(OTTAWA) Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino said no one wanted an anti-vaccination protest planned for Parliament Hill this weekend to turn into a violent attempt to overthrow the government and warned people not to see the protesters as mere freedom fighters.
Updated yesterday at 9:23 p.m.
Several thousand people are expected in Ottawa as of Friday as part of the “Canada Unity” group which is calling for the removal of vaccination requirements and restrictions related to COVID-19. Some of the group’s leaders are calling for a peaceful event, but statements from some people associated with the group have included threats of violence.
Mendicino said multiple police forces — including the Ottawa Police Service, RCMP and Parliamentary Protective Service — are coordinating the response and making decisions independent of any government involvement.
Security forces on Parliament Hill are preparing for up to 10,000 demonstrators to descend on downtown Ottawa this weekend to protest lockdown measures and mandatory truck vaccinations.
A tractor-trailer emblazoned with an expletive against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau was already seen in downtown Ottawa on Thursday, but many more vehicles are expected over the next two days.
It is difficult to obtain precise estimates of the number of protesters and counter-protesters expected, but Ottawa Police have warned residents to avoid traveling to town on weekends and to expect blocked arteries.
“We are aware of the inappropriate and threatening comments made on social media in connection with this demonstration,” Ottawa Police said on Twitter. We welcome peaceful protests. That said, public safety is paramount — there will be consequences for those who engage in criminal acts, violence and activities that promote hatred. »
A memo sent by the Parliamentary Protective Service to MPs and staff says the street immediately alongside Parliament Hill will be closed to traffic. The two lanes furthest from the Hill will be reserved for demonstrators and the other two must remain clear for the passage of emergency vehicles.
Buildings in the parliamentary district are closed and cordoned off, except for the movement of essential personnel from Friday.
Patrick McDonell, the Sergeant-at-Arms in charge of House of Commons security, wrote to MPs on Thursday warning them that some protesters were seeking home addresses for MPs in the Ottawa area. He said if their homes or constituency offices were targeted, they should close and lock all outside doors and go to a safe place.
“If the situation becomes unstable and your safety is at risk, call 911 and consider evacuating your location,” he said.
Canada Unity is calling on the Governor General and the Senate to direct the federal government and all provincial and territorial governments to lift all health restrictions related to COVID-19, waive all fines related to these measures, and to cancel the vaccine passport, described as “illegal”.
Nothing in the Constitution authorizes such orders and Mr Mendicino said no one should “trivialize the distorted claims by the organizers that this is a demonstration for freedom”.
“That’s not the case,” he said in an interview Thursday. This is a fringe group, many of whom are not truckers, spreading lies, about vaccines, about healthcare workers, and frankly, about the media. And the vast majority of Canadians reject these extremist views. And they understand that if we are serious about protecting our freedoms, vaccines and vaccination requirements are the best way to get us out of the pandemic. »
Vaccination passport at borders
Truckers ceased to be exempt from mandatory vaccination at the Canadian border on January 15. This means that foreign truckers are not allowed to enter Canada unless they are vaccinated, and unvaccinated Canadian truckers must quarantine for 14 days upon returning to Canada.
The US policy that prevents unvaccinated Canadian truckers from entering the United States came into effect on January 22.
After more extremist views surfaced in and around the movement, lead organizer Tamara Lich asked convoy participants not to tolerate violence or vandalism, and to report the truck number and license plate. registration of anyone inciting violence or hatred.
But there are links between some convoy participants and white supremacist ideology, and in a YouTube video, which has since been taken down, a man called for the protest to become a rehearsal for the storming of the US Capitol building in Washington, a year ago.
In a video posted on the Facebook page of the group “Canada Unity”, a supporter declares that “failure is not an option. Surrender is not an option”.
Mme Lich was a member of the Western Canadian Maverick Party, which advocated greater autonomy for Western Canada, even independence.
Mr. Mendicino said there are clear boundaries around hate speech, lies and calls for violence that cannot be equated with free speech or legitimate protest.
“I think there has to be a clear line between what freedom of expression and demonstration is and the kind of incitement to encourage others to take up arms, to create an event like the January 6 riot here in Canada, he said. And there has to be a very clear line of condemnation and denunciation around that. »
Trudeau called the convoy a “small marginal minority” at a press conference Wednesday, prompting hundreds of comments on the “Canada Unity” Facebook page.
“Good luck Saturday Justin is all I can say,” someone wrote on the band’s official account. You will have run after. »
Most of the comments targeted Trudeau’s remarks and called for his resignation, but some spoke of violence and others demanded that he be arrested and imprisoned.
Tory MP Pierre Poilievre warned against the temptation to paint everyone on the convoy as extremists simply because some in its ranks might express radical or violent views.
Some organizers demanded that the event be peaceful and tried to keep extremist elements away from the official demonstration.
O’Toole wants to meet truckers
Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole said Thursday he would meet with some of the convoy truckers, just days after initially refusing to say whether he supported their efforts.
Mr O’Toole said he and his MPs have supported truckers and have long opposed the compulsory vaccination they now face. In the same breath, Mr O’Toole also denounced those involved in the convoy who espouse racist and extremist ideas.
“This convoy is really about Mr. Trudeau and the fact that people are tired, that there is fatigue in this country, that there is division and that there are millions of people who have the impression of no longer being heard,” he said.
“There are other groups that are using the plight of truckers to sow division, hatred, and we need to call that out and root it out, because it also robs people of the ability to have their voices heard in Ottawa,” added the conservative leader.
The Canadian Trucking Alliance has dissociated itself from this demonstration and maintained that more than 85% of truckers are vaccinated. Many truckers also wrote in social networks that they continued to do their job and that this convoy did not represent them.
Ontario Provincial Police spokesman Bill Dickson said police are monitoring all convoys but would not give specific numbers on how many attendees as things are constantly changing.