A protester affixes a flag to the top of a truck
(Picture: AP)Truckers in Ottawa have been silenced from honking their horns with an injunction amid protests over Covid rules.
The capital of Canada has been paralysed as demonstrators blocked roads and blared their horns in protest of Covid mandates bringing misery to many residents.
Judge Hugh McLean ruled the truckers were to be silent for the next 10 days after noisy honking sparked fury among the residents.
“Tooting a horn is not an expression of any great thought I’m aware of,” he said in the ruling.
Freedom Convoy started out as a movement opposing Canada’s vaccine mandate for cross-border drivers but now it has snowballed into a challenge of wider Covid curbs including passes to indoor restaurants.
Ottawa Mayor Jim Watson likened the honking to “tantamount to psychological warfare” in an open letter to Trudeau and Public Safety Minister Marco Mendicino.
“People are living in fear and terrified - and they’ve now been subjected to the non-stop honking of large trucks for nine days, which is tantamount to psychological warfare,” wrote the mayor.
Police counted 1,000 trucks and 5,000 protesters this weekend compared to last week where there were 3,000 trucks and 10-15,000 protesters.
Ottawa Police Chief Peter Sloly told reporters: “We are turning up the heat in every way we possibly can. We are asking for a major push of resources to come in the next 72 hours.”
