Constitutional lawyers warn Ottawa Police to leave convoy protesters alone

Harley Sims
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Constitutional lawyers warn Ottawa Police to leave convoy protesters alone

With video now showing Ottawa Police confiscating fuel and arresting truckers for carrying empty gas cans, constitutional lawyers on the ground in Ottawa are warning police that it is illegal for them to be intimidating or arresting people for these actions.

“People who bring food, water, gasoline or other supplies to peacefully protesting truckers are not breaking any law,” stated Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms (JCCF) lawyer Nicholas Wansbutter in a press release. “There is no basis for this police threat, that was issued by Twitter (Sunday) morning.”

On Sunday, Ottawa Police had warned that “anyone attempting to bring material supports (gas, etc.) to the demonstrators could be subject to arrest. Enforcement is underway.”

Video arose the same evening of police confiscating fuel supplies, including a 3200 L diesel container from a baseball stadium being used as a distribution hub. Police also issued a press release confirming they had arrested seven people and issued 100 tickets in “demonstration-related enforcement.”

Not to be outflanked, protesters resorted to new methods.

On Monday, video and images appeared of Ottawa protesters carrying what looked to be empty gas cans and others containing what appeared to be juice. Some walked right past police, with one protester offering an officer a drink from his, saying it was Kool Aid.

In another video, however, a protester appears to be arrested for carrying an empty gas can, explaining as he is led off by an officer that the charge was “mischief.”

True North reached out to the JCCF, asking how it was that police could target individuals for carrying certain legal items, including “material supports” to protesters.

“In my view, the truckers are not doing anything illegal by protesting peacefully against the 23 months of politicians restricting our Charter freedoms,” said Wansbutter in a press release on Tuesday. “Citizens have every right to bring food, water, fuel, and other necessities of life in the winter to other Canadians, including truckers.”

“For police seizures of fuel to be legal, the truckers themselves would have to be actively and knowingly committing an offence. Only then could it be a crime to bring supplies to the truckers.”

The JCCF also provided video of an Ottawa police officer justifying his seizure of fuel on the basis that “the fuel is contributing to mischief.”

“This fuel is contributing to what’s been happening downtown, so this is evidence,” the officer is heard to say.

Arguing that the seizure is illegal, the JCCF says that “section 430 (mischief) also makes it illegal to interfere with the lawful use and enjoyment of property, and illegal to obstruct people when they legally use and enjoy property.”

“The Ottawa police seem to be rebranding the exercise of the Charter freedoms of expression, association, and peaceful assembly as criminal mischief under section 430 of the Criminal Code,” Wansbutter said. “Taking fuel from Canadian citizens in the downtown Ottawa area is an illegal seizure in a context where no crimes are being committed, and no charges were laid against truckers or anyone else.”

“Ottawa police have the right to ticket people, including truckers, over seatbelt violations, illegal parking, and other traffic infractions,” added JCCF litigation director Jay Cameron. “However, it is misleading and deceptive to label a peaceful protest in the nation’s capital as a criminal offence.”

True North reached out to Ottawa Police Service (OPS) on Tuesday to request comment on the JCCF’s position and inquire about the legal basis for their recent seizures and arrests. The OPS media relations department replied only with a press release stating that “police continue to prevent people from supplying fuel and other material supports to demonstrators” and that 23 arrests on criminal charges had been made.

“This includes charges for the following: Mischief (Transportation of Gas)”

Cameron also pointed out that confiscating fuel from people trying to keep warm was not simply illegal but dangerous.

“It is winter in Canada,” he said. “Protesting publicly in freezing temperatures requires the truckers to have fuel to stay warm. Confiscation of fuel jeopardizes the personal safety of the peaceful protesters.”

The JCCF also pointed out that despite his varying references to the protest as a “demonstration,” “occupation,” and “siege,” OPS chief Peter Sloly admits that protesters have not harmed Ottawa citizens.

Recap of Day 17 of the Truckers for Freedom Convoy

Harrison Faulkner
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Recap of Day 17 of the Truckers for Freedom Convoy

On Day 17 of the Truckers for Freedom Convoy, five provinces announced they’re shedding COVID restrictions, a Liberal MP broke rank with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and the trucks in Ottawa stayed put. 

Alberta premier Jason Kenney announced that he would be dropping his province’s vaccine passport effective midnight tonight, the first province in Canada to do so.

Alberta was joined by Saskatchewan and Prince Edward Island, who also announced plans to drop their vaccine passports. Quebec and Newfoundland & Labrador also stated they would be lightening restrictions, but not passports and mask mandates.

Saskatchewan premier Scott Moe announced his province will be dropping the proof-of-vaccination system as of February 14, with the mask mandate lifted by the end of the month. 

PEI announced that capacity limits will gradually increase through February and March and that by April PEI “aims to phase out all public health measures at the earliest possible times.”

In Ottawa this morning, Quebec MP Jöel Lightbound held a press conference where he publicly broke rank with Trudeau, criticizing the divisive tone that his government had set since being re-elected in September. 

“I can’t help but notice with regret that both the tone and policies of my government changed drastically on the eve and during the last election campaign,” Lightbound said. 

“I’m still hopeful that the government will change course.” 

Lightbound called on his government to stop dividing Canadians. 

He also confirmed to the press that other Liberal MPs feel a similar way. “There are a few of them,” he said, that share his “discomfort” with the tone of the government.

In Question Period, Conservative interim leader Candice Bergen accused Justin Trudeau of “causing division by overtly politicizing vaccines.” Bergen went on to demand an answer to when the government was going to end all federal COVID restrictions. 

Trudeau again accused the Conservatives of not following the science. 

Speaking to the press about his own MP’s criticism of the government’s handling of COVID, Trudeau said, “we’re all sick and tired of restrictions, of mandates, of having to make sacrifices…it’s really, really tiring for all of us.” 

Trudeau went on to say that “(vaccine) mandates are the way to avoid further restrictions.”

The trucks in Ottawa remained idle on Wellington Street and throughout the downtown core today. 

Footage from on the ground shows that the truckers aren’t prepared to move and that efforts by the Ottawa Police to crack down on resources are not deterring the protesters. 

One protester can be seen dancing along peacefully to the song ‘We Are Family’ today. 

In Coutts, Alberta, the truckers at the border were not satisfied with Kenney’s announcement. 

Immediate reaction from the scene shows leaders of the blockade warning that Kenney is “backpedaling like crazy” and that he’s “making excuses for what happened in the past”. 

They went on to say that “he is leaving an open door with future variants, to put in mandates again.”

Conservative leadership candidate Pierre Poilievre announced today that he has launched a petition “to end passports, mandates and restrictions.” 

The Givesendgo in support of the truckers at the time this article was published had reached USD $6,950,076.

Ongoing COVID restrictions adding to 63,000 tons of plastic gear in landfills

Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
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Ongoing COVID restrictions adding to 63,000 tons of plastic gear in landfills

The Department of Environment said that an unprecedented 63,000 tonnes of unrecycleable COVID-19 personal protective equipment (PPE) ended up in landfills by last year. 

According to Blacklock’s Reporter, department officials contemplated how to deal with the plastic trash piling up during the pandemic in a Nov. 19, 2021 briefing note titled Canadian Action on Plastics. 

“An unprecedented amount of single use personal protective equipment is being used in Canada to prevent transmission of Covid-19 leading to an estimated 63,000 tonnes of PPE waste by mid-2021,” wrote staff. 

“Initiatives are underway to support the development of innovative systems, technologies and materials to keep personal protective equipment out of landfills.”

Officials even admitted in the memo that “plastics play an important” role in society. 

“Plastics play an important role and are being used in the lives of Canadians on a daily basis, even more so now in relation to the Covid-19 pandemic,” said the memo. “However their mismanagement is a global concern impacting the economy and the environment.”

Environmentalist groups warned last year that 1.5 billion face masks could have made their way into the world’s oceans globally by the end of 2020. 

“Single-use face masks are made from a variety of meltblown plastics and are difficult to recycle due to both composition and risk of contamination and infection,” wrote OceansAsia.

“These masks enter our oceans when they are littered or otherwise improperly discarded, when waste management systems are inadequate or non-existent, or when these systems become overwhelmed due to increased volumes of waste.”

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had promised in the past to ban single-use plastics in Canada by Dec. 31, 2021. The ban would apply to products such as straws, checkout bags, six-pack rings, cutlery and food containers. 

The measure was delayed by the Liberal government nearly a week before it was set to go into effect.

Ottawa councillor and police chair calls convoy “treason” and “insurrection”

Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
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Ottawa councillor and police chair calls convoy “treason” and “insurrection”

Ottawa city councillor and chair of the police services board Diane Deans told CBC’s Power and Politics on Tuesday that the trucker convoy was “treason” and “an insurrection.” 

Deans’s comments come one day after Ottawa mayor Jim Watson put through a request by the city’s police chief for nearly 2,000 additional law enforcement personnel to crack down on the peaceful protestors in the capital. 

“We all need to work together. This is not something this country has ever seen before,” said Deans. “I understand Mark Carney referred to it as sedition today. I think that’s exactly what it is. This is treason. This is way bigger. This is a group of well-polished professional people that are trying to overthrow the government.”

“It’s not a target on the City of Ottawa, it’s much bigger than that. It’s really an insurrection. It’s an attack on our democracy. It’s an attack on our federal government. It has a lot of international elements to it. The money is flowing from the US. This is right out of the Trump playbook.” 

Politicians of all levels and the legacy media have increasingly cranked up their efforts to demonize the Freedom Convoy and its supporters. From before the truckers even arrived in Ottawa on Jan. 29, they have cycled through a series of nasty labels, including branding the convoy as domestic terrorists, white nationalists, fascists and criminals. 

The idea that US funds were funnelled into the convoy can be traced back to statements made by Ottawa Police Service chief Peter Sloly before he helped to deplatform the convoy’s GoFundMe fundraiser. 

“We are now aware of a significant element from the US that have been involved in the funding, the organizing, and the demonstrating,” Sloly claimed. 

Despite repeated allegations that the convoy is backed by US money, Sloly has not provided any evidence to indicate that the protest received foreign funding. 

After an emergency meeting of the police services board on Monday, Watson called for the federal government to provide an additional 1,800 law enforcement personnel to aid in quashing the protest, including 1,000 regular officers, 600 public order officers, 100 investigative officers, 100 civilian staff and supporting resources. 

The Truckers for Freedom convoy entered its 17th day on Tuesday and had raised over $6.5 million USD on GiveSendGo. 

Alberta vaccine passport program ending – with a catch

Andrew Lawton
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Alberta restaurants and entertainment venues will no longer be required to ask for proof of vaccination from patrons effective midnight Tuesday, according to Premier Jason Kenney.

Kenney announced the abrupt end to Alberta’s “restrictions exemption program” at a press conference Tuesday evening, the first part of a three-phase end to Covid restrictions.

“The threat of COVID-19 to public health no longer outweighs the hugely damaging impact of health restrictions on our society,” Kenney said, adding the vaccine passports were successful at boosting vaccine uptake and protecting the healthcare system, but have outlived their usefulness.

However, the Alberta government will still be providing the QR codes to fully vaccinated Albertans, a move Kenney defended as necessary for Albertans travelling to other provinces with vaccine passports in place, or boarding a plane while the federal government still maintains a vaccine requirement for air travel.

“As long as there is a federal requirement for provincially issued proof of vaccination, we have to offer that as a service,” Kenney said.

Kenney also said private businesses retain the right to impose vaccine requirements in the “free market,” though he discouraged the practice.

“They’ll have that right under law, and I guess I would just say that’s a matter of the free market,” he said. “If a business chooses to have a policy of that nature then that may appeal to a certain kind of customer, and it may turn away other kinds of customers. That’s a commercial decision. At the end of the day, I would love it if we could move away from all of this.”

Last July, when Alberta was firmly against implementing a vaccine passport, Kenney said he believed such a policy would be illegal.

“I believe they would in principle contravene the Health Information Act and also possibly the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act,” he said at the time.

Candice Bergen demands Trudeau sit down to discuss end to COVID restrictions

Jonathan Bradley
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In both an open letter and in the House of Commons, Conservative interim leader Candice Bergen has told Prime Minister Justin Trudeau she wants a meeting with party leaders to discuss ending COVID-19 restrictions. 

“It is time to depoliticize the response to the pandemic,” wrote Bergen in a letter to Trudeau on Monday. “Canadians across the country have come together, made sacrifices and done what is necessary to keep their families safe.” 

Bergen said that Canadians were encouraged to hear Canadian chief medical officer of health Theresa Tam say that there has to be a more “sustainable” way of dealing with the pandemic. 

Tam recently recommended that all remaining COVID-19 restrictions be “re-examined” with provinces and territories to “get back to some normalcy.” 

Tam’s statement, wrote Bergen, is a message of hope that many Canadians have been waiting for. 

Bergen added that Canadians are “looking for leaders to provide certainty, hope and a pathway out of the pandemic.” Instead, she accused Trudeau’s comments of being “dismissive about a ‘fringe’ with ‘unacceptable views.’”

Bergen said that the federal party leaders have a responsibility to help Canada. 

“It is my sincere hope that we can show leadership by coming together to talk about solutions, to follow the science rather than the politics when it comes to mandates,” she said. “We can deliver a message of hope to the millions of Canadians who are frustrated and want to return to their normal lives.” 

During Question Period on Tuesday, Bergen demanded Trudeau provide Canadians with an end date for COVID-19 vaccine mandates. 

“Conservatives believe living with COVID means opening up and ending the mandates,” she said. “So will the prime minister follow the science, end the lockdowns and let Canada once again be the true north strong and free?” 

Trudeau refused to commit to an end date for restrictions or a meeting with party leaders. Instead, he accused the Conservatives of not following science throughout the pandemic as well as hypocrisy over supporting COVID restrictions in other situations.

“Fortunately, we’ve been working with provincial premiers right across the country to bring in the kinds of restrictions and mandates that have saved Canadians’ lives,” he said. “Unfortunately, we see Conservatives continue to both call an end to the protests from in here and support them out there.” 

Liberal MP Joel Lightbound broke rank with Trudeau and spoke out against public health measures on Tuesday. 

Lightbound said that he believes the Canadian government has divided people in recent months, particularly on vaccination status. 

“I can’t help but notice with regret that both the tone and policies of my government changed drastically on the eve and during the last election campaign,” he said. 

Lightbound’s remarks come as a new poll suggests that 44% of Canadians believe that Trudeau along with Canada’s premiers “share the blame for the protest in Ottawa because of their condescending attitude toward Canadians who disagree with vaccine mandates and lockdowns.”

The Establishment is pulling out all the stops to end the freedom convoy

Candice Malcolm
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The Establishment is pulling out all the stops to end the freedom convoy

The Truckers for Freedom convoy has more momentum than ever, as cities across Canada saw massive protests this past weekend and into this week. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has successfully united the country – unfortunately for him, Canadians are united against him and this drives the Establishment crazy.

The legacy media and Ottawa politicians are pulling out all the stops to end the protest. They attempted to cut the convoy’s funding, increase police presence and continue to demonize Canadians participating in the protest.

Candice Malcolm says Canada is experiencing a political realignment – the people VS. the Establishment. And the good news is – the people are winning. Tune into The Candice Malcolm Show!

SUBSCRIBE TO THE CANDICE MALCOLM SHOW

Quebec gym-owner launches Charter challenge to keep gyms open

Harley Sims
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Quebec gym-owner launches Charter challenge to keep gyms open

A defiant Quebec gym forced to shut its doors by a court order in January has launched a Charter challenge to try and keep Canadian gyms from being closed again.

Shane Miller, owner of CrossFit 819 in Gatineau, told True North he doesn’t believe the lockdowns will stop until people put a stop to them.

“What I’m hoping is that we raise enough awareness and we mount a successful Charter challenge and we win and we make it that gyms are made essential,” he said.

Although Quebec is set to reopen gyms again on Feb. 14 at 50% capacity, the province took Miller to court last month for refusing to close during the current lockdown – Quebec’s fourth – which came into effect in December.  

“I shut down the first three times, and I just couldn’t do it again,” Miller told True North. “It wasn’t about me. It was a moral thing. I stayed open for my clients with health issues who had letters from doctors and physiotherapists.”

A major COVID outbreak at a Quebec City gym in March 2021 has seen the province impose some of the most severe lockdowns on fitness facilities in the country, with the only potential exceptions for professional athletes and owners.

Quebec’s Ministry of Health and Social Services spokesperson Marie-Louise Harvey said in an email to True North on Tuesday that during lockdowns, “only establishments offering essential services related to food, the distribution of drugs or gasoline could continue their activities.” She added that gyms will be allowed to return to full capacity on Feb. 28.   

Miller said that Quebec’s stringency during lockdowns set the province apart from Ontario, where some gyms had looked to a disabilities law to allow them to stay open for people with a medical note.

“The problem here in Quebec is that they said gyms had to close,” he said. “In other places like Ontario, if you have a note from a physio that says you need physical therapy, you can be doing physical activity. I don’t know about the mental health aspect of it, but I said no matter what, I had to do this because we have people who are recovering from different substance abuse disorders, binge-eating disorders. If they can’t come to the gym, they spiral out of control.”

“We had one guy who came back 80 pounds heavier after the first lockdown,” Miller said. “I didn’t even recognize him. I had other people who basically said they couldn’t come back because they’re too ashamed. Another guy who had used CrossFit as a way to beat his drug addiction never came back.”

Miller said that mental and physical health considerations make gyms an essential service, and it doesn’t make sense to close them. He said he was inspired by the handful of gyms in British Columbia who refused to close during B.C.’s last lockdown, and who had cited an obligation to their clients’ mental health.

“Some people can do the Zoom stuff online, but some people can’t,” Miller said. “They need to be here to stay on track, and those are they people we stayed open for.”

Someone called the police to complain and the matter went to provincial court, with the judge issuing a closure order and telling Miller that if he continued to operate, he could go to jail for 30 days.

“I’d be happy to go to jail for 30 days for this fight, but I have a wife and three kids and it would be more than they would be able to handle,” Miller said.

Although Miller is obeying the court order and will be running fitness classes through Zoom until gyms are allowed to reopen on Feb. 14, he said that his clientele is dwindling and that he has to build up his business again every time he is locked down.

Miller said he doesn’t think the latest lockdown will be the last either.

“I lost $62 thousand last year,” he told True North. “If we can’t do a Charter challenge saying that gyms are essential, then I can’t keep running my business.”

Miller says is waiting to hear back from the Attorney General for a trial date for the challenge. In the meantime, he is gathering evidence and testimonials for his case.

As far as the cost for the charter challenge, Miller said his lawyer told him to budget for at least $25,000.

He has launched a GoFundMe page to help with the fundraising.

44% of Canadians sympathize with frustrations of trucker convoy

Cosmin Dzsurdzsa
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44% of Canadians sympathize with frustrations of trucker convoy

A new Leger poll has found that almost half of vaccinated Canadians agree with the frustrations expressed by the trucker convoy and its supporters that politicians share responsibility for the protest.

The survey was conducted from Feb. 4 to 6, just as protests in support of the original convoy were taking place in cities across Canada. A total of 1,546 adults were included in the online poll. 

Canadians have come out in droves to stand alongside truckers and the convoy routes to call for an end to COVID-19 mandates and restrictions. 

Among the poll’s respondents, 30% said they viewed the protests favourably while over 40% said they thought the protesters were selfish. 

Additionally, another 44% of those polled said that the prime minister and Canada’s premiers “share the blame for the protest in Ottawa because of their condescending attitude toward Canadians who disagree with vaccine mandates and lockdowns.”

“The convoy has captured and crystallized some of these feelings,” said Leger executive vice-president Andrew Enns. “It is a bit of a message for leadership that this might be a bigger problem.” 

Since the convoy first began making its way to Ottawa nearly two weeks ago, its message has spread internationally.

Similar convoys have been planned in the US, Europe and Australia. 

Ottawa politicians and the legacy media have attempted to smear the Freedom Convoy and its supporters as racists, extremists and white nationalists.

A CBC News anchor even suggested that the convoy was organized by Russia despite the fact that the bulk of the organizers were from Alberta. 

On Tuesday, however, Quebec Liberal MP Joel Lightbound broke rank with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, saying that the concerns of the convoy were legitimate and that his party had effectively divided Canadians for political gain. 

“I have enough respect for my fellow Canadians not to engage in these easy, absurd labels,” Lightbound said, referring to how the Trudeau government has painted the entire convoy movement as violent and racist.

“I can’t help but notice with regret that both the tone and policies of my government changed drastically on the eve and during the last election campaign.”

The Truckers for Freedom convoy entered its 17th day on Tuesday and had raised over $6 million USD on GiveSendGo. 

LEVY: Anti-semitism only an issue when it fits the left-wing agenda

Sue-Ann Levy
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If you followed Twitter like I did this past weekend, you would have thought the Freedom Convoy consisted of a host of anti-Semitic white supremacists.

This includes not only the original convoy that reached Ottawa on Jan. 29, but also the ones that came together in cities across Canada this past Saturday.  

Having made it one of my missions to expose anti-Semitism – which in the current era is often dressed in the guise of anti-Zionism or hatred of the Jewish state – I paid particular attention to the messages of fear expressed by members of Canada’s Jewish community.

That was until I realized many of the tweets were from ardent leftists whose heads were exploding over the protests themselves. Like the legacy media, many of them seemed determined to malign the truckers and their message no matter how contrary the evidence, and no matter how transparent the leftist agenda was.

The most interesting thing about all of it was the sheer ignorance of the tweeters about one important fact – Benjamin Dichter, a co-organizer of the Freedom Convoy, is Jewish.

And he’s not a Jew who has sat on his hands. He has fought anti-Semitic extremism for years.

But first to give some examples of what was being said over the weekend – Marsha Lederman, the arts correspondent for the Globe and Mail, tweeted from Vancouver on Saturday.

Others repeatedly posted one sign from the convoy at Toronto’s Bloor and Avenue Road:

The sign, an exact reproduction of a flyer that emerged in Miami two weeks ago with names of American Jews, was apparently taken away and torn up by members of the convoy.

But that didn’t stop a Jewish writer by the name of Heather Rosen from obsessing about it, the trucker convoy, vaccines, the need to wear N95 masks and white supremacy on Twitter all weekend under the handle @sweetkeet.

The more I challenged Rosen’s comments, the more ridiculous they became. That is, until she blocked me, alleging the convoy’s members were my friends and that I was supposedly a lesser being for having written for the Toronto Sun.

A Torontonian named Julian Back also jumped on the sign issue.

I replied to Back, telling him he might want to follow me to several of the highly anti-Semitic protests I’ve covered in Toronto in the past few years – including Al Quds day (‘the day of Jew hatred’), regular protests in front of the Israeli consulate on Bloor St. West and a recent protest that filled the Yonge and Bloor intersection with vitriolic anti-Jewish diatribe.

I was at all of them, and I had to listen to anti-Israel protesters single me out for being there.

Evidently, though, Back didn’t much like me speaking the truth. He blocked me with a flourish, tweeting he found nothing more satisfying than doing so.

But to get back to Freedom Convoy co-organizer Benjamin Dichter.

Reached Monday in between interviews, Dichter said the swastika flag that had been spotted in Ottawa during the first weekend of the protests was a hoax. So was an anti-Semitic pamphlet Canadian Anti-Hate Network chair Bernie Farber claimed his friend found in Ottawa. So, too, apparently, was the sign that appeared in Toronto this past weekend.

Dichter said that because we live in an echo chamber, the efforts of some in the Jewish community to lie, fabricate and hate get repeated and perceived as accurate.

Would you ever see Back, Rosen, Lederman or any of the other hysterical weekend tweeters speaking out publicly about any of the anti-Israel protests that pop up in downtown Toronto regularly – including during the COVID lockdown, or that horrible anti-Israel rally at Nathan Phillips Square last May which saw some Jews cornered and terrorized?

Of course not. It doesn’t fit their agenda.

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