Border protest needs to end but Emergencies Act not wanted in Manitoba: Premier Stefanson
'Law enforcement is doing very good work and we need to let them do their jobs,' premier says
Premier Heather Stefanson does not support the use of the federal Emergencies Act in Manitoba to deal with the ongoing protests and blockades.
"The Emergencies Act is very, very serious and needs to be considered very seriously before enacting something like that," she said Monday, following a first ministers' meeting with Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, but prior to the act being officially invoked.
Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act on Monday afternoon for the first in time in Canada's history to give the federal government extra powers to handle ongoing protests against pandemic restrictions.
Stefanson said she worried that "sweeping effects" associated with the act could have overreach and unintended negative consequences.
Unlawful action — blockades that disrupt borders and critical infrastructure and impair trade, jobs and our economy, or that unduly infringe the rights of neighbours and communities — cannot be tolerated but the situation in each province and territory is very different and can't be addressed with a single measure, Stefanson said.
"Winnipeg's situation is dramatically different from the one in Ottawa. The Emerson border situation is very different than the one faced in Windsor," she said.
The act, which replaced the War Measures Act in the 1980s, defines a national emergency as a temporary "urgent and critical situation" that "seriously endangers the lives, health or safety of Canadians and is of such proportions or nature as to exceed the capacity or authority of a province to deal with it."
Emergencies Act gives more tools for police
Trudeau acknowledged some premiers have said they have the situation under control.
The act is there to provide additional tools to police services who may need them, but will not mean automatic interventions by the federal government, he said.
"It's quite possible and we even hope that the tools we have provided to police services across the country will not have to be resorted to, certainly not for very long," Trudeau said in a news conference.
"Ideally, these premiers who say they have the situation in hand will continue to be able to do so, but on a national level, we have reached criteria forcing us to act."
A protest began blocking the border crossing near Emerson, Man., five days ago. Another protest on Broadway in front of the Manitoba Legislative Building in downtown Winnipeg has been going on for about two weeks.
They are part of a number of demonstrations in cities and border crossings across Canada by people against pandemic restrictions and a federal vaccine mandate for truckers.
Manitoba's new infrastructure minister Doyle Piwniuk said on Monday he wants the blockades ended but was unsure how to go about it.
Emerson typically sees sees about 1,000 trucks crossing the border per day, according to Dave Carlson, reeve for the Municipality of Emerson-Franklin, and detouring to use other ports means driving on roads never intended for heavy truck traffic.
"This is a major crossing so this is where most of the commercial goods are processed. A lot of the trucks have to cross this border," he said. "Some goods can't cross at other border crossings."
Piwniuk insisted the government is "monitoring the situation on a regular basis" and "doing everything possible" to ensure vital cargo like medical supplies and livestock gets through the Emerson port.
Talks with governor
Stefanson and North Dakota Gov. Doug Burgum are keeping the lines of communication open, a spokesperson for the governor said in an email Monday.
Burgum stressed the collaboration between Manitoba and North Dakota during the pandemic, as well as the importance in maintaining a "secure and open border" so goods and services can freely flow across the international boundary, the spokesperson added.
North Dakota's 18 border crossings are second only to Maine, but only three of the 18 are open around the clock, including the port of entry outside Emerson.
"They're not being held up if you've got live animals, but we do know there is an impact on that because, obviously, shipments like grain and other products that are being diverted to other ports of entry, and that's slowing things down for the whole supply chain, which we know is an issue right now," Burgum told local reporters in North Dakota.
However, an RCMP spokesperson said there has been no change in the blockade, where about 75 vehicles, including semi-trailer trucks, pickup trucks, farm and construction machinery and even snowplows are blocking all lanes leading to the border.
RCMP negotiators spoke with the protest organizers on Monday in an attempt to open up a lane of traffic to allow vehicles to cross in both directions, Sgt. Paul Manaigre said in an email to CBC News.
No tickets have been handed out or arrests made in regard to the border blockade, he said.
Stefanson said she will continue to take the advice of the RCMP and Winnipeg police and is being briefed on a daily basis by Manitoba Justice officials, who are in regular communication with law enforcement.
"At some point, these protests will end one way or another," she said.
"I think law enforcement is doing very good work and we need to let them do their jobs. They have assured us, and reassured us, that they can do that within the tools that exist right now in our province and the use of The Emergencies Act is not necessary here."
'This is mob rule'
Emerson is one of the busiest ports between Windsor and the port near Vancouver, in Surrey, and it is being held hostage, said Dougald Lamont, leader of the Manitoba Liberal Party.
He called it "totally unacceptable" that Stefanson and Justice Minister Kelvin Goertzen are refusing to enforce the law and make protesters leave.
The province could easily do what the Ontario government did in Windsor rather than "turning a blind eye to people who are putting other people's lives at risk," he said, adding it is not a legal protest when people are prevented from performing lawful activities.
Start handing out tickets, enforcing the law and telling these people "your point is made, but you're breaking the law. Go home," Lamont said.
"Either we live in a society where we live by the rule of law, or we live by mob rule. And this is mob rule."
