Tamil Genocide Week gets legal impetus

Bill 104, the Tamil Genocide Education Week Act, 2021, was unanimously passed after the 3rd reading with the full support of elected representatives across all parties at the Ontario legislative assembly and received royal assent on May 12, 2021, making it a law in the province of Ontario. This bill proclaims the seven-day period in each year ending on May 18 as Tamil Genocide Education Week. During this period, all are encouraged to educate themselves about maintaining their awareness of the Tamil Genocide and other genocides that have occurred in world history. The passing of Bill 104 was a historic moment for Tamil people across the world. It was the first time a government officially passed such a bill to educate about the Tamil Genocide. After Bill 104 was passed, Tamil Genocide deniers filed a constitutional challenge against it at the Ontario Superior Court of Justice. To defend Bill 104, over 60 Tamil Canadian organisations came together with the National Council of Canadian Tamils (NCCT), the Canadian Tamil Youth Alliance (CTYA), and the Canadian Tamil Academy (CTA) to retain Goldblatt Partners law firm and make submissions to the court as interveners. Bill 104 was upheld on June 28, 2022, at the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, and the constitutional challenge made by the Tamil Genocide deniers was dismissed. However, once again, the Tamil Genocide deniers have appealed the judgement of Bill 104, the Tamil Genocide Education Week Act, 2021, at the Court of Appeal for Ontario.