(Ottawa) A day of deep sadness, but also of determination. It is in these words that the Deputy Prime Minister, Chrystia Freeland, reacted to the police intervention in Ottawa on Friday. Arrests have multiplied during the day – and the operation will not be closed anytime soon, security experts predict.
Posted at 3:02 p.m.
Updated at 8:44 p.m.
“It’s not a day where we get any satisfaction,” she said. For me, it is a day of deep sadness and also of determination. Sadness because it’s painful to know that it’s happening in Canada […], but it is also a day of determination and where all members of our government are resolute. »
“A liberal democracy must be ready to defend itself and that is what is happening in Canada right now and that is what happened with the invocation of Emergency Measures Act, she added. Anyone who tries to endanger our democratic institutions and our economy must know that we are very firm and very clear about our duty to Canadians to defend our country. »
Four ministers held a press conference Friday afternoon to defend the use of this law, strongly criticized by the Conservative Party and the Bloc Québécois. Public Security Minister Marco Mendicino repeated that it allowed them to give police officers additional tools.
For his part, the Minister of Justice, David Lametti, insisted that the state of emergency will be temporary. The legislation provides for a 30-day term that can be renewed by parliament, but he hopes to be able to revoke it as soon as the government deems it is no longer necessary.
The opposition wants to take back the collar
The second day of debate in the House of Commons to confirm or revoke the state of emergency did not take place on Friday due to the police operation. Government House Leader Mark Holland has indicated he is expected to resume on Saturday, which is uncertain – West Block, where the compound is located, is completely barricaded.
PHOTO PATRICK DOYLE, REUTERS
Interim Conservative Party Leader Candice Bergen
But among the Conservatives, we want to start fighting with the government again. “MPs must return to the House tomorrow [samedi] to end Liberal interference and restore unity, integrity and hope to our country,” interim Conservative Party leader Candice Bergen tweeted, saying she was “troubled and saddened” by what happened. was played Friday in Ottawa.
You will have to “be patient”
The normally quiet city center will not regain its tranquility tomorrow morning, specialists believe.
” You have to be patient. You have to undo a formation that has taken root for three weeks. You have to take the time to unravel the puzzle piece by piece,” summarizes Christian Dubois, former senior officer of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP).
If only because of the suspected presence of children in the convoy, one must maneuver with extreme caution. “When children are involved, we have to take our time. If I was an incident commander, as I was at the time, that would be my biggest concern,” he says.
So far, the police have been navigating in a “very methodical” way, “taking the ground little by little”, analyzes Joao Velloso, a law professor at the University of Ottawa, who has an interest in law enforcement. during demonstrations.
“It’s long, it’s flat, it’s very expensive, but it takes what it takes,” he says.
He does not see the streets of the capital empty for several days. According to him, the police will have quite a challenge when they venture into the streets where the trucks are roped off – especially since in some places they are placed “in attack position” and a heavy vehicle ” can be used as a weapon.
Ottawa Police Service Acting Chief Steve Bell said at a press conference on Friday that police will be on the job 24 hours a day, seven days a week, and that they will also stay long as it takes to clear the streets of Ottawa.