New health orders for unvaccinated Manitobans creating ‘animosity,’ says mayor

WINNIPEG (CityNews) ─ Manitoba’s new health orders, which come into effect Tuesday, are targeting those who are unvaccinated, but some say it’s the wrong approach.

On Friday, Dr. Brent Roussin announced new health orders to try and convince the unvaccinated to get the shot. Unvaccinated individuals in Manitoba will now have limitations on private indoor and outdoor gatherings.

Martin Harder, the mayor of Winkler, Man., says these restrictions are just creating more division.

“Quit jerking everyone around and having different rules for different places you go into,” said Harder. “It’s not working and simply is creating animosity between people.

“Don’t get me wrong, I’m very concerned about COVID and the impact it has but I am more concerned about the lasting impact on communities, families, churches due to the divide that has been created and honestly, it’s getting worse.”

The rural municipality of Winkler currently has a 41.5 percent vaccination rate, making it the second lowest uptake in Manitoba. The rural municipality of Stanley, Man., is the lowest at 24.2 per cent.

Harder says the only way for those who are unvaccinated and don’t want the vaccine to get the vaccine, is to experience the effects of COVID-19.

“Personally had a daughter in Texas who had the Delta variant and I know what she went through,” he said. “I would never ever wish that upon anyone, not my enemy, my friends or my family. That is where I am at, that is what will change people’s minds.”

https://twitter.com/BrandonABurley/status/1443990229304713216

https://twitter.com/BrandonABurley/status/1443995847147065346

Morden, Man., Mayor Brandon Burley took his frustrations with the new health orders to social media, saying if the unvaccinated just got vaccinated, there would be no issue.

“Nothing could be more detached from reality than expecting unvaxxed in this region to adhere to the new public restrictions on their own,” Burley tweeted on Friday. “Until the Province sends help on enforcement, restrictions will make no difference, except to hurt those who were already doing their best.”

RELATED: Tensions high between vaccinated and unvaccinated in Canada, poll suggests

Manitoba is moving to code orange Tuesday as the fourth wave continues. Cases are slowly starting to creep up in the province with a test positivity rate sitting at three per cent.

Virologist Jason Kindrachuk doesn’t expect a drastic change in vaccination uptake.

“It’s going to take a long time to gain that trust,” said Kindrachuk. “There are a lot of questions being raised and whether we feel they are based on any sort of scientific merit or validity, we still have to try and have those conversations to discuss those.”

With many still unvaccinated, the lingering question is: just how bad will the fourth wave be?

“The unvaccinated people are the ones predominately showing up in ICUs and hospitals,” said Kindrachuk. “We need to get people vaccinated so we can offset that as much as we can.”