Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Monday said the government had invoked rarely used special measures allowing him to tackle protests that have shut some border crossings and paralyzed downtown Ottawa.
Below are some reactions to Trudeau’s move gathered from press conferences and social media.
STORY:
FACTBOX:
COMMENTARY
THE CANADIAN CIVIL LIBERTIES ASSOCIATION
The standard for invoking the Emergencies Act “has not been met,” the Canadian Civil Liberties Association said in a statement.
The Act exists for situations that seriously threaten “the ability of the Government of Canada to preserve the sovereignty, security and territorial integrity of Canada” and that “cannot be effectively dealt with under any other law of Canada,” adding the use of such legislation “should not be normalized.”
“We recognize the gravity of the federal government’s decision to invoke the Emergencies Act. Having called on the federal government to show national leadership, we welcome this as a step toward ending illegal blockades across the country and upholding the rule of law.”
PHIL BOYLE, ASSOCIATE CHAIR FOR LEGAL STUDIES AT THE UNIVERSITY OF WATERLOO
“It seems an interesting strategic move there to go after the money. That seems appropriate. One of the things that worked in Windsor, with the Ambassador Bridge, was the threat of taking away their licenses. If your livelihood depends on license, you’re going to think twice before putting that at risk. So that might very well work with the case of Ottawa,” Boyle told Reuters.
“No doubt there will be some litigation to come of this, considering it’s never been done before… If these emergency measures are targeted within a particular province… Trudeau would only do it if he had the relevant province on board. Maybe that would lessen the potential for litigation.”
“I wonder, how does this Federal emergencies order square with the (Ontario) provincial emergencies order that was just ordered on Friday? I don’t think we’ve ever been in a situation where both the provincial and the federal government have, at the same time, invoked extraordinary emergency measures.”
JACK LINDSAY, DEPARTMENT CHAIR FOR APPLIED DISASTER AND EMERGENCY STUDIES AT BRANDON UNIVERSITY IN MANITOBA
“It seems that they’re mostly going to focus on orders and regulations relating to finance… and that’s a fairly effective tool,” Lindsay told Reuters.
“I suspect following the money and then turning the money off is probably a good strategy and not one that’s easily done… temporary short-term measures that wouldn’t normally be acceptable can be put in place.”
“They can certainly do things quicker, which is certainly the intention of these orders and regulations under the Emergencies Act. To be able to do things when it’s useful rather than six months later when you’ve gone through all the regular democratic processes and regulations or an Act changed.
“I imagine this will start of week full of political discourse over whether the government overstepped or not.”
LORI WILLIAMS, POLITICS PROFESSOR, MOUNT ROYAL UNIVERSITY, CALGARY
“There’s the danger this could create more problems, that’s why this has to be done with the cooperation of premiers and if they don’t want help, then the federal government needs to hang back. It has to be very targeted, very strategic and very restrained, because these are enormous powers that are being implemented.”
ONTARIO PREMIER DOUG FORD
“I’ll support the federal government and any proposals they have to bring law and order back to our province, to make sure we stabilize our businesses and trade around the world as the world is watching us right now, wondering if it’s a stable environment to open up businesses and expand businesses,” Ford told reporters.
“These occupiers, they’re doing the total opposite what they say they’re there to do. They’re hurting hundreds of thousands of families, millions of jobs across the province.”
ADAM BUTTON, CHIEF CURRENCY ANALYST AT FOREXLIVE
“The protest hasn’t been a material market mover of the Canadian dollar but ending the protest with emergency powers would remove the tail risk of a longer disruption.”
QUEBEC PREMIER FRANCOIS LEGAULT
Legault told reporters that imposing the act risks putting “oil on the fire” by further polarizing the population and argued that local police in the mostly-French speaking province have the situation under control.”
“I was very clear with the Prime Minister, that the federal emergency act must not apply in Quebec. I think we don’t need it. I think that at this moment it would not help the social climate. There’s a lot of pressure right now and I think we have to be careful. So it’s about time we put all Quebecers together. But I can understand that enough is enough in Ottawa. You can protest but you cannot do what they are doing since two weeks.”
ALBERTA PREMIER JASON KENNEY
“We would prefer that the Emergencies Act not be invoked, but if it is we would very much prefer that it not be applied to Alberta,” Kenny told a media briefing.
MANITOBA PREMIER HEATHER STEFANSON
“In my view, the sweeping effects and signals associated with the never-before-used Emergencies Act are not constructive here in Manitoba, where caution must be taken against overreach and unintended negative consequences. While the situation is very different in Ontario, this ultimate federal legislation should only be considered on a measured and proportional basis, in locations where it is truly needed,” Stefanson told reporters.
SASKATCHEWAN PREMIER SCOTT MOE
“The illegal blockades must end, but police already have sufficient tools to enforce the law and clear the blockades, as they did over the weekend in Windsor. Therefore, Saskatchewan does not support the Trudeau government invoking the Emergencies Act. If the federal government does proceed with this measure, I would hope it would only be invoked in provinces that request it, as the legislation allows,” Moe told reporters
LEAH WEST, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR, AT CARLETON UNIVERSITY
“The federal government must consult with provinces and Cabinet must believe the protests rise to the level of a national emergency. Can it truly be said the security of Canada is threatened by largely non-violent protests? Certainly, our sovereignty and territorial integrity are not at risk,” West tweeted.”
(This story refiles to fix typo in heading before 5th paragraph)
(Reporting by Rod Nickel, Nia Williams, Allison Lampert, Nichola Saminather, Fergal Smith, David Ljunggren, Anna Melher-Paperny; Compiled by Denny Thomas)
CHARLESTON, W.Va. (AP) — A linebacker at Division II West Virginia State was fatally shot during what the university said Thursday is being investigated by police as a home invasion.
The body of Jyilek Zyiare Harrington, 21, of Charlotte, North Carolina, was found inside an apartment Wednesday night in Charleston, police Lt. Tony Hazelett said in a statement.
Hazelett said several gunshots were fired during a disturbance in a hallway and inside the apartment. The statement said Harrington had multiple gunshot wounds and was pronounced dead at the scene. Police said they had no information on a possible suspect.
West Virginia State said counselors were available to students and faculty on campus.
“Our thoughts and prayers are with Jyilek’s family as they mourn the loss of this incredible young man,” West Virginia State President Ericke S. Cage said in a letter to students and faculty.
Harrington, a senior, had eight total tackles, including a sack, in a 27-24 win at Barton College last week.
“Jyilek truly embodied what it means to be a student-athlete and was a leader not only on campus but in the community,” West Virginia State Vice President of Intercollegiate Athletics Nate Burton said. “Jyilek was a young man that, during Christmas, would create a GoFundMe to help less fortunate families.”
Burton said donations to a fund established by the athletic department in Harrington’s memory will be distributed to an organization in Charlotte to continue his charity work.
West Virginia State’s home opener against Carson-Newman, originally scheduled for Thursday night, has been rescheduled to Friday, and a private vigil involving both teams was set for Thursday night. Harrington previously attended Carson-Newman, where he made seven tackles in six games last season. He began his college career at Division II Erskine College.
“Carson-Newman joins West Virginia State in mourning the untimely passing of former student-athlete Jyilek Harrington,” Carson-Newman Vice President of Athletics Matt Pope said in a statement. “The Harrington family and the Yellow Jackets’ campus community is in our prayers. News like this is sad to hear anytime, but today it feels worse with two teams who knew him coming together to play.”
DETROIT (AP) — Joe Schmidt, the Hall of Fame linebacker who helped the Detroit Lions win NFL championships in 1953 and 1957 and later coached the team, has died. He was 92.
The Lions said family informed the team Schmidt died Wednesday. A cause of death was not provided.
One of pro football’s first great middle linebackers, Schmidt played his entire NFL career with the Lions from 1953-65. An eight-time All-Pro, he was enshrined into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1973 and the college football version in 2000.
“Joe likes to say that at one point in his career, he was 6-3, but he had tackled so many fullbacks that it drove his neck into his shoulders and now he is 6-foot,” said the late Lions owner William Clay Ford, Schmidt’s presenter at his Hall of Fame induction in 1973. “At any rate, he was listed at 6-feet and as I say was marginal for that position. There are, however, qualities that certainly scouts or anybody who is drafting a ballplayer cannot measure.”
Born in Pittsburgh, Schmidt played college football in his hometown at Pitt, beginning his stint there as a fullback and guard before coach Len Casanova switched him to linebacker.
“Pitt provided me with the opportunity to do what I’ve wanted to do, and further myself through my athletic abilities,” Schmidt said. “Everything I have stemmed from that opportunity.”
Schmidt dealt with injuries throughout his college career and was drafted by the Lions in the seventh round in 1953. As defenses evolved in that era, Schmidt’s speed, savvy and tackling ability made him a valuable part of some of the franchise’s greatest teams.
Schmidt was elected to the Pro Bowl 10 straight years from 1955-64, and after his arrival, the Lions won the last two of their three NFL titles in the 1950s.
In a 1957 playoff game at San Francisco, the Lions trailed 27-7 in the third quarter before rallying to win 31-27. That was the NFL’s largest comeback in postseason history until Buffalo rallied from a 32-point deficit to beat Houston in 1993.
“We just decided to go after them, blitz them almost every down,” Schmidt recalled. “We had nothing to lose. When you’re up against it, you let both barrels fly.”
Schmidt became an assistant coach after wrapping up his career as a player. He was Detroit’s head coach from 1967-72, going 43-35-7.
Schmidt was part of the NFL’s All-Time Team revealed in 2019 to celebrate the league’s centennial season. Of course, he’d gone into the Hall of Fame 46 years earlier.
Not bad for an undersized seventh-round draft pick.
“It was a dream of mine to play football,” Schmidt told the Detroit Free Press in 2017. “I had so many people tell me that I was too small. That I couldn’t play. I had so many negative people say negative things about me … that it makes you feel good inside. I said, ‘OK, I’ll prove it to you.’”
VICTORIA – British Columbia‘s Environment Assessment Office has fined Coastal GasLink Pipeline Ltd. $590,000 for “deficiencies” in the construction of its pipeline crossing the province.
The office says in a statement that 10 administrative penalties have been levied against the company for non-compliance with requirements of its environmental assessment certificate.
It says the fines come after problems with erosion and sediment control measures were identified by enforcement officers along the pipeline route across northern B.C. in April and May 2023.
The office says that the latest financial penalties reflect its escalation of enforcement due to repeated non-compliance of its requirements.
Four previous penalties have been issued for failing to control erosion and sediment valued at almost $800,000, while a fifth fine of $6,000 was handed out for providing false or misleading information.
The office says it prioritized its inspections along the 670-kilometre route by air and ground as a result of the continued concerns, leading to 59 warnings and 13 stop-work orders along the pipeline that has now been completed.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 12, 2024.
