Erin Coates

Published:June 12, 2021

-The Western Journal

 

Editors note: Maxime was in custody for 8 hours before being released.

 

Canadian opposition leader Maxime Bernier was arrested for appearing at a rally while Prime Minister Justin Trudeau attended this weekend’s G-7 summit in the U.K.

Bernier, the leader of the People’s Party of Canada, was arrested after he spoke to supporters in a small Manitoba town against government lockdowns, according to a People’s Party news release.

“Mr. Bernier, a political leader, was wrongfully arrested on charges that violate his constitutional rights as a Canadian citizen,” the release read.

“Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms guarantees the right to peaceful assembly. This fundamental freedom has not been nullified just because of the existence of the virus.”

Canada is overcoming its third wave of COVID-19 and is reporting an average of 2,000 cases a day, according to CNN.

Currently, citizens and permanent residents are allowed to enter the country but must quarantine for 14 days.

People’s Party of Canada spokesman Martin Masse said Bernier’s arrest is not about the virus.

“It’s political repression. This is the kind of stuff countries like China and Russia do,” Masse said.

“Mr. Bernier was arrested for opposing the unjustified and unscientific lockdown measures imposed on Canadians by our incompetent federal and provincial governments for over 15 months. Measures that violate our basic rights, and that will have disastrous effects on Canadians’ health and well-being, as well as on the country’s public finances, for years to come.”

Trudeau, meanwhile, is facing backlash for not staying at a designated quarantine hotel after attending the G-7 summit, Newsweek reported.

READ MORE AT THE WESTERN JOURNAL