As part of the government’s reaction to stopping demonstrations over Canada’s COVID-19 mandates, Canadian police officers riding horses through a gathering of protestors in downtown Ottawa were seen on video pushing their way through.
Per the New York Times, some participants of the Freedom Convoy were shoved over by police on horses as part of a crowd-dispersal squad, prompting protesters to flee the scene.
The mounted cops seem to be pushing individuals of the convoy off their feet as they make their way through the dense throng, according to the video footage collected.
According to the footage, a guy can be heard shouting, “They just completely stomped that woman.”
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According to The New York Times, after invoking the Emergencies Act, law enforcement officers working under new powers granted to them by Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau started clearing out downtown after declaring a state of emergency.
As noted by The New York Times, the 1988 Emergency Measures Act superseded Canada’s War Measures Act after the deployment of the act against demonstrators by Justin Trudeau’s father.
During the round-up, the Ottawa Police Force said 70 demonstrators were detained and 21 cars were towed by officers. Children have been placed in the path of police operations and the illegal protest site by protesters.
Canada, a place where mounted police trample over elderly women with mobility scooters.
Time for every nation in the world to put Canada’s government on a list.
pic.twitter.com/sl5RE6dCxe— Greg Price (@greg_price11) February 19, 2022
The protestors, according to Ottawa police, were using children as human shields to avoid arrests and intensifying confrontational tactics towards officers.
This resulted in an escalated crackdown on the demonstrators. Children attending the demonstration will be “taken to safety,” according to a police tweet.
Protesters have assaulted cops and sought to seize officers’ firearms from their possession. The Ottawa police department stated they were using “all available tools” to de-escalate the situation in order to restore normality to the city.
It was stated on Friday that the Canadian Civil Rights Association (CCLA) filed an action in the Canadian Federal Court, seeking to have the emergency orders issued by Trudeau reviewed and, if necessary, removed from the books.
Noa Mendelsohn Aviv, Executive Director of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association, said in a statement on Thursday the group did not feel the Canadian government fulfilled the high standard required to activate the Emergencies Act.
Emergency Act is in Place
According to Mendelsohn, he closely listened to the Prime Minister this morning.
In doing this, he heard no new legal arguments for declaring a national emergency or for the tremendous authority the government hopes to bestow on itself in order to circumvent the traditional democratic process.
Coutts police honors, greets and hugs truckers who have blocked the US – Canada border for 18 consecutive days. pic.twitter.com/RL4F7l0JBh
— RadioGenova (@RadioGenova) February 15, 2022
Thus, the use of the Emergency Act is needless, unjustified, and unconstitutional, and it should be stopped immediately.
The more the Canadian police crack down, the more citizens will unite against Prime Minister Trudeau flexing his dictatorial power.