CSIS warned Emergencies Act would radicalize protesters and push them toward violence
The Canadian Security Intelligence Service warned cabinet ministers on Feb. 13 that invoking the Emergencies Act could push “Freedom Convoy” protesters toward violence, a public inquiry was told Monday, while the mayor of Windsor, Ont., testified he hoped it would act as a deterrent.
The document was presented to the commission by a lawyer representing the organizers of the Ottawa protest, but was withdrawn after an objection by the City of Windsor’s lawyer.Earlier Monday, Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens told the inquiry that he supported the federal government’s invocation of the Emergencies Act on Feb. 14, even though police had already cleared out the serious blockade at a local border crossing.
Municipal officials in Windsor were watching carefully as protesters occupied Ottawa, Dilkens said, and they learned from that experience to prevent the protest from growing to the point it had in the capital city, where demonstrators had set up a bouncy castle and hot tub in the streets. On Feb. 11, the Automotive Parts Manufacturers’ Association successfully sought a court injunction to ban the demonstrators from blocking the border.
But Dilkens said he was worried the protesters would return, which is why he asked Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino if the government was going to use the Emergencies Act, and then offered his support for doing so. Ford and then-solicitor general Sylvia Jones were asked to appear before the inquiry to give evidence about their response to the protests, but challenged the summons in Federal Court.
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