The Democracy Fund Files Lawsuit To Scrap ArriveCAN App

The Democracy Fund (TDF), which back on August 9, 2022, pressured Crown prosecutors to drop some of the first charges against a Freedom Convoy 2022 supporter, has now filed a lawsuit against the Federal Ministry of Health, (led by Liberal MP Jean-Yves Duclos), challenging the requirements for Canadians to use the ArriveCAN app. 

TDF in a statement put out to donors and the media stated that:

In our application, we call on the Minister to produce the specific decision the Minister took to specify ArriveCAN as the proper method for collecting the private health information of Canadians.

We also demand that the Minister, in essence, remove the requirement for persons entering Canada to use the ArriveCAN app.

We are also calling for a declaration prohibiting subsequent orders that would mandate the use of ArriveCAN.

And then there are the shocking portions of the ArriveCAN Privacy Statement that allow the government to share private health information with “other organizations”, and to use this information “to help determine eligibility for new border measures.”

Such vague language is often a gateway to government overreach and abuse.

The TDF’s legal strategy in this lawsuit mirrors their approach to defending Freedom Convoy 2022 supporters in Ottawa. They are aggressively pushing for the Ministry of Health to provide information on what influenced their decision to require all Canadians to use the ArriveCAN app, which the Ministry likely cannot do.

This lawsuit follows in the footstep of reporting done by independent journalist Rupa Subramanya who, using released court documents, proved that the Ministry of Transportation had implemented travel restrictions and mandates, without any reference to any public health data, and with no public health or medical experts on their board. 

TDF says that in this ArriveCAN case they are representing two concerned Canadians at zero cost to them, in order to win a precedent against government overreach into the collection of private medical data.

Anyone interested in supporting this litigation can donate to The Democracy Fund at the link here.