Canada ends state of emergency after blockades cleared

OTTAWA－Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on Wednesday declared an end to the state of emergency that he invoked more than a week ago to break up protracted protests by truckers and their supporters against COVID-19 rules.

"The immediate emergency situation is over," Trudeau said in a news conference at which he stressed the decision was made after careful consideration. His move to end the use of the Emergencies Act was approved by Canada's House of Commons.

Trudeau said that within 60 days a joint committee of parliamentarians will review the declaration of emergency and that there will be an inquiry into the circumstances that led to the Emergencies Act being invoked.

On Feb 14, the House of Commons voted to pass the federal government's use of the Emergencies Act in response to the truckers' blockades in Ottawa and at border crossings.

The 185-151 vote was made on a motion put forward by the Liberal government that outlined its decision to invoke the never-before-used emergency powers after weekslong demonstrations dubbed the Freedom Convoy 2022.

Criticized for failing to act decisively early on, Trudeau invoked the legislation to give the government sweeping powers to deal with the protests.

The move split opposition parties. Critics accused the prime minister of using "a sledgehammer" on protesters and a civil liberties group sued over Trudeau's declaration of a state of emergency for the first time in Canada since 1970.

"Today's announcement is proof that the prime minister was wrong when he invoked the Emergencies Act," Conservative Party interim leader Candice Bergen said on Wednesday.

Trudeau, defending his decision to use the powers, said: "As the weeks went by, it became obvious that provincial and local authorities needed more tools in order to enforce the law and protect Canadians."

For weeks, Canada had been in the international spotlight as thousands of protesters, led by the truck drivers, converged on Ottawa.

As they dug in, the protesters inspired copycat actions in other countries, from France to New Zealand, with Washington girding itself for a possible trucker protest to coincide with next week's State of the Union presidential address.

In the United States, a small convoy of truckers demanding an end to coronavirus mandates began a cross-country drive from California to Washington, DC, area on Wednesday.

Several hundred people rallied in a parking lot in the windswept Mojave Desert town of Adelanto before about two dozen trucks and a number of other vehicles hit the road.

The Pentagon has approved the deployment of 700 unarmed National Guard troops to the capital in response to the upcoming protest.

Xinhua - Agencies