The deputy chief epidemiologist with the Public Health Agency of Canada, Dr. Howard Njoo, is now suggesting that
vaccination and mask-wearing should be voluntary. He explained that governments would be better off doing so than coercing people into doing things.
He said that from a public health perspective, they want people to be informed and to make the voluntary choice to get the vaccine. "We know vaccines are a very important tool, safe and effective in terms of how we manage not just the Omicron variant wave right now, but for COVID-19 into the future."
Njoo also addressed the divisive issue of mask mandates, saying that people should be encouraged instead of mandated. This way, people can see the value of it and protect themselves and others.
However, this approach is in sharp contrast to that of the federal government, as both Liberal Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and Liberal-appointed Minister of Health Jean-Yves Duclos support strong-arming the population into compliance. (Related:
INSANITY: Unvaccinated people in Quebec now assigned chaperones at big box stores to ensure they don’t buy “non-essential” items… this is PUNISHMENT for refusing to take the jab.)
Duclos noted that the health care system in Canada is fragile and people are getting tired. The only way to get through the pandemic, he said, is through vaccination. He also noted that discussions need to be made about mandatory vaccinations.
Trudeau himself has not yet explicitly endorsed Duclos's idea that Canadians should lose their
right to bodily autonomy and be forced by law into getting their shots; however, he has imposed extreme restrictions on the unvaccinated, such as the prohibition of air. train, and sea travel for all unvaccinated Canadians over the age of 12.
Can Canada mandate vaccinations?
Canadians, both vaccinated and unvaccinated, are worried about the lengths that their government is willing to go, especially with respect to coercing people into taking the vaccines. Lawyers have also come out to say that mandatory vaccination is a flagrant violation of freedoms under the Constitution.
Allison Kindle Pejovic, a lawyer for the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedoms, said that Canadians cannot legally be subjected to forced injections, especially experimental drug treatments that are still undergoing long-term clinical trials with no long-term safety data. "Our Charter of Rights and Freedoms protects all Canadians from laws that would attempt to force medical treatment upon them against their will," she explained.
She also added that such suggestions are an "affront to democracy and something one would expect in authoritarian regimes such as China or the former Soviet Union."
However, while Canadians do have the right to make their own decisions about vaccinations, these
rights are not absolute, and having them does not mean that there will be no consequences for the decision.
If a province tried to impose fines or other penalties on the unvaccinated, a challenge under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms will follow, as it will supposedly violate people's right to life, liberty and security, or other rights like the freedom of conscience.
Whether the law is constitutional or not would come down to issues like whether it's as narrow as possible, if it would significantly increase the vaccination rates or if the government has done enough to promote voluntary vaccination.
Laws with exceptions for medical reasons not to be vaccinated, for instance, would likely be more constitutional. Those limited to people over a certain age would also be easier to justify. Finally, making all other reasonable efforts to promote voluntary vaccination will also help make the law constitutional. (Related:
Ben Armstrong: The more you vaccinate, the higher the infection rate.)
Increasing vaccination rates is also debatable whether or not a vaccine mandate could do that. Many people may prefer to pay a fine than to get vaccinated. If the fines were high enough to change people's minds, it may also be harsh, especially for already marginalized populations.
This is because governments should avoid scenarios in which the rich can pay to avoid vaccination, while the poor have fewer options. Another factor to consider is timing: a mandate will likely not take effect until after the peak of the fifth wave, as the benefit of current vaccines for future waves or variants remains unknown.
Other related stories:
Unvaxxed pharmacy customers in Canada need to be CHAPERONED by staff members when buying retail products
Canada expands COVID-19 vaccine mandate, violates basic human rights
Canada’s COVID-19 lockdowns have not provided any benefits to Canadians
Canada set to announce COVID-19 vaccine MANDATES as Western government become more authoritarian
Canada’s “voluntary” covid quarantine camps quickly becoming involuntary
Watch the video below for Canadians
standing up against vaccine mandates:
This video is from the
In Search of Truth channel on Brighteon.com.
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Sources include:
LifeSiteNews.com
TheConversation.com