Participant in a protest against covid restrictions in Ottawa, CanadaMOSCOW, Feb. 5 Doug Ford, minister of Canada's most populous province of Ontario, called the protests against coronavirus restrictions in the country's capital, Ottawa, an «occupation.» Ford said during the briefing. Addressing the protesters, Ontario's premier urged them to end the speeches. «We are so close … to returning to normal,» Ford added, commenting on the situation with covid restrictions. Protest rights are guaranteed, but the occupation » unacceptable,» the provincial premier stressed.
Protesters in Canada danced at the National War Memorial»We will not tolerate… hate… , attacks … or violence, «- he said. Large-scale actions against coronavirus restrictions, initiated by Canadian truckers, began in Ottawa on January 29. The protesters demanded that the authorities lift all restrictions related to the pandemic and vaccination of the population, which, according to them, are contrary to the country's constitution. The action was generally peaceful. However, the police launched several criminal investigations into the protesters. One of the investigations concerns the desecration of a war memorial. Prime Minister Justin Trudeau changed residence amid these events for security reasons. Ottawa Police said they would deploy an additional 150 police officers to several areas of the city due to ongoing demonstrations.
