Doug Ford is accused of ‘encouraging’ protesters as Toronto prepares for weekend rally

As downtown Toronto prepares for this weekend’s protest by anti-vaxxers and anti-lockdown activists at Queen’s Park, Premier Doug Ford is under pressure to act.

Opposition parties accused Ford of sending the wrong signals to protesters amid ongoing protests in Ottawa on Friday, saying “God bless them” and sympathizing with their frustration in commenting on a Hamilton radio station.

Last weekend, the Ottawa protest blocked streets in the city center when some protesters waved Nazi and Confederate flags, harassed locals, threw stones at ambulances and incessantly clapped with air horns.

“To pretend that it may not be exactly what’s on the way to Queen’s Park is deliberately ignorant,” said Andrea Horwath, the new Democratic leader, who expressed concern about the safety of people at five hospitals near the legislature. work.

“His words simply encourage this crowd.”

Liberal leader Steven Del Duca noted that Ford had changed its tone over the so-called “Freedom Convoy” after calling previous COVID-19 protesters “a bunch of yahoos”.

Del Duca pointed out that the prime minister had not said anything about the deteriorating situation in the country’s capital until Monday – three days after it began.

“Doug Ford was largely missing in action,” the Liberal leader told reporters, calling Ford’s public statements “weak” and “half-hearted.”

“I suspect, I fear, someone who is looking at the election that is coming up in a few months, might be considering a bid for the leadership of the federal Conservative party … is now working on that anti-vaxxer edge, that extremist “I’m sad to say we exhibited in Ottawa,” Del Duca added.

“He is trying to form a very dangerous coalition.”

Ford, who faces weekly protests outside his Etobicoke home, said in an interview with CHML on Thursday: “I just hope it’s always a peaceful protest.”

“We live in a democracy. If people want to come down and protest, God bless them. I understand their frustration, “he said.

Earlier this week, Ford encouraged protesters in Ottawa to return home.

“I hear the protesters, the province hears the protesters, the country hears the protesters. “Now is the time to get the people of Ottawa back on track,” the prime minister told Ajax on Tuesday.

“People have to move on. We need to make the people of Ottawa live their lives, ”he said, emphasizing that he supported the federal government’s vaccination mandate for cross-border truck drivers that caused the protest.

Ford stressed that he had “zero tolerance” for the “desecration” of memorials and said it was “disgusting” that some protesters waved Nazi and Confederate flags.

But Green Leader Mike Schreiner said the prime minister “should stop playing both sides when it comes to vaccine protests.”

Attorney General Sylvia Jones opposed that “peaceful protest is a cornerstone of a healthy democracy.”

“However, criminal behavior is never tolerated, and hatred or intolerance must be condemned by all,” Jones said, adding that the province cooperates with the police in Ottawa and Toronto.

“The role of the police is to preserve peace and protect the public. “The government does not interfere with or direct the police’s operational decisions, including in response to occupations, demonstrations or blockades,” she said.

“There are long-standing historical reasons for the separation between the government and policing operations. As with any major protest, the local police will take the appropriate steps to keep their communities safe, and we are ready to provide additional support if needed. ”

But mindful of University Avenue’s hospital drive, Jones warned that “access to emergency medical services, including paramedics and hospitals, is completely unacceptable.”

Robert Benzie is the Star’s Queen’s Park bureau chief and a reporter covering politics in Ontario. Follow him on Twitter: @robertbenzie