Indeed, the Canadian government believes that agents of Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government are behind the murder of Hardeep Singh Nijjar, a Canadian and Indian citizen. This murder took place on June 18 in Surrey, British Columbia. Nijjar was known to be involved with the Khalistan movement as a Canadian Sikh separatist leader. This movement calls for an independent Sikh state, as Indian Sikhs constitute the fourth largest religious group in the country. Nijjar’s involvement with the Khalistan movement is in fact a significant aspect to the tensions that have risen between Canada and India. In fact, since Trudeau’s accusations, Indian media sources have presented Canada as a country that offers refuge to Khalistani terrorists

Trudeau’s accusations, and the Indian government’s reaction to them, has caused negative repercussions for Canada, whether it is diplomatically, economically, or socially. A key result of these tensions, for instance, has been the Indian demands of the repatriation of 41 Canadian diplomats, which was recently enacted on October 19. Along with that, India has warned its citizens to be cautious when traveling to Canada, and has stopped processing visitor visas for Canada. This can indicate a diplomatic setback for Canada, for whom India constitutes a “country that we want to have a good relationship with” according to Daniel Béland, Director of the McGill Institute for the Study of Canada and Professor in the Department of Political Science. When talking to the Daily, Béland emphasized the importance of salvaging “our relationship with India; in part because we have so many Canadians of Indian descent, along with foreign students and temporary workers from India.” “Four per cent of Canadians are of Indian background” and “half of that are from Sikh background” says Béland. As discussed with Professor Béland, this issue exceeds the realm of international relations as it “has ramifications that are important domestically” for instance within the Indian diaspora, “including tensions between Indians and Sikh people.” 

Daniel Béland explains that Canada has not received a lot of public support from its allies (such as the UK)- except for the US which has asserted support for Canada during these tensions- which might display a shift in Canada’s positioning in the world as a “middle-sized power.” However, he claims it is important to remember that “Canadian voters aren’t as interested in foreign diplomacy.” Béland discusses Canada’s tendency to focus on local issues rather than focusing on the country’s foreign correspondences. He says that foreign policy is “not necessarily a priority” in Canada, but that these tensions show that Canadian foreign policy is already shifting. There is “more push back on alleged foreign interference,” displayed through Trudeau’s decision to “publicly take a strong stance” on this issue, describes Béland.

Although these tensions might come off as pivotal for Canada and Canadian foreign policy, the Trudeau government has claimed that they are not looking to escalate tensions with India. “You need two partners to dance,” says Béland. Indeed, the future outcomes of these tensions will not only depend on the Canadian government, but also the Modi government’s response.

From India’s perspective, the Indian government has denied any involvement in the murder of Nijjar and has labeled these accusations as “absurd and politically motivated.” The Indian government views Canada as accepting of the Khalistan movement, which they consider to be a terrorist movement and a national security threat. The Indian government further reiterated their belief that Canada is “not doing enough to stem anti-India activism.” The Indian Minister of External Affairs, Subrahmanyam Jaishankar, has explaimed that Indian diplomats positioned in Canada feel unsafe when going to embassies or consulates due to the “climate of fear” that has arisen. However, Jaishankar emphasized that India remains open to exploring any relevant or specific information that Canada might advance. Nonetheless, India expresses concerns of “continuous interference” in their internal affairs by Canadian agents, which threatens their “sovereignty and territorial integrity.”

The future of the Canadian-Indian diplomatic and political relationship is hard to predict. It will depend on the upcoming actions of both countries and how these tensions evolve; whether the countries are willing to cooperate, or, contrastingly, if they continue to exacerbate the friction.  

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Numerous human rights groups condemn this policy and highlight its harmful character towards LGBTQ+ students who are gender-diverse, trans, or non-binary. Indeed, teachers who do not obtain parental consent are prohibited from using the student’s preferred name and pronouns. As a result, gender-diverse students will be subject to outing, misgendering and deadnaming. This will have direct effects on these students’ mental health and participates in fostering an unsafe environment for them at school. 

Human rights groups argue that, for LGBTQ+ students, this policy makes the ability to question their gender identity complicated as various students are not out about their gender identification at home. If home is not a comfortable place for them, school can be an environment where they feel safe and affirm their gender identity more freely. This new policy in Saskatchewan undermines the ability to feel safe at school, which is why many organizations have come forth and condemned the policy. 

In Saskatchewan, legal measures are being launched by UR Pride, an organization that supports and promotes the rights of the LGBTQ+ community. Within these legal measures, UR Pride is being represented by LBGTQ+ advocacy group Egale Canada, and the McCarthy Tétrault LLP law firm, who are planning on filing a lawsuit at the Court of King’s Bench.  The Daily was able to speak to Bennet Jensen, the Director of Legal at Egale. Jensen gave us an insight on what Egale is challenging within these legal measures. He spoke to the unconstitutionality of this anti-trans policy in regards to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, particularly Sections 7 and 15 of the Charter. Jensen put forth the fact that the policy violates the ‘security of the person’ clause of Section 7. This policy fosters an unsafe environment for gender-diverse and trans students, which jeopardizes the safeguards that Section 7 normally enables. Additionally, the policy is said to violate Section 15 of the Charter due to its discriminatory nature. Indeed, this policy only targets trans and gender-diverse students who wish to go by another name or pronoun at school. Other students that wish to use a nickname (i.e., Rob instead of Robert) or who go by an anglicized version of their name at school, do not need parental consent. Hence, this singles out gender-diverse students, constituting a form of discrimination. 

For now, Egale has demanded a court injunction. In other words, the organization wants the court to halt the policy until there is a trial. They are waiting to hear back on the injunction request and also have some court hearings planned for November. 

The Daily was also able to speak with Harini Sivalingam, the Director of the Equality Program at the Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA), an intervenor in these legal measures. Sivalingam said that the CCLA is intervening to highlight, amongst other ideas, “that the messaging that this is an issue of parents rights is really a false dichotomy that pits parents rights against students rights.” She emphasized the idea that through this policy, the government is “dictating when, where and whether a student comes out to their parents,” meaning students either have to come out to their parents, or deal with the psychological stress associated with deadnaming and misgendering. 

“Identity has a social dimension,” she said. This is a main part in the distress this policy causes: “If the identity that you feel internally is not reciprocated externally, through your peers and through your social settings, it can cause significant harm to oneself.” This constitutes a cognitive dissonance that could lead to intense gender dysphoria, anxiety and more. Sivalingam also noted that the implementation of this policy is part of a bigger issue and that there is an “alarming trend that we are seeing right across the country.” Effectively, this policy in Saskatchewan appears not long after changes made to legislation 713 in New Brunswick, which forbids teachers to use a student’s preferred name or pronoun without parental consent, if they are under 16. There have also been rumors of other provinces that might want to “test the waters” regarding anti-trans policies like these. However, Sivalingam did highlight the numerous counter-protests to these policies that still leave hope. She said that the CCLA sees a shining light in that “most people in Canada believe in the Charter and believe in equality of all people.” 

Abe Berglas from Queer McGill provided insight on gender-diversity within the educational environment. They mention that this policy displays a “misunderstanding that if a kid is allowed to experiment with their gender, they will turn trans.” Berglas added that this is a “false logic that has implications at every age level,” and “it shows that fundamentally, these people don’t believe in transness.” This policy thus undermines the fact that “being able to control your name and your pronouns is a very empowering experience” for trans people, and that the ability to experiment with one’s gender identity in a place that is safe should be valued. 

Ultimately, advocates say that this new policy in Saskatchewan has important implications for the LGBTQ+ community and puts them, especially students of the community, in a vulnerable position. For now, trans and gender-diverse students will be subject to the consequences this policy entails, mentally and physically. Nonetheless, many counter-protests have been started against policies like these and legal measures put forth by Egale continue to play out in court.

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