The Liberal government warned Thursday that the effects of the Emergencies Act are already being felt in the wallets of protesters. Financial institutions have begun freezing the bank accounts of individuals linked to the illegal protests. And these sanctions will multiply in the days to come, warned Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland.
“Information is now shared between law enforcement and financial institutions in Canada. Financial service providers have already intervened, based on this information,” Ms.me Freeland, in a press briefing on Thursday, while in the street opposite the parliament, the demonstrators persisted in refusing to leave the city center. “The emergency measures that we have put in place are being used, they are having an impact and they will have more and more impact in the days to come”, nevertheless warned the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Finance. .
Under the order invoking the Emergencies Act, Canadian banks and financial institutions can as of Monday suspend or freeze the funds of anyone involved in the illegal blockades or occupation of Ottawa, or suspend financial services that are offered to them. And without a court order. Federal authorities may also share information with banks and financial institutions to identify targeted individuals. Crowdfunding platforms must also report any large or suspicious transactions to the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Center of Canada (FINTRAC).
Mme Freeland declined to disclose how many accounts were frozen. Although she has this data in hand, she argued that the government would not share it at this time so as not to harm ongoing operations.
However, she said that the names of “individuals and entities as well as those of cryptocurrency wallets” have been shared with financial institutions and that “accounts have been frozen”.
As for the tags provided to ensure that the accounts targeted are indeed those of demonstrators, and not of citizens with the same name, for example, Ms.me Freeland has yet to reveal their nature. She was content to assure that the government, law enforcement and financial institutions have taken this into account and have been “very careful”.
“We now have the tools to track the money. We see what is in transit and what is being prepared in real time, and we are resolutely determined that this will end once and for all, ”insisted Mr.me Freeland.
Existing powers or a precedent?
Bloc Québécois Gabriel Ste-Marie argued in the Commons that the Proceeds of Crime (Money Laundering) and Terrorist Financing Act already allowed protesters’ funds to be frozen. The government could therefore have acted in this direction since the beginning of the occupation in Ottawa, 21 days ago.
Mme Freeland countered that the Emergencies Act now allows law enforcement and security authorities to share “all information” with banks, as well as requiring banks to take action against those affected.
The Conservative Party has asked the Privacy Commissioner to look into this sharing of financial information by the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS) or FINTRAC.
Vanessa Iafolla, a financial crime adviser consulted by The Canadian Press, worried this week about “the precedent this sets for future protests in Canada”.
Jessica Davis, a former CSIS analyst, acknowledged that these concerns are justified. But in the short term, she noted, in an interview with the CBC on Wednesday, that the financial measures could also cause collateral victims since the individuals concerned could have difficulty paying their rent or child support, while companies whose account is frozen may be unable to pay their employees.
The crackdown initiated by Ottawa could also further bolster the agitators who paralyze Ottawa and who have blocked border crossings in their beliefs that the government is too intrusive. “It could in fact radicalize them even more,” observed Ms.me Davis on CBC.