OK, Trudeau, Time to Shut Down the Mob

Am I the only Canadian outside Ottawa who thinks this bullshit in our national capital has gone on long enough?

Am I the only Canadian who recognizes that the mob now occupying the area around Parliament Hill does not have the interests of Canadians or Canadian democracy at heart?

Am I the only one who understands that our national media needs to stop treating this like a block party that has gotten slightly out of hand?

Obviously not. Although you might think so from much of the news coverage.

It is apparent to many of us that the occupation of Ottawa by a lawless and threatening mob needs to be brought to an end forthwith.

No country worth the name would allow its national capital to be seized and held by insurrectionists without a decisive reaction.

No jurisdiction in the world would willingly allow the residents of any city to be subjected to such abuse.

No democracy should allow an insurrection by a group dedicated to the suspension of democracy — which at least some of the insurrectionists in Ottawa, despite their constant “freedom” rhetoric, clearly advocate through their stated goal of overthrowing our democratically elected government — to continue longer than it takes to put it down.

If the Ottawa Police Service, the civilian police department charged with enforcing Canada’s laws in the national capital outside the tiny area around Parliament Hill, is not able or willing to do the job, someone else needs to step up. That someone can only be the Government of Canada.

Conceding defeat, Ottawa police Chief Peter Sloly said yesterday he doesn’t think his department can complete the task without military help. “This is a national issue, not an Ottawa issue,” he told city councillors.

It is obvious that many Canadians recognize the anti-democratic and dangerous impulses that drive the known organizers and many of the members of the mob now in control of downtown Ottawa.

But there are certainly many as-yet-unknown organizers and influencers, not to mention funders and strategists, many of whom are not from Canada or even in Canada.

Chief Sloly also said yesterday “We are now aware of a significant element from the United States in the funding, organizing” of the continuing disruptions. “They have converged in our city and there are plans for more to come.”

These foreign participants also need to be identified. Only a national government can do that.

So the first thing that needs to happen is for the federal government to bring an immediate halt to the insurrection and occupation of Ottawa.

That can start with the establishment of a perimeter around the downtown with all supplies of diesel fuel to vehicles inside that ring blocked immediately.

The Emergencies Act, though not quite up to the job for which it was designed when it replaced the War Measures Act in 1988, is sufficient to resolve this crisis in the immediate term.

It only gives the federal cabinet seven days to act after proclaiming an internal “public order emergency” without convening Parliament. That’s a problem for a minority government facing an imploding Opposition likely to put political gain and extreme ideology ahead of the national interest. But seven days should be long enough to remove the immediate threat.

A large majority of Canadians would heave a sigh of relief.

Insurrectionists should be given 24 hours to leave the national capital and return to their homes, after which they will be forcibly removed, and their vehicles impounded.

Since the police admit they are incapable of doing the job alone, the Armed Forces should be brought in to assist.

Parliament can meet and vote on the next steps as required by the Emergencies Act when the immediate crisis has been resolved.

The next steps are more complicated, but should include a national Royal Commission, led by a judge, with the broad powers to investigate and compel testimony from participants, victims, police and provincial elected and appointed officials.

The Royal Commission should look in particular at the funding and organization of this event, the foreign role, if any, obstruction and encouragement by provincial officials, with particular attention to the roles of the Ontario and Alberta provincial governments, encouragement of the insurrection by members of Parliament and the failure of civilian police forces to do their jobs.

In addition, it should examine the flaws in existing legislation in light of these events.

This crisis makes it clear there is a need for a National Capital Region police force under the jurisdiction of the federal government capable of responding to threats and emergencies in a consistent and coherent way, including not permitting vehicles associated with threats of violence to enter the core of the city.

There has been a lot of commentary to the effect that the loudmouths are losing and everything will be fine once the insurrectionists crawl back into their holes.

This is dangerously naive. In fact, what we have witnessed in Ottawa seems to have been taken from the pages of a classic “colour revolution” playbook observed in other countries and other capitals. To a significant degree it has worked effectively.

It matters less whether the inspiration for this occupation was domestic, from the United States or from some foreign capital, than whether our country has the ability to respond effectively to protect Canadian democracy.

If the leaders of the present government cannot bring themselves to respond decisively to this challenge — to say, as then-prime minister Pierre Trudeau famously did in October 1970, “just watch me” — perhaps they should contemplate the elder Trudeau’s equally renowned walk in the snow.