Rights to Dissent and the threat to call in the military to end the Ottawa protest
Letter by Gail Davidson to Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly - originally sent 3 February 2022.
Attention Chief Peter Sloly;
Re: Rights to Dissent and the recent threat to use the Canadian Armed Forces to end the Ottawa protest.
As you know, rights to freedoms of peaceful assembly, expression, and dissent are essential to democracy and are protected by both the Charter of Rights and Freedoms and international and regional human rights instruments such as the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, the American Declaration on the Rights and Duties of Man, and the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. “The Right to Dissent: A guide to international obligations to respect, protect and fulfill the right of all persons to participate in public affairs by engaging in criticism, opposition and dissent,” published by Lawyers’ Rights Watch Canada is linked above for your information. Print and e-book versions can be ordered online.
The Truckers’ Convoy in Ottawa is a peaceful assembly by people lawfully exercising protected rights to assembly and expression as a means of participating in public affairs and engaging in human rights advocacy. The Truckers’ Convoy and their supporters are engaging in a peaceful protest to call on their elected representatives for restoration of rights restricted or extinguished by mandates, dialogue with Members of Parliament, and an end to COVID-19-related mandates. The Truckers’ Convoy has not threatened, used, or condoned violence.
As you are aware, the legal duty of police is to enable peaceful assemblies and to protect protesters engaged in peaceful dissent from violence by state and non-state actors, unlawful restrictions, and the actions of anyone seeking to use the assembly for unlawful purposes. Canada’s duty and that of the Ottawa Police is, as expressed by the UN Human Rights Council, “to facilitate peaceful protests by providing protestors with access to public space and protecting them, where necessary, against any forms of threats.”
The only protests not protected by law are those where organizers and participants intend to engage in violence. The presence of extremists threatening violence or other criminal behavior does not entitle the Ottawa Police or other authorities to lawfully shut down the protest. The possibility of extremists with violent intentions does not obviate the rights of others to continue a peaceful protest. Even the occurrence of sporadic violence would not rob individuals of the right to continue a peaceful protest.
Canadian and international law prohibits the use or threatened use of force against lawful protesters by both state and non-state actors. Any threat to use armed intervention and potentially lethal weaponry to forcibly end the lawful Truckers’ Convoy assembly is itself unlawful. The Ottawa Police must condemn—not promote—any threat to use armed military action to forcibly ‘shut down’ a peaceful protest. Instead the Ottawa Police must stress the need for Members of Parliament to also act lawfully in response to the legitimate and pressing concerns raised by the Truckers’ Convoy and shared by millions of Canadians, through dialogue and negotiations with protesters.
Thank you for your consideration. Please advise if you require more information.