Hotel quarantine rule `unsafe,' Conservative MPs say
FOUR TORY MPs SAY RULE CREATES `UNSAFE ISOLATION SCENARIOS' AFTER ALLEGED SEX ASSAULT
Four Conservative MPs are calling on the Liberal government to suspend its mandatory hotel quarantine requirement for travellers arriving in Canada, after an alleged sexual assault took place in one of the hotels.
“The responsibility for the conduct of those overseeing the facilities and enforcing the rules lies with the Trudeau Liberals,” reads the statement from Michelle Rempel Garner, Shannon Stubbs, Jag Sahota and Richard Martel.
“It is unthinkable that the federal government is mandating women into unsafe isolation scenarios that leave them vulnerable without the assurances they need to feel protected.”
The Quarantine Act stipulates that anyone arriving in Canada by air must reserve and pay for a room at one of the government-authorized hotels before their arrival. Travellers must also take a COVID-19 test upon their arrival in Canada, isolating themselves in a hotel for three days while they await their results.
The government-authorized hotels are in Calgary, Vancouver, Toronto and Montreal.
According to La Presse, a woman staying on a quarantine floor at the Sheraton Montreal Airport Hotel on Feb. 17 was approached in the hallway by a man, who invited her to his room.
When she refused, he entered her room uninvited and, after ignoring repeated requests to leave, began to fondle her.
The woman was a resident of San Diego, Calif., La Presse reported.
Montreal police were called to the hotel and made an arrest.
Robert Shakory, a 29-year-old Windsor, Ont., man, has been charged with sexual assault, break and enter and harassment.
“We are deeply angered to hear reports of sexual violence happening during federally mandated quarantines … the Liberal government needs to tell Canadians what action they are taking to fix this public safety and security concern,” said the four MPs in their statement, released on Wednesday.
They also referenced another incident on Feb. 18, when a quarantine screening officer allegedly demanded cash from a woman and then sexually assaulted her at her home in Oakville, Ont.
While performing a quarantine compliance check, the man allegedly told the woman she was in violation of the quarantine order and “demanded” that a fine be paid in cash, said Halton regional police in a statement Wednesday. “When the victim declined to pay, she was sexually assaulted by the accused.”
Police said they arrested a man they identified only as Hemant, 27, of Hamilton, Ont., on Tuesday. He has been charged with sexual assault and extortion.
The accused had been trained by the Public Health
Agency of Canada as a designated screening officer under the Quarantine Act, police said.
Police refused to disclose the name of the security company that employs the man, but said he had been suspended.
The Conservative MPs are asking that the Liberals suspend the quarantine hotel requirement until measures are put in place to “ensure the safety of Canadians and institute a system for verifying at-home quarantine that doesn't involve security agents who have not been properly vetted.”
During the pause the federal government should continue with on-arrival testing and its 14-day at-home quarantine for travellers, say the MPs. “The very least that Canadians can expect is to be safe, particularly in the presence of federal representatives and while in federal facilities,” reads their statement. A spokesperson for Health Minister Patty Hajdu said allegations of assaults are “really concerning.”
Cole Davidson said the public health agency would review its own procedures as well as those of its service providers to ensure the safety of travellers returning to the country.
Everyone entering Canada must isolate for 14 days. Designated screening officers visit quarantine locations to confirm people are where they said they would be on arrival in the country. Failure to comply can result in fines.
However, screening officers are not police officers and have no authority to issue a ticket or arrest anyone. As a result, they should never be demanding payment during a quarantine-compliance check.
To be designated, officers must be licensed security guards and have had a valid police background check.
Training comprises online self-study courses related to the Quarantine Act and their duties and responsibilities. They must also pass an exam.