A ministry in Kelowna, BC is suing the Quebec government for cancelling its booking of a government-owned facility because it's planned event was allegedly pro-life..The lawsuit by Harvest Ministries International, led by Art Lucier, seeks compensation of $137,647 for material damages, $25,000 for moral damage and $50,000 in punitive damages for the unlawful and intentional infringements of its guaranteed rights..The suit also seeks judicial declarations Harvest’s rights were infringed upon, plus interest charges on the damages and for the government to pay all the defendants’ legal costs..The suit was filed Aug. 2 and requires a response by Aug 17..In January, the ministry booked the Société du Center des congrès de Québec (Quebec Convention Centre) in Quebec City for an event called “Faith, Fire, and Freedom.”.An audience of around 1,200 people per day was expected at the June 23 to July 2 event. Large prayer meetings, musical performances and other artistic and cultural performances were to be held around the themes of faith and reconciliation between the founding communities of the Canadian federation..However, on June 1, Minister of Tourism Caroline Proulx ordered the venue to terminate the lease..In a scrum the next day, Proulx said she had instructed the CEOs of major government venues that events such as the rally would no longer be held in their establishments..“It is against the fundamental principles of Quebec,” she said. “This type of event will not take place with us.”.She added, “Yes to freedom of expression, but no to hosting events that are in contradiction with the fundamental principles of Quebec.”.The CEO of the venue said he would help Harvest find another location, only to have the minister veto this courtesy..“There was an error on the part of my CEO…I told him that we are not going to support the company to find a place,” Proulx said..In a separate June 2 scrum, Martine Biron, Minister for the Status of Women, said, “We are a resolutely pro-choice government…we have principles and we have decided to be consistent.”.Premier François Legault likewise declared, “There is a question of judgment. We will not allow anti-abortion groups to be able to put on big shows in public bodies.”.The lawsuit, filed by lawyer Olivier Seguin, called the government’s actions a “draconian assault of the state.”.“The rally was not an ‘anti-abortion’ event; no item in the program concerned this particular theme,” the lawsuit states..“That said, this lawsuit is not about the merits of Harvest's views on abortion, but rather about the fundamental rights of Harvest, its members and followers to live their faith, to express themselves politically and to assemble peacefully without state hindrances.”.On June 5, 2023, Harvest sent the defendants a letter of formal notice making a similar statement,.“Even if the theme of the rally was “anti-abortion” (we deny it), your decision to ban my client from the Convention Center – and all similar properties of the provincial Crown – would be abusive, discriminatory, infringing on the fundamental freedoms of expression and religion, without a shred of reasonable justification.".“No speeches, performances, screenings or so-called ‘anti-abortion’ themes were on the program..”.Organizers failed to find a new home for the event. The lawsuit states that between June 3 and 16, “Harvest was refused by all of the forty-three (43) establishments it contacted in its research, sometimes for reasons of availability, sometimes for fear of the controversy knowingly triggered by the defendants.”.Expenses associated with the rally amount to $373,822, while revenues from donations were $236,175, leaving a net loss of $137,647. The event had been so defamed, no one wanted to host it, the lawsuit alleges..“The Minister, the Society, the Minister for the Status of Women and the [premier] himself singled out Harvest for popular condemnation because of his religious and political opinions allegedly contrary to the ‘fundamental principles of Quebec’,” the lawsuit states..The lawsuit alleges the minister and the company “unlawfully and without reasonable justification” violated Harvest’s freedom of religion, freedom of expression and opinion, freedom of peaceful assembly and the right to equality without discrimination based on religious or political beliefs..“This is a case of pure arbitrariness, based on the intimate convictions of people who have been temporarily entrusted with the levers of power,” the suit reads..“The abusive conduct of the minister and the company in this matter demonstrates malice and bad faith on the part of both parties and an intention to harm Harvest. The reasons invoked by the defendants are so far removed from the principle of legality (rule of law) that they border on the irrational.”
