https://ift.tt/17OgaBk of Canadian truckers converged on Ottawa Friday for a major demonstration against vaccine mandates to cross the Canada-U.S. border.
Coming from as far as British Columbia on the Pacific Coast, the “Freedom Convoy”, as the truckers have named it, has been growing and drawing more attention in recent days.
The meeting point for the weekend rally has been set for Parliament Hill, in the heart of the Canadian capital.
Since mid-January, Canada and the United States have imposed a COVID-19 vaccine mandate for truck drivers crossing the border between the two countries, the longest in the world at nearly 9,000 kilometers (5,500 miles).
The vaccine mandate has been denounced by some truckers, who received an endorsement from Tesla and SpaceX founder Elon Musk, who tweeted on Thursday “Canadian truckers rule.”
“These demonstrations are national in scope. They’re massive in scale. Unfortunately, they’re polarizing in nature,” said Ottawa police Chief Peter Sloly Friday.
He was unable say how many trucks or demonstrators would show up but warned of “major traffic safety issues” in the capital and asked people to stay off the roads whenever possible.
He said organizers of the protest had told police it would be peaceful but warned that some people may join the movement to “incite hatred and violence.”