Governor General Louise Arbour’s son-in-law has taken the unusual step of publicly criticizing Rebel News publisher Ezra Levant while insisting his ties to Rideau Hall have no bearing on his commentary.Ottawa lawyer Michael Spratt targeted Levant in an Oct. 2 column for Canadian Lawyer, accusing him of making “inflammatory,” “misleading” and “reckless” statements about the justice system.“My mother-in-law has nothing, directly or indirectly, to do with it,” Spratt said in response to questions about the column.Blacklock's Reporter said Spratt wrote that Levant “has made a career out of turning up the temperature, seemingly unconcerned about what gets burned in the process.”The roughly 1,000-word commentary was prompted by Levant’s criticism of the treatment of anti-Israel street demonstrators by a Muslim Crown prosecutor..Spratt, who represented defendants in some of the cases, accused Levant of “undermining faith in the justice system.”“I was counsel on some of those cases,” wrote Spratt. “There was no evidence my clients were Hamas activists.”Spratt argued criticism of Canadian courts, police and prisons should be based on evidence.“Public confidence in the justice system is fragile,” he wrote. “There are many things in our courts, prisons and police services that deserve criticism, but that criticism should be based on facts.”Spratt defended his decision to publish the commentary and rejected suggestions his family connection to the Governor General created a conflict.“My column criticized specific statements by Mr. Levant,” he said. “My mother-in-law has nothing, directly or indirectly, to do with it. Neither does the federal government.”“If Blacklock’s can explain how my relationship with the Governor General creates a reasonable perception of a conflict in an unrelated column about Ezra Levant attacking an Ontario Crown prosecutor, I would genuinely be interested to hear it,” said Spratt.Spratt is married to Emilie Taman, Arbour’s daughter and a longtime New Democrat organizer. Taman has avoided media commentary since her mother was appointed Governor General on May 5.Arbour said following her appointment that she welcomed opposing opinions and would engage with critics.“I will reach out to engage with anybody who wishes to agree with me, to debate, to discuss,” Arbour told reporters. “I will listen and I hope in due course I will manage to persuade those, particularly those who may doubt my integrity.”.Arbour also praised Canada’s tradition of vigorous public debate.“We live in a country where there is a great, free space for expression of contrary views, even at times expressed in very robust fashion,” she said. “I have immense respect for that process. I will reach out, not only to those who agree with me.”Arbour, 79, is a former Supreme Court of Canada justice who retired from the bench in 2004.While serving as United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights in 2006, Arbour faced protests in Israel after endorsing an Arab Charter On Human Rights that contained language denouncing Zionism.
