A Canadian court banned the sound of horns in the center of the capital, Ottawa, after residents filed an injunction complaining about the deafening noise of the 12-day truck driver protest that has become a political crisis for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Police also announced that they had seized thousands of liters of fuel and removed an oil tanker as part of the crackdown on the act, which paralyzed the city to protest against sanitary measures that seek to contain Covid-19.
The so-called “Freedom Train” began as a movement that opposes the mandatory vaccination for cross-border drivers – a demand also made by the US – and ended up turning into a demonstration against the health measures implemented by the prime minister. The Windsor-Detroit border is the busiest international crossing in North America.
The situation prompted Parliament to convene an urgent meeting to discuss next steps. In his first appearance in the House of Commons after a week of isolation due to a Covid-19 diagnosis, Trudeau said the protest “has to stop”.
“This is the story of a country that went through this pandemic together. A few people shouting and waving swastikas doesn’t define who Canadians are,” he said. “The federal government will respond,” he promised.
The prime minister and his family left Ottawa for an undisclosed location due to security concerns. Last week’s acts included some Confederate and Nazi flags.
Canadians largely followed government health measures and nearly 79% of the eligible population had two doses of the vaccine. But recent polls have shown that frustrations against restrictions are growing.
The Ambassador Bridge, a major road bridge connecting Canada to the United States, has been temporarily closed in both directions, the Canadian government said.
Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson has asked the federal government to appoint a mediator to speak with the protesters. On Sunday, Watson declared a state of emergency in the city, saying the protests were “out of control”. On Monday he asked the federal government for reinforcements to bring about an end to what he called the “siege”. He wants an additional 1,800 police officers sent.
This weekend, police counted 1,000 trucks and 5,000 protesters, down from 3,000 trucks and 10,000 to 15,000 protesters the previous weekend. According to estimates reported by the AFP news agency, on Tuesday (8) between 400 and 500 trucks blocked the center of the city.
One of the spokespersons for the protesters, Tamara Lich, said the activists were willing to negotiate with the government to seek a solution to the crisis, but insisted on reducing restrictions on the unvaccinated.
In an event streamed on YouTube, she said the act’s leaders want to set up a meeting with the government to “start the conversations and see how we can move forward, get restrictions and mandates lifted, restore Canadians’ rights and freedoms and go to House”.
After criticism for allowing the blockade of the capital’s center, with shops closed, Ottawa police announced on Sunday new measures to control the protests, with a ban on the delivery of fuel and supplies to protesters.
Several people were detained or fined, and vehicles were seized.
A member of the Liberal Party government said the ease with which truck drivers blocked off the area around Parliament and the apparent powerlessness of the police were a “national humiliation”.
Members of the conservative opposition encouraged the acts and took pictures with truck drivers. Last week, the Conservative Party changed its leadership because Erin O’Toole, who had led the party since August 2020, would not have shown enough enthusiasm for the movement.
Police say the protest is funded by supporters in the US. Fundraising platform GoFundMe suspended the Convoio da Liberdade donations page — the decision angered congressmen linked to the Republican Party, who promised to open an investigation into the site. Former President Donald Trump and Tesla Chairman Elon Musk expressed support for the truckers.
Police said they had indicted four people for hate crimes and opened an investigation with the FBI, the US federal police, into threats against public figures.
