Tories rule out court action to stop rallies

Hey there, time traveller!
This article was published 20/05/2021 (1837 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

The province will keep its public health order enforcement focused on fines, not court injunctions, even as anti-mask rallies loom and COVID-19 cases rise.

“Enforcement matters, because right now our (infection) numbers are not good in Manitoba,” Justice Minister Cameron Friesen said Thursday. “On a per capita basis we have assigned more fines than any other jurisdiction in Canada.”

Last week, Nova Scotia issued a court injunction aimed at preventing public gatherings that defy public health orders. The court order prohibits all protest activity during the province’s state of emergency and has come under fire by the Canadian Civil Liberties Union as “unjustifiable.”

Alberta Health Services was granted a pre-emptive court injunction against a planned protest by a rural café owner and supporters this month.

“It’s an idea that has been discussed. Every good idea is on the table… We will continue to look at the Nova Scotia example and decide if that is right for Manitoba,” Friesen said.

Prodded by reporters, Friesen suggested court injunctions could make matters worse.

“It’s important that Manitobans have clear and coherent messages on the need to comply,” he said. “At the same time, you want to make sure you aren’t doing something that would also incite others to start joining and adding to the numbers of these gatherings. That is all part of the strategy… We are there, we are in force, we are handing out tickets, but we are thoughtful about our approach.”

If the province were to pursue a court injunction it would have to prove “irreparable harm” would result if it were not granted, said University of Manitoba law professor Gerard Kennedy.

“Usually in public health emergencies, it’s not that hard to prove irreparable harm,” Kennedy said.

Unlike public health orders, violating a court injunction could land offenders in jail, Kennedy said, noting a court injunction removes any doubt that the action is illegal.

“As of right now, you could argue that certain outdoor rallies, if they are conducted with masks and with sufficient distancing and few enough people, don’t violate the health order at all. By getting the injunction, there is no more doubt about that,” he said.

A blanket injunction, such as the one issued in Nova Scotia, could be difficult to enforce, Kennedy said.

“Saying that you can’t have an anti-mask rally anywhere in Manitoba, full stop, is arguably a little too vague. Does that mean that two people can’t go in front of the leg, 500 metres apart from each other and hold signs? You would have to get a little more tailored than that, because the court will not want someone to potentially go to prison for something that was insufficiently precise.”

— with files from The Canadian Press

dean.pritchard@freepress.mb.ca