CANADA: TRUCKERS PROTEST AGAINST VACCINES, VIRUS RESTRICTIONS SHUT DOWN CAPITAL

Sun 30 January 2022:

Thousands of trucks in a “Freedom Convoy” blocked streets in Ottawa on Saturday, effectively shutting down the Canadian federal capital. They were protesting coronavirus regulations.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, his wife, and their three children were relocated from Rideau Cottage for security reasons.

Additionally, when hundreds of tractor trailer trucks and demonstrators crowded the region, businesses were blocked downtown and travel in and out of the city came to a halt. The number of demonstrators is estimated to be over 10,000.

Ottawa police, backed up by Royal Canadian Mounted Police and intelligence agents, maintained a constant and visible presence, while other law enforcement agencies were ready to assist if needed.

“We are prepared as best as we possibly can for those who chose to come here to do harm or cause others to do harm,” Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly said on Friday, adding the demonstration would be “massive in scale”.

While the protests were calm as of late Saturday, officials were concerned that far-right and fringe groups might infiltrate the rally and turn it violent.

Trudeau expressed concern about violence before the majority of the Freedom Convoy arrived in Ottawa, which has a population of around 1 million people.

“Of course I’m concerned,” Trudeau said in an interview Friday with The Canadian Press. “A number of people are there without wanting to incite violence but there are going to be, as we’ve heard, a small group of people in there who are posing a threat to themselves, to each other, to Canadians.”

As demonstrators meandered about Parliament Hill and other parts of the city, no member of the Liberal government was ready to meet them.

Truckers from across Canada drove big rigs to Ottawa to protest the Canadian government’s vaccine requirement for cross-border vital employees such as truckers. However, it grew to include a demand that all public health initiatives be removed. “F-ck Trudeau” signs were prominently displayed.

SOURCE: INDEPENDENT PRESS AND NEWS AGENCIES

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