Canada Heroes - Trucker Convoi Freedom tour to Ottawa

Canada Heroes - Trucker Convoi Freedom tour to Ottawa

Since Jan. 15, truckers travelling between Canada and the U.S. must be fully vaccinated to avoid a two-week quarantine and being tested for COVID-19 upon their arrival.

The protest convoy movement began in British Columbia and has attracted participants from across the country.

Supporters have said they will join the convoy to Ottawa and participate in protests this weekend. Protesters supporting extreme right-wing opinions have also joined the protest.

Earlier in the week, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau described the convoy as a small, marginal protest. However, in an interview with The Canadian Press on Friday, he voiced his concern about the potential for violence.

Trudeau said the “freedom convoy” is no longer a protest against the federal vaccine mandate for cross-border truckers, but rather it has morphed into a forum for a small minority of “very angry” people opposed to all public health measures to curb the spread of COVID-19, some of whom espouse violence.

The prime minister said it doesn’t worry him that much of the anger is directed at him personally; getting an earful from angry critics goes with the territory of being a politician.

But he said threats of violence should not go with the territory for anyone who steps up to serve, including politicians and health-care workers.

While supporters of the convoy are rallying around a cry of freedom, Trudeau said they’re ignoring the freedom of fellow Canadians to protect themselves against COVID-19, get their kids back in school, their businesses back in operation and life back to normal.

For its part, the Quebec government reacted to the protest with caution on Friday. Justice Minister Simon Jolin-Barrette, house leader for the Coalition Avenir Québec, said people have the right to express themselves, but it must be done peacefully.