Freedom Convoy co-organizer Tamara Lich said 280 Canadians had their bank accounts frozen for supporting it. .“And so what that looked like was mothers stuck at the grocery store checkout and had to leave their groceries there, which is a mortifying experience in and of itself,” said Lich in a Monday interview on the Rubin Report. .“Like you said, parents that couldn’t buy medicine for their children, couldn’t pay their mortgage, couldn’t pay their child support.” .Lich said her husband was with her in Ottawa when she was arrested, adding they shared a joint bank account..“So here he is in a strange city, doesn’t know anyone, and has no access to funds,” she said. .Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act to respond to the Freedom Convoy in 2022, which led to bank accounts being frozen. .READ MORE: UPDATED: Trudeau invokes the Emergencies Act in Canada.Trudeau said it had become clear there were serious challenges for authorities to enforce the law..“Today, to continue building on these efforts, the federal government is ready to use more tools at its disposal to get the situation fully under control,” he said. .Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland told a secret cabinet meeting that Canadians with bank accounts frozen under the Emergencies Act should be denied their money unless they first reported to police, according to a November memo from the federal government. .READ MORE: Freeland wanted Convoy supporters' bank accounts frozen until they reported to police.“Minister of finance reported on a conversation she had with chief executive officers at the major banks,” said the memo. .“Banks were pleased that the government was working on a plan that would see individuals with their bank accounts frozen report to police prior to the bank to have their accounts unfrozen.”
