Gun lobby scraps ads in wake of Toronto shooting
Last Updated: Friday, December 30, 2005 | 9:32 AM ET
CBC News
The campaign, by the Canadian Institute for Legislative Action and the Canadian Shooting Association, had been designed to argue that responsible gun owners are not at the root of the crime problem.
At first, the lobby groups intended to present the campaign despite the Dec. 26 crime that horrified the country, when a teenage girl died and six others were injured as gunfire erupted on a busy Toronto street.
The campaign's organizers later decided to cancel the ads, however.
"In light of the recent barbaric acts in downtown Toronto, resulting in the death of 15-year-old Jane Creba and the injury of six others, we are very concerned that our informational advertising is being intentionally misconstrued for political purposes," Larry Whitmore, executive director of the sports association, said in a statement Thursday.
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Liberal candidates in the Toronto area have condemned the campaign, claiming that it also involved the U.S.-based National Rifle Association.
Whitmore has denied the U.S. lobby group was involved in any way.
"I can state categorically we have never received one cent from the NRA, and we have never asked for any money from the NRA," Whitmore said. "They are just another organization we communicate with."
While campaigning for the Jan. 23 federal election, Liberal Leader Paul Martin announced he would introduce a handgun ban, offering narrowly defined exemptions for target shooters and allowing collectors time to sell or dispose of their weapons.
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Collectors would have to either sell or surrender their weapons over five years, or become target shooters.
The promise angered gun collectors, as well as people who had objected to regulations imposed under the gun registry the Liberals brought in during the 1990s.
