and civil liberties. We appreciate our members’ input and encourage you to stay involved. But we can always do more. This coming year, MARL hopes to expand its membership base even further. Please consider asking your family, friends and colleagues to join MARL and help us speak up for everyone’s rights.

It has been a very rewarding and challenging year and I look forward to working with you again next year.

-Michael Conner