The Ottawa police chief has promised to stop the upcoming biker rally from reaching the city center as residents prepare for a potential repeat of the so-called Freedom Convoy anti-government protests that paralyzed the Canadian capital earlier this year.
Thousands of motorcyclists are expected to arrive in Ottawa on Friday for the Rolling Thunder rally, supposedly in honor of military veterans.
Rally organizer Neil Sheard denied the event was a protest, but prominent anti-vaccine figure Chris Skye has been touted as a special guest speaker, and the Freedom Veterans group, which opposes public health measures, is also part of the event. .
Organizers planned to climb Parliament’s hill on Friday and then meet at the military memorial the next day. But interim chief Steve Bell warned that instead a “strong police presence” and road closures would be met by motorcyclists.
“We will not allow dangerous or illegal conditions that could lead to a new protest, as seen in February,” Bell told a police board on Monday. Bell said there were no indications so far that the Rolling Thunder rally would become a sustainable occupation like the truck protests, but acknowledged that things could change quickly. “I want to be clear with both the organizers and the participants: you will be responsible for your actions before, during and after the events.
The city is still rocked by protests in February, when hundreds of commercial trucks blocked the streets in front of Parliament Hill, honking their horns at all times of the day and night and opposing numerous orders to leave the area.
The event began as a protest against public health measures, but quickly transformed into a broader anti-government movement, with protesters calling for Justin Trudeau’s government to face criminal prosecution.
After weeks of interruption, the federal government invoked the Emergency Act, allowing employees to freeze bank accounts and suspend commercial licenses for participating truck drivers. On Monday, the federal government announced an investigation into the use of rarely used legislation.
The protests ended nearly a month later, when police stormed the blockade and arrested nearly 200 protesters. Authorities in Otova later revealed that the demonstrations cost the city more than 36 million Canadian dollars (28 million dollars, 22 million British pounds).
“I do not want our children, the elderly and other vulnerable people to be traumatized again. Our businesses should not be forced to close again, “Ottawa City Councilor Catherine McKenney wrote on Twitter on Monday.
Zexi Li, a resident of the center, whose annoyance with the constant signaling of trucks led to a class action for C $ 306 million against the convoy, told the Guardian that she and others feared “mistakes will be made again” as employees tried to prepare for the influx of motorcyclists.
“Undoubtedly, there was a loss of confidence in the city, in our employees, in the police from the protests. We were just completely disappointed with the people who had to protect us, “she said.
Sheard warned earlier this week that the event could become “free for all” as motorcyclists are forced to deviate from a pre-planned route after police said they would not allow vehicles in the city center.
“We keep hearing that things should never have been as bad as they were if certain steps had been taken from the beginning,” Lee said. “Well, now we know what those steps are. So all you have to do, in theory, is take those steps. “
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