Trudeau demands an end to trucker protest

Truckers and their supporters are protesting COVID vaccine mandates in Ottawa [Reuters]

OTTAWA (AFP), 8 FEB, 2022 - Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau demanded an end Monday to a protest by hundreds of truckers against Covid-19 restrictions that has paralyzed the capital, as Ottawa’s mayor called on federal authorities for support.

“It has to stop,” Trudeau said during an emergency debate in the House of Commons on his return to parliament after isolating for week due to a positive Covid-19 test.

“This pandemic has sucked for all Canadians,” the premier said, visibly frustrated over the protests that have brought Ottawa to a standstill for more than week.

“But Canadians know the way to get through it is continuing to listen to science, continuing to lean on each other,” he added. He pledged federal government support “with whatever resources the province and city need,” without elaborating what measures might be planned.

Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson earlier urged the federal government to send an additional 1,800 police officers and appoint a mediator to work with protesters to “end this siege” that has infuriated local residents with incessant honking and diesel fumes.