In Ottawa, the Canadian capital, many neighbors have cost them to fall asleep in recent days. The trucker strike and its constant roar of claxons has made it impossible in various parts of the city, with the center partially blocked. Protest for the mandatory vaccination policy for cross-border travel imposed by the Government of Prime Minister, Justin Trudeau, a movement seconded by the antivacunas that has caused blockages on the border with the United States and who threatens to spread to the neighboring country.
In addition to the paralysis that Emana de Ottawa since January 29, the truckers managed to block a border bridge with Detroit, the Ambassador, a vital link for the automotive industry based in Michigan for the constant flow of parts for vehicles that arrive from the North and that could lead to more problems for production chains. All this with the explicit support of the former president of the US, Donald Trump, who on Friday tiled Trudeau of "Lunatic of the extreme left" to remain firm in his policy of "demented mandates on the Covid".
His party, the Republican, has also joined the movement, nicknamed caravan of freedom, with a fundraiser for Canadian drivers who reached 9 million dollars through the Gofundme platform. However, the campaign suffered a strong setback when the portal itself decided to suspend the initiative and return all the donations, a decision that unleashed the angers of politicians such as the governor of Florida, Ron Desantis, or Senator by Texas, Ted Cruz.
Even so, the echoes of that denialist and antivacunas feeling could generate a similar protest in US territory. There are plans underway to form a caravan that would start in Sacramento, the capital of California, and it would end in Washington DC, according to messages distributed by social networks. Brian Brabe, the trucker at the front of the protest in the US, has not wanted to comment on the magnitude of the initiative or how many days it could last.
What is very perceptible is the number of groups that have emerged on Facebook around the # TruckersConvoy2022 movement, with two million interactions in the last two weeks, according to the portal itself. Some have been dropped by Facebook for sharing content related to Qanon's conspiratory theories that played an important role in the assault on the Capitol of January 6, 2021.
The spirit around these "caravans of freedom" is similar. Some understand it as "a war against the enemy that must be combated", hoping to create a logistic hecatombe that affects the country's basic supply chain, from supermarkets to pharmacies, shops, hospitals and even the postal service.
In Ottawa, Nazi and Confederate flags have waved among the demonstrators who dream of overthrowing the Canadian government. Trudeau, on the other hand, has accused the truck drivers and the violent-they have produced more than twenty arrests - to weaken Canadian democracy and damage their own interests. He affirmed from the House of Commons who are "trying to block our economy, our democracy and the daily routines of our compatriots."
Likewise, the Prime Minister indicated on Twitter that he will mobilize the mounted police to help agents in Ottawa after declaring the state of emergency in the capital. "We will allocate the resources that are necessary to have the situation under control," he said.
The protests have not only occurred in Ottawa. In Quebec City, north of Montreal, similar concentrations have been recorded. "We want to recover our province. We want to recover our country," said a protester to the Reuters agency. In France, a group of truckers put direction from the south to join the movement in Paris, with protests in the Capitals of New Zealand and Australia in solidarity with their American companions.
The blow of so many blocks will be significant for the Canadian economy. 75% of their exports have as US destination, with a flow of about 8,000 daily trucks by that step between Windsor and Detroit that represents a commercial activity of about 325 million dollars. More than 40,000 people cross for that step daily.
According to the Windsor authorities, traffic problems continue. Only a limited number of trucks is being able to enter the US, so the local police are recommending to resort to alternative routes, such as Port Huron, in Michigan, which connects with Sarnia, in the province of Ontario.
At the local level, the impact has been felt in restaurants and other shops. Those who are attached to regulations and ask for vaccination proof to their clients, have lost an important business volume for the boycott of the truckers to their establishments, a crisis that seems far from resolved.
Date Of Update: 09 February 2022, 16:31
