Politicrossing Yesterday, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced a new set of draconian — some say fascistic — restrictions on international travellers. All travel to Mexico, the Caribbean, and other hot spots has been banned until April 30. All returning international travellers need to take a test, and be housed in a designated hotel for 3 days, at their own expense, which will be up to $2000 per person. If the test is negative, they will be allowed to go home, where they must quarantine for a further 14 days, subject to random home checks by government agents with the power to issue huge fines and even arrest those deemed to be in violation. If they test positive, they will be taken to an isolation facility where they will be housed for a minimum of 14 days. Trudeau has said that this is all being done for “public safety” and “your own good”.
Given that the creator of the test has said that it is unreliable, and should not be used as a Covid test, because it delivers a false result at least 50% of the time, this is very scary. For those of us, like myself, who have come from countries ruled by totalitarian regimes, this is raising huge alarm bells. Totalitarian governments have always used “public safety” and doing things for “your own good” as an excuse for further erosions on the rights and freedoms of the people over whom they rule.
Civil libertarians are calling this edict Orwellian and quasi-fascistic. If you have read Animal Farm and 1984, these actions could have been torn from the pages of those books. Comrade Napoleon and Big Brother would be very proud. Frankly, they would applaud the ingenuity involved in coming up with these measures and making them sound so benign.
The isolation facilities are eerily similar to concentration camps in places like Nazi Germany. The $2000 fee to house travellers in government designated hotels is reminiscent of Saddam Hussein charging families for the cost of imprisoning and executing his political opponents, when he was the dictator of Iraq.
This edict is a definite violation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms, which ironically was championed by Trudeau’s father, Pierre Trudeau, during his tenure as Prime Minister in 1982. Freedom of movement and of travel is enshrined in the Charter. Many campaigners for civil rights are sounding the alarm, and readying lawsuits to challenge the government and its actions.
None of the other major parties in Canada are in any way pushing back against this latest assault on the rights and freedoms of the Canadian people. This is very puzzling, because there is a very real undercurrent of dissatisfaction with and resistance to the Covid lockdowns and restrictions. Covid fatigue is a real thing. A smart politician with the right messaging, could ride this issue alone to a smashing victory over Trudeau and his Liberals. But that would take guts and real leadership, and unfortunately, there is very little of either currently in Canadian politics.
For now, it is just another nail in the coffin of the rights and freedoms of the strong and free people of the True North.
