A protest against the requirement for a vaccine passport for truck drivers crossing the Canada-U.S. border has paralyzed Ottawa for the second day in a row.
Thousands of protesters joined the so-called “Freedom Train” in the Canadian capital.
Police have opened an investigation after several incidents were recorded, including the appearance of swastika flags and images of a woman dancing at the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier, a monument that honours Canadian soldiers who fought in past wars.
Defence Minister Anita Anand said the incidents “were beyond reprehensible”.
Ottawa Police said in a message on Twitter that “several” investigations are underway into the “desecration” of several monuments in the capital. The local authority also said it was investigating “threatening/unlawful/intimidating behaviour towards police/city employees and other individuals as well as damage to a city vehicle”.
Truckers blocked streets around the Canadian Parliament and Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said some protesters harassed workers at a volunteer food distribution service, demanding free meals after they were banned from restaurants for refusing to comply with mask requirements in indoor settings.
On Saturday (29/1), Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his family also left their residence in Ottawa for security reasons.
About 90% of the 120,000 truck drivers who cross Canada’s borders are already vaccinated, a number similar to that seen in the rest of the country’s adult population.
The protest has grown beyond calling for an end to the vaccine passport requirement specifically at borders. Many are protesting the end of the need to show the document across the country.
Trudeau called the protesters a “minority” at a news conference early last week.
Conservative Leader Erin O’Toole met with some protesters and spoke out in support of the right to peaceful protest, but criticized “the individuals who have desecrated” memorials and monuments in Ottawa.
The Trudeau government introduced the vaccine passport on January 15. The new rule requires unvaccinated Canadian truckers to quarantine as soon as they cross the border to return home.
The United States also recently said foreign truck drivers must show proof of vaccination to enter the country.
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