Petition opposing Freedom Convoy wants police to oust truckers from Ottawa

Canadians against the freedom convoy have started a petition calling for an end of the rally, after five days of protestors gridlocking the city in an attempt to motivate Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to remove federal Covid vaccine mandates.

The petition, which has received nearly 7,000 signatures, says that the rally has shown no sign of ending, and that the police need to evict the protestors.

"The Freedom Rally has been going on for five days and shows no signs of ending of its own volition. In the meantime, residents of downtown—including vulnerable homeless and mentally ill—are being directly affected by constant noise, and a party atmosphere of bad behaviour."

"Furthermore," the petition states, "traffic to the core has been cut off, preventing thousands of citizens from accessing their jobs or other crucial services for life."

"To this, the Ottawa Police has done nothing, except curtailing the worst offences (after statue and monument desecrations). Otherwise we see on social media a lot of support for the protesters, while the official word is that their hands are tied," wrote Jeremy Owen, the Petition's creator.

"Enough is enough — we support the right to protest. But even if this was a legitimate movement with a coherent message, it would still be past time to allow the normal and harmonious life of the city to resume. We demand that the police of this city do their job for this city, and that means clearing streets, and ticketing vehicle and noise infractions. Not taking selfies and making excuses," the petition states.

Commenters agreed with the petition, with some saying that the convoy was "racist."

"It is disgusting to watch these terrorists hold innocent citizens captive in their homes. If the government won't step in, average people will take it upon themselves! I urge you to protect law-abiding citizens by removing these rioters," said one commenter.

In response to criticism that the convoy has kept people awake for nights with semi-truck honking, Convoy leader Chris Barber released a statement, saying that while he empathized with those who are frustrated, that the fault falls on the politicians.

"Our message to the citizens of Ottawa is one of empathy. We understand your frustration and genuinely wish there was another way for us to get our message across, but the responsibility for your inconvenience lies squarely on the shoulders of politicians who have prefer [sic] to vilify and call us names rather than engage in respectful, serious dialogue.

"The fastest way to get us out of the nation's Capital, is to call your elected representatives and end all [COVID-19] mandates, as the UK did two weeks ago and as both Sweden and Switzerland did today."