“We are not leaving”, say the anti-vaccines who sow chaos in the Canadian capital defiantly

Not even the threats of fines, arrests, confiscation of vehicles or removal of their children from custody are making a dent among the anti-vaccine protesters who have been occupying the center of Ottawa with heavy trucks and proclaim that no one is going to take them out of the city.

“We are going to stick to our guns. We are not going to leave”, explained this defiant Wednesday, to the applause of unconditional supporters, to a group of journalists the controversial Canadian right-wing politician Randy Hillierwho was expelled from the Conservative Party in 2019 for making fun of the father of an autistic child.

LOOK: “Freedom Convoy”: How anti-vaccines have paralyzed Ottawa and put Trudeau in check

Hillier and another controversial politician, Maxim Bernierleader of the People’s Party of Canada (PPC), had convened in Ottawa a press conference to introduce some of the protagonists of the protest.

Surrounded by Hillier and Bernier, who was Minister of Defense and Foreign Affairs between 2007 and 2011 during the governments of Conservative Prime Minister Stephen Harper and left the party in 2018 to create the PPC, to the right of his former political formation, the protesters paraded for the microphones.

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First a rancher from the province of Alberta, in the west of the country, who joined the self-styled “Freedom Convoy” along with their three children. Later, a farmer, also from the west of the country, founder of the organization Take Back Our Freedoms (TBOF or “Recover Our Freedoms”).

A citizen walks between trucks in downtown Ottawa. (EFE/EPA/ANDRE PICHETTE).

There were also a couple of doctors opposed to the conclusions of most of the world’s scientists about the epidemic and its treatment. And a religious man, Henry Hildebrandt, a Protestant pastor who blessed the anti-vaccine truckers and their actions.

LOOK: The chaos in Canada due to the protest of truckers against the mandatory vaccine against the coronavirus

“Canada it was founded on principles that recognize the supremacy of God. I am here to represent God. I’ve been here 12 days and I can’t leave because every time I see a trucker I thank God!” Hildebrandt explained.

“Friends, our prayers have been answered. MP after MP are going against our prime minister (Justin Trudeau). Our prime minister has said the wrong things, contrary to our constitution, contrary to our rights, and most importantly, contrary to the word of God. Our prime minister will fail!”He continued raising his voice.

“Everyone is watching. The world knows our truckers are leading the way and we applaud them.”ended by declaring the pastor.

A man walks down a street as truckers continue to protest vaccination mandates. (EFE/EPA/ANDRE PICHETTE).

BUSY DOWNTOWN OTTAWA

The spirit of the press conference condenses the atmosphere in the streets around the Parliament of Canadaoccupied since January 29 by some 400 trucks and hundreds of protesters from all over the country.

This protest, which sounds its horns day and night, has provoked confrontation with the residents of the area, while Prime Minister Tudeau accused the protesters on Monday of “blocking” democracy. and the Canadian economy.

In festive huddles around a campfire, by the cabs of heavy trucks or in front of tarmac tents, protesters exude optimism and resolve.

Many of them speak in patriotic or religious terms, of having discovered a cause worth fighting for and of a camaraderie they had never experienced. And all say they are willing to maintain the occupation until the last consequences.

On Wednesday, Ottawa authorities managed to get a judge to authorize multiplying the price of fines for lighting fires, supplying truckers or transporting fuel in drums to keep engines and generators running.

But hours after Ottawa warned that protesters face fines of thousands of dollars for carrying a can of fuel down the street, the supply of gasoline is kept right under the noses of police officers.

Police block a street as truckers continue to protest vaccination mandates in downtown Ottawa. (EFE/EPA/ANDRE PICHETTE).

Protesters have begun to use ingenious stratagems to make threats useless. Today, dozens of people wandered through the Canadian capital carrying empty gasoline drums, to confuse the agents who cannot stop and fine them all.

Police of Ottawa He also warned that the blockade of streets being carried out by truckers is a criminal offense known as “property damage”, because it prevents citizens from using the streets, and that “anyone who hinders or helps to hinder” the streets can be arrested.

In addition, police said, vehicles can be impounded and if a person is convicted in court, they will have a criminal past and may not be admitted to the United States.

Despite warnings, not a single truck moved from downtown Ottawa Wednesday night.

Not only that, this weekend, truckers anti-vaccine from Ottawa will receive reinforcements: Hillier announced on Wednesday the formation of the so-called “Blue Collar Convoy” (“Convoy of workers”), made up of workers from the construction sector and that will arrive in the Canadian capital in the next few hours.

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Source: Elcomercio