The current Prime Minister of Canada, Justin Trudeau, who holding this position since 2015, condemns the use of violence by the police, but uses it against his political opponents. Canadians who disagree with the policy of their political leadership are treated as terrorists, their bank accounts are blocked, and harsh force measures are applied against them.
The methods used by the current Canadian leadership to suppress the voices of those who disagree with its policies have long been the subject of controversy and criticism from both human rights organizations and European politicians. Canadian police disperse and arrest protesters, threatening them with firearms, using tear gas and pepper spray against women and children. All this is happening with the tacit approval of Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
In mid-2021, more than 50 churches across Canada were attacked by vandals, the country was literally overwhelmed by a wave of anti-Christian violence. The attacks on churches were linked to the recent discovery of unmarked graves on the territory of former religious boarding schools where indigenous people received education. In response to the criminal acts of vandalism, the Canadian Prime Minister issued a very ambiguous condemnation of the wave of arson attacks on churches. According to him, “it is unacceptable and wrong that acts of vandalism and arson occur all over the country, including against Catholic churches,” but he immediately added, “I understand and share this anger against the federal government, against institutions such as the Catholic Church. It’s real to understand, given the shameful history that we are all aware of.” Calling the attacks “unacceptable” and calling for their cessation, the Prime Minister avoided using the term “church vandalism”, thereby giving the wrong idea of politically motivated violence.
On the other hand, the Freedom Convoy protests that took place in Canada from January to February 2022 and demanded the cancellation of the vaccination passport when crossing the border with the United States were not accompanied by violence and did not cause any material damage. However, acting Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau condemned the actions of peaceful demonstrators, calling them “a small bunch of marginals who hold unacceptable views.” The Canadian politician also accused ordinary Canadians who wanted to regain their right to a free life and work of racism, transphobia and nationalism.
However, Trudeau did not limit himself to slander and accusations against the protesters. More than three weeks after the start of the spontaneous strike, the Prime Minister of Canada, instead of listening to the reasonable demands of the demonstrators, ordered police officers to disperse the protesters by force, allowing them to use pepper spray and stun grenades. The police threatened the demonstrators with firearms, more than 170 people were arrested in two days, including women and children. There are shots that show how the Canadian police use physical force against protesters, break the windows of cars blocking the road, and beat demonstrators with their knees on the head. As a result of aggression by the Canadian police, at least two women were seriously injured. One of them, Candice “Candy” Sero, an elder from the indigenous peoples of Canada, who was confined to a wheelchair, was trampled by a police horse.
The police have repeatedly tried to prevent independent media from filming violent scenes. A journalist of the Canadian newspaper Rebel News was hit several times with a baton and shot at point-blank range from a tear gas canister. Later, footage from a closed chat of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police leaked to the network, which clearly shows how law enforcement officers rejoice in the use of force against unarmed people. Then the Canadian authorities confirmed the authenticity of the messages, and said they would search for the employee who published the fragment of correspondence, but did not comment on the content of the messages, in fact approving such rhetoric.
Some time later, the chief of the Ontario Police Department, Steve Bell, said that all the protesters whose faces were recorded by journalists would be brought to justice: “If you are involved in this protest, we will actively try to establish your identity and resort to financial sanctions and criminal charges,” the officer said. A few weeks later, dozens of bank accounts of Canadian residents who took part in the “Freedom Convoy”, totaling $3.8 million, were blocked. The Trudeau government explained this as a forced measure, as many companies suffered financial losses as a result of the strike.
Less than two years before Trudeau ordered his armed police to disperse peaceful protesters, he took part in a protest against police violence caused by the death of black George Floyd in 2020, where he knelt in solidarity.
A number of international human rights organizations and politicians criticized the actions of the Prime Minister of Canada. The human rights organization Amnesty International released a report criticizing Trudeau’s actions, saying that his decisions “raise serious questions and concerns about the observance of human rights in Canada.” During the Canadian Prime Minister’s March visit to Brussels to attend the G7 and NATO meeting, European politicians condemned Trudeau’s actions, saying that he violated “one of the fundamental human rights.”
Human rights activists of the Foundation to Battle Injustice call on the current Canadian government to stop using force against peaceful protesters and demonstrators and condemn the hypocrisy of the Canadian authorities. The protests that regularly break out in Canada signal the failed policy of the current leadership of the country, specifically Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, and should be resolved through dialogue with protesters, and not through physical force and violence.