Justin Trudeau Invokes Emergencies Act Empowering Harsher Measures to Break Up Trucker Convoy Protest

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced on Monday that his government has, for the first time in Canadian history, invoked the Emergencies Act as the next step in his response to the “Freedom Convoy” trucker blockades protesting Canada‘s coronavirus measures, including its vaccine mandates.

“The federal government has invoked the Emergencies Act to supplement provisional and territorial capacity to address the blockades and occupations,” said Trudeau.

The Canadian leader said in his press conference that the blockades have “been disrupting the lives of too many Canadians. Here in our capital city [Ottawa], families of small businesses have been enduring illegal disruption of neighborhoods, occupying streets, harassing people, breaking the law.”

“This is not a peaceful protest,” he said.

As political science professor Greg Flynn pointed out to Yahoo! News, one of the more extreme measures at Trudeau’s disposal under the Act is the ability to call in Canada’s armed forces “to deal with protestors.”

The Washington Post adds that this step will give Trudeau’s government “sweeping authority to override provincial powers, to ban public assembly in certain locations and to remove people and property from prohibited spaces.”

The BBC reports that, while the Act gives Trudeau “almost carte blanche” to respond to the protesters, there’s no indication currently that he will “also seek military intervention” as an option.

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The Emergencies Act, passed in 1988, bestows the government with added powers in times of national crisis.

The situation must meet a high bar, specifically an “urgent and critical situation” that “seriously endangers the lives, health or safety of Canadians.”

The Cabinet may only invoke the legislation if the emergency cannot be addressed by any existing federal law and if it exceeds the capacity of the provinces to handle it effectively.

Trudeau said the powers he is invoking will be time-limited and geographically specific.

The Emergencies Act outlines four different types of emergencies: public welfare emergencies, public order emergencies, international emergencies and war emergencies. If the legislation is invoked this week, it will likely be under the ‘public order’ category. Again, the criteria here is strict – lawful protests do not qualify.

Watch above.