Ottawa police have officially charged two organizers of the so-called "Freedom Convoy," which has staged disruptive demonstrations in the city’s downtown for about three weeks in opposition to vaccine mandates and pandemic restrictions.
Christopher John Barber, 46, of Swift Current, Sask., who police arrested Thursday night, is charged with counselling to commit the offence of mischief, counselling to commit the offence of disobeying a court order and counselling to commit the offence of obstructing police.
Fellow organizer Tamara Lich, 49, of Medicine Hat, Alta., also is charged with counselling to commit the offence of mischief.
Both are scheduled to appear in court today. The charges against them have not been proven in court.
Barber and Lich are one of several people arrested Thursday evening. Organizer Pat King previously confirmed Barber’s arrest, while a lawyer representing some of the organizers said on Twitter that Lich had been detained.
Ottawa police say on social media that there is a large police presence on Nicholas Street, east of Parliament Hill near the University of Ottawa.
Police are advising protesters to leave immediately. Some are surrendering and being arrested, according to authorities.
"We ask protesters to remain peaceful and lawful," the social media post from Ottawa police said.
Reporters on the ground also have witnessed police make arrests around the city.
- Live updates: Latest from the convoy protest in Ottawa
Despite police attempts to warn demonstrators of potential arrests if they remain in the city’s downtown core, many have vowed to stay and, as some organizers have suggested, "hold the line."
Promising a very different weekend for the residents of Ottawa, police appeared to take a stronger approach to the downtown demonstrations, setting up more than 100 checkpoints and only permitting entry of people who work, live or have a "lawful reason" to be there. Workers also installed fencing around Parliament on Thursday.
The arrests began hours after Interim Ottawa Police Chief Steve Bell, who replaced former police chief Peter Sloly this week, warned that action to remove demonstrators was "imminent."
Police and government officials have often referred to the protests as an unlawful "occupation."
"We want to end this unlawful protest peacefully and safely," Bell said.
He has said previously that some of the techniques police are prepared to use "are not what we’re used to seeing in Ottawa."
Officers from across Ontario and Quebec, as well as the RCMP, have joined Ottawa police in a bid to end the protests.
The latest warnings and arrests come following the federal government’s invocation of the Emergencies Act on Monday, the first time it has been used since it became law in 1988.
Under the act, police say anyone coming to Ottawa to join the protests is breaking the law.
Powers granted under the act include a ban on public assemblies deemed to be unlawful and the ability to freeze protesters’ bank accounts without court orders.
The Canadian Civil Liberties Association is seeking a judicial review of the government’s decision to invoke the Emergencies Act, arguing the measures are unconstitutional.
The House of Commons began debating the government’s use of the Emergencies Act on Thursday.
While the powers granted by the act are in effect, the House and Senate must confirm the decision to use the legislation.
The Conservatives and Bloc Quebecois have said they will not support it, while the NDP have signalled they will.
Although some protesters have called for the ouster of the Liberal government, even offering to work with opposition parties to make that happen, none of the opposition parties has shown any sign they would consider it.
Although the House was expected to continue debate on the Emergencies Act today, a note from House Speaker Anthony Rota says the scheduled sitting has been cancelled due to a police operation expected to take place by the Hill and other areas of the downtown core.
Government House leader Mark Holland said in a statement that parties are hoping the House can reopen Saturday to continue debate, with a final vote held early next week.
The Senate also issued a notice saying it will remain adjourned until Monday at 2 p.m. local time.
The Children’s Aid Society of Ottawa has urged parents involved in the demonstrations to make "necessary alternate care arrangements" should they be separated from their children, as the Emergencies Act prohibits children from participating in the protests. Ottawa police have previously estimated that about one-quarter of vehicles parked downtown have children in them.
A proposed class-action lawsuit on behalf of some Ottawa residents and businesses escalated on Thursday, with the plaintiffs now seeking $306 million from truckers, donors and others.
Henry Assad, president and CEO of Happy Goat Coffee Co. in Ottawa, which was recently added as a plaintiff to the lawsuit, told CTV’s Your Morning on Friday that the arrests are two weeks overdue, at least.
"I’m happy to see that things are happening and hopefully this will end peacefully for everybody, and everybody will go back to normal soon," he said.
"I just hope that everything goes as planned by the police and peacefully."
MORE PROTESTS EXPECTED ACROSS CANADA
Elsewhere in the country, authorities are preparing for continued protests in their communities, with protesters in the Maritimes planning more convoys and rallies this weekend.
RCMP in Saskatchewan will monitor the province’s international bxjmtzyworder crossings with the United States in response to planned demonstrations this weekend.
Quebec City is preparing for a protest this weekend. Some protesters have continued to demonstrate outside of the Manitoba legislature in Winnipeg.
Protests and blockades at or near border crossings in Windsor, Ont.; Emerson, Man.; Coutts, Alta.; and Surrey, B.C., have ended.
Police made multiple arrests in Windsor and Surrey. Officers also intercepted a suspected convoy heading to the Ambassador Bridge in Windsor on Wednesday.
In the case of Coutts, police seized a cache of weapons and ammunition from a smaller group involved in the larger protest and have charged four individuals with conspiracy to commit murder. Gear seized from some of those arrested had patches displaying a symbol of the Diagolon far-right extremist group.
RELATED IMAGESview larger image
Tamara Lich is arrested in Ottawa, Thursday, Feb. 17, 2022
Police officers enter a blockade protest truck parked in downtown Ottawa, Feb. 18, 2022. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Cole Burston
Police make an arrest after a person interfered with a police operation, during an ongoing protest against COVID-19 measures that has grown into a broader anti-government demonstration, in Ottawa, on Feb. 17, 2022. (Justin Tang/The Canadian Press via AP)
