‘Free Tamara’: Alberta MLA Calls for Release of Freedom Convoy Organizer

Tamara Lich, organizer for a truckers' protest "Freedom Convoy" and supporters demanding an end to COVID-19 vaccine mandates, delivers a statement during a news conference in Ottawa, on Feb. 3, 2022. The Canadian Press/Adrian Wyld

An Alberta MLA is calling for the release of his constituent Tamara Lich, who remains behind bars for organizing the truckers’ Freedom Convoy protest to oppose federal COVID-19 mandates. 

Drew Barnes, MLA for Cypress-Medicine Hat, issued a statement titled “Free Tamara” in a Twitter post on Feb. 27, saying it is a “miscarriage of justice” that Lich is still detained now that the Ottawa protest has ended.

“She freely admits to taking part in non-violent civil disobedience in her role with the freedom convoy to Ottawa. She faces mischief charges, and nothing more,” Barnes said. 

“Despite this, she has been denied bail by an Ontario judge who refuses to accept her pledge to quietly return home to Alberta.” 

Lich was arrested on Feb. 17 and charged with counselling to commit mischief. She was denied bail on Feb. 22 by Ontario Court Justice Julie Bourgeois, who said Lich’s detention is “necessary for the protection and safety of the public.”

In his statement, Barnes said Lich is a “political prisoner,” and blamed “partisan media and [the] Eastern elite” for “portraying her as a threat to her own country” because she “embarrassed them.” 

“She has been portrayed in the media as a violent criminal, a foreign operative, and an anarchist. Nothing could be further from the truth. She is a former energy worker of Metis heritage, a mother, and grandmother, and sometimes plays guitar in a local band,” he said.

“I can only conclude that she is a political prisoner of a thoroughly disgraced establishment.”

‘Arrogance and Elitism’

The protests in Ottawa began at the end of January to oppose the federal government’s vaccine mandate for cross-border truckers. As large convoys of trucks from across the country arrived at the national capital, supporters joined in to call for an end to all pandemic-related restrictions. Protesters blocked several Canada-U.S. border crossings in solidarity with the truckers. 

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau refused to meet with the truckers personally or have any representatives hear their grievances during the three-week protest in Ottawa. On Feb. 14, he invoked the Emergencies Act which gave police sweeping powers to oust the protesters, including forcing towing companies to remove vehicles encamped in the city’s downtown core. 

Under the emergency orders, financial measures were brought in that allowed banks to freeze without a court order the accounts of individuals and corporations who were suspected of being involved in the demonstration. The government also broadened anti-money laundering regulations to include crowdfunding platforms that collected donations for the truckers and required them to register with the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada. 

On Feb. 21, the House of Commons voted to pass a motion approving the use of the Emergencies Act. Trudeau revoked the Act two days later saying it was no longer needed. 

Barnes criticized the Trudeau government’s seizure of the bank accounts of hundreds of people who donated to the convoy, saying that “the arrogance and elitism of Ottawa’s political establishment was fully exposed.” 

“Nothing stokes fear among the political elites more than widespread civil disobedience. They see themselves as wise and benevolent masters, empowered by their privilege to guide society. Tamara Lich and every single trucker, farmer, and freedom convoy supporter who stands up to them, exposes them for who they really are,” Barnes wrote. 

“So the question remains, why is Tamara Lich still behind bars in an Ontario jail? The same authorities that worked so hard to ensure she couldn’t stay now won’t let her leave.” 

Smearing Protestors ‘Defamatory and Desperate’

Throughout the Ottawa demonstration, the Liberals and NDP repeatedly referred to protestors as extremists, accusing them of being associated with hate groups. During a parliamentary question period on Feb. 16, Trudeau told Conservative MP Melissa Lantsman, who is Jewish, that her party stands with people who wave swastikas. 

Barnes said these claims targeting the protesters are “defamatory and desperate.”

“Even before the convoy arrived, a variety of officials doggedly attempted to smear these folks as members of a small fringe minority. They were even accused of being both racists and professional protestors, hired by foreign powers including, most laughably, Russia,” he said.

“Now, more than ever, we need to get back to the foundational principles handed down to us from our ancestors. Equality before the law. Economic freedom. Individual opportunity. These aren’t just buzzwords. They are the mortar that holds society together.” 

“Only when we get back to these foundational principles, will we be able to reach our full potential.”