OTTAWA - Politicians at all levels of government are urging protesters who have seized the nation's capital to roll out, as organizers prepare to stick around even longer by distributing fuel and supplies to the trucks clogging up Ottawa streets.
Crowds have thinned out considerably on Parliament Hill and the surrounding area, where anti-COVID-19 restriction demonstrators have been protesting for days.
But Ottawa remains at a standstill, as trucks and big rigs remain along major roads in the downtown core and many businesses have remained closed since Friday over safety concerns.
“This is so much fun. We have all of Ottawa gridlocked right now,” said organizer Pat King in a video posted online early Tuesday.
Those that remain say they are staying put until all the restrictions are lifted, with the president of the Ottawa Gatineau Hotel Association saying some protesters have been extending their stays at hotels, or are asking to rebook for the coming weekend.
People who live in the core say the truck horns are blaring into all hours of the night and starting again early in the morning.
Gary Banham said he was harassed on the street by protesters for wearing a mask while out for a walk.
“It's been difficult because we don't even want to go outside,” he said.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford said Tuesday that the protesters have been heard, and now it is time for them to go home.
“These businesses that have been closed for, you know, a while now, the restaurants want to reopen. So, you know, I get it, I hear you. But we have to let the people of Ottawa live their lives,” Ford said Tuesday.
Federal ministers offered much the same message Tuesday morning as they arrived on Parliament Hill for a cabinet meeting.
“You've been heard, but now let the people of Ottawa go back to a normal life. That's what the citizens of Ottawa want. They want their downtown back, and we need to get back to normality,” said federal Innovation Minister Francois-Philippe Champagne.
The city councillor and member of provincial parliament who represent the area have written to Ford to ask for financial assistance to clean up the mess left by demonstrators. They are also seeking support for the already struggling businesses that have been closed since the convoy arrived.
“Further to that, for the convoy protesters that still remain, we are asking for provincial support to investigate and fine all convoy protesters engaged in parking infractions, public health infractions, and workplace safety infractions,” Coun. Catherine McKenney and MPP Joel Harden wrote Tuesday.
While the protests are ostensibly directed at the federal and provincial governments responsible for imposing vaccine mandates and COVID-19 health measures, Ottawa residents have borne the brunt of the impact, Mayor Jim Watson said Monday.
Police estimate they have spent roughly $800,000 per day to supervise the protest and respond to emergencies.
The mayor has already brought up the issue of recovering costs with the prime minister and the local MP, Yasir Naqvi. The mayor's office said in a statement those requests for assistance have been well received.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said Monday he will not meet with anyone involved, noting reports that some participants have been seen harassing local businesses, waving Nazi flags, urinating on the National War Memorial and stealing food from the homeless at a shelter.
Federal Justice Minister David Lametti said Tuesday what is happening in Ottawa is no longer a “legitimate protest.”
“When those protests appropriate symbols that are Nazi, appropriate symbols that are racist, call (for) violent acts towards the prime minister, result in people defecating on the doorsteps of people flying gay pride flags, rainbow flags, that goes too far,” Lametti said.
“We need to think about the fact that all rights are limited by limits that we find in free and democratic societies, and that's what our charter does.”
The Private Motor Truck Council of Canada agreed the protest has gone “too far,” infringing on other citizens' rights, safety and ability to move freely and go to work.
The PMTC suggested participants use some of the millions of dollars raised in support of the demonstration to make reparations for some of the disgraceful actions of participants. The organization cited the desecration of the National War Memorial and the Terry Fox statue downtown, as well as the harassment of servers and patrons of the Shepherds of Good Hope homeless shelter.
“It would be a very nice gesture if you were to take some of the funds and make a donation to the Terry Fox Foundation, the Royal Canadian Legion as well as the Shepherds of Good Hope,” PMTC president Mike Millian said in a statement Tuesday.
Conservative Deputy Leader Candice Bergen said Monday Trudeau was “gaslighting” the protesters, who deserve the chance to be heard and be given some respect.
She said the protesters she met with from her home province of Manitoba on Sunday are “good people, patriotic, peace-loving.”
Michel Patrice, the deputy clerk of the House of Commons, said when it comes to security, Parliament is learning a lot from this situation.
“Continuity of Parliament is a key feature and it must be always our first priority,” said Patrice, speaking to a House committee Tuesday.
Canada Unity, the group behind the convoy, originated during the 2019 pro-pipeline convoy to Ottawa but morphed into an anti-COVID-19 restriction protest after the pandemic began.
The vaccine mandate for truckers that took effect on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border last month added more fire to the demands and helped trigger the bigger convoy that descended on Ottawa in the last week.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 1, 2022.
