According to the document, only one of these threats is physical, and someone threw an egg at him during a climate change march in Montreal. The incident is
OTTAWA — Well-known during the 2019 elections The threat to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau turned out to be groundless, but according to documents obtained by the National Post Office, it was one of nearly 60 threats to him during the election.
Trudeau came out tightly surrounded by RCMP officers at a campaign rally in October that year in Mississauga, Ontario, and wore a bulletproof vest.
The National Post obtained documents about the incident through access to information. They revealed that after the incident, the RCMP finally determined that the threat was groundless. Reported when there was concern that there might be a gun in the crowd.
However, in a follow-up briefing, the RCMP revealed that there were even more threats to the Prime Minister during the 40-day campaign.
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"RCMP received 59 threats to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau during the 2019 federal election campaign and acted." To read.
In the memo, only one of these threats is physical, and someone threw an egg at him during a climate change march in Montreal. Is written. The person was immediately arrested. The
unit said it would distinguish between certain threats and the types of online vitriol that are often directed at politicians, especially during campaigns.
"RCMP uses all tools at its disposal to ensure the safety of its guardians. For clarity, RCMP is considered a threat and a" derogatory comment ". We will distinguish between possible ones, "said Robin Percival, a spokesman for the army.
Percival has refused to publish other details regarding the level of threat directed at the Prime Minister since the 2019 campaign. During the 2021 campaign, liberals gave little detail about the appearance of his campaign after the rock was thrown at him when he left the rally.
Percival would just say that the military is constantly assessing the level of risk to politicians.
"RCMP works with all security partners to constantly adapt their security measures to the current environment, ensuring the right level of protection for all the partners they protect."
This unit provides security to party leaders in official positions in the House of Commons during the campaign. It also provides security to ministers when a security assessment is required.
According to the briefing document, the military at that time was former Environment Minister Catherine McKenna, then Finance Minister Bill Mornaud, then Defense Minister Halgit Sajan, and then Immigration Minister Ahmed Hussen. It was evaluating six ministers, including. , Then Minister of Foreign Affairs Chrystia Freeland and then Minister of Transport Marc Garneau.
RCMP did not reveal the results of these investigations, but especially McKenna was often abused online and her member office was destroyed. ..
"RCMP takes all threats seriously. We are constantly adapting our security measures to our environment to ensure the right level of protection for all protected people." "For security reasons, we cannot disclose specific details about the safeguards," Percival said.
Corey Hurren, a Manitoba military reserve who drove into the gates of Rideau Hall while armed in July 2020, was sentenced to six years in prison last year. rice field.
Prior to the 2019 elections, then Secretary of the Secretariat Michael Welnick told Parliamentary Commission that he was worried about the level of violence and threats directed at politicians.
"When people use terms such as" treason "and" traitor "in open conversations, they are worried about the heightened incitement to violence. Those are the words that lead to assassination. I'm worried that someone will be shot in this country.
Last week, Public Security Minister Marco Mendicino revealed that the Parliamentary Protection Agency began issuing panic buttons to parliamentarians at the end of last year. Mendicino said he felt it was a necessary step.
"The issue of ensuring the safety of all lawmakers, regardless of political stripes, is an important issue for all Canadians, not just those who work on the hills," he says. I did.
He said online discourse had begun to permeate the real world and mentioned several incidents in which politicians faced angry crowds.
"In the online space, we see some vitriol and toxic and extremist expressions that incite violence and, frankly, clearly cross Rubicon with criminal content threatened with murder. I'm here. "
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Email:rtumilty@postmedia.com
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