Federal government leaves airlines to navigate religious travel exemptions

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This article was published 30/12/2021 (1045 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A Winnipeg traveller is livid after learning he’d shared a flight with a religious leader who claimed an exemption to COVID-19 vaccination, as Ottawa tasks airlines with deciding who can fly without a shot.

“That really annoyed me; I don’t know how they let him on the plane,” said local retiree Donald Gutkin. “I think it’s disgusting that they’re leaving it up to the airlines.”

Since Nov. 30, the federal government has required all air and rail passengers older than 11 to show proof they are fully vaccinated against COVID-19.

But last month, anti-mask and anti-lockdown demonstrator Tobias Tissen flew to Mexico on a WestJet flight.

Tissen, who leads the Church of God (Restoration) near Steinbach, told a Steinbach Carillon reporter the airline allows unvaccinated people to fly if they get a religious exemption. When reached by phone, Tissen declined to say what rationale he used to justify his request for the exemption.

A spokesperson from WestJet said the exemption isn’t company policy, rather it’s a federal mandate.

Gutkin took the same Dec. 11 flight to Winnipeg as Tissen, whom he recognized at the Puerto Vallarta, Mexico, airport.

”He had all his disciples with him; it was at least six of them,” Gutkin said Monday.

“If they aren’t vaccinated — and there were six or seven of them on that flight — they jeopardized the entire flight. So that was very upsetting.”

Frédérica Dupuis, senior adviser for media relations at Transport Canada, said air carriers “are responsible for approving medical contraindication and sincere religious belief exemption requests under the interim order.”

The Transport Canada order states someone requesting a religious exemption “must clearly demonstrate your sincere religious belief, how it prevents you from being vaccinated, and be signed by a commissioner of oaths.”

The federal government’s website acknowledges no major religion is opposed to getting the COVID-19 vaccine. Among the groups it lists in favour of vaccination are Islam, Roman Catholicism, Judaism, Greek Orthodox, Mennonites, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and Christian Science.

Canadians who apply for a religious exemption to fly on WestJet must fill out a form on its website and submit it at least three weeks before departure.

Applicants need to indicate their religion or denomination, describe how they practise their religion or denomination, and explain the connection between their religious beliefs and their inability to receive a COVID-19 vaccine.

Additionally, they are asked to provide documentation from religious leaders or other practitioners of their faith that explain the connection between their religious beliefs and their objection to the vaccine.

Applicants cannot check in for a flight until their submission has been approved by WestJet’s guest relations team and must provide a negative COVID-19 test prior to flying.

WestJet did not say how many religious exemptions it has granted or rejected.

In a letter to members of Parliament, the National Airlines Council of Canada said the government — not private companies — should be in charge of approving or rejecting faith-based travel requests.

“Individual companies in the private sector should not be responsible for determining whether a person’s religious beliefs are ‘sufficient’ to merit an exemption from a federally mandated obligation related to public health, nor do companies have the means to evaluate a person’s religious convictions,” says the letter.

“Only the state itself can fulfil that responsibility, a responsibility that by definition gives rise to charter and privacy issues.”

The union representing 15,000 flight attendants from nine different Canadian airlines agreed.

“It’s so disappointing to be 22 months into this pandemic, and we’re still fighting the federal government to get it to do its job to protect workers and the public by ensuring clear and consistent rules and enforcement,” wrote Wesley Lesosky, president of the Canadian Union of Public Employees airline division.

The Globe and Mail reported Air Canada received about 100 requests for religious exemptions in the first two weeks of December. Air Transat received about 20 requests.

Air Canada did not reply to a request for information about religious exemptions for travel.

Gutkin argued it’s unreasonable Ottawa expects airlines to vet passengers’ religious beliefs, and take on the risk of receiving discrimination complaints.

“It’s very sad that the federal government isn’t implementing it. Transport Canada is a federal agency, is it not?”

— with files from Dylan Robertson

faith@freepress.mb.ca

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