Arrests in Ottawa as bikers rally turns unruly

A police car blocks the street as supporters of the ‘Rolling Thunder’ convoy turn out in large numbers for a demonstration in downtown Ottawa.

Ottawa police deployed in force yesterday in the Canadian capital’s centre amid a motorcyclists-led anti-establishment protest, after making multiple arrests when a crowd became “combative” overnight.At least seven participants in the “Rolling Thunder Ottawa” rally, which comes two months after a three-week-long trucker-led occupation of the city, have been arrested, police said on Friday.Canadian authorities have vowed to prevent the motorcyclists’ rally from becoming as disruptive as the truckers’ demonstrations, which choked central Ottawa before the government invoked extraordinary powers to dismantle it.Three city blocks around the Parliament have been barricaded since the end of the truckers’ demonstration.On Friday night, “Public Order Units were deployed ... to disperse an aggressive and combative crowd”, police said, noting that the seven were held on charges including assaulting police.Twenty-four vehicles have also been towed.The bikers have not made their demands explicit, though several said in social media posts that they sought to “defend their freedom”, while others bitterly criticised Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his policies.Early yesterday, protesters on foot converged on a war monument in central Ottawa, said an AFP journalist.Among the protesters were military veterans wearing medal-bedecked vests, their participation reminiscent of the truckers’ protests, when former police officers and retired soldiers helped co-ordinate protest actions.Many demonstrators carried Canadian flags – brandished as a symbol of protest when the truckers, angered over anti-pandemic protocols and broader government policies, rallied in Ottawa.Yesterday drones could be seen flying overhead as helmeted police maintained a heavy presence.Motorised vehicles are banned on weekends from the central area where the parliament and the prime minister’s residence are located.Police say they are monitoring social media for “threatening or intimidating behaviours”.A protest organiser, Neil Sheard, had said on a YouTube video that the restrictions on vehicle traffic could spark a “free for all”.In a video posted to YouTube, Sheard said that his plan is to lay a wreath at the National War Memorial in a show of respect for veterans.Other groups that are participating are protesting more generally against the government and government mandates.Sheard said he supports any group that wants to fight for the freedom of all Canadians, because in his view, freedom of speech was paid for by veterans.On Twitter, the police noted that some protesters were wearing protective gear.It added: “We are reminding everyone to remain lawful, respectful and follow police direction.”On the fringes of yesterday’s protest, counter-protesters – many of them local residents unhappy about the latest intrusion – expressed their own frustrations.A community group called Horizon Ottawa said in a statement that “the terror of the occupation cannot ever be repeated”.Local media say several of the participants in the current demonstration were in Ottawa during the previous protest, which was against a vaccine mandate for cross-border truckers.