As part of this process, I believe it is very important that Canadians have the opportunity to voice their views and participate in how the government operates. I said earlier that I see this review as an important opportunity to contribute to our mutual goal of building safer communities. I also see it as an important opportunity for Canadians to participate in a broad public discussion on corrections and conditional release issues. I strongly believe that these discussions are a fundamental part of building a better Canada and a more effective corrections and conditional release system. At the same time, I recognize that this is not the easiest of debates in which to engage people.
Tragic incidents overshadow the system's many successes and have eroded public confidence.
So we have an opportunity, through this review, to raise public awareness about the system. To me, citizen engagement is extremely important in the corrections area. For too long, the public environment has created pressure to adopt a more punitive approach, when all the evidence suggests that this does not work. This is certainly the case in the United States. That's why I am so committed to changing the public environment.