A group photo taken after the rally Saturday. (Prince Albert Ant-Lockdown Group/Facebook)

By Nigel Maxwell

Community safety

Prince Albert Mayor warns future “Freedom” rally organizers will face charges

Apr 19, 2021 | 1:46 PM

Prince Albert Mayor Greg Dionne says he is very disappointed in the people who organized and took part in a rally outside Court of Queen’s Bench on Saturday. Meanwhile the provincial government called the rally disappointing and frustrating.

Around 100 people attended the Freedom Rally, with organizers denouncing the use of masks and essentially claiming COVID-19 is ‘not a real pandemic.’

Dionne said beyond the fact there were people from outside the city attending yelling that COVID is a hoax, he added he was troubled the rally was held on the same day as news that a well-respected teacher/ mentor at Carlton Comprehensive High School lost his battle with COVID. Victor Thunderchild was 55.

“To me they are just going to cause more grief than they are success,” Dionne said.

Moving forward and considering the possibility of similar rallies being held in the city in the weeks to come, Dionne said it’s his understanding, organizers will face penalties.

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“And now that we know what these rallies are like, and that will probably happen in the future, charges will be laid,” he said.

Dionne noted representatives from the Prince Albert Police Service and Sask. Health Authority were observing Saturday, and he was awaiting news from them with respect to if any tickets were issued. When asked if he had concerns about the size of the crowd that gathered, Dionne admitted he was caught off guard by it.

“But at the same time people that drove by said they didn’t know most of the people in the crowd. I do know the one speaker they featured on the media was from Saskatoon,” Dionne said.

Rally key speaker works for Saskatoon School Division

One of the speakers at the rally, R.B. Ham, has a LinkedIn account indicating he has been a caretaker within the Saskatoon Public Schools division for over nine years.

paNOW reached out to that school division for comment. According to a statement they said they encourage everyone in their school communities to follow provincial public health orders.

“In the workplace, the school division has clearly communicated its safety measures and expectations, which all employees must comply with during work hours,” the statement said, adding they do not publicly comment on personnel matters.

paNOW also reached out to CUPE to ask for comment about Ham’s appearance in front of the rally. In response it said, in a statement: ” members have been on the frontline of the COVID-19 pandemic, protecting the health and safety of students and staff.

“Health measures and personal protective equipment including masks are necessary to keep safe, and we encourage all of our members to follow the public health orders put in place by the government. Views expressed otherwise do not align with CUPE.”

Future plans?

As of Monday, the Prince Albert Anti-Lockdown Facebook has 237 members. There’s at least one suggestion on the page of another such event coming Saturday but this has not been confirmed.

In a statement to paNOW later on Monday the Ministry of Health said: “It is disappointing and frustrating to see rallies against COVID-19 measures. As Dr. Shahab and Premier Moe have noted in many news conferences, the time for education has passed. These measures have been in place for a year now to help reduce the spread of COVID-19 and to protect Saskatchewan residents. Everyone should follow public health orders.”

The statement added further questions about enforcement should be directed to the Prince Albert Police Service.

paNOW has reached out to the Prince Albert Police Service.

Editor’s note: this story was amended later on Monday to include comment from the Ministry of Health and from CUPE Saskatchewan.

nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On Twitter: nigelmaxwell