Canada police set to end siege of capital by protesters fighting COVID
measures
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[February 18, 2022]
By Steve Scherer and David Ljunggren
OTTAWA (Reuters) -Canadian police are
poised to clear out on Friday hundreds of truck drivers from Ottawa who
have staged a three-week-long protest against pandemic restrictions that
has crippled the capital and prompted Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to
assume emergency powers for the first time in more than 50 years.
The drivers, joined by thousands of demonstrators and some 400 vehicles,
turned the streets around Parliament into a noisy party zone since first
arriving on Jan. 28, in what has become one of the worst crises to hit
Trudeau since he took power in 2015.
Police made a handful of arrests on Thursday evening, including two of
the main fundraisers and organizers, Chris Barber and Tamara Lich.
"We absolutely are committed to end this unlawful demonstration. We have
the plan, we have the commitment, we have the resources," interim police
chief Steve Bell told reporters on Thursday. Police will set up a
perimeter with 100 checkpoints around downtown to stop people without
legitimate reason from entering, he said.
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2022/Feb/18/images/ads/current/2021_lda_Businessdirectory.png)
"This weekend will look very different than the past three weekends," he
added. Previous chief Peter Sloly quit this week amid residents' fury
about what they saw as police inaction.
The House of Commons suspended its Friday sitting due to the expected
police action, it said in a notice. "If you are not in the House of
Commons precinct, stay away from the downtown core until further
notice," the notice said. The Members of Parliament were scheduled to
debate on the Emergencies Act, which needs to be approved by parliament
within a week of announcement.
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![](../images/021822PIX/news_s71.jpg)
A man walks with a Canada flag in front of a truck as protests
against coronavirus disease (COVID-19) vaccine mandates continue,
along Wellington street near the Parliament of Canada, in Ottawa,
Ontario, Canada, February 17, 2022. REUTERS/Carlos Osorio
![](http://archives.lincolndailynews.com/2015/May/02/images/ads/current/guzzardo_lda022609.png) The truckers' protests started as
something against vaccine mandates for cross-border drivers, a
measure in place in the United States, too. But slowly it spread
across Canada and morphed into an anti-government movement.
Protesters blocked several land crossings with the United States,
including the busiest, the Ambassador Bridge which connects to
Detroit, for six days, hurting both economies.
Calling the blockades a threat to democracy, Trudeau on Monday
invoked emergency measures giving his government temporary powers to
end the unrest. Government officials said they were worried about
extremists causing violence.
Many protesters on Parliament Hill said they would not leave until
their demands were met.
"End the mandates, give us our rights and this is over," said Chris
Dacey on Thursday. "We'll all go back to our families."
The border blockades turned the pressure on Trudeau to act swiftly,
and U.S. President Joe Biden asked him to use federal powers.
"The illegal blockades and occupations have to stop and the borders
have to remain open," Trudeau told legislators on Thursday as
Parliament started debate on the Emergencies Act.
But the official opposition Conservative Party says there was no
need for the Emergencies Act, especially since the border blockades
are over. Conservative Parliamentarian Jeremy Patzer told the House
of Commons on Thursday that people around the world were alarmed to
see Trudeau "come down on peaceful protesters with a sledgehammer."
"It is absolutely shameful," he added.
(Reporting by David Ljunggren, Steve Scherer and Julie GordonEditing
by Leslie Adler and Chizu Nomiyama)
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