The Canadian Government had put in place those mandatory self-isolation rules on March 25 but they have now been strengthened under the Quarantine Act.
OTTAWA – Even as the seventh special flight bringing Canadians stranded in India back to the country departed on Tuesday, Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau had a stern warning for those returning from abroad – if they don’t have a viable self-isolation plan in place, the Government may place them in a facility other than their residences for the mandatory 14-day period in the view of coronavirus crisis.
The Canadian Government had put in place those mandatory self-isolation rules on March 25 but they have now been strengthened under the Quarantine Act. On their arrival in Canada, the returning travellers will have to convince authorities they have a suitable place to self-isolate for two weeks.
“We now have the authority to require them to self-isolate for two weeks in a quarantine location, like a hotel,” Trudeau said during his daily media briefing related to the Covid-19 crisis.
A residence may also be found unsuitable if it also houses those who may be vulnerable to the coronavirus like “elderly family members” or if the returnees do have a “set destination,” Trudeau said.
Law enforcement has been tasked with conducting periodic checks like verifying that such returnees are following the self-isolation rules. Canada has barred foreign nationals from the country, except for Americans, and is only allowing in citizens, permanent residents or their immediate relatives.
More stringent measures may have been necessitated by the attitude of some of those returning to Canada. As the country’s Chief Public Health Officer Dr Theresa Tam said, “We do every day find people who haven’t answered our phone calls and have to be chased down.”
So far, seven flights have left from India after the lockdown was announced. The latest departed from Amritsar. Other flights, chartered to repatriate Canadians, took off from Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore.
Trudeau had even earlier flagged concerns over those returning to the country. As he said earlier this month, “They pose a real risk, not just to their neighbours and their loved ones, but to our entire country. We need to ensure and we will ensure that those people are properly isolated.”
Violating the Quarantine Act in Canada could attract penalties ranging from CA $750,000 to CA $1 million and between six months to three years in prison.
