Justin Trudeau has invoked the Emergencies Act to deal with the ongoing Freedom Convoy protests at the city of Ottawa, and various border locations across Canada.
The Emergencies Act, which replaced the War Measures Act in July 1988, has never been invoked before.
The prime minister was joined by Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, David Lametti, Minister of Public Safety, Marco Mendicino, and Minister of Emergency Preparedness, Bill Blair.
During the press conference, Trudeau said that the measures will be targeted geographically and will be used to protect critical infrastructures like airports and border crossings from blockades.
The government is bringing crowdfunding platforms and cryptocurrencies under Canada’s Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act.
All digital platforms should also register with FINTRAC, Canada’s financial intelligence unit. Chrystia Freeland said that all financial institutions should also report “suspicious” transfers and should “review their relationships with anyone involved in the illegal blockades, and report to the RCMP or CSIS.”
Freeland said trucking companies involved in the illegal blockades will see their insurance suspended and corporate bank accounts frozen.
The Emergencies Act authorizes the federal government to implement “special temporary measures to ensure safety and security during national emergencies and to amend other Acts in consequence thereof.”
The Emergencies Act empowers the federal government to deal with five different security emergencies: national emergencies, public welfare emergencies, public order emergencies, international emergencies, war emergencies.
The Emergencies Act must also be approved by Parliament within seven days, and government actions are subject to the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the Canadian Bill of Rights. The emergency provisions under the act expire after 30 days.
Windsor Police on Sunday reopened the Ambassador Bridge, a significant trade route between the U.S. and Canada that was blocked by those protesting vaccine mandates. Twelve people were arrested.
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Who are you funded by, quit pushing the news that butter's your bread? Your headline reads "Justin Trudeau Invokes Emergencies Act to Deal With Anti-Vaccine Mandate Protests". The truckers message is to remove all mandates. Whatever happened to integrity and honest reporting or are you simply spewing the narrative because the CMF is being funded by Libs? I never thought I would see propaganda being used against Canadians in my lifetime. I have no words to describe the disgust I have for your scripted rhetoric on behalf of the worst government in Canadian history. I wish you the best in your future totalitarian world because that is were we are heading if you continue on this path. Grab a brain and get with the program.