On Monday, police in Canada’s capital announced the seizure of thousands of liters of fuel and the removal of an oil tanker as part of a crackdown to put an end to days of protests against the government’s Covid-19 measures, while a judge at Canada court granted an injunction against deafening honking that has irritated residents.
A so-called “Freedom Convoy” of truckers and other motorists has gridlocked the Canadian capital of Ottawa for the past 11 days. What began as a protest against a Canadian vaccine requirement for cross-border drivers — a requirement that is similar to one in the United States — has turned into a rallying point against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s public health policies.
Trudeau, who made his first public appearance in over a week after having Covid, said the protests must end. In response to an emergency debate in parliament, Trudeau chastised demonstrators’ tactics.
“This is a story of a country that got through this pandemic by being united and a few people shouting and waving swastikas does not define who Canadians are,” he said.
Due to security concerns, Trudeau and his family fled Ottawa for an undisclosed location as the caravan began rolling into the city.
Mostly non-violent protests
Nearly 79 percent of the eligible population has received two doses of the vaccine, indicating that Canadians have largely followed the government’s health guidelines. However, recent polls show that opposition to limitations is growing.
Ottawa awoke to its second week of what its political and law enforcement authorities are now referring to as a siege. However, Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly stated on Monday that activity at the blockades has lessened. Sloly noted that police counted 1,000 vehicles and 5,000 protestors this weekend. It is down from 3,000 trucks and 10,000 to 15,000 protesters the previous weekend.
Sloly told reporters, “We are turning up the heat in every way we possibly can”; days after he indicated there might not be a “policing solution” to the occupation. “We are asking for a major push of resources to come in the next 72 hours.”
The protests, which included some Confederate and Nazi flags last week, were mostly nonviolent. But the protesters’ ear-splitting horn had become a nuisance.
Canada court: Interim injunction
On Monday, a judge at Canada court ordered an interim injunction preventing people from blasting their horns in downtown Ottawa. The order is part of a class-action lawsuit filed on behalf of downtown Ottawa residents. Some of whom have expressed concern about their safety in their community.
On Monday, Deputy Police Chief Steve Bell informed city councilors that police had received “active threats to public figures throughout this occupation”. They are investigating it currently.
Hundreds of officers from other police agencies have assisted Ottawa police, but they believe it is not enough. In a letter to Trudeau and Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino on Monday, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson requested reinforcements.
“The occupation has turned into an aggressive and hateful occupation of our neighborhoods,” he wrote. “People are living in fear and are terrified.” He called the honking “tantamount to psychological warfare.”
Vaccine saves lives
On Monday, a short stretch of Metcalfe Street in downtown Ottawa, which is home to Canada’s parliament, central bank, and buildings including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s office, smelled like a campfire.
Signs mocked everything from vaccines and mandates to Canada’s carbon tax on a cluster of trucks, cars, and tractors without trailers. A poster of Canada’s Charter of Rights and Freedoms was also on display on one of the signs. It provides rights such as life, liberty, and security of the person – within “reasonable limits.”
Water bottles, briquettes, and diapers were in stacks in the high alongside open-sided white tents with food tables. There were also signs of opposition from locals.
“GO HOME MORONS” and “VACCINES SAVE LIVES” were some of the small signs in the ground-floor windows of an apartment building a few blocks away.
“We cannot allow an angry crowd to reverse the course that continues to save lives in this last stretch. This should never be a precedent for how to make policy in Canada,” Mendicino told reporters on Monday.
“Prime Minister stop hiding”
Trudeau did not appear at the news conference and did not take part in the parliament’s question time. “When will the prime minister stop hiding, show some leadership, and fix the mess that he’s created?” interim Conservative Party leader Candice Bergen, who has also backed the protests, asked in the House of Commons.
The city’s mayor proclaimed a state of emergency on Sunday. After that, police began removing gas and fuel supplies from a logistics encampment put up by protestors on Sunday night.
A well-organized supply chain sustained the protestors. It includes portable saunas, a community kitchen, and children’s bouncy castles. According to police, it has also received some funding from sympathizers in the United States.
The truckers have likewise received praise from former US President Donald Trump and Tesla CEO Elon Musk.
Protests also erupted in several major Canadian cities over the weekend, including Toronto, the financial center, and were met with counter-demonstrations.