Newton-north delta MP Sukh Dhaliwal assails CPR police tactics on the picket line

For Immediate Release

Liberal MP Sukh Dhaliwal demanded federal action on the arrests and apprehension of striking railway maintenance workers by the CP Rail police in Vancouver. The maintenance workers were picketing in a legal area, but video footage has revealed that the CPR police came in force and told them to move along or they would arrest them. Then they almost immediately began dragging them off the picket line and handcuffing them. While they were being “searched,” workers were stripped of their turbans and kirpans.

“This is more than just a national disgrace, it is a clear assault on human rights,” Dhaliwal said. “When I saw the video, I could not believe this was happening in the Canada of 2007. The federal government should meet with their provincial counterparts immediately and take a leadership role in calling for a public inquiry.”

Aside from the calls for a public inquiry, most notably by BC Federation of Labour President Jim Sinclair, the Teamsters Union is taking action of their own. They are filing a civil lawsuit against CPR on behalf of its members for false arrest, false imprisonment, assault and battery and unlawful interference with charter rights. The Teamsters Canada Rail Conference, Maintenance of Way Employees Division has been lawfully on strike against CP Rail since May 15, 2007.