Alberta Premier Danielle Smith became the first leader of a Canadian province to apologize for the way the unvaccinated were treated during the pandemic.
Beyond the apology, Smith also said she is working to pardon residents who were fined or arrested for breaking strict COVID-19 protocols.
"I'm deeply sorry for anyone who was inappropriately subjected to discrimination as a result of their vaccine status," she said at the United Conservative Party’s general meeting on Saturday. "I am deeply sorry for any government employee that was fired from their job because of their vaccine status, and I welcome them back if they want to come back."
Some of the people she was thinking about include pastors who were penalized for breaking lockdown rules.
"It was a political decision to throw out the Charter of Rights and Freedoms to put those fines in place in the first place, and I think it can be a political decision to make amends and apologize for it and eliminate them," Smith said.
"These are not things that are normal to get fines and get prosecuted for," she added. "So, I am going to look into the range of outstanding fines that there still are and to get some legal advice on which ones we are able to cancel and provide amnesty for."
Last week, Smith, who was sworn in earlier this month, warned businesses that still have vaccine requirements in place that her government is “going to be making a serious pivot in that regard.”
The new premier of Alberta, Canada, is the first government in the world to formally apologize for violating the civil rights of unvaccinated people.
She offers them their jobs back & says she's considering dropping all lockdown prosecutions.
Kudos to her & our reporter! https://t.co/MA1Xs2e3cK
— Ezra Levant(@ezralevant) October 22, 2022
