Canadian Opposition Leader Arrested for Holding Rally While Prime Minister Attends G-7 Conference
Canadian opposition leader Maxime Bernier was arrested for appearing at a rally while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attended this weekend’s G-7 summit in the U.K.
Bernier, the leader of the People’s Party of Canada, was arrested after he spoke to supporters in a small Manitoba town against government lockdowns, according to a People’s Party news release.
“Mr. Bernier, a political leader, was wrongfully arrested on charges that violate his constitutional rights as a Canadian citizen,” the release read.
“Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees the right to peaceful assembly. This fundamental freedom has not been nullified just because of the existence of the virus.”
PPC Press Release following the arrest of Maxime Bernier#FreeMax#IStandWithMax pic.twitter.com/gsKnWdjmRO
— Maxime Bernier (@MaximeBernier) June 11, 2021
Canada is overcoming its third wave of COVID-19 and is reporting an average of 2,000 cases a day, according to CNN.
Currently, citizens and permanent residents are allowed to enter the country but must quarantine for 14 days.
People’s Party of Canada spokesman Martin Masse said Bernier’s arrest is not about the virus.
“It’s political repression. This is the kind of stuff countries like China and Russia do,” Masse said.
Please note that Mr. Bernier does not have access to his smartphone while in jail.
We have had no contact with him since his arrest. He has only spoken to his lawyer.
-PPC Team pic.twitter.com/kNyDwJK1Nx— Maxime Bernier (@MaximeBernier) June 11, 2021
“Mr. Bernier was arrested for opposing the unjustified and unscientific lockdown measures imposed on Canadians by our incompetent federal and provincial governments for over 15 months. Measures that violate our basic rights, and that will have disastrous effects on Canadians’ health and well-being, as well as on the country’s public finances, for years to come.”
Trudeau, meanwhile, is facing backlash for not staying at a designated quarantine hotel after attending the G-7 summit, Newsweek reported.
The prime minister’s office confirmed that Trudeau and the Canadian delegation will quarantine in an Ottawa hotel while they wait for COVID-19 tests to come back negative.
However, Ottawa is not among the Canadian cities that are allowed to accept international flights during the pandemic.
Trudeau is being accused of disregarding the same coronavirus measures his government has imposed on Canadians.
“[Trudeau] gets his own special hotel at your expense,” Conservative MP Michelle Rempel Garner tweeted. “One set of rules for him, one for everyone else.”
I guess the hotels where the alleged sexual assaults and COVID-19 outbreaks didn’t cut it for Trudeau – he gets his own special hotel at your expense. One set of rules for him, one for everyone else. Scrap the quarantine hotels today! https://t.co/oqeex8IylS
— Michelle Rempel Garner (@MichelleRempel) June 4, 2021
“I just find it strange that the prime minister of our country is traveling internationally, which he’s asking every Canadian not to do, and there wouldn’t be a very detailed strategy and plan for his quarantine,” Conservative MP John Barlow said.
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