FILE PHOTO - Tomb of the Unknown Soldier monument in Ottawa
Image Credit: Wikipedia Commons
January 30, 2022 - 1:31 PM
The Royal Canadian Legion “strongly condemns” the actions of protesters who jumped on an important war memorial in Ottawa yesterday.
“They jumped on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier and parked vehicles on the surrounding grounds. This sacred memorial site commemorates those who fought and fell for the very freedoms that allow people in Canada the right to protest peacefully. We are dismayed and saddened by this overt lack of respect,” according to a statement issued by the legion.
Several criminal investigations are underway into actions, including the desecration of monuments, during the ongoing protest of government-imposed vaccine mandates and COVID-19 restrictions, Ottawa police said Sunday, Jan. 30.
The protests originally started to support Canadian truckers who opposed the vaccine mandate to get into the United States but it has grown into protests across the country against all pandemic and vaccine mandates.
Protestors also received condemnation for placing an upside-down Canadian flag as well as a protest Canada flag and hat on the statue of Terry Fox.
READ MORE: Officials decry 'desecration' of monuments during Ottawa protest
Today, Ottawa residents are being told to avoid travelling downtown as a convoy of trucks and cars snarl traffic protesting government-imposed vaccine mandates and COVID-19 restrictions.
Yesterday, Jan. 30, a convoy against pandemic and vaccine mandates drove from Vernon to Osoyoos and hundreds gathered at Kelowna’s Stuart Park. Police reported there were no incidents, said Cpl. Tammy Lobb, media relations for the Kelowna RCMP. Protests and a convoy were also held last weekend in the Interior.
READ MORE: Hundreds gather for trucker protest against pandemic mandates in Okanagan
The Canadian Trucking Association has condemned the actions of the protestors, saying a vast majority of truckers are vaccinated.
"The Canadian Trucking Alliance does not support and strongly disapproves of any protests on public roadways, highways, and bridges," the statement read. "CTA believes such actions – especially those that interfere with public safety – are not how disagreements with government policies should be expressed."
READ MORE: Canadian Trucking Alliance condemns protests by unvaccinated truckers
- With files from The Canadian Press
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