Demonstration in Ottawa | “As long as it takes”

(Ottawa) “It’s not the next morning, it’s only the beginning,” say participants of the “Canada Unity” movement, installed in the freezing cold at Confederation Park on Sunday morning. They say they are ready to stay for weeks, even months, “as long as necessary”. At the same time, police investigations for threats and vandalism are open.

Lila Dussault
The Press

The echoes of horns resumed at sunrise in downtown the Canadian capital, stormed by thousands of people and vehicles until the middle of the night on Saturday. The demonstrators, in support of truckers against compulsory vaccination, demand the end of all sanitary measures.

Early Sunday, the esplanade in front of the parliament is deserted. Parked in the streets, heavy trucks and vans. A few passers-by walk around, coffees in hand. The fumes of gas are reflected by the morning light. And sleepers, lying in their vehicles, do not flinch despite the -30 degrees, a biting cold that burns every patch of exposed skin.

“We’re going to stay until we run out of gas or we get evacuated,” said Vince and Charlene, two 30-somethings stationed near the National War Memorial, who didn’t want to further identify. In the box of their van, several tanks of gasoline. The couple spent the night in their pickup working.

“We’re not going anywhere”

The organizers of the “Canada Unity” movement are based in Confederation Park, a little further. Trailers, generators and several motorized recreational vehicles line the Rideau Canal. “We are a group that worked very hard to put all this in place,” said a man who claimed to be called James Oswald, from Kingston. He himself has been part of the organizing committee for six months.

In one of the trailers, bags of food are already prepared. “We’re going to stay until he [le premier ministre Justin Trudeau] gone, says Mr. Oswald. We are ready to stay for months. We’re not going anywhere. »

In the park opposite, bales of hay surround a fire in a barrel. Kenny Vallières, 35, arrived from Montreal on Saturday to support the protest. He slept by the fire. “We want to be heard, and respected, he explains. The situation is serious. We trivialize what the non-vaccinated live! »

“We are here because we have no choice,” adds Jamie Hart, a Canadian army veteran and driver of one of the “Canada Unity” vehicles. According to him, Canada is a symbol, everywhere on the planet, of peace and freedom, but more on its own territory. “I will stay as long as they [les organisateurs] stay! »

“It’s our freedom that goes on fire,” says another protester, who preferred not to be photographed.

An eventful night

It was a festive and eventful night from Friday to Saturday in Ottawa, beset by “large crowds” who stayed downtown “all night,” according to a statement from the Ottawa Police Service (OPS) released Sunday morning. .

In particular, the police faced streets blocked by trucks and “high risk” situations were defused. No arrests were made, the statement said.

However, criminal investigations have been launched into the desecration of the Terry Fox statue and the National War Memorial, the OPS announced on Twitter on Sunday. Threats, intimidation and unlawful acts against police and city workers, other persons and damage to city vehicles are also under investigation.