Canadian authorities have begun imprisoning citizens who refuse to comply with state-mandated medication, in an alarming escalation of the Trudeau government’s authoritarian control.
Geraldine Mason, a 36-year-old resident of God’s Lake First Nation in northern Manitoba, was sent to prison for three months under the Public Health Act for not consistently taking her tuberculosis medication.
Despite having no criminal record or being infectious at the time, Mason was arrested, strip-searched, and jailed for nearly a month alongside individuals in the general prison population.
Mason’s detention began on October 27 after health officials secured a court order citing fears that missed tuberculosis medication doses could lead to the emergence of drug-resistant strains of the disease.
While tuberculosis is a serious public health concern, Mason’s situation underscores the authoritarian measures Canadian authorities are increasingly willing to employ under the Trudeau government.
Mason spent her first week at the Winnipeg Remand Centre before being transferred …