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Canada wants cell phones to shut up
 TORONTO--The
piercing ring of a mobile phone is enough to send many restaurant
and movie patrons into a rage, but Canada's mobile phone industry
is dead against the government forcing etiquette on the country's
eight million users by legalizing signal jamming technology.
The industry representing cellular phone manufacturers and
network operators is firmly against legalizing signal jamming systems
on the grounds that it could compromise public safety.
"Jamming technology is illegal here in Canada. We hope it
would remain illegal," said Marc Choma, a spokesman for cell
phone lobby group the Canadian Wireless Telecommunications Association.
"Our primary concern is public safety with three million (emergency)
calls per year made to 911."
Cellular phones have long been advertised as indispensable tools
in an 
emergency, and the industry is worried that this lifeline would
be compromised with jamming technology.
Lately, the industry has been under attack from multiple fronts
as cell phones become ubiquitous, with critics saying mobile phones
are health risks and many North American jurisdictions considering
banning their use by drivers.
In early February, member of Parliament Bill Blaikie introduced
a motion asking the federal government to make it illegal to drive
while talking on a mobile phone, except in an emergency.
Blaikie cited the case of a three-car crash in a Toronto suburb
in which five people were seriously hurt when a man ran a red light.
He said witnesses reported the driver was using a cell phone at
the time.
There are currently 8.3 million cellular phone users in Canada,
up 27 percent from 1999, and this number is expected to grow by
25 to 30 percent in 2001.
Cellular phones are a fairly new invention and have only gained
widespread popularity in the past few years, so it only makes sense
that society has yet to self-regulate their usage, said Choma.
"Etiquette is not something we feel you can legislate. It
will take a bit of time for Canadians to tell other Canadians what
is right and wrong, and what is rude," added Choma.
Vicki Whitmell, the executive director of the Canadian Library
Association said she has yet to hear of problems with cell phones
in libraries.
"I haven't heard anyone mention this issue and I would think
it's partly the culture of libraries. People know how to use libraries
and most libraries have had a policy in place regarding it for some
time," she said.
Choma argues that rather than block the signals, users can be encouraged
to turn the phones off in public places or set them to vibrate rather
than ring. But these are the kinds of solutions that come from peer,
rather than government pressure, he said.
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