This year’s ‘freedom convoy’ will be held in Winnipeg, organizer reveals
Posted December 27, 2022 2:10 pm.
Plans for a “freedom convoy” reunion – initially scheduled for Ottawa – have now shifted to Winnipeg.
That’s according to James Bauder, the founder of the Canada Unity group.
In a video posted to Facebook on Christmas, Bauder said the “Freedom Convoy 2.0” event will not be held in Ottawa as a “very special gift” to the residents of the nation’s capital.
The event is now scheduled for Feb. 17-20, 2023, in Winnipeg.
Protesters occupied downtown Ottawa in February 2022. That occupation, as well as a protest at the border in Coutts, Alta., prompted the federal government to invoke the Emergencies Act for the first time.
Protests ended after hundreds of officers from police forces throughout Canada moved in to disperse the crowds, making dozens of arrests.
Bauder was among those arrested in Ottawa. He is now facing charges of mischief to obstruct property, disobeying a lawful court order and obstructing a peace officer.
COVID-19 protests in Winnipeg
There were also protests against COVID-19 restrictions in various cities across Canada, including Winnipeg.
A group of vehicles, including a handful of semi-trailers and some farm equipment, began occupying a block of Memorial Boulevard, just outside the main entrance to the legislature grounds, on Feb. 4.
They raised a giant American and Canadian flag and had signs calling for freedom from mandates.
The group blared horns and even used a train horn to make significant noise in the downtown area.
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The group departed 19 days later after police issued an ultimatum that protesters could face charges or have their vehicles and other assets seized if they did not remove them.
At the time, the Manitoba government had already announced plans to lift almost all its pandemic restrictions.
That protest cost Winnipeg police $484,806, data later showed.
—With files from Anil Jhalli and The Canadian Press
