Re:Convoy Crackdown – power to freeze bank accounts without ...
by SECProto on Tuesday February 22, 2022 @08:10PM
(#30436254)
> I would argue that the use of this Act has already weakened democracy in Canada because it shows that the only response the political systems has to a very minor disruption is to use acts that everyone understood to be for much more extreme situations.
Certainly the act was used in response to weaknesses in the system - eg the Ottawa Police Service were unwilling to fine/ticket/otherwise deal with the illegal activity for weeks; crowdfunding sites weren't subject to FINTRAC; etc. Ideally this will lead to proper legislation regarding these weaknesses, removing the necessity of using the Emergencies Act to deal with a similar situation again.
The outcome of those deliberations will be to some extent obscure and subject to yet further interpretation and arguments.
That doesn't in, and of itself, make democracy stronger.
I would argue that the use of this Act has already weakened democracy in Canada because it shows that the only response the political systems has to a very minor disruption is to use acts that everyone understood to be for much more extreme situations.
This has already deepened many people's cynicism about the idea of this form of government.