Canadians were shocked recently when they learned of the drowning deaths of three teenaged girls and an adult woman in a car at a lock on the Rideau Canal. They were horrified later when the father, mother, and brother were charged with murder in what was described by relatives as an 'honour killing.'

How could the word 'honour,' we asked, be associated in any way with the word 'killing?' What could the motivation have been?

Police chief Stephen Tanner, while announcing the charges, said the behaviour of one or more of the teenagers may have contributed to the motive for the killing.

"Some of us have different core beliefs, different family values, different sets of rules; certainly these individuals, in particular the three teenagers, were Canadian teenagers who have all the freedom and rights of expression of all Canadians," Tanner said. "Whether that was a part of the motive within the family, based on one … or more of the girls' behaviour is open to a little bit of speculation." It will be combined with other investigative issues as well.

The Chief was suggesting, as cautiously as he could, that the core beliefs of the accused were different from the core beliefs of 'all Canadians' and that the victims were trying to make a transition between the two.

Since that statement much discussion has taken place on whether 'honour killing' is a core belief in Islam. Some Muslims deny it, but Tarek Fatah, founder of the Muslim Canadian Congress and a critic of traditional Islam, said in the National Post July 25, 2009 that Sharia (Islamic) law "does allow for the killing of women if they indulge in pre-marital or extra-marital consensual sex."

What has not been discussed in the media was the other half of the chief's statement: the core beliefs, family values, and sets of rules followed by Canadians. What are those beliefs and where did they come from?

As the Christian Heritage Party has been saying for years, Canadian moral values are based on English Common Law which, in turn, is based on the values and precepts set out in the Christian Bible. The injunction against murder comes as early as the second law of Noah (Genesis 9:6). It is expressed again in the Ten Commandments, the sixth of which (Exodus 20:13) says plainly, "Thou shalt not kill."

It is for this reason-not because of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms or Supreme Court decisions or even Acts of Parliament-that murder is considered wrong and evil and illegal by most Canadians. It is because of our Christian heritage that we instinctively know-know in our core-the difference between right and wrong.

Today as we think about those innocent victims in the Rideau Canal, we should also think how we can preserve our beliefs, our laws, and our moral codes from the assault they are currently under from both secular critics in Canada and religious fundamentalists from abroad. I would suggest to you the best way is to join, support, and vote for the Christian Heritage Party.

The CHP represents those beliefs you feel in your core. We share your anger and dismay at the beliefs which resulted in the deaths of those four women in the canal. The CHP will fight for you and what is right in our society.

Defend your core beliefs; support the Christian Heritage Party.