TORONTO: In a scene at odds with Canadians reputation for niceness and rule-following, thousands of protesters railing against vaccine mandates and other Covid-19 restrictions descended on the capital over the weekend, deliberately blocking traffic around Parliament Hill.

Some urinated and parked on the National War Memorial. One danced on the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier. A number carried signs and flags with swastikas.

In the aftermath of Canada’s biggest pandemic protest to date, the demonstrators have found little sympathy in a country where more than 80pc are vaccinated. Many people were outraged by some of the crude behaviour.

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau called the Ottawa protesters “a fringe minority” and said they reflected the proliferation of “disinformation and misinformation online, conspiracy theorists, about microchips, about God knows what else that go with the tinfoil hats.”

Organisers, including one who has espoused white supremacist views, had raised millions for the cross-country freedom truck convoy against vaccine mandates. It attracted support from former US President Donald Trump and Tesla billionaire Elon Musk.

Trudeau and his family were moved to an undisclosed location during the protest. (Two of his children tested positive for Covid-19, and a test revealed he, too, was infected. He said he is fine and working remotely.) A smaller but still significant number of protesters remained on the streets on Tuesday.

You had your 15 minutes. Time to move on and give back our city to our residents, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson said.

Those who stayed said they wont leave until all vaccine mandates and other restrictions are gone.

Published in Dawn, February 2nd, 2022