B.C. Civil Liberties Association urges MPs to vote down use of Emergencies Act
Global News
Earlier Thursday, the group's national counterpart said it was launching a legal challenge of the use of the Emergencies Act. MPs are set to vote on the act's use on Monday.
The B.C. Civil Liberties Association (BCCLA) is joining its national counterpart in opposing the use of the Emergencies Act to end border blockades and an entrenched protest in Ottawa.
The federal Liberal government invoked the act for the first time since its creation in 1988 on Tuesday, granting police additional enforcement powers to remove blockades.
MPs are currently debating the act, and if they do not vote in favour of its use on Monday, the state of emergency will be revoked.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau kicked off debate on the matter Thursday, arguing using the act was necessary because “the situation could not be dealt with under any other law in Canada.”
Meghan McDermott, policy director with the B.C. Civil Liberties Association disputed that assertion, stating that police regularly use existing laws to disperse protests that have become dangerous or illegal.
“Protests across Canada are often met with a lot of heavy-handed police force. Police can and do crush dissent and free expression regularly in Canada,” she said.
McDermott said the BCCLA, a staunch advocate for free expression, does not condone the use of force against protests.
But she pointed to quick enforcement against the Coastal GasLink blockades in Northern British Columbia, the Fairy Creek blockades on Vancouver Island and recurring climate change protests in Vancouver as evidence police have ample powers under existing law.
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