The
National Leader of the Marxist-Leninist Party of Canada, Hardial Bains,
sent a letter to the Broadcasting Arbitrator, Mr. Peter S. Grant, on
July 4, 1996. The full text of the letter follows.
Peter S. Grant
The Broadcasting Arbitrator
Elections Canada Headquarters
Dear Mr. Grant,
The Marxist-Leninist Party of Canada is taking the opportunity to
comment on the allocation of broadcasting time to raise one of
the most important and urgent questions in this period with all
political parties, especially the small parties. The large
quantity of continuous propaganda about the parties in the House
of Commons, especially the party in power, puts other parties,
particularly the small ones, at a total disadvantage. The views
of small parties never become the topic of household discussion
as there is complete silence about them between the elections.
When an election is called, they are again at a disadvantage as
the views of all parties are not debated in the media. The party
in power and the other "major" parties set the agenda. The entire
election is fought on the basis of this agenda, ignoring the
small parties altogether.
In our opinion, the small parties can play a crucial role in
changing the situation. Our demand is that all considerations
regarding electoral broadcasting time, including "free time,"
must be based on the strict equality of all political parties. A
renovated political system will recognize all political parties
as equals as a matter of principle and common store. Such a
principle needs to be fully appreciated at a time such as this
when raising the prestige of politics in the eyes of the
electorate is the order of the day. How can anyone besides the
electorate, which is the real arbiter, determine the worth of a
political party.
We reiterate: if democratic criteria are to guide the political
process, all political parties must be provided with an equal
share of broadcasting time. At the same time, we are proposing
to all parties, especially the small parties, that they work
together to politicize the electorate. One proposal is to
establish a common publication through which each political party
can present its own views. The publication would provide each
participant with equal space, with the costs being equally shared
as well. Another proposal involves cooperation in working for the
representation of each political party in the House of Commons.
The small parties have a good opportunity to cooperate with one
another to achieve representation by agreeing to field only one
small party candidate in a certain number of constituencies.
In our opinion, the question of how to divide "free" and "paid"
broadcasting time is extremely important in relation to raising
the level of politics in the society. Which political party would
not want the electorate to know the views of all political
parties? An informed electorate will be in a better position to
make a political judgment about the stands of each party. To
inform the electorate about all the political tendencies is not a
"partisan" issue but a "non-partisan" one. Allotting all parties
equal "free" and "paid" time will contribute to politicizing the
situation and uphold one of the basic tenets of democracy: an
informed electorate.
The Marxist-Leninist Party of Canada reiterates its strong belief
that all political parties should work together to renew the
political process so that candidate selection is carried out by
the electors from amongst their peers. All political parties
should have the confidence that the electors in a constituency
will be better prepared to make a good judgment on election day
if they have already participated in the selection of
candidates.
We are issuing a challenge to all political parties to work
together to raise the prestige of politics in the eyes of the
electorate. Supporting the principle of equality in the
allocation of electoral broadcasting time will be a step in the
right direction. In this regard, we congratulate the nine
political parties for the common stand they have adopted on
broadcasting time. Other parties could show their desire to raise
the prestige of politics in the eyes of the electorate by joining
with the nine parties and lending their support to the principle
of equal broadcasting time for all political parties.
In conclusion we would like to assert that whatever the
Arbitrator decides regarding the allotment of free and paid
broadcasting time, the urgent need for political parties to
cooperate in a common program to inform the electorate about the
views of all political parties does not disappear. An informed --
electorate is a requirement and guarantee of democracy.
Fulfilling this requirement will not only raise the prestige of
politics in the eyes of the electorate, it will also contribute
to providing a stable political climate in which political
opinions can be freely expressed. As the party of the working
class, the Marxist-Leninist Party of Canada is committed to
direct democracy through which people can exercise control over
their lives. This is a form of democracy consistent with the
needs of our society on the eve of the twenty-first century. The
current system is based on what was established in the nineteenth
century. The electorate was extremely restricted at that time and
it made sense for its political parties to select their
candidates and campaign for their election as the best
representatives of the interests of that extremely limited
electorate. But today, while the franchise is universal, only two
to three per cent of the electorate belong to political parties. It
is therefore not consistent with democratic principles to allot
broadcasting time or any other electoral resources on the basis
of any privilege whatsoever. The political process should be
renewed so that the entire electorate is enabled to select
candidates from amongst their peers. This was the case when the
political process was established in the nineteenth century with
an electorate restricted on the basis of property holding and all
those who were franchised participated in the selection of
candidates. We encourage all the political parties to work for
the renewal of the political process to make it consistent with
universal suffrage and the needs of the times.
Agreeing to the division of electoral broadcasting time on an
equal basis is a good start towards democratic renewal, as is
cooperation on proposals such as a common publication through
which all the participants can express their views, and the
proposal for small parties to run only one small party candidate
in each constituency.
We hope that the "major" parties which, so far, have not agreed
to adopt the principle of equality in the allotment of free and
paid broadcasting time, will do so now. This will help to raise
the level of politics in Canada and restore the prestige of
politics in the eyes of the people. It will also adhere to the
democratic principle of an informed electorate.
Should any party want to discuss the proposals contained above
with the Marxist-Leninist Party of Canada, we are at their
disposal. We will be sending more details on the proposal for
the common publication and other matters raised in this letter to
all federally registered political parties before August 31.
Sincerely,
Hardial Bains
National Leader
Marxist-Leninist Party of Canada
cc: All Federally Registered Political Parties