OTTAWA – The Green Party of Canada is calling for an end to what it calls “TV attack ads” in Canada in order to facilitate “open, fair and participatory” election campaigns.
Referring to the elections in the U.S. held earlier this week, party leader Elizabeth May said that Canada should ban the use of television for political advertising before and during the writ periods.
"We recognize that our own political culture is increasingly being contaminated by the same kind of poisonous manipulation seen in the U.S.”, May said Tuesday in a statement. “Before Canadians next go to the polls, we want to propose sweeping new changes to protect our political commons."
Currently the U.K., South Africa, Brazil, Belgium, Switzerland, Chile, Sweden, and Ireland ban the use of television advertising for political parties. May said that attack ads discourage democratic participation, and their expense creates “an enormous imbalance between the different parties”.
"We should rely on free access to the airwaves, organized by networks to allow candidates to explain their own views and policies, not attack the character and personal foibles of the opposition”, May added.
