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Suggested Predictions
Ziibos (18)
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The topic may seem outrageous, but this is actually happening in Bountiful, B.C., Canada.
A Mormon community in the small town of Bountiful, B.C., has had members secretly practising polygamy. The situation was made public several years ago when one of its members was charged for exploitation of young women (and girls). Since then, a legal battle began, where polygamists are claiming that it is their religious rights to practise polygamy, even though polygamy is illegal according to Canadian laws. Government officials are actually urging the court to review the case, fearing that the existing laws may be ruled unconstitutional. With that in mind, do you think a ruling will come down by the end of Q2, opening the floodgates for polygamy? (Please note: this prediction is not asking if you support polygamy; it is asking if you think the existing laws against polygamy will be RULED unconstitutional)
Comments (18)
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http://www.theglobeandmail.com/servle...
Cases of sexual exploitation against women and girls have been reported - the society would not allow the government to duck away from the situation.
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/fe...
And some more background info on this BC town:
http://www.rickross.com/reference/pol...
Polygamy isn't the main issue here I guess. It is the exploitation of young women that raise Canadian's concern. I suppose you are right that the government is forced to address the issue.
And this is really not too surprising a thing: when the debate of same-sex marriage was at its highest, activists advocating the definition of marriage to be restricted to the union between one man and one woman have warned that this would happen. Once the basic definition is allowed to be changed for one group, the flood gate would open where other groups would challenge whether it is against their rights to rule their form of union (be that polygamy, marriages between siblings, or even marriage to a pet, etc) illegal.
The then Liberals government said this would never happen. And two years after that, we are already seeing the next chapter...
Be prepared to see human-animal and sibling marriages next.
Even though now the polygamy is illegal in Canada, the execution is very rare and uncertain; otherwise the court already had enough evidences to break the BC community. If it is federal law, I guess the Federal Conservative party will not decriminalize it.
The Attorney General in British Columbia has expressed concerns over whether this prohibition is constitutional; an independent prosecutor in British Columbia recommended that Canadian courts be asked to rule on the constitutionality of the law against polygamy. A 2005 report by the Alberta Civil Liberties Research Centre recommended that Canada decriminalize polygamy, stating: "Criminalization is not the most effective way of dealing with gender inequality in polygamous and plural union relationships. Furthermore, it may violate the constitutional rights of the parties involved."
Although most Mormons now accept the prohibition on plural marriage, various splinter groups left the mainline LDS Church to continue the open practice of plural marriage. Polygamy among these groups persists today in Utah, neighboring states, and the spin-off colonies, as well as among isolated individuals with no organized church affiliation. Polygamist churches of Mormon origin are often referred to as "Mormon fundamentalist" who often use a disputed September 27, 1886 revelation to John Taylor as the basis for their authority to continue the practice of plural marriage.
It is commonly known that, in Islam, polygamy is allowed, with the specific limitation that men can only have up to four wives at any one time. To my surprise, not all Islamic's countries accept polygamy. For example, polygamy is prohibited by law in Tunisia, Turkey and Bosnia-Herzegovina.