COVID-19: Alberta Medical Association head hopes cases don't swing upwards with government plan, while NDP Opposition calls it 'rushed and chaotic'

The head of the association that represents Alberta’s doctors is crossing her fingers and hoping that Albertans will continue to take COVID-19 risks seriously even as the provincial government moves fast to ditch its measures.


© Provided by Edmonton Journal

A pedestrian walks past advertisements for COVID-19 vaccinations and rapid testing and the City Centre Clinic,10264 100 St., in Edmonton on Monday Feb. 7, 2022.

Kellen Taniguchi , Lisa Johnson 

Edmonton Journal

After Premier Jason Kenney announced the plan to lift COVID-19 measures, beginning with the vaccine passport at midnight Tuesday, Alberta Medical Association (AMA) president Dr. Michelle Warren said Wednesday in an interview with Postmedia the plan did not come as a surprise, but did appear “a bit rushed,” considering the total number of people in hospital is still “higher than it’s ever been.”

“Everybody is just nervous because we don’t have capacity to deal with a significant upswing in the system,” said Warren, who noted that many AMA members have reached out and expressed concern about the negative effects of public health measures, including on mental health.

“Time is ultimately going to be our judge of whether we picked the right time,” said Warren, adding the province needs to monitor the situation closely, and that she would rather see the vaccine passport, which would otherwise have needed to include a third booster shot requirement, ditched before masking mandates and social distancing, which are critical to driving COVID-19 numbers down.

While Warren said restrictions being loosened soon seemed inevitable, she stressed that COVID-19 is not done, and Albertans cannot pretend it is, and need to help decrease the spread, including getting a COVID-19 vaccine booster and wearing a mask, which for now is still mandatory in public indoor settings.

News of the restrictions being lifted was met with concern, confusion and a clamour to consider other options by the City of Edmonton , business groups, and the Edmonton Public School board. Edmonton’s city mask bylaw still remains in effect for children two and up in indoor, public spaces, not including schools.

At a news conference Wednesday, NDP Leader Rachel Notley called the government’s plan a “rushed and chaotic” mess, and challenged Kenney’s assertion that hospitalizations are declining.

“I don’t trust a single solitary word that comes out of his mouth on these issues, because he’s done nothing but hide the complete picture from Albertans since Day 1,” Notley said, pointing to the government’s lack of consultation with schools, health care staff and elected local officials.

Alberta Health Services’ spokesman Kerry Williamson said Wednesday without added ICU surge beds, the provincial health system would be at 116 per cent ICU capacity, which is less than during the fourth wave, when capacity hit a high of 178 per cent in October. However, like Warren, he noted that a tired and stressed health-care workforce doesn’t have the same ability to care for patients as in previous, pre-pandemic years.

“We are under strain. That’s not normal,” said Warren.

A pandemic response unit with 18 beds first opened in Edmonton in January remains open, treating nine overflow patients.

During his Tuesday news conference, Premier Jason Kenney said COVID-19 is putting extra pressure on the hospital system, but hospitalization numbers and active case counts are trending down.

On Wednesday, when the province’s vaccine passport was officially lifted, COVID-19 hospitalizations saw a slight decline while intensive care unit patients jumped by six. There are currently 1,615 Albertans in hospital with the virus, a decrease of eight from the previous day. Of those in hospital, 135 are in ICU.

Alberta Health Services (AHS) inpatient bed forecasts obtained by the NDP and released Wednesday suggest COVID-19 admissions were, a week ago, projected to be up to 1,422 or as low as 1,160 by Tuesday.

On Tuesday, Alberta Health reported hundreds more, with 1,623 patients in hospital due to COVID-19, still an increase of 81 since the previous day’s official update.

However, the modelling predicted a decline in the coming days to a worst-case scenario of 1,206 hospitalizations.

On Wednesday, an additional 11 new deaths were reported, but one previously reported death was determined to be unrelated to COVID-19, bringing the province’s pandemic death toll to 3,696.

While hospitalizations remained static on Wednesday, active cases across the province continued to drop. There are now 26,896 active cases in Alberta, a decrease of 1,369 cases from the previous day.

The province reported 1,684 new cases of COVID-19 on Wednesday, with a test positivity rate of 29 per cent.

As of Tuesday, 89.9 per cent of Albertans aged 12 and up have received at least one dose of a vaccine, 86.3 per cent are vaccinated with two doses and 40.1 per cent have received a booster shot.

As schools are forced to lift their mask mandate next week, 46 per cent of children aged five to 11 have received one dose of a vaccine, while 18.5 per cent have received two.

On Wednesday, Notley again accused Kenney of listening to protesters participating in an illegal blockade of the border crossing at Coutts demanding the repeal of vaccine mandates, and members of his party who support it, instead of the science.

The premier’s office did not respond to Postmedia’s request for comment Wednesday, but Kenney has previously denied the claim. Despite Kenney’s Tuesday announcement, protesters at Coutts continued to block cross-border traffic as of Tuesday night .

ktaniguchi@postmedia.com
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UCP DISREGARDS ALBERTANS HEALTH & SAFETY

Calgary Chamber of Commerce slams Alberta's move to cancel vaccine passport program

CALGARY — A major business group has slammed the Alberta government's decision to eliminate a proof-of-vaccine program, calling it "akin to ripping the Band-Aid off before the wound has healed."

The Calgary Chamber of Commerce issued a strongly worded statement Tuesday evening, just hours after Premier Jason Kenney announced that businesses will no longer have to require proof of COVID-19 vaccination from patrons as of midnight.

Alberta's Restrictions Exemption Program, or REP, was introduced last fall in an effort to curb spiking case rates and encourage vaccination. It requires Albertans to show proof of double vaccination or a negative rapid test result to obtain entry to businesses operating under the program.

The program is the first to go as part of the province's three-step plan to lift public health restrictions.

"The restriction exemption program has served its useful purpose. It has done its job," Kenney told a news conference.

But chamber president and CEO Deborah Yedlin said that public health measures like the REP and masking remain critical to ensuring people feel comfortable dining at restaurants, attending sporting and entertainment events, going to gyms and going to work.

"Today's announcement on the immediate removal of all pandemic measures and restrictions ignores the importance of consumer confidence in our economic recovery," Yedlin said.

She added the chamber believes that prematurely lifting restrictions could lead to reduced revenues for businesses, as people choose to stay home and minimize the potential for exposure to the virus.

Yedlin also warned of labour shortages due to illness, and a potential increase in infection rates at schools, "sending children and teachers home and disrupting work patterns and productivity for many parents."

Another industry group, the Alberta Hospitality Association, which represents restaurants and bar owners, wanted to see other restrictions — such as a liquor curfew, bans on live music and billiards, and rules about how many people can be seated at one table — removed before the passport program.

Instead, those restrictions remain in place until at least March 1.

“We’re in favour of whatever it takes so that we can operate our businesses at 100 per cent. If that means keeping the REP, then by all means," said Ernie Tsu, president of the association and owner of Calgary's Trolley 5 brewpub.

"They went against all of the stakeholder groups that wrote letters in. They didn't listen to us at all."

Unmute

Ontario looking into providing support for businesses following new COVID-19 restrictions: Finance minister

Earlier Tuesday, at the Rose & Crown in Banff, Alta., Vern Iskauskas said he was awaiting Kenney's announcement with a mixture of excitement and trepidation.

The owner of the pub and popular live music venue said he welcomes a move toward lifted restrictions, but thinks it's a mistake to ditch the proof-of-vaccine program first.

"I'm very open to lifting restrictions, I just hope it's done in the right way," he said.

“We fear losing some of the loyal customers who have come back to us because they feel safe here. We also fear that if there is a little bit of a spike in cases afterward, which could happen for a variety of reasons not necessarily associated with the REP, that our industry ... could be scapegoated again, with further restrictions placed upon us.”

Many other business owners said they feel mixed emotions over the idea of scrapping the passport.

Paul Shufelt, who owns Robert Spencer Hospitality Group, which operates a handful of Edmonton restaurants including Workshop Eatery and Woodshed Burgers, said he knows that if the province removes the mandate, business owners will have the ability to continue checking proof-of-vaccination for their own purposes.

But he said that's a tough decision to make.

"Probably more than anything, I worry for my staff on the front line, whether we go one way or the other, because those are the people that tend to feel the wrath of angry or frustrated customers," Shufelt said. "I don't think there is a right answer, and that's the hard part."

"We're welcoming a return to normalcy, but I understand both sides of it," said Mark Petros, owner of Nick’s Steakhouse and Pizza in Calgary. "A lot of our customers work at the Foothills Hospital and the Children's Hospital because we're close by, and we don't want to see the hospitals getting overloaded."

The Edmonton Chamber said before the announcement that it supported responsible health and safety measures that allow businesses to operate while protecting customers, workers and communities.

"We would hope that any decision to ease restrictions would be made in consideration of health information and supporting data," Jeffrey Sundquist, president and chief executive of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, said in an email.

Also on Tuesday, Saskatchewan announced a plan to lift all of its COVID-19 restrictions. Starting Monday, the province will no longer require COVID-19 vaccine passports. It is also ending its indoor mask mandate at the end of the month.

Premier Scott Moe said providing proof of vaccination against COVID-19 to enter businesses like restaurants had helped in the fight against spread of the virus.

But he said it also created deep divisions in the province — in effect "two classes of citizens."

"The benefits of this policy no longer outweighs the costs," Moe said, adding people should be able to choose whether they get vaccinated or not.

"This government is going to respect that right."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 8, 2022.

— With files from Fakiha Baig in Edmonton.

Amanda Stephenson, The Canadian Press

'Too much, too fast': Edmonton Public board chair frustrated division was not consulted on COVID-19 changes

The head of the Edmonton Public Schools board says the government’s decision to remove masking requirements in Alberta schools was done without any consultation, leaving some parents with little to no option to switch their kids to online learning.

Ashley Joannou -
Edmonton Journal

© Provided by Edmonton Journal

Education Minister Adriana LaGrange.

In a letter to school authorities Tuesday, Education Minister Adriana LaGrange said they will no longer have the authority to require students be masked to attend school in person or ride the school bus as of Feb. 14, as part of the government’s plan to lift COVID-19 restrictions around the province.

It comes after government spent earlier phases of the pandemic saying that it was up to school boards to set rules mitigating COVID-19 risks and weeks after medical masks and rapid tests started arriving at schools for students to use.

Edmonton Public School Board chairwoman Trisha Estabrooks said Wednesday it doesn’t appear there’s a way for the division to go against the government’s decision. She said despite a downward trend in reported cases in schools, the changes are “too much, too fast.”

“Unfortunately, we have to listen to this directive and if you hear the frustration in my voice, it’s because school boards were not consulted in this decision,” she said.

“We weren’t asked for feedback and I find that incredibly frustrating, that a decision that has such far-reaching implications for school divisions, that there was no effort to reach out to us and to seek our feedback.”

Premier Jason Kenney has defended the decision not to require masks in schools, saying that the province can’t “force kids to pay the price for disease that primarily affects adults.”

“After two years, I think as a society, we should say enough already with COVID restrictions affecting the lives of kids,” he told the Shaye Ganam radio show Wednesday morning.

“Kids have paid a disproportionate share of the burden for a disease which has a tiny threat to the health of children,” he said.

Alberta Medical Association president Dr. Michelle Warren said Wednesday in an interview with Postmedia that she doesn’t think masks are damaging to children. She said kids need to be able to socialize with their peers and there are both students who don’t want to go to school if they have to wear a mask, and students who don’t feel safe without one.

“I think we need to see something that I hope to see mirrored in the adult world — and that’s respect and tolerance,” she said.

“So just because you don’t have to wear a mask doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t wear a mask or that you can’t wear a mask.”

Estabrooks said the school board will encourage students to wear masks and that the division still has the authority to move individual classes online if necessary.

The deadline for parents to decide whether their kids would spend the second half of the school year learning in person or online has passed and Estabrooks said it would be “a logistical nightmare” to allow students to switch now.

“The timing is terrible in some ways, in that we offered this choice for families, we gave families this expectation that we would have these protocols in place and now, due to factors beyond our control, we can no longer offer that.”

Edmonton Catholic School Board chairwoman Sandra Palazzo said in a statement Wednesday that the division is expecting more guidance from the government in the coming days.

“Edmonton Catholic Schools will always support students who choose to wear a mask in school. On the same note, we will support students who choose not to wear a mask,” she said.

In a email Wednesday LaGrange’s press secretary Katherine Stavropoulos did not answer a question about why school authorities were not consulted prior to the changes but said families can make a decision to wear masks based on their individual circumstance.

Alberta Teachers’ Association president Jason Schilling said Wednesday that the government should be more cautious and the association would have to talk to its lawyers about potential legal action.

He said teachers could make an occupational health and safety claim.

“They can look at their workspace, their classrooms, and say, ‘I don’t feel safe here,’ ” he said.

Talk of a potential legal action drew criticism from both Kenney and Calgary-South East MLA Matt Jones.

“Almost all Alberta teachers are vaccinated. To deny their safety is to deny the efficacy of vaccines at reducing severe outcomes,” Jones said.

— With files from Lisa Johnson

ajoannou@postmedia.com
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Teachers' union, Edmonton school board, worried about Alberta lifting COVID mask rule

Yesterday

EDMONTON — The president of the Alberta Teachers' Association says it is exploring legal options after the province announced it will lift the mask mandate in classrooms and take away power from school boards that disagree with the decision to implement their own rules.

Jason Schilling said Wednesday it's too soon to say whether individual teachers will take legal action against the government but it is talking to its lawyers about teachers who may have occupational health and safety concerns.

"The association will look at all the avenues that we have available to us in order to make sure that our teachers are working in a healthy and safe atmosphere and environment," Schilling said Wednesday.

"Teachers can look at their workspace, their classrooms, and say I don't feel safe here like every employee across the province."

The province announced Tuesday that mandatory mask rules will be cancelled for children under 12 in all settings and for all children in schools starting next week.

Education Minister Adriana LaGrange also issued a public letter informing school boards they no longer have the power to override the directive and order students to wear masks in school or on school buses.

Schilling said school boards were initially handed the autonomy last fall.

LaGrange said there has been a downward trend in the number of Alberta schools that have shifted to at-home learning over the last few weeks due to COVID-19 outbreaks.

"At the peak of the fifth wave, there were 29 schools that were shifted to at-home learning, and today, only seven of the over 2,500-plus schools in our province remain learning at home."

Premier Jason Kenney tweeted Tuesday he found it "disturbing to see that the teachers' union thinks unmasked kids create 'an unsafe workplace' and is threatening legal action to force kids to wear masks indefinitely."

"Almost all Alberta teachers are triple vaccinated. Treat kids like kids, not 'unsafe' vectors of transmission."

Trisha Estabrooks, the chair of Edmonton Public Schools, said the district plans to tell the parents of its 105,000-plus students that masks are still encouraged because she's concerned there will be more spread of the virus.

"We're seeing a downward trend in terms of self-reported cases of COVID in our school but, to remove a layer of protection for our students and staff in the midst of not seeing high vaccination uptakes in kids five to 11 years of age, and not having even a vaccine for kids under the age of five, it may be at risk," she said.

"It's too much too fast."

Estabrooks said the government's masking announcement is a "nightmare" because many parents decided to send their kids to school in-person instead of enrolling them into online learning due to protocols such as a mask mandate that was promised by the school board.

"Parents have had a lot of faith in our back-to-school plan," Estabrooks said.

"The protocols gave parents a lot of confidence. Now, it's a very different story. You can imagine, for a school division this size, to allow additional families to now switch to online is pretty much impossible."

Estabrooks said she's frustrated that school boards were not consulted by the government and noted her email inbox is filling up with messages from concerned parents.

"There is a level of politics that is at play in this pandemic. It has been at play the entire two years that we've been through this and that's all I'm gonna say on that."

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 9, 2022.

---

This story was produced with the financial assistance of the Facebook and Canadian Press News Fellowship.

Fakiha Baig, The Canadian Press

Alberta's advanced education minister pens letters to post-secondary institutions to lift vaccine and mask requirements

Kellen Taniguchi - Yesterday 
Edmonton Journal

Alberta’s advanced education minister is expecting students to return to post-secondary campuses in March without having to provide proof of vaccination or wear a mask.


© Provided by Edmonton JournalAdvanced Education Minister Demetrios Nicolaides.

In a letter sent to all Alberta post-secondary institutions on Wednesday, Demetrios Nicolaides said he expects schools to “align” their COVID-19 policies and practices with the Alberta’s government.

On Tuesday, Premier Jason Kenney announced the immediate lifting of the province’s Restrictions Exemption Program (REP) and the possibility of more restrictions being lifted next month.

“Essentially, post-secondary institutions will have the full ability to return to pre-pandemic delivery without the need to enforce physical distancing, implement proof of vaccination programs and masking effective March 1,” Nicolaides said in the letter.

“Like you, I am eager to see students returning to in-person learning without masking and proof of vaccination requirements this March.”
‘Nobody is asking for this’: students’ union reacts to the minster’s letter

Rowan Ley, president of the University of Alberta Students’ Union (UASU), said early results from a student survey suggests students do not support the minister’s letter suggesting a return to campus with no masks or proof of vaccination.

U of A students can access the survey online and as of 6 p.m., 140 students responded and Ley said the response has been quite negative.

“The preliminary results, which I don’t expect will change very much, is that 56 per cent of students strongly do not support the minister’s decision, 22 per cent don’t support, 14 per cent are unsure, four per cent support and three per cent strongly support,” Ley told Postmedia. “So, just for context, that’s only seven per cent of students who support the minister’s decision.”

Ley said this is not a decision that should have been made without consulting students and universities, and it’s a decision that creates a lot of “instability and chaos” when students need stability.

“Students really did not have a problem with mask and vaccine requirements, like, nobody is asking for this,” he said. “They were minimally inconvenient and were a way to help keep people safe, including a lot of immunocompromised classmates or elderly instructors,” said Ley.

The University of Alberta has postponed in-person learning until Feb. 28 and MacEwan University has delayed its return to the classroom until Feb. 22.

In a Tuesday update, the U of A said there will be “no immediate changes” to its current U of A campus safety measures, including its CampusReady System.

The university said the CampusReady system is not part of the government’s REP. The system currently requires students and staff to upload their proof of vaccination or exemption and have a CampusReady pass before accessing any U of A campus or facility.

ktaniguchi@postmedia.com

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'Gutted:' Edmonton business owners on Alberta ending vaccine passports

Members of Edmonton’s business community are confused, crestfallen and cautiously optimistic about the end of Alberta’s vaccine passport program.

Hamdi Issawi - Yesterday 
Edmonton Journal

© Provided by Edmonton Journal

Paul Shufelt, owner of Workshop Eatery in southeast Edmonton.

Tuesday evening, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney notified the province less than seven hours before nixing the restrictions exemption program (REP), which was implemented in September and designed to encourage immunization uptake amid vaccine hesitancy while also giving consumers confidence to stimulate a lagging economy.

Other restrictions affecting entertainment venues, such as limiting liquor sales after 11 p.m. and barring social activities such as dancing or mingling between tables, are set to lift March 1, so long as hospitalizations connected to COVID-19 infections trend downward.

Kris Harvey, operating partner of Chvrch of John, a bar and entertainment venue in Downtown Edmonton, said the decision to end the program left him “gutted,” especially since the last round of restrictions imposed before Christmas have effectively shuttered his business, which makes the bulk of its sales after 10 p.m.

“It’s a completely backwards way of operating,” Harvey said. “What they’re doing is pandering to an unvaccinated population that has given us the reason to have the restrictions exemption program in the first place.”

He would rather see the province keep the program and ease restrictions that have paralyzed businesses like his in the hospitality industry.

“That would have been a better, thoughtful process that prioritizes a business’s employees and the people who are involved,” Harvey said, noting that he’s had to lay off his staff while paying rent without revenue. “Instead, they went the other way and we’re still not able to employ people for the next three weeks.”

The only silver lining, he added, is that there’s hope on the horizon for a reopening date, and some time to prepare for it.

‘Feels a bit like Groundhog Day’

Far less optimistic than he was during the first round of restrictions almost two years ago, restauranteur Paul Shufelt said he’s still “anxiously hopeful” about the end of the program after yet another wave of COVID-19 infections, and waxing and waning public health guidelines.

“I do feel like this is a move in the right direction, to getting back to some sort of normal, but there still is a sort of stress,” he said. “Is this 100 per cent the right thing to do right now? Is this the last time we’re going to be doing this? It definitely feels a little bit like Groundhog Day.”

As the owner of Robert Spencer Hospitality, the company is behind a handful of restaurants including Woodshop Eatery and Woodshed Burgers, Shufelt said he’s been trying to strike a balance that keeps restaurant doors open and both staff and guests safe. But he said he’s not reckoning with public health measures so much as consumer confidence.

“I think it has less to do with REP being in place or not,” he said. “I think it has more to do with the ebb and flow of the virus and people feeling uncomfortable going out to all of a sudden not feeling comfortable again.”

In the meantime, Shufelt plans to comply with the program’s cancellation guidelines, “but we’ll be ready, if that has to come back into place,” he said.

Jeffrey Sundquist, president and CEO of the Edmonton Chamber of Commerce, said while both consumer and business confidence are key components to getting Alberta’s economy back on track, the end of the program is a complex issue, and one that will affect every business differently.

However, he added, businesses should also be able to maintain point-of-entry protocols and validate vaccination status as they did with the program.

“The infrastructure is already there, and we’ve asked a lot of our frontline workers over the last two years,” he said. “If the proprietor feels that that is the right way forward, then that’s fair under these new guidelines.”
‘Cart before the horse’


Action Potential Fitness co-owner Zita Dubé-Lockhart co-owns a gymnasium business through the changing COVID-19 restrictions imposed by the provincial government. The gym has a mandatory vaccination program to keep their clients safe.

 Ian Kucerak/Postmedia

Zita Dubé-Lockhart, for one, has decided to hold off on making any changes for the time being.

“What is frustrating is the insistence on giving us no notice, and putting us in a position where we have to incessantly kind of pivot our businesses without any sort of direction or knowledge,” she said. “Giving businesses less than seven hours to prepare for this felt cruel — not even difficult, but cruel.”

As the co-owner of Action Potential Fitness, a boutique gym in west Edmonton, she’s keeping an eye on Edmonton city council, which is considering its own proof of vaccination program.

“We might have to change things all over again,” she said. “So it feels like the cart was put before the horse. It feels like this was really poorly rolled out, and it feels really disrespectful as a business owner.”

hissawi@postmedia.com

@hamdiissawi

Notley accuses Kenney of pandering to protesters, Alberta set to announce plan to lift restrictions this week

Lisa Johnson - Tuesday

Edmonton Journal

© Provided by Edmonton Journal

Alberta NDP Opposition Leader Rachel Notley calls for the UCP government to put an end to illegal protests against COVID-19 mandate in Alberta, Feb. 7, 2022.

As Alberta’s government prepares to launch a plan to lift COVID-19 restrictions, NDP Opposition Leader Rachel Notley is accusing Premier Jason Kenney of being bullied by disruptive protests across the province.

Notley said at a Monday news conference the UCP cabinet is “surrendering in slow motion” and she’s “deeply disturbed” by the government’s response to those who have been clogging the highway at the Coutts border for 10 days.

“It’s time for this lawlessness to end,” Notley said, calling again for the government to seek a court injunction to disperse the blockade. Kenney said last week he was prepared to seek an injunction. But he said it wasn’t necessary for police to begin enforcement, instead calling for calm from those involved with or sympathetic to the blockade.

Notley’s call comes after Kenney said in late January the province would lift public health restrictions at the end of March , beginning with the province’s vaccine passport, but last week the UCP announced it would speed up that timeline by more than a month . The move has prompted some health experts to urge caution and question what data supports lifting restrictions sooner, given the high number of hospitalizations across the province.

Notley said she supports public health measures coming to an end soon, but the government must be transparent about the scientific advice behind the plan, suggesting Kenney is trying to shore up votes for an upcoming United Conservative Party leadership review slated for early April.

“The sight of an elected government being bent to the will of criminals should be a grave concern to everyone regardless of their political beliefs,” said Notley.

In a Monday statement, Kenney’s press secretary Justin Brattinga said the government respects lawful protests, but the blockade at the Coutts border crossing is illegal, causing major inconveniences for other motorists, and could dangerously impede emergency services.

“This blockade must end,” he said, adding it is at the discretion of police to enforce the law.

In an interview with Postmedia Friday , Kenney said the government will be publishing a plan for opening early this week because the province has passed its peak of Omicron cases, denying that his cabinet is caving into the demands of protestors who want to see all vaccine mandates lifted.

“We want to do this cautiously, but moving forward with real intention to lift almost all restrictions throughout February,” said Kenney, adding his government has long been reluctant to bring in public health restrictions. On Monday, the Premier’s office did not provide a timeline for when the plan to lift restrictions would be made public.

Meanwhile, the RCMP has said it has “several” active investigations underway into protesters at Coutts.



Some protesters have said they’re prepared to stay for months, until both provincial and federal COVID-19 mandates are lifted.

Meanwhile, Saskatchewan Premier Scott Moe has said his government will remove all COVID-19 measures by the end of February. He’s expected to announce the plan Tuesday.

In British Columbia, the government has said it’s looking at lifting r emaining restrictions, including a ban on organized gatherings like wedding and funeral receptions, with a review slated for Feb. 15.

— With files from Michael Rodriguez

lijohnson@postmedia.com
twitter.com/reportrix

Alberta border blockade hampered by tow trucks reluctant to haul away vehicles: RCMP


COUTTS, Alta. — RCMP say removal of trucks and other vehicles from a protest in southern Alberta against pandemic restrictions is being hampered by towing companies that don’t want to help.

“Moving (massive) vehicles like these require special equipment and operators,” RCMP Deputy Commissioner Curtis Zablocki said Tuesday.

“Unfortunately (the towing companies contacted said) they were unwilling to become involved when it was implied that helping law enforcement with removal would likely damage their livelihoods into the future.”

Police facing a convoy of truck drivers and other supporters in Ottawa have reported similar reluctance from tow operators.

Zablocki said the protest snarling traffic at the Coutts border crossing is illegal, but the goal, for now, is to end it peacefully while keeping traffic and goods flowing as much as possible.

But Zablocki added: “We are investigating. There will be charges. And this does not end when the road is clear.”

The blockade at the Coutts border crossing began Jan. 29. Protesters in trucks, tractors and other vehicles tied up traffic in both directions and at times stopped it altogether. They are demanding an end to COVID-19 vaccine mandates for cross-border truck drivers as well as to other public health measures.

Demonstrators in Alberta and other Canadian cities have come out in sympathy with the original trucker convoy in Ottawa and, in recent days, set up at the crucial border crossing to Detroit at the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor, Ont.

Alberta Premier Jason Kenney has said he sympathizes with protesters but has condemned the illegal blockade.

Sonya Savage, acting justice minister, said the government is letting the RCMP handle the impasse, but noted the province has the power to pursue civil options, including an injunction and forfeiture.

“Property that is involved in the commission of a crime can be seized and forfeited to the Crown,” said Savage.

“Those are pretty expensive vehicles that are on the side of the road — tractors and other equipment — that could be seized and forfeited.”

Irfan Sabir, justice critic for the Opposition NDP, said Kenney’s United Conservative government needs to take action.

“The UCP still hasn’t applied to the courts for an injunction to clear the blockade,” said Sabir.

“Savage describes the situation as unlawful and intolerable, but refuses to take even this basic step to give the law enforcement all the legal resources they need.

“It’s clear the UCP is simply unwilling to uphold the rule of law if it damages Jason Kenney’s chance of surviving his leadership review.”

Kenney is facing low poll numbers, as well as a split in his caucus and party over the health restrictions, as he heads into a mandatory leadership review in April.

The blockade has stranded travellers and cross-border truckers for days, compromised millions of dollars in trade and impeded access to basic goods and medical services for area residents.

The situation has changed daily and sometimes hourly.

Last week, protesters agreed to open a single lane in each direction so that truckers could haul their loads across the border, but blocked all access Monday night before one lane was reopened early Tuesday.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 8, 2022.

The Canadian Press

Could Ottawa police be sued for failing to arrest 'freedom convoy' protesters?



Erika Chamberlain, Professor and Dean, Faculty of Law, Western University - Yesterday 
The Conversation


The leaders of the so-called freedom convoy in Ottawa have been served with a $9.8 million class-action lawsuit for the private nuisance caused by the noise and disturbance of the protest.

In addition, the crowdfunding site GoFundMe halted the release of funds from the campaign associated with the convoy, citing “the promotion of violence and harassment” in the nation’s capital.

But what about Ottawa police, who have been criticized for their failure to enforce municipal bylaws and criminal laws against the protesters? Should they also be liable for the losses suffered by locals, especially by businesses that have closed and lost substantial revenue?
Precedents in Canada

In Canada, police can be sued for their failure to protect victims of crime in some circumstances.

The leading case on police liability for failure to protect crime victims is Jane Doe v Metropolitan Toronto (Municipality) Commissioners of Police. The plaintiff, a victim of the so-called Balcony Rapist, successfully sued police after she learned that they knew a serial rapist was in the area and was likely to strike again.

Police had decided not to warn local women for fear that they would become “hysterical” and would jeopardize the investigation. The force was found liable for their failure to warn or protect the women from the rapist.

Two main factors were important to Jane Doe’s claim. First, the crime was foreseeable to police. Second, there was a narrow, identifiable group of potential victims (single women living in second- and third-floor apartments in a downtown neighbourhood). In other words, police had a duty to protect the women from a crime they believed was likely to happen.

In the decades since Jane Doe, police have been sued for their failure to protect victims of domestic violence and gang violence from known perpetrators. A private security firm was also sued for its failure to protect replacement workers who were killed during a violent strike in a mine in Yellowknife.

In each case, the crime was foreseeable and potential victims were identifiable.

What about Ottawa?

By this logic, it would be reasonable to conclude that police could be liable where crime is obvious and ongoing in a limited geographic area and they fail to take action against the perpetrators. But there are some facts that might distinguish the Ottawa situation from earlier cases.

One main difference regarding the situation in Ottawa is that one of the most substantial and longstanding harms is not physical injury, but economic loss to businesses that have closed. Police inaction seems more egregious when the lives and security of identifiable victims are endangered than when profits are lost.


© THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

Counter-protesters hold signs protesting police inaction outside the Ottawa police headquarters.

While numerous people have reported harassment and disruption by the protesters, few rise to the level that would normally lead to a lawsuit.

Second, the relevant offences in Ottawa (for example mischief and noise violations) are public in nature, and aren’t targeted at specific victims. The losses suffered by businesses are the byproduct of the disruption in the downtown core.

Third, Ottawa police have had to balance the need for enforcement against the constitutional rights of freedom of expression and assembly — factors that are entirely absent in cases of gender-based or gang violence. They have also said that they have insufficient manpower to clear a convoy of massive motor vehicles and that enforcement efforts may escalate the conflict.

At the same time, a potential claim against Ottawa police would be stronger than some earlier cases because the criminal activity is occurring openly and consistently. Ottawa police could not argue, as some other police forces have, that it’s impossible for them to predict when a suspected criminal will strike, or that their intervention would not have made a difference.
Claims of uneven enforcement

Finally, police could be subject to allegations that their enforcement practices are uneven or even discriminatory.

Read more: What the 'freedom convoy' reveals about the ties among politics, police and the law

To date, the convoy has been met with less force than, for example, social justice protests in support of Indigenous and Black rights.

While police have some discretion regarding law enforcement, exercising it arbitrarily could be seen as misuse of power. Under Canadian law, a public official’s decision on whether to exercise a power cannot be based on irrelevant or improper considerations, such as the object’s race, socio-economic status or political beliefs.


© THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang

A protester carrying an empty fuel container on a broom handle walks on Metcalfe Street past Ontario Provincial Police officers.

Of course, the reasons for a police officer’s decision to exercise power can be difficult to deduce, much less prove, and the allegations of uneven policing are national in scope. To the extent that these concerns are systemic, they may be better addressed through public processes rather than private lawsuits.

Ultimately, lawsuits are a slow, rough and uncertain tool for addressing negligence by public authorities. Nevertheless, they can provide a useful means to draw attention to official inaction and thereby apply pressure for change. And for those who suffer substantial losses, lawsuits may provide the only hope for obtaining compensation.

This article is republished from The Conversation, a nonprofit news site dedicated to sharing ideas from academic experts.

Read more:

Whose freedom is the ‘freedom convoy’ fighting for? Not everyone’s

Majority of Canadians disagree with ‘freedom convoy’ on vaccine mandates and lockdowns

Erika Chamberlain receives funding from the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council of Canada.

WHITE TRUCKERS TREATED DIFFERENTLY FROM LAND DEFENDERS
Saskatchewan and Alberta First Nations speak out against the "freedom" convoys and the police inaction

Tuesday

(ANNews) – First Nation leaders in Saskatchewan are adding their voices to the growing list of Indigenous Nations who are condemning the nation-wide protests, known as the ‘Freedom Convoy,’ and the Indigenous cultural appropriation within it.

The statement by the Federation of Sovereign Nations (FSIN) was made after videos of protesters playing Indigenous instruments began circulating on social media.

“The FSIN Executive strongly opposes the actions and tactics of the ‘Freedom Convoy’ protestors, some of whom have been openly sharing ignorant acts of cultural appropriation of First Nations culture and spirituality, publicly and online,” read the statement.

“The FSIN condemns such open acts of racism and ignorance, which are being committed across our traditional Treaty territories.”

The FSIN also retweeted a post from political advisor and treaty right advocate, Andre Bear, that depicted what appears to be two caucasian people at the helm of a pipe ceremony.

FSIN Chief Bobby Cameron said of the protest, “Our First Nations communities have been some of the hardest hit since the beginning of the pandemic. We have been working tirelessly to distribute PPE and supplies to our First Nations because we are highly vulnerable to COVID-19.

“Our families and communities have suffered insurmountable losses because of this horrible virus and our First Nations Chiefs have implemented some of the strictest protocols in the country to keep their membership safe.”

Cameron continued, “This convoy is an insult to our Chiefs, our communities, and to the hundreds of loved ones we’ve lost through this pandemic. Not only are these protestors risking lives and spreading false information, but they’re also disrespecting our traditional drums, pipes, and medicines.

“It’s a disgrace to see our culturally sacred items being used improperly, without proper protocol, in support of anti-vaccine protests.”

The FSIN are adding their voices to others who are speaking out against the convoy including the Athabasca Chipewyan, the UBCIC, and the Algonquin Nation. The Mikisew Cree First Nation in Fort Chipewyan have also released a statement denouncing the protest and the government’s reaction.

The statement pointed towards an Indigenous protest in 2020 and 2021, in which the Alberta government was swift to target largely Indigenous protesters for showing solidarity with land defenders in BC and Ontario.

When a rail line was blocked in Edmonton, the province was quick to pass Bill 1, the Critical Infrastructure Defence Act, and police immediately moved to enforce it, arresting Indigenous individuals who were peacefully protesting. Calls for the rule of law were loud from the Alberta government.

“Yet, the rule of law doesn’t appear to apply to the occupiers,” said the statement. “There is little to no enforcement while critical infrastructure is blocked, hate speech, intimidation and defacing property is allowed to continue.”

Mikisew Nation Chief Peter Powder stated: “We are troubled by what is happening in southern Alberta and across the country. The occupations show the racism in the way that government and law enforcement deal with Indigenous and non-Indigenous people protesting.

“Our people are overrepresented across the criminal justice system, from victims of crime to over-incarceration. The law applies unequally to our people, who receive criminal records for minor offences, while we watch occupiers violate the law without any consequence.”

On February 8, 2022, at the time of writing, the convoy / occupation in Ottawa was on its 12th day and with no end in sight.

Jacob Cardinal, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Alberta Native News

Comparing Coutts border protest to Indigenous land defenders inaccurate, 

says Alberta premier

Paula Tran - Yesterday 
Global News

Premier Jason Kenney said comparing police responses at Coutts, Alta., to police responses to Indigenous land defenders is "inaccurate," calling the situation at Coutts very fluid and complex.

In an interview on the Shaye Ganam show on Wednesday morning, Kenney said operational issues have prevented Alberta RCMP from enforcing the law at the border crossing, citing difficulties obtaining towing equipment as an example.

When asked how he feels about the allegations that the law doesn't apply equally to different groups, Kenney said he "doesn't like it one bit" and referenced the province's Critical Infrastructure Defense Act (CIDA). The bill allows law enforcement to fine and arrest individuals blocking critical infrastructure such as highways and railroads.

"It is never lawful to block a railway, and I've seen with much frustration those kinds of blockades go on, sometimes for weeks. I think that is wrong," he said.

The comment comes after questions arose about the fact that the bill has not been used as the Coutts border protest enters its 12th day, frustrating truckers and residents on both sides of the border.

Read more:
Trucks lining up again at Coutts border crossing, protesters plan to stay for the long haul

The CIDA was passed in May 2020 in response to protests and railway blockades that were organized in solidarity with the Wet’suwet’en hereditary chiefs opposed to the construction of the Coastal Gas Link natural gas pipeline.

According to the legislation, each day a site is blocked or damaged is considered a new offence.

Last week, the Athabasca Chipewyan First Nation chief and council said if the Coutts protest was organized by Indigenous people, authorities would have responded quickly to remove it.

"It is important to recognize the disparity between how Indigenous and non-Indigenous protests are approached by our government. It is shocking to see this blatant disparity as we watch the complete government inaction to address the blockade at Coutts," the First Nation said in a statement.

“If peaceful protests of critical infrastructure at Coutts is allowed, then we expect the same to be true in the future should Indigenous people engage in similar forms of protest."

Read more:
Alberta First Nation calls attention to ‘blatant disparity’ in response to Coutts protests

Jennifer Koshan, a professor at the University of Calgary Faculty of Law, told Global News last Thursday that the criticisms are valid.

“It certainly seems like the actions of the truckers and the other people engaged in the blockade in Coutts fall within the scope of the CIDA, so it is a fair question to ask why the act is not being used in these circumstances," she said.

But Kenney maintains the protests at Coutts are illegal and dangerous.

"We've made it clear to the RCMP and our provincial police force that the government and the public expect the laws to be maintained, but they are responsible for enforcement decisions," he said.

Northwest B.C. pipeline opposition group submits report on militarization of Indigenous land to UN panel

Gidimt’en Checkpoint, the group opposing the construction of the Coastal GasLink Pipeline (CGL) on Wet’suwet’en territory in northwest B.C., have submitted a report of their ongoing issues to an expert panel of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC).

The submission titled “Militarization of Wet’sewet’en Lands and Canada’s Ongoing Violations,” is part of an input for a study undertaken by the UNHRC’s Expert Mechanism on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples which consists of a panel of seven independent members appointed by the Human Rights Council.

Each year these experts hold a five-day session where global case studies are presented to better understand treaties, agreements, and the relationship between Indigenous peoples and states, including peace accords and reconciliation initiatives, and their constitutional recognition.

This year the Expert Mechanism session is scheduled to take place in July to discuss submissions from all over the world. Following this, the expert panel will prepare a report on the militarization of Indigenous lands to be presented to the Human Rights Council at its September session this year.

The submission was put together by key leaders of the Wet’suwet’en opposition group including hereditary chief Woos (Frank Alec), and Gidimt’en Checkpoint spokesperson Sleydo’ (Molly Wickham), along with legal, academic and human rights experts from Canadian organizations and institutions.

The submission summarizes the ongoing dispute between CGL and the Wet’suwet’en group opposing the construction of a 670 kilometre pipeline in northwestern B.C., recently leading to nearly 30 people being arrested by the RCMP in November 2021.

Through a timeline of activities that dates back to 2o19, the submission highlights how “forced industrialization and police militarization” contradicts Canada’s obligations towards UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UNDRIP).

“The governments of B.C. and Canada continue to violate Wet’suwet’en jurisdiction and the UNDRIP. Reconciliation will not come at the barrel of a gun,” the report reads.

The submission states that Canada and B.C. must withdraw the RCMP and associated policing and security services from Wet’suwet’en territory and immediately halt construction and suspend all permits for the construction of the pipeline.

Through the submission, the Gidimt’en Checkpoint group has also urged relevant UN bodies to conduct a field visit to their territory.

Binny Paul, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, Terrace Standard

How police have become more tolerant of civil disobedience in Canada — for good or bad

Tom Blackwell - Yesterday 

NATIONAL POST

© Provided by National PostDemonstrators march down Jasper Avenue towards the Alberta Legislature, as they rally against the use of legal injunctions, police forces, and criminalizing state tactics against the Wet’suwet’en Nation in their fight against the Coastal Gaslink Pipeline, in Edmonton Monday Nov. 22, 2021.


When police heard unverified reports of gunfire inside an Ontario provincial park occupied by Indigenous protesters in 1995, their response was unequivocal.

A phalanx of rifle-toting officers advanced on demonstrators gathered just outside the lakeside Ipperwash Provincial Park and touched off a violent clash. By the time it was over, an unarmed protester lay dead, shot by an Ontario Provincial Police (OPP) sergeant.

It was a political and law-enforcement scandal that reverberated for years at the Ontario legislature. And it may have marked a turning point in how police countrywide respond to civil disobedience.

Not only has the OPP itself officially adopted a more cautious handling of Indigenous “critical incidents” but police elsewhere have tended — with notable exceptions — to let protests that block roads, rail lines and construction sites play themselves out peacefully.

Officers in Ottawa seem to be following a similar non-confrontational approach to the trucker-led demonstration in their city, even as local residents seethe about the tractor trailers blocking major roads, the incessant horn honking and harassment.

It all raises the question: in the push to avoid policing wrongs of the past have protesters in Canada been given too much leeway to disrupt people and economies — or should civil disobedience be tolerated as an important part of the democratic system?

For Ken Coates, a University of Saskatchewan public-policy professor and Indigenous affairs expert, the trend is troubling.

“Over the last 15, 20 years we have been loosening those standards quite a bit,” said Coates, also a senior fellow at the Macdonald Laurier Institute. “The rule of law is the rule of law. It’s the main reason Canada has enjoyed peace for so long…. This is not good news for the country as a whole.”

But others say Canadians should accept that peaceful dissent can involve inconvenience or economic loss.

“In a democracy, we have to tolerate some level of disruption,” said Cara Zwibel of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. “The idea is to draw more attention and to make it increasingly difficult and uncomfortable for people to ignore what’s going on.”

For politicians, the answer often seems to depend on whether their own ideology matches that of the demonstrators.

When hereditary chiefs of B.C.’s Wetʼsuwetʼen people blocked construction of the Coastal GasLink pipeline in 2020, then-Conservative Leader Andrew Scheer blasted the government for “the weakest response to a national crisis in Canadian history.” Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said resolution should come through dialogue.

With the trucker protest, the tables have turned. Trudeau refused to engage with the demonstrators, calling them a “fringe minority” with “inappropriate” views. Scheer, meanwhile, posed proudly for a photograph with the truckers after they installed themselves in the capital.

“You can’t have it both ways,” says Coates. “Governments and parties don’t get to pick and choose.”

In the policing world, the tide may have started turning five years before that confrontation at Ipperwash, on Lake Huron. The 1990 Oka crisis just west of Montreal prompted Ottawa to deploy 4,000 troops against Mohawk protesters and led to multiple physical clashes. The police and government response was widely criticized.


© Postmedia, file

The OPP block roads near Ipperwash Provincial Park during the clash in 1995.

But while Oka led to greater awareness of First Nations issues generally, Ipperwash and the inquiry that came 10 years after the fact focused significantly on policing.

A key result was the OPP’s Indigenous critical-incident framework , a playbook for such disturbances that emphasized negotiation and understanding of native culture and history.

That approach, for better or worse, seemed to be put into action during the 2006 occupation by members of the Six Nations reserve of a new housing development near Caledonia, Ont ., on land granted to the community by the British crown in the 18 th century. Local residents complained that the OPP did little as the protesters harassed and threatened them.


© National Post, file

Violence breaks out between white residents of Caledonia, Indigenous protestors and the OPP officers at the Caledonia barricade in 2006.

Since then, Indigenous and environmentalist blockades of logging and pipeline construction sites in B.C., Ontario and elsewhere have been allowed to stretch on for days or weeks, while the Occupy movement filled a Toronto park with tents for more than a month before police evictions.

The Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police in 2019 released its own framework for handling demonstrations, the goal being partly to respect “unique cultural elements” and minimize the need to use force.

“You can trace the trajectory,” says Jeffrey Monaghan, a Carleton University criminology professor. “There’s definitely been a textbook that’s been developed in terms of policing operations that is conscious of the imagery — high-handed, tear-gas, riot-squad kind of imagery — and the damage that does to police legitimacy.”

But Monaghan still worries that continued police use of surveillance and intelligence-gathering against protest organizers puts a chill on activists from marginalized groups.


A protester shouts as he is arrested on charges of trespassing at the Occupy Toronto encampment at St. James Park in November 2011.

And there have been more-recent examples of controversial police handling of protest.

Toronto officers were lambasted for their response to demonstrations around the 2010 G20 meeting. The RCMP raid that ended a blockade of the Coastal GasLink pipeline was criticized for being unnecessarily heavy-handed.

But if some kind of civil disobedience should be allowed, at what point is the line crossed and more assertive police action justified?

Coates argues that acts like the Caledonia occupation and the blocking of CN Rail lines by First Nations supporting the Coastal GasLink pipeline protests unfairly hurt innocent people and tend to undermine support for their causes.


© Postmedia, file

Extinction Rebellion and Idle No More members gathered in Calgary in February 2020, blocking off the Reconciliation Bridge and Memorial Drive in support of B.C.’s Wet’suwet’en Nation’s pipeline protest.

On the other hand, he said, a “brilliant” example of a protest movement that largely eschewed such tactics was the Idle No More demonstrations of 2012. They engendered broad sympathy for First Nations and triggered real government action, said Coates.

But others argue that disruptive, non-violent protests by Indigenous people, at least, can often be justified by the fact they’re trying to resolve injustices that have long been ignored by government.

The Ipperwash protest revolved around the federal government’s wartime seizure of land from the Stony Point First Nation for an army base and Ottawa’s refusal to return it later as promised. Oka concerned a golf-course expansion on property that the Kanesatake reserve says was also wrongly taken from it.

Almost half of Canadians sympathetic to ‘concerns and frustrations’ of Ottawa trucker protest

Do the Ottawa protesters fall into the same category?

They argue their rights have been trampled on, too, by mandates that force them to get vaccinated or wear masks in order to keep their jobs or access certain public places.

Critics respond that untenable demands plus methods that have put a city “under siege” and evidence some of the organizers have white nationalist leanings set them apart.

But even if the truckers and their supporters have crossed the line, a hard-hitting show of force by police to dislodge them is also not on, policing observers say.

“Any kind of police brutality at this point will just make people who don’t agree with the protesters agree with them,” said Kelshall. “They have to get the timing right, they have to get the level of aggression right.”

André Pratte: Convoy protesters call for freedom, but there's no freedom without the rule of law

André Pratte - Yesterday 
National Post


The demonstrators blockading downtown Ottawa and the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor claim they are doing so in the name of freedom. They constantly refer to the Canadian Constitution’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Their logic and their understanding of Canadian law are deeply flawed, for there can be no freedom in a country where the rule of law is not paramount. If society tolerates a group of citizens who ignore laws promulgated for the greater good, we are on the road to anarchy or dictatorship; both are destructive of individual liberties.


© Provided by National PostA trucker carries a gas canister as truckers and supporters continue to protest vaccine mandates and other COVID measures in Ottawa on Feb. 9, 2022.

What the Freedom Convoy activists are currently doing in Ottawa is clearly illegal. One cannot close the centre of a city for two weeks with 400 trucks, at catastrophic costs to the City of Ottawa and its businesses and citizens, under the guise of “freedom.” Laws are not the opposite of freedom, they are its prerequisite.

“The end of law is not to abolish or restrain freedom, but to preserve and enlarge freedom. For in all the states of created beings who are capable of laws, where there is no law, there is no freedom,” the great English philosopher John Locke wrote.

The preamble to the Constitution opens with: “Whereas Canada is founded upon principles that recognize the supremacy of God and the rule of law … .” The protesters cannot pick and choose only the parts of the Constitution that suit them.

What does the “rule of law” mean? The American Bar Association summarizes it well: the rule of law signifies that “no one is above the law, everyone is treated equally under the law, everyone is held accountable to the same laws, there are clear and fair processes for enforcing laws, there is an independent judiciary, and human rights are guaranteed for all.”

What happens when individual liberties collide with the rule of law, as is the case on Ottawa’s Wellington Street? The freedom of peaceful assembly is guaranteed by clause 2 c) of the Canadian Charter. Let us bear for now the doubtful proposition that this blockade constitutes “peaceful” assembly; it is clear from Canadian jurisprudence that the right of peaceful assembly is constrained by the rule of law.

For instance, Justice Douglas K. Gray, of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, wrote in 2009: “Whatever else might be encompassed within the freedoms of assembly and expression, they do not include the right to physically impede or blockade lawful activities.”

John Robson: In Ottawa, there's more than enough madness to go around
Carson Jerema: This isn't sedition just because Mark Carney thinks so — but the convoy still needs to be cleared

This argument may not impress the demonstrators, as some do not trust our court system. But you cannot invoke the Charter while ignoring what its principal interpreters have arbitrated; this would be the equivalent of taking the law in your own hands, which is the recipe for chaos.

There are those who say that civil disobedience is sometimes justified. In his decision in Hamilton (City) v. Loucks (2003), Justice Joseph R. Henderson of the Ontario Superior Court addressed this issue squarely: “I accept that historically many good causes have been promoted through the use of civil disobedience, but those who have engaged in such conduct have always been subject to the sanctions of the courts as a consequence. Individuals in our society cannot be allowed to engage in unsanctioned unlawful conduct. If that were allowed there would be little need for any of the laws of this country. All of the citizens of our country must be compelled to obey the law.”

By now it should be clear that by any standard, whatever the motivations and arguments of the occupiers, their open defiance of the law (including municipal bylaws) is unacceptable.

In the short video tweeted last Saturday to announce that he would seek the leadership of the Conservative party, MP Pierre Poilievre promised to make “Canadians the freest people on earth.” Considering that Poilievre has expressed his strong support for the Ottawa demonstrators, does this mean that as prime minister, he would side with those screaming “freedom,” as opposed to ensuring that the existing laws are complied with?

In view of his stand in favour of this illegal occupation, it is not without astonishment that we find in Hansard statements made by Poilievre regarding the blockade of railways held in protest of the Coastal GasLink project two years ago:

“The reality is that this illegal blockade of our economy represents a war on working people. When will the government stand up and fight back?” (Feb. 25, 2020). Doesn’t Poilievre care about the working people of Ottawa, too? And the thousands of working people, including truckers, impacted by the Windsor roadblock?

“How are we ever going to restore lawfulness and development in the country if the government makes concessions to reward those who have broken the law?” (Feb. 21, 2020). How indeed?

If Canada is to remain a liberal democracy, politicians of all stripes ought to stand up for the rule of law, not only when it suits them but at all times; not because the rule of law constrains individual freedoms, but because it allows them.

National Post

Auto plants start halting production following border protests

© Carlos Osorio

NBC News
Paul A. Eisenstein - Yesterday 

The anti-vaccination trucker protest that has paralyzed the Canadian capital, Ottawa, has spread to Michigan’s border and threatens to create chaos in an auto industry already struggling to cope with what industry experts have described as a “fragile supply chain.”

Demonstrators have been setting up blockades at the two bridges linking Ontario and Michigan since Monday. The Blue Water and Ambassador bridges together serve thousands of trucks every day, many of them carrying automotive parts and finished vehicles.

Traffic over the Ambassador Bridge has come to a virtual halt. Only a small number of trucks moved from Canada to Michigan on Wednesday. The situation at the Blue Water Bridge connecting Sarnia, Ontario, to Port Huron, Michigan, isn’t much better, with reported delays of at least 4½ hours.

Canadian trucker protests shuts down major trading bridge to U.S.

On Wednesday, the Chrysler Pacifica minivan plant became the first direct casualty. Officials with the leading global automaker Stellantis temporarily halted production at the factory because it doesn’t have enough parts. Ford on Wednesday became the second manufacturer to take steps to deal with parts shortages.

“While we continue to ship our current engine inventory to support our U.S. plants, we are running our plants at a reduced schedule today in Oakville [Ontario] and our Windsor engine plant is down,” Ford said in a statement.

General Motors, Detroit's largest automaker, confirmed late on Wednesday that it had temporarily cut the second shift at a plant in Lansing, Michigan producing SUVS for the Buick, Chevrolet and GMC brands.

It could be a matter of hours before other automakers, domestic and foreign, have to take steps at assembly and parts plants within hours of the two bridge crossings.

“Blockades at Canada’s borders are threatening fragile supply chains already under pressure due to pandemic related shortages and backlogs,” Brian Kingston, the CEO of the Canadian Vehicle Manufacturers’ Association, said in a statement.

“We are calling on cooperation from all levels of government to resolve this situation and bring an immediate end to these blockades.”

Truckers have been tying up traffic in Ottawa since last month, protesting mask and vaccination mandates. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau decried the demonstrations this week, insisting the protesters are “trying to blockade our economy, our democracy and our fellow citizens’ daily lives.”

“It has to stop,” Trudeau said. But, if anything, the protest has spread, and on Monday, a vanguard group began blockading access to the Ambassador Bridge, which links Windsor, Ontario, to Detroit.

Within hours, authorities on both sides of the border declared the route closed. That quickly created a logistics nightmare. The span, which opened in November 1929, today serves about 2.5 million trucks annually, according to the Windsor-Detroit Bridge Authority. It handles about $100 billion in cross-border shipments of automotive parts and fully assembled vehicles. The Ambassador Bridge alone accounts for an estimated 20 percent of all U.S.-Canadian trade.

Officials on the Windsor side of the bridge have been struggling to open up access to the Ambassador Bridge and had only partly succeeded as of Wednesday morning, with a small flow of traffic trickling over to Michigan from the Canadian side.

Authorities began redirecting traffic to two other routes linking Michigan and Ontario. Passenger traffic between Windsor and Ontario has been heavier than normal but is moving through the Detroit-Windsor tunnel. But the route under the Detroit River can’t handle large trucks. They’ve had to head north to the Blue Water Bridge.

Protesters began moving to tie up that route on the Canadian side Tuesday. Combined with the added traffic load diverted from the Ambassador Bridge, reports from border officials indicate that it is taking at least four hours for trucks to cross the twin spans linking Sarnia, Ontario, and Port Huron, Michigan. That’s on top of the added travel time to and from the Blue Water Bridge.

Pandemic Problems

The industry has been struggling since the beginning of the Covid-19 pandemic and the three-month shutdown of production that was ordered in the spring of 2020. Since then, manufacturers have faced not only manpower issues, but also an ongoing shortage of semiconductor chips. Ford this week was forced to suspend or cut back production at eight North American assembly plants because of a lack of chips. A number of those plants are within an hour of the Ambassador Bridge and also depend on some Canadian-made parts.

“Basically if there’s a shutdown of transportation routes, the auto industry comes to a screeching halt in about two days,” Robert Wildeboer, the executive chairman of the parts supplier Martinrea International, told BNN Bloomberg Television on Tuesday.

Consumers would quickly feel the impact. They’ve already found it difficult to buy the vehicles they want, said Tyson Jominy, a senior analyst with J.D. Power. The research firm estimated that there were barely 1 million vehicles on U.S. dealer lots in January. Normally, there are more than 3 million this time of year.

The shortages have been a factor in a sharp run-up in the cost of a new car, which, on average, reached $45,000 to $47,000 in December, according to J.D. Power, the auto sales and analysis site Edmunds and other tracking services.

‘Snowball effect’: Canada’s trucker convoy sparks anti-mandate protests globally

Saba Aziz - Yesterday

The so-called “Freedom Convoy” protest movement against COVID-19 vaccine mandates that has paralyzed the Canadian capital and spilled over to key Canada-U.S. border crossings has gained global momentum, with similar demonstrations popping up in other parts of the world.

Misinformation fuels copycats as Ottawa convoy gains international support

Since Jan. 28, a convoy of vehicles, mostly trucks, has been parked around Parliament Hill, disrupting traffic in Ottawa’s downtown core.

Read more:
‘Incredibly scary’: How Canada’s trucker convoy protest is galvanizing the American right

Many in the hundreds of vehicles have vowed to stay until all COVID-19 restrictions, including mask and vaccination mandates, are lifted.

As the Canadian truckers — many with families and children — continue to clog Ottawa’s streets, anti-vaccine mandate protests in several other countries have also picked up steam.

Kerry Bowman, a professor of bioethics and global health at the University of Toronto, said the Canadian trucker protest resonates with people around the world.

“There's a lot of pent-up frustration and it's resonating not just around the country, but it's resonating globally,” he told Global News.

However, he is concerned about how the movement is portraying Canada on the global stage and the impact this could potentially have on the COVID-19 pandemic response.

“What I worry about is will it erode the … the acceptance of public health intervention in the future if in fact the pandemic continues or …. if we have another pandemic someday within our lifetime,” Bowman said.

Inspired by the Canadian truckers, French protesters set out from southern France on Wednesday in what they call a "freedom convoy" that will converge on Paris and Brussels — headquarters of the European Union — to demand an end to COVID-19 restrictions.

About 200 protesters assembled in a parking lot in Nice, on France's Mediterranean coast, with many displaying Canadian flags in a nod to the truckers in Canada.

Read more:
Convoy protesters could be ‘arrested’ for blocking streets, Ottawa police warn

The protesters in Nice said they are demanding, among other things, the scrapping of rules barring people from public venues if they do not have a COVID-19 vaccination.

Not all of the people setting out from Nice planned to travel all the way to Paris or Brussels. The convoy was made up of motorcycles and private cars, but no trucks.

In the city of Perpignan, near France's border with Spain, around 200 people gathered to set off towards Paris as part of the "freedom convoy" movement.

Their convoy was made up of cars, some camper vans, and one heavy-goods vehicle.

In the Australian capital, the “Convoy to Canberra” rally against mandatory COVID-19 vaccinations has attracted protesters from across the country. Over the past week, hundreds of cars and trucks have blocked roads and targeted businesses in the city.

Meanwhile, in Wellington, New Zealand, more than 1,000 people driving cars and trucks from around the country converged on Parliament Tuesday to protest against COVID-19 mandates.

Among the protesters’ grievances is the requirement in New Zealand that certain workers get vaccinated against COVID-19, including teachers, doctors, nurses, police and military personnel.

By Thursday, the number of protesters had dwindled to a couple of hundred.

New Zealand police said in a statement they have arrested more than 50 people who face charges including trespassing and obstruction, and will be bailed to appear in court.

Read more:
Texas attorney general to probe GoFundMe for removing Canada’s trucker convoy fundraiser

Across the border in the United States, an American version of Canada’s trucker convoy is planning a similar demonstration against COVID-19 mandates.

Organizers of the “The People’s Convoy” plan to kickstart their protest from Coachella Valley in Indio, Cali., on Mar. 4 and head towards Washington, D.C.

“Our brothers and sisters of the highway succeeded in opening Canadian’s eyes about the unconstitutional mandates and hardships forced onto their people and now it’s time for the citizens of the United States of America to unite and demand restoration of our constitutional right,” a statement posted on the group's Facebook page said on Wednesday

Foreign influence concerns rise as Ottawa convoy galvanizes U.S. far-right

Caroline Orr Bueno, a disinformation researcher at the University of Maryland, said subtle forms of influence online that can have a "snowball effect" should not be overlooked.

“I think we will continue to see attempts to plant that seed in people's minds to see if they can mobilize somebody to do something,” she told Global News.

“Once one person gets that ball rolling, then those same people who goaded them will be right there to help them along the way and make that snowball grow a lot faster.”

— with files from Jackson Proskow, Reuters, the Associated Press