Canada: Hutterite ID debate to top court

OTTAWA — The country’s top court is wading into a dispute about whether Alberta is violating the religious rights of Hutterites by demanding they be photographed to obtain driver’s licences.

In a decision released yesterday, the high court agreed to review regulations enacted by the province in 2003 that made a digital photograph compulsory for all licence-holders.

Hutterite Brethren, a Christian sect who fled Russia for the Canadian prairies in the early 20th century, had traditionally been exempt from the photo requirement. They objected on religious grounds to having their pictures taken because they believe the second of the Ten Commandments prohibits them from willingly being photographed.

The decision comes amid a growing controversy over the degree to which Canadian society is obliged to accommodate the rights of religious and cultural minorities.

“Reasonable accommodation may be something that the Supreme Court wants to revisit or review or clarify,” said Greg Senda, the lawyer for the Hutterites who mounted the challenge.

“It has been in the news a tremendous amount recently. The court may be taking the opportunity, with this particular case, to comment again on the issue.”

Alberta maintains making photos mandatory in 2003 was necessary to protect the security of driver’s licences, which are widely used as general proof-of-identity documents, not just as authorization to take to the highways.

Senda said it’s virtually impossible to run a modern farming operation without being able to drive. The number of licences in the Wilson colony, which took the lead in contesting the new policy, dropped from 37 to 15 as non-photo licences expired and couldn’t be renewed.

Justice Sal LoVecchio of the Court of Queen’s Bench ruled the mandatory photo requirement infringed the freedom of religion guaranteed by the Charter of Rights and struck down the regulations.

The Alberta Court of Appeal upheld the finding in a split decision, prompting the province to carry its case to the Supreme Court.

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