An Ottawa Police Chief says military action is being considered as a means to clear out truckers involved in a “Freedom Convoy” protest, while others are demanding funds from a GoFundMe account benefitting the group be seized by the government.
The trucker convoy is a massive demonstration against the US-Canada cross-border vaccine mandate, introduced by the Government of Canada on January 15, 2022.
Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly said the capital city is considering all options in ending the protest and clearing the streets.
“The range of illegal, dangerous and unacceptable activities is beyond the ability to list and the time that we have there today,” Sloly told a meeting of city councilors.
Contrary to his assessment, a New York Times report indicates the convoy has been “raucous but largely peaceful.”
“We’re looking at every single option, including military aid to civil power,” Chief Sloly said. “As I said before, every option is being looked at.”
He notes that all options come with risks, but the military “option in particular, would come with massive risks.”
Ottawa politicians are talking about bringing the might of the military down on these people. https://t.co/uTf91Hn6Zv
— Ian Miles Cheong (@stillgray) February 3, 2022
RELATED: Trudeau, In Hiding From Protesters, Once Urged Canadians To ‘Thank A Trucker’
Freedom Convoy Threatened With Military Action, Seizure Of Funds
The ‘Freedom Convoy,’ in addition to being threatened with military action, also has officials demanding that the government seize their assets from a fundraising effort on behalf of the group on the crowd-funding site GoFundMe.
The campaign was already suspended by the site Wednesday night after raising nearly $8 million.
Ottawa City Councilor Diane Deans, a member of the country’s Liberal Party, told the mayor to contact GoFundMe and advise them to “cease and desist sending money to these unlawful protesters.”
Deans referred to the ‘Freedom Convoy’ as “mercenaries.”
NOW – #Ottawa City Council: “We need cut off the pipeline of funding to these… mercenaries that are unlawfully protesting and occupying our communities.” pic.twitter.com/9i0j0VuYYi
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) February 2, 2022
Ottawa City Councilor Mathieu Fleury, a Liberal like Deans, reportedly tweeted a plan to seize the money from the Canadian trucker convoy.
“This morning, I have asked the city manager and city solicitor to immediately launch court proceedings targeting the millions of dollars in funds frozen by @GoFundMe so Ottawa taxpayers are not left holding the bag for these protests,” Fleury reportedly tweeted.
UPDATE – This tweet has now been deleted: pic.twitter.com/4FPcpJmUYE
— Disclose.tv (@disclosetv) January 31, 2022
RELATED: Canadian Trucker Freedom Convoy Blocking U.S.-Alberta Border, Farmers Joining The Protest
Canada Must Not Fall
Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, emerging from an “undisclosed location” since the ‘Freedom Convoy’ arrived, indicates the federal government is working with Ottawa police to clear out the truckers.
“We will continue to work with law enforcement agencies to ensure that people are protected and to ensure that this protest, which is now becoming illegal, does come to an end,” said Trudeau, who Fox News host Tucker Carlson described as a “tyrant.”
The massive protest, which arrived in Ottawa this past weekend, was joined by thousands of protesters on the streets and farmers using tractors to participate, demanding the repeal of vaccine mandates and other COVID restrictions.
Trudeau slammed the truckers for allegedly spreading “hateful rhetoric,” expressing “violence toward fellow citizens,” and being “an insult to memory and truth.”
That, ladies and gentleman, is what we in the business call ‘projection.’
Canadian Truckers absolutely SHAMED AND EXPOSED Trudeau so Tucker can SAVAGELY deliver this final blow
WATCH. pic.twitter.com/9PTnf7PCR7
— Benny (@bennyjohnson) February 1, 2022
And like any great dictatorship knows, military action accompanied by the seizure of assets is a necessity, but control of the flow of information to the general public is also key.
Like clockwork, Facebook has been accused of trying to suppress information regarding a similar effort to start a ‘Freedom Convoy’ in the United States.
A page titled “Convoy to D.C. 2022,” has reportedly been removed by Facebook in what organizer Jeremy Johnson described as “censorship at its finest.”
Facebook alleges that the page violated policies surrounding Qanon, though organizers insist any mention of the conspiracy group could only be by public viewers in the comments section.
US truckers slam Facebook for removing page organizing DC freedom convoy: ‘Censorship at its finest’ https://t.co/Ergl5W1V2S
— Fox News (@FoxNews) February 2, 2022
Other pages and groups attempting to organize information for an American ‘Freedom Convoy’ have sprung up on the social media platform.
There are also more localized groups organizing to join the main convoy to Washington, D.C.
One public group, ‘The Freedom Convoy to DC – Northeast Route’ describes themselves as “a nonviolent, leaderless, First Amendment, peaceful assembly of Americans seeking Redress of Grievances” involving onerous mandates.
“We are not anti-government; we are pro-Constitution,” the group, now nearly 15,000 people strong, states.
If the Canadian truckers are dispersed using seizure of finances or military action, it would mark a dangerous turning point in Western liberal democracy.
