Article content continued

The Conservatives said Canadians who commit crimes such as murder in a democratic country that adheres to the rule of law should not count on the government to help. Human rights groups and opposition parties said the Conservatives were effectively condoning the death penalty, which Canada abolished in 1976.

In an interview Monday, Dion accused the Conservatives of “sending the message that Canada was not very sure we were against the death penalty, because we were ready to accept the death penalty under some circumstances. We were picking and choosing.”

In order to be able to maximize the possibility that you will get clemency for some, you need to ask for clemency for all.

Aside from running contrary to domestic policy in Canada, Dion said the Conservatives’ position made it more difficult to successfully advocate for clemency in those situations when the government decided to act.

“Our credibility to be able to get clemency was negatively affected,” he said. “In order to be able to maximize the possibility that you will get clemency for some, you need to ask for clemency for all.”

Photo by Martial Trezzini / AP

Dion was extremely critical of capital punishment during the interview. Aside from the risk of innocent people being mistakenly sentenced to die, he said the death penalty “is not something that should be done in a civilized society, because a civilized society is looking for justice and not vengeance.”

Some will interpret that as criticism of the U.S. But Dion defended his comment, noting that “many Americans will agree with me.” He added that the majority of states don’t execute inmates. While the death penalty is legal in 31 states, moratoriums are in place in 20.