UPDATE: Protesters gather on Parliament Hill to show solidarity with Ukraine, others oppose COVID-19 mandates
Posted Mar 6, 2022 09:45:00 PM.
Two sets of protests fighting for different causes gathered on Ottawa’s Parliament Hill on Sunday, March 6.
Dozens of demonstrators waving the yellow and blue flags of Ukraine convened in downtown Ottawa for a solidarity rally to protest Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
They held up signs like “No War” and “I Stand with Ukraine.” Another read “Putin, Hands Off Ukraine.”
The protest was organized by the Ottawa chapter of the Ukrainian Canadian Congress (UCC), the same group that organized last weekend’s march from the Russian embassy to city hall that drew several hundred people.
Just outside the Parliament gates, another batch of protesters waved Canadian flags and bellowed the Canadian national anthem. They were voicing their displeasure with the Justin Trudeau government and persisting COVID-19 mandates.
At Parliament Hill. #StandWithUkraine️ pic.twitter.com/HmA95Famzg
— Paul Carr (@PaulCarr70) March 6, 2022
A beautiful day in Ottawa at Parliament Hill as we #StandWithUkraine️ pic.twitter.com/vyQHEL8Y0u
— Katie Gibbs (@katiegibbs) March 6, 2022
Trudeau departed for Europe on Sunday to meet with allies about the intensifying situation in Ukraine.
The war is now in its 11th day and has caused 1.5 million people to flee the country. The head of the U.N. refugee agency on Sunday called the exodus “the fastest-growing refugee crisis in Europe since World War II.”
—With files from The Associated Press.