Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced today that he’s invoking the Emergencies Act. The unprecedented move would give the government temporary powers to battle anti-vaccine mandate blockades.
Trudeau says the scope of these measures will be time-limited. The Prime Minister says the emergencies act will be used to strengthen and support law enforcement agencies at all levels across the country.
In Alberta, the RCMP say they have arrested 11 people at the border crossing in Coutts where demonstrators have been there since the end of January. The Ambassador Bridge in Windsor fully re-opened Monday morning after police moved in on protestors over the weekend. Demonstrators have also cleared from the Peace Bridge in Fort Erie and the QEW. But in Ottawa, an encampment remains in the downtown core. On Monday, a judge granted another injunction against the noise and idling, but former Ottawa city councillor Dave Chernushenko says it’s showing no signs of going away. He says he has seen “people driving down streets shouting at people, swearing at them. Going into stores and harassing them if they asked them to respect the masking rules.” He says it’s time the federal government stepped in.
More force could be coming, the Emergencies Act allows the federal government to invoke temporary measures, which includes barring people from gathering or traveling to certain locations.
Nelson Wiseman, Canadian Studies professor from the University of Toronto says, “I think the act could declare certain parts of Ottawa as now under federal jurisdiction, and that now the RCMP would be directing things rather than the local Ottawa police force.” McMaster Political Science professor, Peter Graefe says, “it can be brought in it certain situation where the provincial premiers agree, so it seems like premier Ford is quite happy to move forward this. Obviously, in Ontario, he sees the loss of economic activity in downtown Ottawa as pretty significant.”
Premier Ford says all three levels of government are focused on ending the illegal occupations stating, “let me be clear, if you choose to use your vehicle to create chaos, you will lose that vehicle and your license, plain and simple.” Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, says this will not involve the military.
