The three opposition parties in the National Assembly united their voices on Monday to once again call on the Legault government to exempt homeless women from the curfew.
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Their request is supported this time by several community groups including the Réseau SOLIDARITÉ Itinérance du Québec (RSIQ), the Network for Individual and Homeless Persons of Montreal (RAPSIM), the Regroupement pour Aide aux Itinérants et Itinérantes de Quebec ( RAIIQ) and the Regional Collective to Fight Homelessness in Outaouais (CRIO).
“All the actors on the ground say it, this curfew hurts the homeless population. It is not suited to their reality. He puts them in danger. We have seen the tragic consequences of such a measure in recent days, “said Liberal MP Paule Robitaille, referring to the tragic death of Raphaël André, 51, who suffered a fatal cardiac arrest in a portable toilet last week.
For the spokesperson for Quebec solidaire in matters of homelessness, Alexandre Leduc, the Prime Minister, François Legault, is mistaken by remaining stuck on his position. He asks him to “show humility” and accept the “social and political consensus” in favor of their exemption.
“It is high time for the government to hear the cry from the hearts of organizations, legal experts who have multiplied their opinions in the last two weeks, but also the 20,000 signatories of the petition that we have supported,” added his colleague. from the Parti Québécois, Joël Arseneau.
Last week, François Legault refused to exempt homeless people from the curfew applied by his government to fight the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Premier of Quebec says he trusts the judgment of the police.
“You have to understand that if we put in the regulations the fact that a homeless person cannot receive a ticket, anyone could say ‘me, I am a homeless person, so you do not have the right to give me a ticket. contravention “”, he maintained.
He stressed that law enforcement officials are instructed not to ticket people who do not have a home.