(Ottawa) The noose is tightening around the demonstrators who have paralyzed downtown Ottawa for 21 days and those who have blocked three border crossings in the country. Accounts belonging to people who participate in or support “illegal blockages” have already been frozen by financial institutions, according to Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland. However, she refrained from saying how much so as not to harm the police operation that is being prepared in Ottawa.
Posted at 1:00 p.m.
Updated at 3:36 p.m.
“Information is currently being shared with Canadian financial institutions by law enforcement,” she said at a press conference Thursday morning. These institutions have already taken action based on this information. »
The minister did not want to say if it was about tens or hundreds of bank accounts that were frozen in the country. “I have these figures here in front of me,” she said, adding that they had been revised by the crisis unit last night. “But I’m not going to share them with you right now because operational actions are underway and we want to be very careful not to compromise them,” she continued. I want to assure you that action is being taken, we can see it, and that more action will be taken over the next few days. »
The Trudeau government wants to cut the funding that allowed illegal occupations in downtown Ottawa and at several border crossings across the country. The decree for the implementation of Emergency Measures Act came into force on Tuesday. Crowdfunding platforms and online payment services must now report any large or suspicious transactions, including cryptocurrency transactions, to the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Center of Canada.
Banks and other financial institutions will be able to freeze the personal or business accounts of any participant in the unlawful blockades without court order and their assets, digital or not. These institutions will be able to proceed after obtaining information from the police without fear of legal proceedings. They will also have to report these people to the Royal Canadian Mounted Police and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.
The conservatives fear certain excesses. MP Michelle Rempel Garner has written to Privacy Commissioner Daniel Therrien asking him to investigate these extraordinary powers now. “The Emergencies Act has never been used before,” she recalls. Therefore, the ability of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights to mitigate the scope of the infringement on the rights of Canadians has yet to be tested. »
The day before, the interim leader of the Conservative Party, Candice Bergen, had also raised some concerns. “If someone donated to the protest three or four weeks ago, will their bank account be frozen? Will this affect their credit rating? There are many questions surrounding the financial implications. »
Minister Freeland explained Thursday that it is up to financial institutions to make the decision in conjunction with law enforcement. “We have made it very clear that these blockades and occupations are illegal,” she reiterated. Now is the time for people to go home, bring their trucks home, and stop funding illegal blockades and occupations. »
Weapons in Ottawa?
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino was unable to confirm on Thursday that there are firearms similar to those seized in Coutts, Alberta. “I did not say that there is information that there are firearms in Ottawa, he specified, transmitting the question to the police forces. I said yesterday that there are reports which show that there is an extremist ideological motivation between the blockades. He noted the similarities between the targets targeted by truck convoys, such as borders or parliaments, their tactics and their comments published in social networks.