CCF said the crux of the case was that the government already had all the tools necessary to end the occupation without resorting to the nuclear option of the Emergency Act.
Canadian civil rights groups claim unnecessary secrecy , and fought in court on Monday to demand the release of documents related to the February emergency law invocation.
Attorneys for the Constitutional Foundation of Canada (CCF) said Monday morning that the unredacted documents and minutes of both the Cabinet and the Incident Response Group had A lawsuit seeking disclosure (IRG) meetings culminated in a February decision in which the federal government used emergency legislation to force an end to the ongoing Freedom Convoy protests.
"If the government had made a better decision about what records to present to this court, if it had been a proper record, we wouldn't be here. It will," CCF lawyer Sujit Choudhry said at the hearing.
"We are here because the government has not given us the option to find out the truth." It was part of the CCF's broader legal challenge to the Trudeau government's legislative decision.
The Canadian Civil Liberties Association (CCLA) has also challenged this action.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau announced the activation of the law at a press conference on 14 February,giving the federal government broad powers to allow police to seize bank accounts, Allowed the ongoing Freedom Convoy to end the blockade of downtown. Ottawa streets and border crossings - although the latter had by then been largely cleared by local police.
-
Ottawa Police say they are not calling for emergency laws because liberals defend their use
- 59}
Mendicino was 'misunderstood' when he appeared to say police had called for the Emergency Act: Deputy Minister 66}
-
Government had no choice but to invoke emergency law, liberal minister tells commission
-
Prime Minister Trudeau invokes emergency law to remove protesters, border blockade
On February 14, the State of Emergency Act was invoked for the first time since it was drafted in 1988 to replace the War Measures Act.
"The scope of these measures will be time-bound, geographically targeted, and reasonable and proportionate to the threats they seek to address," the Prime Minister said at the time. rice field.
"This is about keeping Canadians safe, protecting people's jobs, and restoring trust in our institutions."
The Canadian convoy's response was: The Incident Response Group (IRG) was chaired by the Prime Minister and was handled by a secretive, closed committee composed of ministers and senior government officials.
Established in 2018, he said the IRG "is a dedicated agency, convened in the event of a national crisis or incidents elsewhere that have a significant impact on Canada." 'Emergency Committee'.
In October 2018, the IRG met for the first time afterWashington Post columnist Jamal Khashoggi waskilled inside the Saudi Arabian embassy in Istanbul, Turkey. Officially approved.
Human rights groups are skeptical of this justification and are calling on the federal government to clarify decisions that lead to this justification.
CCF launched a legal challenge to the call a few days later, alleging that the criteria for declaring a state of emergency had not been met, followed by a formal legal challenge a month later. I did.
The crux of the CCF case is that the government already had all the tools needed to end the occupation without resorting to the nuclear option of the Emergency Act, he said. Choudhry he told the National Post.
"There is no evidence that the border closure or the protests in Ottawa were legally ineffective," he said.
Other actions, including the seizure of financial accounts by the government, also violate Section 2. Choudhry argued for Article 8 of Canada's Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The government and cabinet were subjected to severe questioning of their decisions in the months that followed.This was particularly the case with previous statements by Minister of Public Security Marco Mendicino and the Commission's testimony that a request had been made by the police to invoke the emergency law.
That claim was refuted by bothOttawa Interim Police Chief Steve His Bell and RCMP top cop Brenda Lucky. call to action.
Cabinet members said the government "had no choice" but to invoke the law to clear the streets of Ottawa after three weeks of protests.
Federal Judge Richard Mosley reserved his decision.
• Email: bpassifiume@postmedia.com | Twitter:
Sign up to receive daily top stories from National Post, a division of Postmedia Network Inc.
Thank you for registering.
Sending welcome email. If you don't see it, please check your spam folder.
The next issue of NP Posted will arrive in your mailbox shortly.