Trudeau defends use of emergency powers against trucker rallies

Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau testified at a public inquiry yesterday to defend his use of emergency powers to dislodge noisy trucker-led protesters that jammed the capital earlier this year, citing what he called threats of serious violence.

His testimony at the Public Order Emergency Commission wrapped up six weeks of hearings on the rarely used powers, which were invoked in February after weeks of protests that brought Ottawa to a standstill and disrupted trade.

Critics have said Trudeau’s use of those powers was excessive.

He told the inquiry that protesters had rammed vehicles into police cruisers and used children as shields.

Trudeau said police were concerned that they might be hoarding weapons while Canada’s spy agency warned of “the presence of people promoting ideologically-motivated violent extremism” that risked triggering lone wolf attacks.

Tensions rose further when counter-protests popped up, with “grandmothers standing in residential streets against massive trucks”, Trudeau said, raising concerns about Canadians taking matters into their own hands.

“We were seeing things escalate,” he said, adding that advice and “my own inclination was that ... we needed to do something to keep Canadians safe”.

Invoking the Emergencies Act, he concluded, “was the right thing to do. And we did it”.

The self-styled “Freedom Convoy” of truckers rolled into the capital on January 29 from across Canada to express anger at coronavirus (Covid-19) vaccine mandates.

As solidarity rallies popped up – blocking trade corridors including a bridge to Detroit that is the busiest international crossing in North America – their demands expanded to a broader rejection of pandemic restrictions and an anti-establishment agenda.

The use of extraordinary powers of the act to remove the protests and blockades was criticised as overreach by political opponents and civil liberties groups.

The commission has been mandated to assess the “appropriateness and effectiveness of the measures” taken by the government to deal with the protests.

It is not, however, empowered to level sanctions.

Led by former judge Paul Rouleau, the commission has heard from officials, protest leaders and Ottawa residents impacted by the big rigs’ incessant honking and diesel fumes.

“It was a tinder box waiting to explode. It was not a family festival,” former Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly testified.

He resigned during the crisis over what the commission heard was a disorganized police response, including intelligence failures and leaks – both now under investigation.

Convoy organisers have painted a much different picture, calling their actions legitimate pushback against “evil” policies and describing a festive atmosphere in front of parliament with hot tubs, bouncy castles and barbecues.

“We weren’t there to disrupt the city residents,” trucker Brigitte Belton told the inquiry. “We were there to be heard.”

The commission heard evidence of incendiary comments and extremist elements of the protest that included calls for a coup and the spread of conspiracy theories.

Earlier this week, Trudeau’s national security adviser Jody Thomas told the commission that she recommended invoking the Emergencies Act as the protests were “causing significant economic instability”.

“The violent rhetoric was increasing rapidly and exponentially, (and) the number of threats against public figures was increasing,” she said.

Those included threats against Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland, saying she would “get a bullet to the head” for “lying about Covid-19”.