Dieudonn's upcoming Montreal performance raises free speech questions

Mayor Denis Coderrehas said controversial French comedian Dieudonn is not welcome in Montreal, but the founder of the Just for Laughs Festival says it's a "delicate" situation that Quebecers should carefully consider.

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Dieudonn M'balaM'bala,whoperforms under the name Dieudonn, is booked to play ten shows in Montreal fromMay 11-16. He's also expected to perform in Trois-Rivires.

Ithink it's aboutthat: I'm totally against what you just said, but im going to fight for the fact that you can say it.- Gilbert Rozon, Just For Laughs Festival Founder

Just for Laughs Comedy Festival founder GilbertRozonsaidhe doesn't agree with Dieudonn's pastcomments, which include jokes aboutgas chambers.

"It's why I stopped promoting him."

But, Rozon adds, disagreeing with someone and preventing him from expressing himselfare two different things.

"We have to decide, are we for or against freedom of speech?"Rozonsaid, adding there's a lot of nuance toconsider.

"Recently we had a case on the French-Canadian side with Mike Ward, who's a good friend of mine, and he did a joke that was probably from my point of view bad taste," Rozon said.

"But Ihad to defend him, even though if Ihad done this kind of joke Iprobably would have apologized. Ithink it's aboutthat: I'm totally against what you just said, but im going to fight for the fact that you can say it."

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Dieudonnwasfound guilty last year in France forcondoning terrorism afterposting a joke on hisFacebookpage about the Charlie Hebdo attacks in Paris.

He alsohas several previous convictions under hate speech laws in France and Belgium.

It's up to agents at the Canada Border Services Agency to decidewhether Dieudonn's historywill prevent him from being allowed into Canada.

Stphane Duval, thechair of the CanadianBar Association's National Immigration Section, said an agent will haveto analyze whether the judgements rendered against Dieudonnin Europeconstitute an indictable offence in Canada.

"The burden is on the shoulders of Dieudonn. He has to prove that he is admissible in the country," Duval said.

He explained that ifDieudonn is recognized by agents or if there's a warning in the system, he'll have to meet with an inspection officer, and prove that the judgements rendered against him in Europe do not make him inadmissible.

A spokesperson for the CBSA said "admissibility of all travellers is decided on a case-by-case basis and based on the information made available at the time of entry."

They said several factors would be considered,including involvement in criminal activity andin human rights violations.