Prime Minister Justin Trudeau got an earful this week from European politicians at the EU Parliament.
“Mr. Trudeau, you are a disgrace for any democracy,” said German MEP Christine Anderson on Wednesday. “Please spare us your presence.”
“Based on article 195, I would like to point out that it would have been appropriate for Mr. Trudeau, Prime Minister of Canada, to address this house, according to article 144,” she said.
“An article, which was specifically designed to debate the violations of human rights, democracy, and the rule of law which is clearly the case with Mr. Trudeau.”
She tore into Trudeau and accused him of trampling on “fundamental rights” and persecuting citizens who oppose him.
馃嚚馃嚘馃嚞馃嚙|Yesterday, Canada's Prime Minister visited the Parliament to give a speech. I took the opportunity to give him an appropriate "welcome" there. Short, concise and right hitting the bull's eye!
— Christine Anderson (@AndersonAfDMdEP)
Anderson is a member of the Alternative for Germany party, a . The party was by some German states as a suspected extremist group, although that was by the courts in advance of elections.
Croatian MEP Mislav Kolakusic on Tuesday said Trudeau was engaging in “dictatorship of the worst kind” by using the Emergencies Act to stop the Ottawa convoy protests.
“Canada, once a symbol of the modern world, has become a symbol of civil rights violations under your quasi-liberal boot in recent months,” he said.
PM Trudeau, in recent months, under your quasi-liberal boot, Canada 馃嚚馃嚘 has become a symbol of civil rights violations. The methods we have witnessed may be liberal to you, but to many citizens around the馃寧it seemed like a dictatorship of the worst kind.
— Mislav Kolakusic MEP 馃嚟馃嚪馃嚜馃嚭 (@mislavkolakusic)
Kolakusic sits as an independent in the European Parliament and has railed against COVID-19 restrictions since early in the pandemic. Earlier this year he French President Manual Macron of murder through vaccine mandates.
Romanian MEP Christian Terhes refused to even attend Trudeau’s speech in the EU Parliament. He is the only sitting member of the centre-right Christian Democratic National Peasants' Party.
“You can’t come to teach Putin’s democracy lessons from the European Parliament, when you pass with horse hoofs over your own citizens who demand that their fundamental rights be respected,” he said in a lengthy
Trudeau is in Europe meeting with leaders in response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine. According to Global News political correspondent David Akin, only about 200 of the 705 MEPs turned out to hear his speech.
As enters the European Parliament, I count about 200 of the 705 MEPs are in their seats. Gallery however is packed.
— David Akin 馃嚚馃嚘 (@davidakin)
Several other politicians also found Trudeau's visit to be unwelcome. Bernhard Zimniok, also of the Alternative for Germany party, said he tried to prevent Trudeau from speaking.
I tried to prevent the speech of 馃嚚馃嚘 PM in the Parliament because he recently trampled on the core values of democracy. Unfortunately, the enemies of democracy are also on the rise in , as the reaction of my colleagues clearly shows.
— Bernhard Zimniok (@BernhardZimniok)
Meanwhile, in Canada, parliamentary hearings continued Thursday over the use of the Emergencies Act against Freedom Convoy protesters last month.
Conservative MP Dane Lloyd questioned Ottawa's interim police chief Steve Bell on whether any loaded guns were found during the sweep of truckers.
Bell evaded a direct answer, saying police "received intelligence" about weapons at the protest but that "at no point did we lay any firearms-related charges" as a result of clearing out the protest. Bell said investigations continue into alleged weapons possessions.
After several attempts by CPC MP to get a clear answer, Ottawa Police Interim Chief Steve Bell finally admits there were no firearms found at the freedom convoy protest in Ottawa.
— True North (@TrueNorthCentre)
- with AHN files
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