Reports indicate that Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau has fled his home for a secret location as a result of vaccine mandate protests which occurred at Parliament Hill in Ottawa, Ontario. The protestors were there for the "Freedom Convoy" to oppose vaccine mandates for cross-border truck drivers between Canada and the United States. Many were also there to oppose Wuhan coronavirus restrictions imposed by the Canadian government.
As John Paul Tasker reported for CBC News:
Trudeau and his family are no longer at their home, Rideau Cottage, which is on the property of the Governor General's residence in the New Edinburgh neighbourhood of Ottawa — roughly four kilometres from the epicentre of the protest.
The Prime Minister's Office said it could not comment on Trudeau's whereabouts for security reasons. His itinerary, which normally lists the city where he's staying, said only that he's in the "national capital region."
Trudeau and his family have moved residences over "security concerns," though according to the Ottawa Police Service there were no threats of violence or injuries reported. Further, the event organizers stressed peaceful protest.
Pretty peaceful for a bunch of fringe fascists with unacceptable opinions. Good work truckers. Keep on smiling. https://t.co/gDmgj4qxwC
— Dr Jordan B Peterson (@jordanbpeterson) January 30, 2022
Tasker also reported on there being no violence, and that the organizers urged calm and peace:
One of the protest's key organizers on Friday warned participants to demonstrate peacefully.
"We cannot achieve our goals if there are threats or acts of violence," said B.J. Dichter. "This movement is a peaceful protest, and we do not condone any acts of violence."
He warned protesters not to enter government buildings, disrespect police officers, act in a way that escalates tense situations and make "any type of threat."
The reaction from Trudeau was not the only overreaction to the peaceful protests. Canadian politicians and media have also looked down upon people making their voices heard.
One of the most trending articles for CBC News on Sunday, for instance, is that "Ottawa mayor would like protesters to move on, but organizers say they're not going anywhere."
Mayor Jim Watson told CBC News' "Rosemary Barton Live" that he wanted the city to go back to normal, though protesters are willing to make their voices heard until their demands are met, which is likely what 'normal' for them means.
"You have the right to protest, you've had your protest, please move on. Our city has to get back in normal stead," Watson said as part of his remarks.
CTV has also been mocked on Twitter for claiming that protesters "defaced" a Terry Fox statue by adorning it with items such as an upside Canadian flag.
It kind of looks like they’ve just added a Canadian flag in the picture you’ve chosen…surely you meant to show one of these pictures, right? Or am I confused about what “deface” means? pic.twitter.com/j5wHQX818d
— Iilly (@insomniaNcoffee) January 30, 2022
Oh man, if this is what they think ‘defaced’ means, wait until they find out what happened when BLM protests destroyed statues of Frederick Douglass, Ulysses S. Grant, civil war veterans…
— Rebecca Downs (@RebeccaRoseGold) January 30, 2022
The trucker's convoy has had support from major figures such as Elon Musk, Russell Brand, and former President Donald Trump, as well as through social media campaigns such as #TruckersForFreedom.