Several hundred Canadian truckers, who received support from Elon Musk, converged on Ottawa, the Canadian capital, on Friday to take part in a demonstration against compulsory vaccination to cross the Canada-US border.
Leaving among other places from British Columbia (Pacific coast) to rally Ottawa (east), the
"Freedom Convoy"
, as it was baptized by the truckers, has continued to grow in recent years. days.
The meeting point is now Parliament Hill, in the heart of the federal capital.
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"We don't want to be forced to get vaccinated, it should be a personal choice
," told AFP a protester, Louise, who came to support the truckers during a stop in the Vaudreuil region, on the road to Ottawa.
Under the cheers of the crowd and honking, the white-haired retiree said she feared
"a total loss"
of her freedom.
She participates in the mobilization to
"thank the truckers"
and
"send a message to the Trudeau government".
“Whether people are vaccinated or not is not the issue.
The problem is the obligation,”
Tabitha, 26, told AFP, holding a Canadian flag in her hands.
According to her, Canada needs to regain its
“commonalities and fundamental ideals”.
"National demonstration"
Since mid-January, Canada and the United States have imposed fully vaccinated against Covid-19 on truckers crossing the border between the United States and Canada, the longest in the world at nearly 9,000 km.
A measure denounced by part of the truckers, supported since Thursday by the American billionaire Elon Musk, who tweeted Thursday:
“Canadian truckers ensure.”
"It's a national event.
It will be significant in size and polarizing in nature,”
Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly said at a press conference on Friday, referring to a
“complex and rapidly changing” situation.
The latter said he was unable to quantify the number of trucks or participants, but expects
“major problems”
on the roads around the capital and asks the population to avoid travel.
Above all, the police fear excesses and violence, even if the organizers of the movement have made it known that they intend to demonstrate
"peacefully".
Ottawa police have warned that some people may join the movement to
"incite hatred and violence"
.
Some traders have gone ahead and closed for the weekend, according to local media.
Politicians in the Federal Capital Region could also be targeted, the police chief said.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, currently in isolation after being in contact, defended the vaccination obligation for truckers on Wednesday, recalling that 90% of them are already vaccinated.
"The comments made by certain people associated with this convoy are unacceptable
," said the Prime Minister, while the leader of the Conservative opposition, Erin O'Toole, said Thursday that he would meet some of the truckers. .
On social networks, some members of far-right circles have indeed made threatening remarks and called to imitate the assault on the Capitol, in reference to the attack on the American Congress in January 2021. The Canadian police fear that the mobilization of truckers does not extend beyond the weekend.
Believing that the
“vast majority”
of truck drivers are vaccinated in Canada, the Canadian Trucking Alliance, a major industry association,
“strongly disagreed”
this demonstration.
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