Trudeau invokes Emergencies Act against truckers

Trudeau invokes the Emergencies Act giving his government the power to act without the limitations of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, the Canadian equivalent of the Bill of Rights. 

This is the first time the Emergencies Act has been invoked in over thirty years on the books. According to the Act, these powers are to be used when there is an “urgent and critical situation” that “seriously endangers the lives, health or safety of Canadians” or “seriously threatens the ability of the Government of Canada to preserve the sovereignty, security and territorial integrity of Canada. 

From the Prime Minister’s comments, it remains unclear how the illegally parked trucks present a serious danger or threaten Canadian sovereignty. 

He did mention that the Act "will also allow the government to make sure essential services are rendered, for example, in order to tow vehicles blocking the roads." This was strange because governments routinely tow vehicles without acquiring authoritarian powers.

Trudeau explained that “Despite their best efforts, it is now clear that there are serious challenges to law enforcement's ability to effectively enforce the law.” Suggesting the Charter of Rights and Freedoms presented “serious challenges” for the government to quash the protests, which seemed odd since that is a key point of the Charter, to protect dissenting views from government harassment. 

The Prime Minister has also refused to sit down with the truckers to see if there is an alternative way to resolve the issue.

At the announcement, Deputy Prime Minister, Chrystia Freeland said that the government is “broadening the scope of Canada's anti-money laundering and terrorist financing rules so that they cover Crowd Funding Platforms and the payment service providers they use, including cryptocurrencies.”

In addition, “The government is issuing an order with immediate effect under the Emergencies Act, authorizing Canadian financial institutions to temporarily cease providing financial services where the institution suspects that an account is being used to further the illegal blockades and occupations,” she said. “This order covers both personal and corporate accounts.”

“We are today serving notice if your truck is being used in these illegal blockades, your corporate accounts will be frozen. The insurance on your vehicle will be suspended.”  She said.

While the government has always had the power to freeze private assets that are suspected of being used for a crime if a court agreed. The major change is that now the government does not need judicial approval to seize private assets.

This is in direct conflict with Section 8 of The Charter which states that “Everyone has the right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure.” Which makes it clear why Trudeau needed new powers. As Deputy Prime Minister said, “This is about following the money.”

The Canadian Civil Liberties Association objected to the government’s use of the Emergencies Act, concluding their statement saying; “Governments regularly deal with difficult situations, and do so using powers granted to them by democratically elected representatives. Emergency legislation should not be normalized. It threatens our democracy and our civil liberties.