Montreal, Feb 7, 2022 (AFP) – The mayor of Ottawa decreed this Sunday a state of emergency in the Canadian capital, considering the situation in that city, paralyzed for more than a week by opponents of sanitary measures against the Covid-19.
The protests, which took place for the first time in Ottawa on the 29th, spread this weekend to other major Canadian cities, while dozens of trucks and demonstrators kept the center of the Canadian capital paralyzed today.
Mayor Jim Watson declared a state of emergency in Ottawa this afternoon “due to the ongoing demonstration”. The decision “reflects the serious danger and threat to the safety of residents who represent the ongoing protests, and underscores the need for support from other jurisdictions and levels of government”, expressed the City, arguing that the measure “also provides greater flexibility within the municipal administration to allow the City of Ottawa to manage business continuity to provide essential services” to residents.
– Control forum –
“The situation is out of control, because the demonstrators enforce their law,” Watson had earlier told a local radio station. The demonstrators “are much more than our police officers. We are losing the battle,” acknowledged the mayor.
Watson found unacceptable the behavior of demonstrators, who block streets, and truck drivers, who incessantly honk their horns.
Initially, the “Freedom Train” was the movement against the decision to force truckers to get vaccinated in order to cross the border into the United States. But delay, the protest is converted into the mobilization against all health measures and against the government of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau.
Demonstrators say they intend to remain on the streets until all health restrictions are lifted. Similar but smaller protests took place in other major Canadian cities, such as Toronto, Quebec and Winnipeg.
– Caos asked –
The chief of police of Ottawa regretted not having sufficient means to end what he described as a “state of siege”, and asked for “supplementary resources”. The Ottawa Police hopes to receive 250 soldiers from the Royal Gendarmerie of Canada, linked to the Federal Police.
Four hundred and 50 fines have been levied since yesterday morning for excessive noise or use of fireworks, Ottawa Police said, noting that demonstrators engaged in disruptive or illegal acts that posed a risk to public safety or increased ” people’s anguish”.
A hundred investigations were opened for crimes related to the demonstration. Upset by the chaos, Ottawa residents filed a collective action for more than $7 million against the organizers.
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