OLDCORN: Barber and Lich speak publicly about house arrest and new world of political dissent

Tamara Lich opened her first post-sentencing interview at the Prairie Rising Forum with a dry quip, “I put on pants today, so that was a win.” It shouldn’t feel like a victory to get dressed. Yet for Lich and Chris Barber, both now under tight conditions after their October 7 sentencing in Ottawa, daily life is boxed in by paperwork and house arrest. The court handed each an 18-month conditional sentence anchored by 12 months of house arrest. An extraordinary penalty for mischief convictions tied to a protest that, whatever you think of it, did not involve violence by these two organizers. .THOMSON: Is this who we want to be?.Mischief is not treason. In Canadian law, it’s a hybrid offence that, when prosecuted summarily, is typically treated at the low end of the scale. The Criminal Code’s general mischief provision (s.430) sets out penalties that range widely depending on facts, but for ordinary property-related mischief, the ceiling on a summary track is two years less a day, and courts frequently look to non-custodial outcomes. Defence bars across Canada note that jail is uncommon for standard mischief. Normally, it is discharges, probation, and restitution. That’s the backdrop against which these sentences were given. .Compare the Freedom Convoy leaders’ fate to how other high-profile mischief cases have been resolved. In 2001, Greenpeace activist and now cabinet minister Steven Guilbeault climbed the CN Tower. He was convicted of mischief and received one year of probation plus costs, not house arrest. The point isn’t to relitigate old protests. It’s to ask why similar offence labels are producing vastly different outcomes today. .ROBSON: Canada is losing the battle against hate crimes disguised as vandalism.Listen to what Barber told the Prairie Rising Forum audience.“House arrest is like prison except it’s on your yard,” said Barber..He can work on the family hobby farm. However, Lich, living in the city, needs an exemption letter to leave her property — even for basic needs — and must carry papers at all times in case she’s stopped. .These aren’t minor conditions. They’re sweeping controls for a non-violent offence where the judge acknowledged community supervision would do. That should bother anyone who cares about proportionality. Supporters of the sentences will say the Freedom Convoy jammed Ottawa’s core and cost people paycheques. That disruption was real and worth condemning. But sentencing still has to fit the individual offender and the proven offence. .MORGAN: Israel isn't going away.Canada has never adopted a “make an example” clause in the Criminal Code. When mischief is historically met with fines, probation, or conditional discharges — even in splashy political-protest cases — it is fair to question why two Prairie organizers now face a year confined to their homes. The context matters. Ottawa and the West have been talking past each other for years. Barber says he “doesn’t see a path forward for Western Canada in Ottawa’s politics.” .You can disagree with his cure — independence votes in Alberta and Saskatchewan — but you can’t miss the diagnosis that accountability feels one-way. People who backed the Freedom Convoy see a system that slaps them hard while famous activists from the government side got probation. That perception erodes trust, and trust is the oxygen of the rule of law. The free speech climate also weighs on this case. .HORTON: Would the Combatting Hate Act make Canada safer or might it sow further division and confusion?.Ottawa is advancing heavy new rules for online speech and platform liability through the Bill C-63 The Online Harms Act, which would have a Digital Safety Commission and a new enforcement regime. In Europe, the Digital Services Act requires platforms to offer “notice-and-action” tools so anyone can flag allegedly illegal content; critics say that invites over-removal. In the UK, the Online Safety Act now creates offences like “encouraging or assisting serious self-harm” and “false communications,” with real jail time attached..These may be well-intended, but they signal a broader shift toward policing expression and association. That shift forms the backdrop for how Canadians view protest leaders put under house arrest for mischief. Lich’s advice from the interview was simple. Try to avoid name-calling and find common ground. That’s not radical. It’s civic. Barber’s closing note was to get involved in your local community. It’s time to show up for school board and council races. .ALBERS: When a cultural divide becomes a cultural chasm.The Freedom Convoy drew people who had never engaged with public life. Punishing its figureheads like they’re hardened criminals doesn’t just chill unlawful behaviour; it chills lawful advocacy and pushes good faith dissent off the street and into the shadows. That’s the wrong lesson to teach.A better path is equal treatment under clear rules. If mischief in a political protest is usually met with probation and fines, say so and apply it — even when you dislike the cause. .If you think organizers crossed into something more serious, charge and prove the more serious offence. But don’t stretch a minor offence into a de-facto speech penalty through maximal conditions. Canadians know the difference between justice and theatre.On October 7, the court chose theatre. It could have affirmed that in this country — stretching from the St. Lawrence to the foothills — peaceful, if noisy, dissent will face measured consequences. .WHISSELL: No extremism in Canada’s military is left unchecked, right?.Instead, it delivered a sentence that reads like a warning to anyone who might roll into the capital to make a point. That’s not how you lower the temperature in a divided nation. It’s how you turn a grievance into a movement.Western Canadians don’t want special treatment. They want fair treatment. After these sentences, who can blame them for thinking they didn’t get it?

OLDCORN: Barber and Lich speak publicly about house arrest and new world of political dissent

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