Support for truckers | Demonstration and counter-demonstration are held in Montreal

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(Montreal) More than a thousand people march through the streets of Montreal on Saturday morning in the name of “Liberty”. They will then take the road to Ottawa to join the opponents of the sanitary measures who occupy Parliament Hill.

Lea Carrier
The Press

“I am here to defend my free choice. Every human has the right to their own choice,” said a protester at the head of the march. The man, who calls himself “Momo”, had taken part in the first convoy to Ottawa which sparked a series of demonstrations across the country.

The meeting point was set at Jarry Park, in the Villeray district, at 10 a.m. The invitation, entitled “United in love and freedom” was launched by groups opposing health measures.

To the sound of “Liberté” and “F*uck Trudeau”, the demonstrators marched under a heavy police presence.

A “historic convoy” is to leave for the national capital. According to the organizers of the event, convoys departing from Beauce, Sherbrooke, Magog, Granby and Lac-Mégantic will join him “to form the largest convoy from Quebec to Ottawa”.

The leader of the People’s Party of Canada, Maxime Bernier, announced his presence at the demonstration. He then plans to go to Ottawa to offer “pancakes” to truckers.

At Jarry Park, counter-demonstrators opposed the convoy for freedom, which they described as a “Trojan horse for the far right”.

According to them, it is “inexcusable” that opponents of compulsory vaccinations and health measures “militate alongside” people known to the far right, including conspiracy theorists who have been conveying information that has been denied for a long time, “we read on the page. Facebook of the event.

“We look at the images across Canada and it’s something that scares us. I knew that if it happened in Montreal, I wanted to be there to resist this far-right wave,” says Mathieu Perron.

The two groups were separated by a line of police officers. The SPVM does not report any overflow for the moment, but says it is monitoring the situation closely.

This week, Mayor Valérie Plante issued a firm warning that she would not tolerate roadblocks in the city. The Montreal Police Department said it was closely monitoring the organization of the demonstration.