Canada’s parliament on Monday backed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s decision to invoke rarely-used emergency powers to deal with the recent protests in the capital Ottawa and elsewhere against COVID-19 mandates and restrictions.
The Emergencies Act was approved in parliament by 185 to 151, with the minority Liberal government getting support from left-leaning New Democrats.
The special measures, announced by Trudeau a week ago, have been deemed unnecessary and an abuse of power by some opposition politicians.
Over the weekend, Canadian police cleared the protesters in Ottawa. The protesters initially wanted an end to cross-border COVID-19 vaccine mandates for truck drivers, but the occupation turned into a broader demonstration against various COVID-19 mandates and restrictions. Protesters blocked the busiest land crossing between Canada and the United States for six days, snarling trade.
Most border crossings, including the one at Ambassador Bridge which connects Windsor to Detroit, were cleared ahead of the government invoking the Emergencies Act.
Earlier on Monday, Trudeau told reporters his government still needed temporary emergency powers citing “real concerns” about threats in the days ahead. “This state of emergency is not over. There continue to be real concerns about the coming days,” Trudeau said.
The act grants authorities broader powers.
Police spent two days clearing protesters from the downtown Ottawa, making 191 arrests and towing 79 vehicles by the time the operation ended on Sunday.
Trudeau also called for people to work together, saying “we don’t know when this pandemic is going to end, but that doesn’t mean we cannot start healing as a nation.”
Some members of the official opposition Conservative Party accuse Trudeau of abusing his powers. Legislator Dean Allison decried what he called “authoritarian military style measures” against the protesters.
Green Party member Mike Morrice, who voted against the motion, said invoking the act was an “inappropriate” response to a failure in policing.
“As many other Parliamentarians have shared, the use of the Emergencies Act sets a worrying precedent for future protests,” he said.
Reuters contributed to this report.
