We
are currently living in a situation where Canadians are not free to enter their
own country without completing a form that currently has no legal basis to
exist.
By Leslyn Lewis
Worse,
Canadians are being fined and threatened at their own border for not submitting
private medical information that the government has no right to demand.
While the term
medical tyranny is mocked by some, it is a fair description of a government
that refuses to follow its own law or even the mobility rights enshrined in
our Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
The mandatory
use of the ArriveCAN App, while always suspect, now seems completely
unjustified in light of the fact that emergency orders have now been lifted.
But our government insists in maintaining a quasi-emergency status in order to continue
to justify this failed and potentially illegal experiment.
The ArriveCan
App is Canada’s travel monitoring response to the World Health Organization’s
declaration of Covid-19 as a global pandemic.
ArriveCan’s “Privacy Notice” clearly states that it collects personal
information in accordance with the Privacy Act.
While government
officials and border agents pretend that it is mandatory, the truth is that its
use should be relegated solely to Emergency Orders and measures taken under
the Quarantine Act.
If emergency
powers are not invoked, I believe there are absolutely no legal grounds upon
which a charge can be upheld for non-compliance with the App.
The two
circumstances where a Canadian needs to disclose their medical status upon
entry are if there’s an emergency order in place requiring the mandatory
disclosure of private medical information, or if there are grounds according to
section 19(1), where a health assessment can only be requested based on
reasonable or probable grounds “that the traveller has or might have a
communicable disease or is infested with vectors, or has recently been in close
proximity to a person who has or might have a communicable disease…”
Also, the
traveller cannot be subjected to any examination that involves “the entry into
the traveller’s body of any instrument or other foreign body.” According to
this definition, the health assessment should largely be a discussion of any
existing symptoms (section 14(1).
Perhaps the most
disturbing thing about the App is that your information could be shared with
“international health organizations as well as their institutions”:
Knowing that our
government has already taken part in the WEF’s Known Traveller Digital ID Program (KTDI), many
Canadians are concerned about where this program is headed and what information
Justin Trudeau is already sharing with groups like the WEF and other international
organizations?
Conclusion
There are many
reasons to insist on the immediate elimination of the ArriveCAN App.
Firstly, there
is no quantifiable emergency that makes it mandatory under the Quarantine
Act.
Secondly,
Canadians have a constitutional right to enter their own country by showing a
valid passport to border agents. Any interference with that right must be
substantiated. Simply saying “It helps”, is not proof.
Thirdly,
Canadians have not yet been properly informed about the Known Traveller Digital
ID Program, how ArriveCAN relates to this program and to which international
organizations and institutions the information of Canadians is being
submitted.
Finally, it
is very likely that the fines for non-compliance with downloading the App are a
form of harassment and have no legal form or effect. I have been unable to find
any precedent in a court of law where the courts have found guilty a healthy
person under the Quarantine Act. Even more elusive are precedents under
the same Act or the Contraventions Act, where governments insist
on national quarantine policies where no emergency exists.
The continued
mandatory use of the ArriveCAN App and the fines being levied against Canadians
who refuse its use amount to governmental bullying and harassment.
The App’s
privacy statement makes it clear that its mandatory nature can only be enforced
during an emergency.
So I repeat, we
currently are under no emergency measures. Therefore the mandatory requirement
for the App is an infringement on our freedoms and constitutional rights.
Section 4 of
the Quarantine Act states that it is invoked to take comprehensive
measures to protect the public. Where is the data to support these
comprehensive measures and the use of the App?
I have made a petition to demand the government end this experiment, respect the privacy and rights of its citizen and cease their medical tyranny.
The writer Dr Leslyn Lewis is a Canadian lawyer and member of the House of Commons of Canada who is also running to be Leader of the Conservative Party of Canada.
------------------
Do you have an opinion, news tips or inquiries?
Please write to us at FaithReporters@gmail.com
Comments
Post a Comment