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COVID-19 truck blockade in Canada shuts down Ford plant
By ROB GILLIES and TOM KRISHER
1 of 4
By ROB GILLIES and TOM KRISHER
1 of 4
A small line of semi-trailer trucks line up along northbound I-75 in Detroit as the Ambassador Bridge entrance is blocked off for travel to Canada on Tuesday, Feb. 8, 2022. Canadian lawmakers are expressing increasing worry about the economic effects of disruptive COVID-19 demonstrations. They spoke Tuesday after the busiest border crossing between the U.S. and Canada became partially blocked by truckers protesting vaccine mandates and other coronavirus restrictions. The Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario, carries 25 percent of trade between the two countries.
(Ryan Garza/Detroit Free Press via AP)
TORONTO (AP) — A blockade of the bridge between Canada and Detroit by protesters demanding an end to Canada’s COVID-19 restrictions forced the shutdown Wednesday of a Ford plant and began to have broader implications for the North American auto industry.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, meanwhile, stood firm against an easing of Canada’s COVID-19 restrictions in the face of mounting pressure during recent weeks by protests against the restrictions and against Trudeau himself.
The protest by people mostly in pickup trucks entered its third day at the Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario. Traffic was prevented from entering Canada, while U.S.-bound traffic was still moving.
The bridge carries 25% of all trade between the two countries, and Canadian authorities expressed increasing worry about the economic effects.
Ford said late Wednesday that parts shortages forced it to shut down its engine plant in Windsor and to run an assembly plant in Oakville, Ontario, on a reduced schedule.
“This interruption on the Detroit-Windsor bridge hurts customers, auto workers, suppliers, communities and companies on both sides of the border,” Ford said in a statement. “We hope this situation is resolved quickly because it could have widespread impact on all automakers in the U.S. and Canada.”
Shortages due to the blockade also forced General Motors to cancel the second shift of the day at its midsize-SUV factory near Lansing, Michigan. Spokesman Dan Flores said it was expected to restart Thursday and no additional impact was expected for the time being.
Later Wednesday, Toyota spokesman Scott Vazin said the company will not be able to manufacture anything at three Canadian plants for the rest of this week due to parts shortages. A statement attributed the problem to supply chain, weather and pandemic-related challenges, but the shutdowns came just days after the blockade began Monday.
“Our teams are working diligently to minimize the impact on production,” the company said, adding that it doesn’t expect any layoffs at this time.
Stellantis, formerly Fiat Chrysler, reported normal operations, though the company had to cut shifts short the previous day at its Windsor minivan plant.
“We are watching this very closely,″ White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said earlier of the bridge blockade.
“The blockade poses a risk to supply chains for the auto industry because the bridge is a key conduit for motor vehicles, components and parts, and delays risk disrupting auto production.”
A growing number of Canadian provinces have moved to lift some of their precautions as the omicron surge levels off, but Trudeau defended the measures the federal government is responsible for, including the one that has angered many truck drivers: a rule that took effect Jan. 15 requiring truckers entering Canada to be fully vaccinated.
“The reality is that vaccine mandates, and the fact that Canadians stepped up to get vaccinated to almost 90%, ensured that this pandemic didn’t hit as hard here in Canada as elsewhere in the world,” Trudeau said in Parliament.
About 90% of truckers in Canada are vaccinated, and trucker associations and many big-rig operators have denounced the protests. The U.S. has the same vaccination rule for truckers entering the country, so it would make little difference if Trudeau lifted the restriction.
Protesters have also been blocking the border crossing at Coutts, Alberta, for a week and a half, with about 50 trucks remaining there Wednesday. And more than 400 trucks have paralyzed downtown Ottawa, Canada’s capital, in a protest that began late last month.
While protesters have been calling for Trudeau’s removal, most of the restrictive measures around the country have been put in place by provincial governments. Those include requirements that people show proof-of-vaccination “passports” to enter restaurants, gyms, movie theaters and sporting events.
Alberta, Saskatchewan, Quebec, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia announced plans this week to roll back some or all of their precautions. Alberta, Canada’s most conservative province, dropped its vaccine passport immediately and plans to get rid of mask requirements at the end of the month.
Alberta opposition leader Rachel Notley accused the province’s premier, Jason Kenney, of allowing an “illegal blockade to dictate public health measures.”
Despite Alberta’s plans to scrap its measures, the protest there continued.
“We’ve got guys here — they’ve lost everything due to these mandates, and they’re not giving up, and they’re willing to stand their ground and keep going until this is done,” said protester John Vanreeuwyk, a feedlot operator from Coaldale, Alberta.
“Until Trudeau moves,” he said, “we don’t move.”
As for the Ambassador Bridge blockade, Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens said police had not removed people for fear of inflaming the situation. But he added: “We’re not going to let this happen for a prolonged period of time.”
The demonstration involved 50 to 74 vehicles and about 100 protesters, police said. Some of the protesters say they are willing to die for their cause, according to the mayor.
“I’ll be brutally honest: You are trying to have a rational conversation, and not everyone on the ground is a rational actor,” Dilkens said. “Police are doing what is right by taking a moderate approach, trying to sensibly work through this situation where everyone can walk away, nobody gets hurt, and the bridge can open.”
To avoid the blockade and get into Canada, truckers in the Detroit area had to drive 70 miles north to Port Huron, Michigan, and cross the Blue Water Bridge, where there was a 4½-hour delay leaving the U.S.
At a news conference in Ottawa that excluded mainstream news organizations, Benjamin Dichter, one of the protest organizers, said: “I think the government and the media are drastically underestimating the resolve and patience of truckers.”
“Drop the mandates. Drop the passports,” he said.
The “freedom truck convoy” has been promoted by Fox News personalities and attracted support from many U.S. Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, who called Trudeau a “far left lunatic” who has “destroyed Canada with insane Covid mandates.”
Pandemic restrictions have been far stricter in Canada than in the U.S., but Canadians have largely supported them. Canada’s COVID-19 death rate is one-third that of the U.S.
Interim Conservative leader Candice Bergen said in Parliament that countries around the world are removing restrictions and noted that Canadian provinces are, too. She accused Trudeau of wanting to live in a “permanent pandemic.”
Ontario, Canada’s largest province with almost 40% of the country’s population, is sticking to what it calls a “very cautious” stance toward the pandemic, and the deputy premier said it has no plans to drop vaccine passports or mask requirements.
______
Krisher contributed from Detroit.
TORONTO (AP) — A blockade of the bridge between Canada and Detroit by protesters demanding an end to Canada’s COVID-19 restrictions forced the shutdown Wednesday of a Ford plant and began to have broader implications for the North American auto industry.
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, meanwhile, stood firm against an easing of Canada’s COVID-19 restrictions in the face of mounting pressure during recent weeks by protests against the restrictions and against Trudeau himself.
The protest by people mostly in pickup trucks entered its third day at the Ambassador Bridge between Detroit and Windsor, Ontario. Traffic was prevented from entering Canada, while U.S.-bound traffic was still moving.
The bridge carries 25% of all trade between the two countries, and Canadian authorities expressed increasing worry about the economic effects.
Ford said late Wednesday that parts shortages forced it to shut down its engine plant in Windsor and to run an assembly plant in Oakville, Ontario, on a reduced schedule.
“This interruption on the Detroit-Windsor bridge hurts customers, auto workers, suppliers, communities and companies on both sides of the border,” Ford said in a statement. “We hope this situation is resolved quickly because it could have widespread impact on all automakers in the U.S. and Canada.”
Shortages due to the blockade also forced General Motors to cancel the second shift of the day at its midsize-SUV factory near Lansing, Michigan. Spokesman Dan Flores said it was expected to restart Thursday and no additional impact was expected for the time being.
Later Wednesday, Toyota spokesman Scott Vazin said the company will not be able to manufacture anything at three Canadian plants for the rest of this week due to parts shortages. A statement attributed the problem to supply chain, weather and pandemic-related challenges, but the shutdowns came just days after the blockade began Monday.
“Our teams are working diligently to minimize the impact on production,” the company said, adding that it doesn’t expect any layoffs at this time.
Stellantis, formerly Fiat Chrysler, reported normal operations, though the company had to cut shifts short the previous day at its Windsor minivan plant.
“We are watching this very closely,″ White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said earlier of the bridge blockade.
“The blockade poses a risk to supply chains for the auto industry because the bridge is a key conduit for motor vehicles, components and parts, and delays risk disrupting auto production.”
A growing number of Canadian provinces have moved to lift some of their precautions as the omicron surge levels off, but Trudeau defended the measures the federal government is responsible for, including the one that has angered many truck drivers: a rule that took effect Jan. 15 requiring truckers entering Canada to be fully vaccinated.
“The reality is that vaccine mandates, and the fact that Canadians stepped up to get vaccinated to almost 90%, ensured that this pandemic didn’t hit as hard here in Canada as elsewhere in the world,” Trudeau said in Parliament.
About 90% of truckers in Canada are vaccinated, and trucker associations and many big-rig operators have denounced the protests. The U.S. has the same vaccination rule for truckers entering the country, so it would make little difference if Trudeau lifted the restriction.
Protesters have also been blocking the border crossing at Coutts, Alberta, for a week and a half, with about 50 trucks remaining there Wednesday. And more than 400 trucks have paralyzed downtown Ottawa, Canada’s capital, in a protest that began late last month.
While protesters have been calling for Trudeau’s removal, most of the restrictive measures around the country have been put in place by provincial governments. Those include requirements that people show proof-of-vaccination “passports” to enter restaurants, gyms, movie theaters and sporting events.
Alberta, Saskatchewan, Quebec, Prince Edward Island and Nova Scotia announced plans this week to roll back some or all of their precautions. Alberta, Canada’s most conservative province, dropped its vaccine passport immediately and plans to get rid of mask requirements at the end of the month.
Alberta opposition leader Rachel Notley accused the province’s premier, Jason Kenney, of allowing an “illegal blockade to dictate public health measures.”
Despite Alberta’s plans to scrap its measures, the protest there continued.
“We’ve got guys here — they’ve lost everything due to these mandates, and they’re not giving up, and they’re willing to stand their ground and keep going until this is done,” said protester John Vanreeuwyk, a feedlot operator from Coaldale, Alberta.
“Until Trudeau moves,” he said, “we don’t move.”
As for the Ambassador Bridge blockade, Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens said police had not removed people for fear of inflaming the situation. But he added: “We’re not going to let this happen for a prolonged period of time.”
The demonstration involved 50 to 74 vehicles and about 100 protesters, police said. Some of the protesters say they are willing to die for their cause, according to the mayor.
“I’ll be brutally honest: You are trying to have a rational conversation, and not everyone on the ground is a rational actor,” Dilkens said. “Police are doing what is right by taking a moderate approach, trying to sensibly work through this situation where everyone can walk away, nobody gets hurt, and the bridge can open.”
To avoid the blockade and get into Canada, truckers in the Detroit area had to drive 70 miles north to Port Huron, Michigan, and cross the Blue Water Bridge, where there was a 4½-hour delay leaving the U.S.
At a news conference in Ottawa that excluded mainstream news organizations, Benjamin Dichter, one of the protest organizers, said: “I think the government and the media are drastically underestimating the resolve and patience of truckers.”
“Drop the mandates. Drop the passports,” he said.
The “freedom truck convoy” has been promoted by Fox News personalities and attracted support from many U.S. Republicans, including former President Donald Trump, who called Trudeau a “far left lunatic” who has “destroyed Canada with insane Covid mandates.”
Pandemic restrictions have been far stricter in Canada than in the U.S., but Canadians have largely supported them. Canada’s COVID-19 death rate is one-third that of the U.S.
Interim Conservative leader Candice Bergen said in Parliament that countries around the world are removing restrictions and noted that Canadian provinces are, too. She accused Trudeau of wanting to live in a “permanent pandemic.”
Ontario, Canada’s largest province with almost 40% of the country’s population, is sticking to what it calls a “very cautious” stance toward the pandemic, and the deputy premier said it has no plans to drop vaccine passports or mask requirements.
______
Krisher contributed from Detroit.
© Lars Hagberd, Reuters
Ford and Toyota on Wednesday both said they were halting some production as anti-coronavirus mandate protesters blocked U.S-Canada border crossings that have prompted warnings from Washington and Ottawa of economic damage.
Many pandemic-weary Western countries will soon mark two years of restrictions as copycat protests spread to Australia, New Zealand and France now the highly infectious Omicron variant begins to ease in some places
Horn-blaring protests have being causing gridlock in the capital Ottawa since late January and from Monday night, truckers shut inbound Canada traffic at the Ambassador Bridge, a supply route for Detroit’s carmakers and agricultural products.
A number of carmakers have now been affected by the disruption near Detroit, the historic heart of the U.S. automotive sector, but there were other factors too such as severe weather and a shortage of semi-conductor chips.
Toyota, the top U.S. seller, said it is not expected to produce vehicles at its Ontario sites for the rest of the week, output has been halted at a Ford engine plant and Chrysler-maker Stellantis has also been disrupted.
Another border crossing, in Alberta province, has been closed in both directions since late on Tuesday.
More than two-thirds of the C$650 billion ($511 billion) in goods traded annually between Canada and the United States is transported by road.
Starting as a “Freedom Convoy” occupying downtown Ottawa opposing a vaccinate-or-quarantine mandate for cross-border truckers mirrored by the U.S. government, protesters have also aired grievances about a carbon tax and other legislation.
“I think it’s important for everyone in Canada and the United States to understand what the impact of this blockage is – potential impact – on workers, on the supply chain, and that is where we’re most focused,” White House spokesperson Jen Psaki said on Wednesday.
“We’re also looking to track potential disruptions to U.S. agricultural exports from Michigan into Canada.”
Washington is working with authorities across the border to reroute traffic to the Blue Water Bridge, which links Port Huron in Michigan with Sarnia in Ontario, amid worries protests could turn violent, she told reporters.
Bank of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem called for a swift resolution.
“If there were to be prolonged blockages at key entry points into Canada that could start to have a measurable impact on economic activity,” he said.
“We’ve already got a strained global supply chain. We don’t need this.”
Protests spread
The protests were disrupting jobs too and “must end before further damage occurs,” Canada’s Emergency Preparedness Minister, Bill Blair, told reporters.
Ford suspended engine output in Windsor while its Oakville factory near Toronto is operating with a reduced schedule, as it warned the Ambassador Bridge closure “could have widespread impact on all automakers in the U.S. and Canada.”
Chrysler-maker Stellantis has also faced a shortage of parts at its assembly plant in Windsor, Ontario, where it had to end shifts early on Tuesday, but was able to resume production on Wednesday.
Protesters say they are peaceful, but some Ottawa residents have said they were attacked and harassed. In Toronto, streets were being blocked.
“Blockades, illegal demonstrations are unacceptable, and are negatively impacting businesses and manufacturers,” said Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. “We must do everything to bring them to an end.”
“We continue to know that science and public health rules and guidance is the best way to this pandemic is the way we’re going to get to the other side,” Trudeau said in the House of Commons.
The issue has caused a sharp split between the ruling Liberals and the opposition Conservatives, many of whom have expressed open support for the protesters in Ottawa and accuse Trudeau of using the mandates issue for political purposes.
In the United States, prosecutors in Missouri and Texas will probe crowd funding service GoFundMe over the decision to take down a page for a campaign in support of the drivers after some Republicans vowed to investigate.
Downtown Ottawa residents criticized police for their initially permissive attitude toward the blockade, but authorities began trying to take back control Sunday night with the seizure of thousands of liters of fuel and the removal of an oil tanker truck.
Police have asked for reinforcements – both officers and people with legal expertise in insurance and licensing – suggesting intentions to pursue enforcement through commercial vehicle licenses.
But as the authorities attempt to quell demonstrations in one area, they pop up elsewhere.
“Even as we have made some headway in Ottawa, we’ve seen an illegal blockade emerge in Windsor,” said Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino.
(France 24 with REUTERS, AFP)
Bank of Canada warns protesters blocking border may further hurt supply chain
The Bank of Canada warned Wednesday, protesters continuing to block the Ambassador Bridge between Michigan and Ontario over COVID-19 restrictions, could further negatively impact existing supply chain shortages. File Photo by Steve Fecht/EPA-EFE
Feb. 9 (UPI) -- The Bank of Canada said Wednesday that protesters continuing to block a U.S.-Canada border crossing will only add to existing supply chain woes.
"If there were to be prolonged blockages at key entry points into Canada that could start to have a measurable impact on economic activity in Canada," Bank of Canada of Canada Governor Tiff Macklem said during a Wednesday afternoon news conference, following a speech.
"We've already got a strained global supply chain. We don't need this. Most truckers are trying to get goods in and out of Canada," Macklem said.
American officials concurred, pointing to the possible impact to both the automotive and agricultural industries should the traffic disruption continue.
"I think it's important for everyone in Canada and the United States to understand what the impact of this blockage is -- potential impact on workers, on the supply chain. And that is where we are most focused," White House press secretary Jen Psaki told reporters during a briefing Wednesday afternoon.
"We are also monitoring very closely and engaged with auto companies on what the impacts could be of auto parts, which is what -- what would come from Canada and the impact on the United States. We're also looking -- tracking potential disruptions to U.S. agricultural exports from Michigan into Canada," Psaki said.
Protesters calling for an end to COVID-19 restrictions have blocked traffic headed into Canada across the Ambassador Bridge since Monday.
The bridge between Port Huron, Mich. and Ontario, is the busiest international crossing in North America by volume.
Alternate border crossings have seen long wait times for commercial traffic.
Industry groups in Canada have also voiced their concerns over the closure.
"Canada's economy is being threatened as thousands of trucks and millions of dollars in cross-border trade that typically go through these entry points every day is being disrupte," reads a letter signed by more than a dozen different logistics and transportation associations.
"Our borders are essential trade arteries that feed businesses and Canadians with essential goods, food, medicine, and critical industrial components that fuel our economy and support our critical infrastructure," the letter said.
In Canada's sedate capital, some are fed up with noisy vaccine protests
Agence France-Presse
February 09, 2022
A protester walks in front of parked trucks as demonstrators continue to protest the vaccine mandates implemented by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on February 8, 2022 in Ottawa, Canada
Agence France-Presse
February 09, 2022
A protester walks in front of parked trucks as demonstrators continue to protest the vaccine mandates implemented by Prime Minister Justin Trudeau on February 8, 2022 in Ottawa, Canada
Dave Chan AFP
Canada's capital is sometimes ribbed as being so quiet it's dull. But not these days, as truckers and others frustrated over Covid-19 restrictions clog the city center, revving engines in a non-stop blast of anger.
Ottawa residents say they do not recognize their own city. And while some understand the protesters' gripes, they think that after nearly two weeks of chaos and gridlock, enough is enough.
The so-called Freedom Convoy began in January in western Canada -- launched in anger at requirements that truckers either be vaccinated or test and isolate when crossing the US-Canadian border.
But the movement has morphed into a broader protest against Covid-related restrictions and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal government, and put a spotlight on pandemic curbs around the world.
Hundreds of big-rig trucks are now paralyzing the streets of downtown Ottawa, with the mayor calling the situation out of control and declaring a state of emergency.
"People told me, 'You will see, Ottawa is a dormitory town compared to Montreal or Toronto,'" said Cedric Boyer, a 48-year-old Frenchman who has lived in the capital for two years, smiling at how Ottawa has been turned upside down by the protests and drawn attention from around the world.
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Copycat protests have popped up as far away as New Zealand. Calls have gone out on social media for similar rallies in Europe and the United States.
In Ottawa, some people are using those media platforms to make a plea: "Make Ottawa boring again," playing on the Make America Great Again mantra of former US president Donald Trump, who has expressed support for the truckers.
"In a democracy, everyone has the right to have a different opinion and the right to express it," Boyer said. "But where that starts poses a bit of a problem. It is when the freedom of some infringes on that of others."
Boyer said he felt badly in particular for people who cannot work because of the protests. In the downtown area, many stores and restaurants that had just been allowed to reopen after Covid-related closures are shut down again because of the truckers.
Lisa Van Buren, 55, said there is a lot of frustration among Canadians these days.
"I think there is a real anger, we shouldn't underestimate that anger," she told AFP.
- 'Vocal minority' -
In a letter to Trudeau, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson complained about "an aggressive and hateful occupation of our neighborhoods."
"People are living in fear and are terrified -- they've now been subjected to the non-stop honking of large trucks for nine days which is tantamount to psychological warfare," he added.
Since a court ordered that incessant honking to stop, the truckers have turned instead to revving the engines of their big-rigs.
Local people are also suing the protest organizers for the chaos caused by the demonstration, and are seeking Can$10 million ($7.9 million) in damages.
"They may say that they have the support of many people, but I feel that's the vocal minority that's taking a lot of our patience away," said Patrick Lai, a 30-year-old doctor out on a walk, carrying a pair of ice skates.
"I get where they're coming from, but as someone who works in health care, I just feel like when they say, 'I've done the research,' it's not the kind of research that I'm talking about," Lai said of the protest's complaints about Covid restrictions.
"I don't tell you how to drive your truck. Don't tell me as a health care worker how to do my job."
He said he was concerned about a blockage that started Monday of the Ambassador Bridge linking Ontario province and the US state of Michigan, which is a key trade route.
"I may have supported them at the beginning, but it's gone on enough," said Cheryl Murphy, a 74-year-old retiree who lives in downtown Ottawa.
"If Trudeau had come to talk to them at the very beginning, maybe a lot of this stuff would not have happened," said Murphy.
© 2022 AFP
Canada's capital is sometimes ribbed as being so quiet it's dull. But not these days, as truckers and others frustrated over Covid-19 restrictions clog the city center, revving engines in a non-stop blast of anger.
Ottawa residents say they do not recognize their own city. And while some understand the protesters' gripes, they think that after nearly two weeks of chaos and gridlock, enough is enough.
The so-called Freedom Convoy began in January in western Canada -- launched in anger at requirements that truckers either be vaccinated or test and isolate when crossing the US-Canadian border.
But the movement has morphed into a broader protest against Covid-related restrictions and Prime Minister Justin Trudeau's Liberal government, and put a spotlight on pandemic curbs around the world.
Hundreds of big-rig trucks are now paralyzing the streets of downtown Ottawa, with the mayor calling the situation out of control and declaring a state of emergency.
"People told me, 'You will see, Ottawa is a dormitory town compared to Montreal or Toronto,'" said Cedric Boyer, a 48-year-old Frenchman who has lived in the capital for two years, smiling at how Ottawa has been turned upside down by the protests and drawn attention from around the world.
ADVERTISEMENT
Copycat protests have popped up as far away as New Zealand. Calls have gone out on social media for similar rallies in Europe and the United States.
In Ottawa, some people are using those media platforms to make a plea: "Make Ottawa boring again," playing on the Make America Great Again mantra of former US president Donald Trump, who has expressed support for the truckers.
"In a democracy, everyone has the right to have a different opinion and the right to express it," Boyer said. "But where that starts poses a bit of a problem. It is when the freedom of some infringes on that of others."
Boyer said he felt badly in particular for people who cannot work because of the protests. In the downtown area, many stores and restaurants that had just been allowed to reopen after Covid-related closures are shut down again because of the truckers.
Lisa Van Buren, 55, said there is a lot of frustration among Canadians these days.
"I think there is a real anger, we shouldn't underestimate that anger," she told AFP.
- 'Vocal minority' -
In a letter to Trudeau, Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson complained about "an aggressive and hateful occupation of our neighborhoods."
"People are living in fear and are terrified -- they've now been subjected to the non-stop honking of large trucks for nine days which is tantamount to psychological warfare," he added.
Since a court ordered that incessant honking to stop, the truckers have turned instead to revving the engines of their big-rigs.
Local people are also suing the protest organizers for the chaos caused by the demonstration, and are seeking Can$10 million ($7.9 million) in damages.
"They may say that they have the support of many people, but I feel that's the vocal minority that's taking a lot of our patience away," said Patrick Lai, a 30-year-old doctor out on a walk, carrying a pair of ice skates.
"I get where they're coming from, but as someone who works in health care, I just feel like when they say, 'I've done the research,' it's not the kind of research that I'm talking about," Lai said of the protest's complaints about Covid restrictions.
"I don't tell you how to drive your truck. Don't tell me as a health care worker how to do my job."
He said he was concerned about a blockage that started Monday of the Ambassador Bridge linking Ontario province and the US state of Michigan, which is a key trade route.
"I may have supported them at the beginning, but it's gone on enough," said Cheryl Murphy, a 74-year-old retiree who lives in downtown Ottawa.
"If Trudeau had come to talk to them at the very beginning, maybe a lot of this stuff would not have happened," said Murphy.
© 2022 AFP
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