Canada s parliament approves Trudeau s emergency powers

Canada s parliament on Monday backed Prime Minister Justin Trudeau s decision to invoke rarely-used emergency powers to end truckers' protest against Covid-protocol that have blocked streets in the capital Ottawa for more than three weeks.

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 restored normalcy 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 Trudeau and his government. Protesters blocked the busiest land crossing between Canada and the United States for six days_ snarling trade.

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.