The Canadian Trucking Alliance says it appears a number of protestors in Ottawa have no connection to the trucking industry, adding they have a separate agenda to push.
“While a number of Canadians are in Ottawa to voice their displeasure over this mandate, it also appears that a great number of these protestors have no connection to the trucking industry and have a separate agenda beyond a disagreement over cross border vaccine requirements,” the Canadian Trucking Alliance said in a statement on its website.
About 100 vehicles are idling around the National War Memorial in downtown Ottawa, with more trucks and personal vehicles packed on Wellington Street stretching west past Parliament Hill.
Hundreds of demonstrators are marching up and down Wellington Street, which runs right in front of Parliament Hill and the Prime Minister’s Office.
The national flag is flying from some vehicles, or draped around the shoulders of some protestors, many of whom appear to be unmasked.
Some are carrying copies of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
However, The Canadian Trucking Alliance said in their statement that many of the people they may see or hear in media reports at the trucking protest on Parliament Hill do not speak for the industry or represent truckers as a whole.
“As these protests unfold over the weekend, we ask the Canadian public to be aware that many of the people you see and hear in media reports do not have a connection to the trucking industry,” the statement reads.
About one-tenth of truckers that haul goods are estimated to be affected by requirements on both sides of the Canada-U.S. border for drivers to be vaccinated in order to cross freely.
The alliance says in a statement that the industry must adapt and comply with this mandate, noting the vast majority of drivers have done so.
For truckers protesting the vaccination mandate at the border, the trucking alliance is asking them to be peaceful and then leave the city.
“Your behaviour today will not only reflect upon you and your family but the 300,000 plus fellow Canadians that, like you, take great pride in our industry. Please remember this important responsibility you bear today in delivering your message responsibly but also the impact your actions will have on the image of the majority of your colleagues from coast-to-coast who do not share your opinion but share your passion for the industry and country,” the CTA’s statement reads.
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