Subscribe To Our Newsletter

    Get the latest crypto news right into your email box. No spamming. We hate it too. Only pertinent news you need to know

    Latest News

    Coinbase Fixing Problem That Halted Payments From US Banks

    October 9, 2022

    Binance May Spend Over $1 Billion This Year on Deals, CZ Says

    October 9, 2022

    Crypto Real Estate Is Here – Bitcoin Mortgages Are Just The Beginning

    May 1, 2022
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn
    RareHippo – Crypto, Bitcoin, Blockchain News & Views
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn
    • Home
    • Bitcoin
    • NewsWire
      1. Latest News
      2. Top Stories
      3. Features
      4. What’s Hot
      5. Must Read
      6. Trending
      7. Spotlight
      8. Editors’ Picks
      9. View All

      Coinbase Fixing Problem That Halted Payments From US Banks

      October 9, 2022

      Binance May Spend Over $1 Billion This Year on Deals, CZ Says

      October 9, 2022

      El Salvador’s Companies Barely Bother With Bitcoin

      March 19, 2022

      New Jersey legislation aims to prevent public officials from being gifted NFTs

      March 18, 2022

      Coinbase Fixing Problem That Halted Payments From US Banks

      October 9, 2022

      Crypto Real Estate Is Here – Bitcoin Mortgages Are Just The Beginning

      May 1, 2022

      Crypto’s Preferred Currency for Political Donations Isn’t Bitcoin. It’s Dollars

      March 19, 2022

      Meta Sued by Australian Watchdog Over Scam Crypto Advertisements

      March 18, 2022

      Binance May Spend Over $1 Billion This Year on Deals, CZ Says

      October 9, 2022

      Two Senators propose crypto legislation for tax exemption on capital gains

      May 1, 2022

      Wall Street Reluctantly Embraces Crypto

      May 1, 2022

      Warren bill draws outcry over broad terms, but seems unlikely to pass

      March 20, 2022

      Crypto Real Estate Is Here – Bitcoin Mortgages Are Just The Beginning

      May 1, 2022

      Russia-Ukraine War Is Bringing Out the Good, Bad, & Ugly of Cryptocurrencies

      March 18, 2022

      The ‘world’s most advanced’ digital human wants you to buy her NFT art

      March 15, 2022

      FTX crypto exchange wins license in Dubai to open regional headquarters

      March 15, 2022

      Crypto Startup Founded by Ex-Meta Employees Raises $200 Million

      March 16, 2022

      U.K. Crime Agency Wants to Regulate Crypto Transaction Mixers

      March 15, 2022

      A Wall Street Quant Turns His Crypto Firm Into a Unicorn

      March 14, 2022

      Standard Chartered’s crypto custodian to help clients earn yield on token holdings

      March 14, 2022

      Man passing as UN affiliate convicted for crypto scheme

      March 18, 2022

      The Future of Crypto Is Boring — and Bright

      March 15, 2022

      Investors turn to crypto funds, companies as Russia-Ukraine crisis escalates

      March 15, 2022

      Binance Wins Crypto Licenses From Dubai, Bahrain

      March 15, 2022

      Why Bitcoin’s Environmental Problems Are So Hard to Fix

      March 16, 2022

      Americans Want Crypto From Their Banks

      March 15, 2022

      Why Decentralized Exchanges Are Important in the Crypto Economy

      March 10, 2022

      Binance plots M&A spree as regulators scrutinize crypto trading unit

      March 10, 2022

      Amid New Executive Order, White House Director Sheds Light On Crypto Policy

      March 16, 2022

      Bitcoin Evangelist Saylor Tells Economists Why They’re Wrong

      March 15, 2022

      Crypto Mania in Texas Risks New Costs and Strains on Shaky Grid

      March 15, 2022

      Bitcoin’s scared of commitment, Mr. Biden

      March 15, 2022

      Coinbase Fixing Problem That Halted Payments From US Banks

      October 9, 2022

      Binance May Spend Over $1 Billion This Year on Deals, CZ Says

      October 9, 2022

      Crypto Real Estate Is Here – Bitcoin Mortgages Are Just The Beginning

      May 1, 2022

      Two Senators propose crypto legislation for tax exemption on capital gains

      May 1, 2022
    • Altcoins
      • Ethereum
      • XRP-Ripple
      • Solana
      • Dogecoin
      • Cardano
      • Shiba Inu
    • Topics
      • Cryptocurrencies
      • Investments
      • Markets
      • NFTs
      • DeFi
      • ETFs
      • DAOs
      • Crypto Regulation
      • Metaverse
      • Blockchain & Web3
      • Blockchain Gaming
      • Crypto Exchanges
      • Crypto Mining
      • Stablecoins
      • Cybersecurity
      • Digital Currencies – CBDC
      • Crypto Book Reviews
      • Technology
      • Internet of Things
    • Opinions
    • Explainers
    • Press Releases

      Former Uber LatAm Head of Policy Leads Crypto Ride-Hailer Drife Toward Planned Global Expansion

      March 7, 2022

      European index provider for crypto assets Vinter raises $3.4m funding

      February 22, 2022

      PR – British crypto processor brings in $60 million for expansion in Europe

      January 25, 2022

      PR – CoinMENA obtains 2nd crypt0 license from European Union

      January 25, 2022

      NFT investment specialist looks to acquire Pluto Digital for £96m

      January 24, 2022
    RareHippo – Crypto, Bitcoin, Blockchain News & Views
    Home»Cryptocurrencies»Pepper spray, tow trucks, & Bitcoin seizures: How Canada finally ended the Freedom Convoy protests in Ottawa
    Cryptocurrencies

    Pepper spray, tow trucks, & Bitcoin seizures: How Canada finally ended the Freedom Convoy protests in Ottawa

    By Eamon Barrett
    February 21, 2022By Fortune Magazine9 Mins ReadNo Comments
    Facebook Twitter LinkedIn Pinterest Reddit WhatsApp Email Tumblr VKontakte Telegram
    Share
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest Reddit WhatsApp Email LinkedIn Tumblr Telegram

    On Sunday, the streets surrounding the Canadian parliament in Ottawa were free of protesters and trucks for the first time since January after police cleared out the last of the so-called Freedom Convoy truckers who occupied the nation’s capital to oppose the country’s COVID-era restrictions.

    During a three-day operation, Ottawa police deployed pepper spray and stun grenades to disperse crowds, towed away over 70 vehicles, and arrested 191 people, bringing a total of 389 charges against 103 of them.

    Donate to RareHippo Now!

    Three of the protest’s key organizers were arrested and charged with “mischief,” and two of them are now out on bail.

    The clearing of the capital came days after the federal Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) ordered a freeze on 206 bank and corporate accounts managing millions in funds related to the protests. The RCMP also flagged 253 Bitcoin addresses and forbid local crypto exchanges from facilitating transactions with the accounts.

    While quiet has returned to Ottawa streets after three weeks of horn blaring by truck-driving protesters, the fallout of the nearly month-long saga will likely take longer to address.

    In the capital city, police and barricades have replaced protesters and trucks and, across the country, politicians and citizens are confronting the divide in civil society left in the wake of the departing demonstrators.

    What were truckers protesting?

    The brigade of truck-driving protesters from across Canada first converged in Ottawa on Jan. 28, occupying various streets around the nation’s capital. The protest began in opposition to the government’s introduction of a mandate requiring all cross-border truck drivers to be vaccinated against COVID-19.

    According to the Canadian Trucking Alliance, roughly 90% of Canadian truck drivers were already vaccinated, but a minority of truckers objected to the new requirement for drivers hauling goods between Canada and the U.S.

    As the protesters and their convoy spread across Canada, the focus of the demonstration expanded to oppose all pandemic-era mandates, such as mask requirements and COVID vaccine passport check-ins.

    Ottawa, canada - february 19: police forces clash with protesters in ottawa city center as they clear a protest by canadian truck drivers over covid-19 restrictions which has led to gridlock in ottawa, canada, 19 february, 2022. (photo by amru salahuddien/anadolu agency via getty images)
    OTTAWA, CANADA – FEBRUARY 19: Police forces clash with protesters in Ottawa city center as they clear a protest by Canadian truck drivers over Covid-19 restrictions which has led to gridlock in Ottawa, Canada, 19 February, 2022. (Photo by Amru Salahuddien/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)

    With its purview widened to more common grievances, the Freedom Convoy gained support from Canadians outside the trucking industry who were tired of COVID-era restrictions. By early February, a GoFundMe account set up by one of the protest organizers, Tamara Lich, had raised $8 million in donations.

    Last week, reports revealed that Silicon Valley billionaire Tom Siebel was one of the group’s leading benefactors, donating $90,000 to the Freedom Convoy movement that had also gained support from Tesla CEO Elon Musk and U.S. Republicans.

    But in Ottawa unruly protesters—many of whom blared truck horns throughout the day, occupied residential streets, and threw loud parties—sparked counter-protests. With disruption costing the city upward of $800,000 per day in policing expenses and snarling U.S. cross-border trade worth $350 million a day, the government stepped in to shut the protests down.

    Crypto funds frozen

    For protesters, the first bad omen for their movement hit on Feb. 5 when GoFundMe suspended Lich’s fundraising account after receiving police reports of protest violence and other unlawful activity.

    “This fundraiser is now in violation of our Terms of Service (Term 8, which prohibits the promotion of violence and harassment) and has been removed from the platform,” GoFundMe said, adding that it would return the $8 million raised back to donors.

    Undeterred by the loss of millions, protest organizers simply switched fundraising tactics. Shortly after GoFundMe shut down the group’s main account, four protest supporters, calling themselves HonkHonkHodl, launched a new funding page on crypto fundraising site, Tallycoin.

    Within days, the HonkHonkHodl account—which some say has ties to alt-right groups—raised over $500,000 in Bitcoin. But even cryptocurrency, hyped for its ability to evade censorship and capital freezes, wasn’t safe from Canada’s courts.

    A truck taking part in the freedom convoy protests in ottawa is towed away
    A protest trucks is towed as police begin to clear demonstrators against Covid-19 mandates in Ottawa on February 18, 2022. – Canadian police on Thursday began a massive operation to clear the trucker-led protests against Covid health rules clogging the capital for three weeks, with several arrests made. (Photo by ANDREJ IVANOV / AFP) (Photo by ANDREJ IVANOV/AFP via Getty Images)

    Early last week, Canada’s federal police ordered all crypto exchanges regulated by the Financial Transactions and Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC)—that’s most of them—to halt transactions associated with 34 crypto wallets associated with protesters and funds of $900,000.

    Then, last Friday, a group of Ottawa residents set a new precedent in Canadian law and won a class-action lawsuit to invoke a Mareva injunction and freeze 146 cryptocurrency wallets associated with the protesters. Canadian courts have never issued a Mareva injunction—which freezes a defendant’s assets—against cryptocurrency before.

    Trudeau’s emergency powers

    Last Monday, Canada Prime Minister Justin Trudeau delivered the Freedom Convoy campaign its final death blow and invoked the Emergencies Act for the first time in Canadian history, empowering police to move against protesters.

    “We cannot and will not allow illegal and dangerous activities to continue,” Trudeau said as he invoked the Emergencies Act, which granted police greater leeway to impose fines, imprison protesters, and tow vehicles blocking roads.

    Crypto news & Views

    Trudeau invoked the act a day after police cleared protesters from the Ambassador Bridge that connects Ontario to Detroit, Mich., and carries 23% of cross-border trade between the U.S. and Canada. Protesters had blocked the bridge for days, holding up $360 million of daily trade and drawing attention from the White House.

    “At the borders in different places in the country, the blockades are harming our economy and endangering public safety. Critical supply chains have been disrupted. This is hurting workers who rely on these jobs to feed their families,” Trudeau said.

    The Emergencies Act also compelled financial institution to comply with police orders to freeze funds associated with “designated persons”—in this case, protesters. With funds hobbled, public sentiment turning against them, and the threat of arrest and financial sanctions looming, the protest movement began to lose momentum.

    Protesters who had occupied U.S.-Canada border crossings began to go home, fearing authorities might seize their assets.

    In Canada’s capital, protesters continued to hold out. On Wednesday, Ottawa police distributed fliers to protesters telling them to leave or face arrest. Some protesters threw the notices in the trash and started a chorus of blaring truck horns, announcing their refusal to leave.

    On Thursday, police arrested three of the Freedom Convoy’s most prominent leaders—Tamara Lich, Chris Barber and Pat King. The next day, police began clearing out protesters still occupying the city.

    Police move in

    On Friday, hundreds of police moved in on protest camps in Ottawa city center and began forcing demonstrators to disperse. Over 100 protesters were arrested as some left and others resisted. When police returned to continue the operation the following day, they dressed in riot gear.

    PROTESTORS: We told you to leave. We gave you time to leave. We were slow and methodical, yet you were assaultive and aggressive with officers and the horses. Based on your behaviour, we are responding by including helmets and batons for our safety. pic.twitter.com/drxfhG9clP

    — Ottawa Police (@OttawaPolice) February 19, 2022

    On Saturday, police made another 47 arrests, using pepper spray to disperse crowds. Although police initially said no protesters had been hurt, Ontario’s Special Investigations Unit—the police watchdog—said Sunday it is investigating the case of a woman who was trampled by a mounted police officer’s horse on Friday.

    By Sunday, the majority of protesters and their vehicles had been cleared from Parliament Hill—the area surrounding Canada’s parliament building, which had become a central hub for the Freedom Convoy movement.

    In place of heavy trucks that once blocked the streets, police have set up concrete barricades and high metal fences to keep protesters from returning.

    “We’re not done with this operation yet,” interim Ottawa Police Chief Steve Bell told journalists on Sunday, adding that police will track down protesters who had been filmed breaking the law, and determine “how we maintain a presence and make sure that nobody returns to occupy our streets again.”

    Bell’s predecessor Peter Sloly resigned last Wednesday under criticism from Ottawa residents for not resolving the protests.

    Clearing the aftermath

    With the protests cleared and the main leaders arrested, debate has turned to whether Trudeau was justified in invoking the Emergencies Act. Over the weekend, Canada’s lawmakers debated that issue in parliament, deciding whether to ratify the Act.

    Ottawa, ontario - february 20: flowers and a flag hang on a barrier fence near parliament hill a day after police cleared a demonstration by truck drivers opposing vaccine mandates that had been entrenched for 23 days on february 20, 2022 in ottawa, ontario, much of the area in downtown ottawa near parliament hill has been declared a secure zone where only residents and people who can prove they have a valid purpose for entering are allowed past checkpoints. (photo by scott olson/getty images)
    OTTAWA, ONTARIO – FEBRUARY 20: Flowers and a flag hang on a barrier fence near Parliament Hill a day after police cleared a demonstration by truck drivers opposing vaccine mandates that had been entrenched for 23 days on February 20, 2022 in Ottawa, Ontario, Much of the area in downtown Ottawa near Parliament Hill has been declared a secure zone where only residents and people who can prove they have a valid purpose for entering are allowed past checkpoints. (Photo by Scott Olson/Getty Images)

    Opinion is divided largely along party lines, with Trudeau’s leading Liberal party supporting the prime minister’s action and members of the opposing Conservative party denouncing the decree as the “latest and greatest example of attacks on our freedom.”

    A decision whether to ratify the act is due on Monday. If parliament votes down the act, the special powers will be revoked. If the act passes, the powers will remain in effect for 30 days.

    Although police cleared protesters from Ottawa, the tensions that sparked the movement in the first place remain, and there are concerns that protests may flare up again even though they lack public support.

    Last week polling from the Angus Reid Institute (ARI), a non-profit research group, found that 72% of respondents agreed protesters should “go home, they have made their point.” ARI also found that 44% of Canadians are now more likely to support mandates for mask wearing and cross-border vaccine checks because of the protests. Only 21% were more likely to oppose the mandates while the remainder were unmoved either way.

    “In the weeks since they inserted themselves directly into the conversation about restrictions, the protesters have seen the pendulum swing against their point of view,” ARI says, noting that 54% of Canadians wanted COVID restrictions to end when polled in December.

    Even if this is the end of the protests—Canadian provinces are gradually easing COVID restrictions anyway—the cleanup is just getting underway. Officials have only just started to bring charges against protest leaders, process the millions of dollars in seized funds, and investigate the police operation itself.

    In the words of Bell, “This investigation will go on for months to come.”

    Read full story on Fortune Magazine

    Cryptocurrencies
    Previous ArticleIntel Unveils New Bitcoin Mining Chip and 3,600-Watt Mining Rig
    Next Article California lawmaker files bill to let state agencies accept Bitcoin

    Related Posts

    Coinbase Fixing Problem That Halted Payments From US Banks

    October 9, 20221 Min Read

    Binance May Spend Over $1 Billion This Year on Deals, CZ Says

    October 9, 20223 Mins Read

    Crypto Real Estate Is Here – Bitcoin Mortgages Are Just The Beginning

    May 1, 20224 Mins Read

    Two Senators propose crypto legislation for tax exemption on capital gains

    May 1, 20225 Mins Read

    Wall Street Reluctantly Embraces Crypto

    May 1, 20225 Mins Read

    Warren bill draws outcry over broad terms, but seems unlikely to pass

    March 20, 20225 Mins Read
    Add A Comment

    Leave A Reply Cancel Reply

    Donate to RareHippo Now!
    Latest News

    Coinbase Fixing Problem That Halted Payments From US Banks

    October 9, 2022

    Binance May Spend Over $1 Billion This Year on Deals, CZ Says

    October 9, 2022

    Crypto Real Estate Is Here – Bitcoin Mortgages Are Just The Beginning

    May 1, 2022

    Two Senators propose crypto legislation for tax exemption on capital gains

    May 1, 2022

    Wall Street Reluctantly Embraces Crypto

    May 1, 2022
    Follow US & Win Prizes
    • Facebook
    • Twitter
    • LinkedIn
    • Pinterest
    Don't Miss
    Investments

    Crypto IRA platform iTrustCapital raises $125 million in Series A funding

    January 20, 20223 Mins Read

    iTrustCapital, a platform that allows users to buy cryptocurrencies through their individual retirement accounts (IRAs), has…

    MetaMask users in Venezuela say they no longer can access their wallet

    March 3, 2022

    Checkout.com poaches Meta crypto exec to lead product strategy

    December 17, 2021

    Is SEC’s Gary Gensler the Skunk at the Fintech Party or the Adult in the Room?

    January 11, 2022

    Subscribe to Our Newsletter

    Get the latest crypto news right into your email box. No spamming. We hate it too. Only pertinent news you need to know

    Crypto news & Views
    Facebook Twitter Pinterest LinkedIn
    • Home
    • Privacy Policy
    • About Us
    • Donate to RareHippo
    • Get In Touch
    • NewsWire
    © 2023 RareHippo. Powered by 8 Dimensions

    The content of this website is for informational purposes only and is not intended as a substitute for investment or financial advice.

    Type above and press Enter to search. Press Esc to cancel.