Published on :
Police handed out leaflets to “Freedom Convoy” demonstrators in Ottawa on Wednesday warning them of possible arrest if they did not leave the scene. Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, for his part, said that the police now had the means to “end it”.
On the 20th day of the protest against sanitary measures in Ottawa, the police exerted pressure, Wednesday, February 16, on the demonstrators to try to dislodge them without using force.
“You must leave the premises now. Anyone who blocks traffic lanes, or helps others to do so, is committing a criminal offense or may be arrested”, is it written on a leaflet distributed to protesters on Wednesday, found a journalist from AFP.
A little later, the police also warned that the demonstrators risked seeing their vehicles confiscated, their license canceled, their bank accounts examined…
“We have now given law enforcement more tools” so that “they can begin their actions,” Justin Trudeau said on Wednesday, saying it was “time for this to end”.
Two days ago, in response to this national crisis, the Prime Minister invoked the use of the Emergencies Act for the second time in Canadian peacetime history.
The last blockage lifted
The last blockage of a border axis with the United States was lifted on Wednesday. After six days of lockdown, “full access to the Emerson border crossing is now restored,” Manitoba police said.
On the streets of Ottawa, hundreds of trucks were still parked in downtown streets on Wednesday. Trucker Jan Grouin, 42, present since the beginning of the movement, regrets that Justin Trudeau does not come and talk to them. To be dislodged this week “would be a surprise”, he says.
But the interim Ottawa police chief was confident, explaining that he had a “plan” and the “necessary resources”. “Some of the techniques that we are allowed to employ and are prepared to employ are not commonly seen in Ottawa,” said Steve Bell. “But we are prepared to use it if necessary to reach the safest resolution and to restore order,” he added, explaining, however, that it “would take time”.
His predecessor Peter Sloly, whose handling of the crisis has been strongly criticized, resigned on Tuesday.
Call to lift the vaccination obligation
While Ottawa residents and many elected officials have been urging protesters to liberate the capital for days, organizers of the movement dubbed “Freedom Convoy” defied authorities once again on Wednesday by urging the public to join the movement.
“The more Canadians there are in Ottawa, the more difficult it will be for the police to enforce this government order,” said Daniel Bulford, a former police officer who resigned after refusing to be vaccinated, at a press conference.
Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino, however, had a message for those tempted to converge on Parliament Hill for a fourth weekend in a row: “Don’t go. You could be joining dangerous criminal activity. .”
On Wednesday, in a letter, fifteen American governors and the Prime Ministers of two Canadian provinces however urged Joe Biden and Justin Trudeau to lift the vaccination requirement for cross-border road carriers.
With AFP