A recent article published by Russian state media platform RT claims that a new COVID-19 travel regulation that requires travellers arriving in Canada to quarantine in hotels “is unlawful and goes against Canadians’ rights.” The article mischaracterizes legitimate “quarantine” measures, intended to protect Canadians from anyone who may have contracted COVID while travelling abroad, as “detention.”
The new federal travel regulation requires all Canadians to be tested for COVID-19 upon arrival in Canada and enter quarantine for 3 days, in an approved hotel, at their own expense, until their test results are known.
Anyone with a negative test result can return home to complete their two-week quarantine, while those with positive results will be required to remain in a government approved quarantine hotel facility.
The government has enacted these regulations under an Emergency Order on Quarantine, Isolation and Other Obligations under the Quarantine Act.
At least one challenge to the new COVID-19 travel policy has been filed in a Calgary court by a lawyer who has challenged an earlier Alberta government restriction on gatherings. However, a constitutional lawyer told CTV news that it is unlikely that any challenge will be successful because “there is a countervailing right that exists: my right and yours not to be infected by somebody who travelled abroad and are coming into our country with a new disease.”
The article ascribes nefarious motivations to the government’s travel regulations without any evidence to support it, claiming that “this is not about ‘public safety,’ but is about control of the populace.”
The piece also characterizes the government’s travel regulation as being “arbitrary and draconian.” There is no evidence to suggest that the regulations are arbitrary. To the contrary, the three days of quarantine required after COVID-19 tests are administered to arriving passengers is a reasonable time period for receiving test results. The two week quarantine for those testing negative and two week isolation period for anyone testing positive is standard in other western nations.
Our analysis of social media analytics shows that the Feb 10, 2021 RT article has been exposed to over 9 million social media users as of Feb 16, 2021.
Screenshot of the article shared to the 15.3k members of the Facebook group
“Pro-Russian Activists-Putin’s Wolves”
RT (formerly Russia Today) is a Russian government funded and controlled media outlet that has published, promoted and amplified disinformation and conspiracy theories.
In March 2020, the EU’s Eastern Stratcom warned that “Russian media have deployed a “significant disinformation campaign” against the West to worsen the impact of the coronavirus, generate panic and sow distrust.” Any information published by Russian state media should be viewed in the context of this warning.
The author of the RT piece was identified in a 2017 Guardian article about a Russian state disinformation campaign to smear Syrian White Helmet volunteer rescuers as “terrorists.” According to The Guardian, Eva Bartlett is “a Canadian writer and activist who said the White Helmets staged rescues using recycled victims – a claim that’s been debunked by Snopes and Channel 4 News.” Bartlett later published a piece in RT, calling Canada’s decision to grant asylum to over 100 White Helmet rescuers “dangerous and criminal.”
