80,000 homeless people set up 1,400 camps, Ontario passes new law to clean up the chaos, severe penalties for violators!

The Ontario government has passed Bill 6, aimed at cleaning up the rampant homeless camps.

Bill 6 is also called the "Safer Municipalities Act." The new bill grants local authorities greater powers to clear homeless camps and imposes fines of up to $10,000 or six months' imprisonment for illegal trespassing or drug use in public places.

A new report shows that by 2024, the number of homeless people in Ontario has exceeded 80,000, setting up camps all over major cities, with approximately 1,400 homeless camps across the province.

In late 2024, 12 mayors wrote a letter to Premier Doug Ford, requesting his assistance in addressing the rampant homeless camps issue.

One of the leaders, Mayor Brown of Brampton, stated that this bill is crucial for reducing drug use in public spaces. "We are doing everything we can to ensure zero tolerance for drugs in public spaces, which means clearing the camps," he said.

Before the introduction of the Sixth Bill, the Indian-populated city of Brampton had been clearing public areas, hiring private security guards, and posting signs prohibiting overnight camps.

Mayors across Ontario have appealed to the provincial and federal governments for more support services, including shelter spaces.

However, the bill has also drawn much opposition. Advocates for the rights of street homeless people stated that this bill will criminalize the homeless population.

"With the passage of this bill, what we see is that if homeless people are found using drugs in public places, they will be viewed as criminals."

Diana Chan McNally, spokesperson for the Camp Justice Alliance, stated that providing housing is the solution. "The only way to end the camps is to provide housing," she said. "Therefore, the government should always be under pressure to speed up the provision of housing for refugees instead of resorting to criminalization strategies and tools as we see in the Sixth Bill."

Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1834939045885008/

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