Tens of thousands of people rolled into Canada’s capital Ottawa on Saturday (Jan. 29) for a massive protest against Prime Minister Justin Trudeau’s COVID-19 vaccine mandates in front of parliament on a frigid winter day.
The “Freedom Convoy”—coming from east and west—started out as a rally against a COVID-19 vaccine requirement for cross-border truckers, but has turned into a demonstration against government overreach during the pandemic.
Canadian prime minister Justin Trudeau and his family have left their home in Ottawa to hide in a secret location, amid security concerns as over 10,000 people pour into the Canadian capital on Saturday (Jan. 29) in trucker convoys to protest COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
The Canadian Parliament’s Sergeant-at-Arms has warned that demonstrators could “show up” at the homes of officials.
“The small fringe minority of people who are on their way to Ottawa who are holding unacceptable views that they are expressing do not represent the views of Canadians who have been there for each other, who know that following the science and stepping up to protect each other is the best way to continue to ensure our freedoms, our rights, our values, as a country,” Trudeau has said about the protesters.
Parliamentary Protective Service estimated up to 10,000 people may attend the protests. The Ottawa Police Service has received reinforcements from the Toronto, London, York, and Durham regions, plus the Ontario Provincial Police.