ICanadian police launched a major operation on Friday to unblock the streets of central Ottawa, which have been paralyzed for almost three weeks by a movement of opponents of health measures, forcing the Canadian Parliament to remain exceptionally closed. The police, who deployed en masse in the streets of the federal capital, began Friday after 8 a.m. (1 p.m. GMT) to make arrests, noted journalists from Agence France-Presse.
In a tweet, the police again advised “protesters to leave immediately” and asked them to remain “peaceful”. Police “wish to advise you that under provincial and federal law, you face serious penalties if you do not cease your illegal activities and do not immediately remove your vehicles and property from all sites of illegal demonstrations” , she further clarified. The day before, for the first time, the police had deployed en masse in the city center and erected a security perimeter there placing a hundred roadblocks to control entry into the area.
Two leaders of the movement arrested
In the evening, she arrested two leaders of the movement, who will appear in court on Friday. Tamara Lich, who is at the origin of the so-called “freedom” convoy, is accused of having incited “to commit an offense”. As for Christopher Barber, he is accused of the same facts, as well as of having incited to disobey a judicial order and to obstruct the work of the police.
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Minimized at the start by the authorities, the Canadian protest movement which began at the end of January started from truckers protesting against the obligation to be vaccinated to cross the border between Canada and the United States. But the demands have extended to a refusal of all health measures and, for many demonstrators, to a rejection of the government of Justin Trudeau. The latter said on Thursday that this protest was no longer “peaceful”.
The Federal Parliament cancels its session of the day
For the first time since the start of this dispute, which is taking place under the windows of the federal Parliament, the latter remained closed on Friday. “Today’s sitting is canceled” for security reasons, announced early Anthony Rota, Speaker of the House of Commons.
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” If you are not [déjà] present on the premises of the House of Commons, stay away from the city center until further notice. If you are already inside the buildings, please stay inside the building and wait for instructions,” said Anthony Rota. MPs were due to debate the passage of the Emergency Measures Act from 7 a.m. (12 noon GMT) until midnight.
Billions of dollars lost to the Canadian economy
The chamber has been examining, since Thursday, the implementation of the emergency measures law invoked on Monday by Justin Trudeau to put an end to the “illegal” blockages underway in the country. It is only the second time that this provision has been used in peacetime, the last time dating back to the crisis of 1970 when Pierre Elliott Trudeau, the father of the current Prime Minister, was in power. It is highly contested by the conservative opposition.
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Calling the situation “precarious,” Public Security Minister Marco Mendicino said Thursday that “illegal border blockades” had cost the Canadian economy billions of dollars. The blocking of border axes with the United States by the demonstrators for several days notably weighed heavily and pushed Washington to intervene with the government of Justin Trudeau. The city of Ottawa, the province of Ontario and Canada as a whole have been placed in a state of emergency due to this unprecedented protest movement.