Legge costituzionale 17 aprile 1982

Constitution Act, 17 april 1982.

[Enacted as Schedule B to the Canada Act 1982 (U.K.) 1982, c. 11, which came into force on April 17, 1982]

PART I

“Canadian charter of rights and freedoms”

Whereas Canada is founded upon principles that recognize the supremacy of God and the rule of law:

GUARANTEE OF RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS IN CANADA

1.– The Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees the rights and freedoms set out in it subject only to such reasonable limits prescribed by law as can be demonstrably justified in a free and democratic society.

FUNDAMENTAL FREEDOMS

2.– Everyone has the following fundamental freedoms:

a. freedom of conscience and religion;
b. freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communication;
c. freedom of peacefun assembly; and
d. freedom of association.

DEMOCRATIC RIGHTS

DEMOCRATIC RIGHTS OF CITIZENS

3.– Every citizen of Canada has the right to vote in an election of members of the House of Commons or of a legislative assembly and to be qualified for membership therein.

MAXIMUM DURATION OF LEGISLATIVE BODIES

4.– 1. No House of Commons and no legislative assembly shall continue for longer than five years from the date fixed for the return of the writs of a general election of its members.

Continuation in special circumstances

2. In time of real or apprehended war, invasion or insurrection, a House of Commons may be continued by Parliament and a Legislative assembly may be contiued by the legislature beyond five years if such continuation is not opposed by the votes of more than one-third of the members of the House of Commons or the legislative assembly, as the case may be.

ANNUAL SITTING OF LEGISLATIVE BODIES

5.– There shall be a sitting of Parliament and of each legislature at least once every twelve months.

MOBILITY RIGHTS

MOBILITY OF CITIZENS

6.– 1) Every citizen of Canada has the right to enter, remain in and leave Canada.

Rights to move and gain livelihood
2) Every citizen of Canada and every person who has the status of a permanent resident of Canada has the right
a. to move to and take up residence in any province; and
b. to pursue the gaining of a livelihood in any province.

Limitation
3) The rights specified in subsection (2) are subject to
a. any laws or practices of general application in force in a province other than those that discriminate among persons primarily on the basis of province of present of previous residence; and
b. any laws providing for reasonable residency requirements as a qualification for the receipt of publicly provided social service.

Affirmative action programs
4) Subsections (2) and (3) do not preclude any law, program or activity that has as its object the amelioration in a province of conditions of individuals in that province who are socially or economically disadvantaged if the rate of employment in that province is below the rate of employment in Canada.

LEGAL RIGHTS

LIFE, LIBERTY AND SECURITY OF PERSON

7.– Everyone has the right to life, liberty and security of the persons and the right not to be deprived thereof except in accordance with the principles of fundamental justice.

SEARCH OR SEIZURE

8.– Everyone has the right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure.

DETENTION OR IMPRISONMENT

9.– Everyone has the right not to be arbitrarily detained or imprisoned.

ARREST OR DETENTION

10.– Everyone has the right on arrest or detention
a. to be informed promptly of the reasons therefor;
b. to retain and instruct counsel without delay and to be informed of that right; and
c. to have the validity of the detention determined by way of habeas corpus and to be released if the detention is not lawful.

PROCEEDINGS IN CRIMINAL AND PENAL MATTERS

11.– Any person charged with an offense has the right
a. to be informed without unreasonable delay of the specific offense;
b. to be tried within a reasonable time;
c. not to be compelled to be a witness in proceedings against that person in respect of the offense;
d. to be presumed innocent until proven guilty according to law in a fair and public hearing by an independent and impartial tribunal;
e. not to be denied reasonable bail without just cause;
f. except in the case of an offense under military law tried before a military tribunal, to the benefit of trial by jury where the maximum punishment for the offense is imprisonment for five years or a more severe punishment;
g. not to be found guilty on account of any act or omission unless, at the time of the act or omission, it constituted an offense under Canadian or international law or was criminal according to the general principles of law recognized by the community of nations;
h. if finally acquitted of the offense, not to be tried for it again and, if finally found guilty and punished for the offense, not to be tried or punished for it again; and
i. if found guilty of the offense and if the punishment for the offense has been varied between the time of commission and the time of sentencing, to the benefit of the lesser punishement.

TREATMENT OR PUNISHMENT

12.– Everyone has the right not to be subjected to any cruel and unusual treatment or punishment.

SELF-CRIMINATION

13.– A witness who testifies in any proceedings has the right not to have any incriminating evidence so given used to incriminate that witness in any other proceedings, except in a prosecution for perjury or for the giving of contradictory evidence.

INTERPRETER

14.– A party or witness in any proceedings who does not understand or speak the language in which the proceedings are conducted or who is deaf has the right to the assistance of an interpreter.

EQUALITY RIGHTS

EQUALITY BEFORE AND UNDER LAW AND EQUAL PROTECTION AND BENEFIT OF LAW

15.– 1. Every individual is equal before and under the law and has the right to the equal protection and equal benefit of the law without discrimination and, in particular, without discrimination based on race, national or ethnic origin, color, religion, sex, age or mental or physical disability.

OFFICIAL LANGUAGES OF CANADA

16.– 1. English and French are the official languages of Canada and have equality of status and equal rights and privileges as to their use in all institution of the Parliament and government of Canada.

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PROCEEDINGS OF PARLIAMENT

17.– 1. Everyone has the right to use English or French in any debates and other proceedings of Parliament.

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PROCEEDINGS IN COURTS ESTABLISHED BY PARLIAMENT

19.– 1. Either English or French may be used by any person in, or in any pleading in or process issuing from, any court established by Parliament.

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MINORITY LANGUAGE EDUCATIONAL RIGHTS

LANGUAGE OF INSTRUCTION

23.– 1) Citizens of Canada
a. whose first language learned and still understood is that of the English or French linguistic minority population of the province in which they reside, or
b. who have received their primary school instruction in Canada in English or French and reside in a province where the language in which they received that instruction is the language of the English or French linguistic minority population of the province,

have the right to have their children receive primary and secondary school instruction in that language in that province.

Continuity of language instruction –
2) Citizens of Canada of whom any child has received or is receiving primary or secondary school instruction in English or French in Canada, have the right to have all their children receive primary and secondary school instruction in the same language.

Application where numbers warrant –
3) The right of citizens of Canada under subsections(1) and (2) to have their children receive primary and secondary school instruction in the language of the English or French linguistic minority population of a province
a. applies wherever in the province the number of children of citizens who have such a right is sufficient to warrant the provision to them out of public funds of minority language instruction; and
b. includes, where the number of those children so warrants, the right to have them receive that instruction in minority language educational facilities provided out of public funds.

ENFORCEMENT

ENFORCEMENT OF GUARANTEED RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS

24.– 1) Anyone whose rights or freedoms, as guaranteed by this Charter, have been infringed or denied may apply to a court of competent jurisdiction to obtain such remedy as the court considers appropriate and just in the circumstances.

Exclusion of evidence bringing administration of justice into disrepute
2) Where, in proceedings under subsection (1), a court concludes that evidence was obtained in a manner that infringed or denied any rights or freedoms guaranteed by this Charter, the evidence shall be excluded if it is established that, having regard to all the circumstances, the admission of it in the proceedings would bring the administration of justice into disrepute.

GENERAL

ABORIGINAL RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS NOT AFFECTED BY CHARTER

25.– The guarantee in this Charter of certain rights and freedoms shall not be construed so as to abrogate or derogate from any aboriginal, treaty or other rights or freedoms that pertain to the aboriginal peoples of Canada including
a. any rights or freedoms that have been recognized by the Royal Proclamation of October 7, 1763; and
b. any rights or freedoms that now exist by way of land claims agreements or may be so acquired.

OTHER RIGHTS AND FREEDOMS NOT AFFECTED BY CHARTER

26.– The guarantee in this Charter of certain rights and freedoms shall not be construed as denying the existence of any other rights or freedoms that exist in Canada.

MULTICULTURAL HERITAGE

27.– This Charter shall be interpreted in a manner consistent with the preservation and enhancement of the multicultural heritage of Canadians.

RIGHTS GUARANTEED EQUALLY TO BOTH SEXES

28.– Notwithstanding anything in this Charter, the rights and freedoms referred to in it are guaranteed equally to male and female persons.

RIGHTS RESPECTING CERTAIN SCHOOLS PRESERVED

29.– Nothing in this Charter abrogates or derogates from any rights or privileges guaranteed by or under the Constitution of Canada in respect of denominational, separate or dissentient schools.

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CITATION

34.- This Part may be cited as the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.

PART II
RIGHTS OF THE ABORIGINAL PEOPLES OF CANADA

RECOGNITION OF EXISTING ABORIGINAL AND TREATY RIGHTS

35.– 1) The existing aboriginal and treaty rights of the aboriginal peoples of Canada are hereby recognized and affirmed.

Definition of “aboriginal peoples of Canada” –
2) In this Act, “aboriginal peoples of Canada” includes the Indian, Inuit and Métis peoples of Canada.

Land claims agreements –
3) For greater certainty, in subsection (1) “treaty rights” includes rights that now exist by way of land claims agreements or may be so acquired.

Aboriginal and treaty rights are guaranteed equally to both sexes –
4) Notwithstanding any other provision of this Act, the aboriginal and treaty rights referred to in subsection (1) are guaranteed equally to male and female persons.

COMMITMENT TO PARTICIPATION IN CONSTITUTIONAL CONFERENCE

35.1.– The government of Canada and the provincial governments are committed to the principal that, before any amendment is made to Class 24 of section 91 of the “Constitution Act, 1867”, to section 25 of this Act or to this Part,
a. a constitutional conference that includes in its agenda an item relating to the proposed amendment, composed of the Prime Minister of Canada and the first ministers of the provinces, will be convened by the Prime Minister of Canada; and
b. the Prime Minister of Canada will invite representatives of the aboriginal peoples of Canada to participate in the discussions on that item.

PART III
EQUALIZATION AND REGIONAL DISPARITIES

COMMITMENT TO PROMOTE EQUAL OPPORTUNITIES

36.– 1) Without altering the legislative authority of Parliament or of the provincial legislatures, or the rights of any of them with respect to the exercise of their legislative authority, Parliament and the legislatures, together with the government of Canada and the provincial governments, are committed to

a. promoting equal opportunities for the well-being of Canadians;
b. furthering economic development to reduce disparity in opportunities; and
c. providing essential public services of reasonable quality to all Canadians.

Commitment respecting public services –
2) Parliament and the government of Canada are committed to the principle of making equalization payments to ensure that provincial governments have sufficient revenues to provide reasonable comparable levels of public services at reasonably comparable levels of taxation.

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