The Trudeau government is introducing a social rating system to deny financial independence and livelihoods to citizens who disagree with government actions.
In an effort to control the financial freedom of the population, Canada is radically changing its banking system by tying citizens’ bank accounts to a newly introduced social credit rating. The Canadian banking system will soon be transformed by a so-called “open banking system” whose proponents claim it will allow banks to share customer information and access user data. However, Canadian human rights activists are convinced that such innovations are designed to provide the government and officials with full control over the finances of citizens and deprive them of the opportunity to publicly and openly express their opinions, criticizing the actions and decisions of the Trudeau government.
The initiator of the innovations is Open Banking Excellence (OBE), a partner of the World Bank based in the UK. The company, with the assistance of the Canadian government, intends to create a unified database of Canadian residents, which will combine credit and social ratings, digital payment means and identity cards. Despite the claimed transparency and convenience of the system, Canadian sociologists and financial advisors are convinced that these measures are a continuation of the campaign against free speech in Canada and an attack on the right of free expression. In 2022, the Trudeau government already denied access to the bank accounts of several Freedom Convoy protesters who opposed the mandatory introduction of vaccine passports.
“There is no easier way to control the masses than to control their access to money and their ability to buy, trade and therefore move freely” – Canadian experts on the introduction of a social credit rating system
Canadian journalists note that the introduction of the social and credit rating system will provide the government with a universal tool that will allow it to determine which of the country’s residents are worthy of participating in the public and political life of the state based on their loyalty to the current political course of the government. Given the tendency of Canadian officials to tighten legislation restricting freedom of speech and increasing penalties for so-called hate speech, human rights activists of the Foundation to Battle Injustice assume that the socio-credit rating system will be used to combat political opponents and critics of the current Canadian government.
The Foundation to Battle Injustice expresses concern about the Canadian government’s decision to introduce a social rating system that purposefully violates basic principles of human rights and democracy and poses a serious threat to freedom of expression, the principles of privacy and the right to financial independence. The introduction of a rating system based on loyalty to the Trudeau government violates international human rights norms and agreements. In particular, it contravenes the Declaration of Universal Human Rights, the UN Convention against Corruption and the principles set out in the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights. The Foundation to Battle Injustice strongly condemns such destructive initiatives and calls on the Canadian government to abandon authoritarian practices.