Did the government of Saskatchewan in Canada adopt an emergency order with the intention of instituting martial law -- shutting down travel with checkpoints, entering homes and seizing private property and disrupting the food supply by taking livestock and destroying crops? No. While it's true an emergency order was issued, this was to replace one that had expired to "provide for health system labour mobility" to allow health care workers to be assigned to various locations and duties for Saskatchewan's management of the COVID-19 pandemic.
The video titled, "IMPORTANT MESSAGE FOR ALL CANADIANS! (This won't be up for long)" by Jason Shurka was streamed live on YouTube on September 30, 2021, A copy of the video was published on beforeitsnews.com on October 1, 2021, with a different title, "Emergency Broadcast - Martial Law To Be Implemented Between Oct. 8-16 In Canada! Australia, USA, World To Follow! - Must Video." The brief introduction reads:
This is an EMERGENCY ALERT TO EVERYONE.
PLEASE SHARE
Government to enact the War Measures Act .....Military Check points to be established .... Travel will be banned ....doctors, firefighters, police to be fired and United Nations Military to take over with strict enforcement.
Users on social media only saw this title, description and thumbnail:
Emergency Broadcast - Martial Law To Be Implemented Between Oct. 8-16 In Canada! Australia, USA, World To Follow! - Must Video | Military | Before It's News
The video is a split screen Zoom call shared between self-described "author, entrepreneur and truth seeker" Jason Shurka; and Patricia Monna, described on her website as a "psychic medium, remote viewer and founder of psychic awareness retreats." At the three-minute mark, a document, bearing the seal of the Province of Saskatchewan and the "Received" stamp of the clerk of the Executive Council, dated September 13, 2021, is shared on the screen.
Monna asserts that this document was formerly known as the "wars act" and that "they conveniently just changed it since everything that has been going down." This is not true. There was a Canadian federal law called the "War Measures Act" adopted on August 22, 1914, and repealed on July 21,1988. It was replaced by the Emergencies Act. One of the driving forces behind the change had been the lobbying of the National Association of Japanese Canadians seeking redress over the removal and internment of Japanese Canadians during World War II (there had also been internment camps in Canada during the first World War). The 1988 change was not merely to the name "War Measures Act" but was a replacement of the 1914 legislation to better protect civil rights and put limits on emergency orders. This change was not inspired by communicable disease, although a provision for such an event was included in part one, under "Public Welfare Emergency."
While the Emergencies Act is a Canadian federal law, the Emergency Planning Act is a Saskatchewan provincial law enacted on November 1, 1989. Shurka's video features a document -- the September 13, 2021, Minister's Order, a declaration of emergency for the Province of Saskatchewan that quotes Section 18 and 18.1 of the Emergency Planning Act.
At nine minutes into the video, Shurka responds to Monna's claims. She'd said that the government can go into homes without a warrant and take property. Shurka emphasizes that his intent is not to cause alarm. He says:
What's being shared right now is not to induce fear in anybody -- it's to acknowledge a reality so we can shift that reality. That's super important, because people can read this and be very fearful of what happens next. That's not the intention of myself or Patricia. The intention here is to make you all aware, and to acknowledge what's going on in portions of the world- so we make sure that that doesn't spread to the rest of the world. Almost like saying, "Hey listen, you have cancer in your leg. You know, you should know you have cancer in your leg so you can do something about it. So the cancer doesn't spread to your heart." That's the intention of this live stream right now, just so everybody's aware.
The video does not subtantiate the beforeitsnews.com headline specifcs of dates ("Oct. 8-16") or references to other countries.
The authority of the Minister's Order is not something new -- at the start of the coronavirus pandemic, on March 18, 2020, a provincial State of Emergency was issued in Saskatchewan:
The Government of Saskatchewan today declared a provincial State of Emergency, giving the government broad powers to address the COVID-19 pandemic. This includes measures like the ability to limit travel to or from a community or region of the province and directing that property or equipment be deployed to address the COVID-19 pandemic.
The government, in consultation with the Chief Medical Health Officer, also made a number of new orders to reduce the risk to Saskatchewan people, prevent transmission and ensure that acute care services are preserved for residents most at risk for severe illness.
The complex situation with the 2021 Minister's Order is explained on the website of the Saskatchewan Union of Nurses:
On April 17, 2020, the Saskatchewan Union of Nurses signed a Letter of Agreement with the Saskatchewan Health Authority and other healthcare unions. The LOU (Letter of Understanding) is a joint effort to best meet the healthcare needs of Saskatchewan during the COVID-19 pandemic, by ensuring we have the necessary resources in place to respond to all levels of severity. This LOU expired on August 8, 2021, after the Government of Saskatchewan removed the State of Emergency on July 11, 2021.
To read more about SUN's decision to sign the LOU in April 2020, click here.
On Monday, September 13, 2021, the Ministry of Health issued a news release announcing a new Provincial Emergency Order had been issued. Through a Minister's Order under The Emergency Planning Act, the Government of Saskatchewan is re-enacting the terms of the Letter of Understanding. The terms of the LOU are effective immediately. Read the government news release.
The September 13, 2021 news release from The Government of Saskatchewan explains the purpose of the Minister's Order:
The Government of Saskatchewan has issued a new Provincial Emergency Order to once again provide for health system labour mobility through greater flexibility in scheduling and redirecting health care workers to areas experiencing capacity pressures and in the use of supplementary resources. The provisions are effective immediately.
A previous letter of understanding (LOU) enabled the SHA to ensure the right staff were available at the right place and time to help in the COVID-19 response. That LOU expired earlier this year.
Given the urgent and immediate needs of the healthcare system, under the authority of The Emergency Planning Act and the declaration of emergency, the Premier has issued a Minister's Order reinstating the previously negotiated LOU among the SHA, affiliates and unions. (Canadian Union of Public Employees (CUPE), Health Sciences Association of Saskatchewan (HSAS), Saskatchewan Employees International Union - West (SEIU-West), Saskatchewan Government and General Employees' Union - SAHO (SGEU) and Saskatchewan Union of Nurses (SUN)).
