There is a fence on Parliament Hill, an exclusion zone around a few blocks in the center and hundreds of additional police officers on call as Ottawa prepares for the arrival of Rolling Thunder riders on Friday afternoon.
The group was not clear about the cause they were gathering for, except to be in Ottawa to “celebrate our freedom peacefully.”
Hundreds of motorcyclists are expected to arrive on Friday before the rally on Saturday morning. They plan to tour the city center, stopping at the National War Memorial and marching to a rally on Parliament’s hill.
Vehicles participating in the rally will not be allowed in an area that includes the war memorial and parliament, police said, nor will they be allowed to stop along the route, but participants can walk through the area.
“We will not prevent protesters from attending the nation’s capital to have their voices heard,” Ottawa Interim Police Chief Steve Bell said at a briefing Thursday.
Neil Sheard, one of the organizers of protests against the restrictions on COVID-19, had previously warned “free for all” if police did not allow the group to bring their bicycles through the streets around Parliament Hill.
Elgin Street Public School Principal Brian Begby sent a note to parents Thursday from the Ottawa-Carlton School Board, saying the board is in contact with police to ensure that school safety concerns are addressed. .
“We understand that many families had a difficult experience in February and may be concerned about another downtown demonstration,” the note said, directing parents to liaise with community support organizations.
Protesters say they plan to leave the city on Sunday.
This led to criticism that it could disrupt the planned fundraising for cycling for the Children’s Hospital of Eastern Ontario on the same day. Rolling Thunder organizers have added a link to their website and are encouraging supporters to donate to CHEO.
Police said they would not tolerate a long-term protest like the one that occupied the center for weeks in February, and all camps would be dismantled.
Ottawa police have also been under intense scrutiny since February. Chief Peter Sloley resigned, and Bell said the service had learned a lot from the experience.
The February occupation – which ended after the federal government first invoked the Emergency Situations Act and hundreds of police officers intervened to disperse crowds, making dozens of arrests – disrupted traffic, closed businesses and led to complaints of harassment, intimidation and hatred. behavior, leadership.
Rolling Thunder has partnered with several groups, apparently linked to the Freedom Convoy.
A statement from the group’s website attributed to Sheard said they did not support “blockades, obstruction of the police in the performance of their duties, damage to property or hatred and rage against Ottawa residents.”
The statement also encouraged supporters to abide by the law and said police would be held accountable in court for their actions during the event.
“Finally, as seen during the legal protest in Ottawa, spread as much peace, love and patriotism as possible to your fellow Canadians,” the statement said.
At a Holocaust Remembrance Day event on Thursday, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the world was “shocked and scared to see Nazi images on display in the country’s capital” in February.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on April 29, 2022.
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