Canada parl committee agrees to delink the sacred swastika from Nazi hate symbol Hakenkreuz

Toronto: In a watershed voter turnout, a citizens committee of the domiciliate of common land in Canada has unanimously agreed to delink the sacred swastika from the Nazi hate symbol, the Hakenkreuz.

While deliberating on amendments to Bill C-9, the anti-hate legislation proposed by the government, members of the Standing Committee on Justice and Human Rights unanimously voted on Tuesday to remove any reference to the swastika. The original version of the bill sought a ban on displaying hate symbols, such as “the Nazi Hakenkreuz, also known as the Nazi swastika, or the Nazi double Sig-Rune, also known as the SS bolts”. The amendment was moved by Liberal Party MP Anthony Housefather after concerns were raised by Indo-Canadian community groups over use of such terminology.

In an appearance before the committee in October, Vijay Jain, president of the Vishwa Jain Sangathan Canada, had argued that usage of the “word in hate references deprives Jain, Hindu and Buddhist Canadians their religious rights to use the word in their prayers”.

In testimony presented before the committee in November, Hindu Canadian Foundation president Arunesh Giri emphasised “the urgent need to completely remove” the term from the bill.

“The mislabelling of the sacred Swastika has now been corrected, but this is not the end. It is a powerful message, and we will continue to educate society about the profound difference between the Swastika, a timeless symbol of peace and well-being,” he said.

Over 100 community organisations, including Hindu, Jain and Buddhist groups, campaigned for the change. They received support from major Jewish groups, including B’nai Brith Canada, the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs and the Alliance of Canadians Combating Antisemitism.

Among the organisations that worked on the matter was the Coalition of Hindus of North America (CoHNA. “This marks a major step towards ensuring the sacred Swastika of Hindu, Buddhist, and Jain traditions is not conflated with the Nazi Hakenkreuz,” it said.

CoHNA spokesperson Pushpita Prasad said this “critical win” was “also an important milestone in the maturing of the Hindu community in Canada and its ability to organise and navigate the trenches of Canadian lawmaking”.

Also welcoming the amendment was the Canadian National Council of Hindus, which said removal of any reference to the swastika from the bill “sets an important precedent”.

The proposed legislation will make it a crime to intimidate and obstruct people from accessing places of worship, as well as schools, community centres and other places primarily used by an identifiable group. It will make hate motivated crime a specific offence, ensuring such conduct is more clearly denounced and that offenders are held accountable; and make it a crime to wilfully promote hatred against an identifiable group by displaying certain terrorism or hate symbols in public, a release from the Ministry of Justice had noted in a release in September.

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