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OTTAWA (AFP) – Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau defended freedom of expression on Friday (October 30), but added that it “was not without limits” and should not “arbitrarily and unnecessarily harm” certain communities.
“We will always defend freedom of expression,” Trudeau said in response to a question about the right to show a cartoon of the Prophet Muhammad, as did the French magazine Charlie Hebdo.
“But freedom of expression is not without limits,” he added. “We owe it to ourselves to act with respect for others and not seek to arbitrarily or unnecessarily harm those with whom we share a society and a planet.”
“For example, we do not have the right to shout fire in a crowded movie theater, there are always limits,” he argued.
Moving away from the position of French President Emmanuel Macron, Trudeau advocated a careful use of freedom of expression.
“In a pluralistic, diverse and respectful society like ours, we owe it to ourselves to be aware of the impact of our words, of our actions on others, particularly in these communities and populations that still suffer great discrimination,” he said.
At the same time, he said that society is ready for a public debate on these issues, “to have these complex conversations in a responsible way.”
As he had done the day before with the leaders of the European Union, Trudeau insisted on condemning the recent “horrible and appalling” extremist attacks in France.
“It is unjustifiable and Canada wholeheartedly condemns these acts while supporting our French friends who are going through extremely difficult times,” he said.
Canada’s parliament observed a moment of silence on Thursday over the three people previously stabbed to death in a church in Nice, southern France, by a Tunisian who was detained.
Anger flared in the Middle East in response to Macron defending the right to publish the cartoons in France.
Macron made the remarks during a tribute last week to Mr Samuel Paty, a teacher who was beheaded on the street for showing cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad in class at a course on freedom of expression.
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