ORGANIZED CRIME - OPPOSITION UNITES ON BLOC BILL

First Joint Initiative: Rare Support From All Three Parties Gives Bill
Solid Chance

OTTAWA - The federal opposition is flexing its muscles as all three
parties are joining forces to push through a Bloc Quebecois-proposed
bill that would toughen laws against gangsters by making it easier for
police to seize the proceeds of crime.

While private members' bills normally have little chance of becoming
law, Bloc MP Richard Marceau's effort to clamp down on organized crime
has a good chance of success in light of its unusual cross-party
support in the minority Parliament.

It's the first joint policy measure introduced by the opposition
parties since they acquired enough collective strength in the June 28
election to out-vote the governent in the House of Commons.

"I think the support of the three opposition parties would signal it
is going to go through," said Joe Comartin, the legislation's NDP backer.

The bill will be tabled on Thursday and the opposition parties will
hold a joint press conference to promote it.

The proposed legislation would force people convicted of having links
to organized crime to prove that their assets were acquired honestly,
a measure that would reverse the burden of proof that normally
requires the prosecution to make a case of guilt rather than the
accused to prove innocence.

The opposition parties are bypassing the Liberals instead of lobbying
Justice Minister Irwin Cotler for his support.

Cotler's spokeswoman, Denise Rudnicki, said she knows nothing about
the opposition initiative and added that there are no government plans
to introduce any new legislation aimed at combatting organized crime.

The NDP's Comartin said he supports the bill because "it's a logical
extension of some of the work we've already done around gangsterism
and organized crime."

The Liberals passed a law three years ago to fight organized crime by
strengthening anti-gang legislation. However critics sybsequently
complained that the legislation had the reverse effect, resulting in
few convictions and light sentences. from the courts.

The new law made it a crime to lead or even assist a criminal
organization, increased jail times for those found to have gang links
and provided more protection for public officials and
prosecutors.

The government continues to tackle organized crime through other
initiatives, Ms. Rudnicki said.

The federal bill to decriminalize marijuana, to be reintroduced this
fall after dying when the June 28 election was called, imposes harsher
penalties on marijuana grow operations, which police have identified
as big moneymaker for gangs and organized crime.

There is also legislation now being prepared that aims at making human
trafficking and smuggling a specific offence under the Criminal Code.
Trafficking in women and children has also become an area of major
growth and an increasingly lucrative business for organized crime.

Mr. Marceau could not be reached for comment on his initiative.