Parliament resumed Monday in the nation’s capital still beset by protesters, vehicles and trucks as the trucker convoy protest enters its third day.
Transport trucks and other personal vehicles are gridlocking parts of Ottawa surrounding Parliament Hill, and while the protest has largely been non-violent, Ottawa Police said in a statement Sunday evening that they have seen “multiple cases of disruptive, inappropriate and threatening behaviour from demonstrators.”
The Ottawa Paramedic Service confirmed to CTV News Monday that a rock was thrown at one of their trucks Sunday and that a racial slur was yelled targeting the paramedic in that vehicle.
There were at least two other incidents of projectiles thrown at paramedic vehicles, and the service had issues responding to calls in the downtown core where protesters were either slowing them down or intimidating paramedics, mostly on Saturday, a spokesperson said.
The spokesperson said the police will now be responding “at all times” with the paramedics for safety.
Authorities said residents should avoid travelling to the downtown core Monday and that those who are able to work from home should do so if possible.
“If your children attend school in the downtown area, please check with them to see if the school is open tomorrow,” the statement said.
Organizers of the “freedom convoy” said demonstrations are planned for Monday, including speeches in Confederation Park.
There was also a call out by the organizers for around 1,000 people to join in an attempt to shop without masks at a shopping centre. The Rideau Centre close to Parliament remained closed Monday.
It is unclear when the protest will end, but several protesters have said they had planned to stay “for months,” and “freedom convoy” organizer Tamara Lich said on Sunday to a gathering on Parliament Hill that the protest would not leave until “all of you and all of your kids are free.”
Parliament is set to resume in a hybrid format, and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau will be working virtually after testing positive for COVID-19.
Trudeau will be delivering remarks and taking questions from reporters at 11:15 a.m. EST and will participate in Question Period.
Questions about MPs’ safety were addressed late Sunday night in a memo from the parliamentary Sergeant-at-Arms that detailed how those coming in person can access the House of Commons, with recognition that ongoing demonstrations “could make it difficult.”
MPs were given suggested routes and told there will be a continued presence of Ottawa Police and the Parliamentary Protective Service.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford broke his silence on the protests in a brief statement issued Monday that said the “right to a peaceful protest is core to our Canadian identity,” but that he was “extremely disturbed” by the desecration of monuments and the waving of “swastikas and other symbols of hate and intolerance.”
“That has no place in Ontario or Canada. Not now. Not ever,” the statement reads.
- Read more: Recap of the trucker protest day two
Ottawa police had also announced earlier Sunday that there were “several” criminal investigations underway in relation to acts described by police as “desecration” to several monuments.
There was widespread condemnation of some of the protesters’ behaviour from Saturday, including adorning the statue of Terry Fox with Canada flags and anti-mandate signs, urinating on the War Memorial and jumping and dancing on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier.
On CTV News Channel Monday Ottawa mayor Jim Watson said the people of Ottawa have been “more than patient” with the protestors, adding that they hurt their own cause with some of their actions over the weekend.
“Going and taking free meals from the shepherds of good hope, the soup kitchen for the homeless, urinating on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, dancing on it, desecrating the Terry Fox monument with placards and so on, and really keeping people up 24 hours a day, honking their horns and keeping their diesel engines running and parking in residential areas,” he said.
Watson said the public are “fed up” with the constant noise, disruptions and harassment they are experiencing as a result of the convoy’s presence.
“The very fact that they’re threatening to intimidate retail workers – going in to try and shop without a mask – shows how out of touch these people are,” he continued. “These are individuals that are trying to make a decent wage, some them are working for minimum wage, some of them at fast food restaurants, some of them are17 to 18-years-old being harassed by middle-aged, mostly men, threatening them because they are challenged and told to wear a mask… it’s really quite sad on the part of the truckers and its paints them all with the same brush unfortunately.”
Watson said it’s time for the truckers to move on and called for the organizers to condemn the “disgraceful behaviour” from some of their group.
On Sunday, flowers had been laid at the memorials and some protesters were seen picking up trash and alcohol bottles, with other reports suggestingxjmtzyw they were policing behaviour from their compatriots and had “set a watch” over the national monuments to avoid a repeat of the behaviour from the day before.
The presence of several hateful symbols at the rally over the weekend, including signs and flags with Nazi imagery, the Confederate flag, yellow stars, patches or clothing that belong to groups with extremist views, and flags and signs that said “F*** Trudeau” sparked widespread concern and public discourse.
Speaking on CTV’s Question Period Sunday, Transport Minister Omar Alghabra said the hateful images could not be ignored.
“Some of the images and the voices that we heard come out of that protest were alarming. Canadians saw for themselves. We had swastika flags, we had the Confederate flag, we had voices that called for the overthrow of the government. Canadians saw for themselves that some voices are really disturbing and unacceptable,” he said
“I understand that there are some people who are sympathetic to the protests for other reasons but we cannot look the other way.”
Good morning from Parliament Hill. It appears that at some point last night one lane of Wellington Street was cleared or truckers left. Still many trucks stretching across blocks but now room for emergency vehicles. pic.twitter.com/g4WcUfKYdD
— Rachel Aiello (@rachaiello) January 31, 2022
RELATED IMAGESview larger image
A man who removed the tires from a pickup truck stands in front of West Block on Parliament Hill as a rally against COVID-19 restrictions, which began as a cross-country convoy protesting a federal vaccine mandate for truckers, continues in Ottawa, on Monday, January 31, 2022. (THE CANADIAN PRESS/ Patrick Doyle)
