Anti-lockdown rally draws 150 to Pembroke waterfront

Unlike some other rallies held across the province in recent months, protesting the in-person closure of all non-essential businesses in Ontario, a rally held in Pembroke over the weekend was peaceful with no charges or arrests made during the event.

An estimated 100 to 150 people gathered at Pembroke’s Riverside Park on Saturday for a noon-hour “Freedom In The Valley Rally” to protest Premier Doug Ford’s current and past lockdown policies.

The group was neither condemning nor supporting of the decision to wear masks, and they weren't taking a position on vaccinations. Instead, the group's primary message was focused on local businesses and the province limiting their ability to put employees back to work, in order to restore financial stability and to get the economy back in gear ahead of the traditional tourist season.

Some speakers also rallied the crowd by saying schools needed to be reopened so children could have some form of normalcy in their daily lives.

The rally was organized by individuals associated with Internet-based groups involved with police-on-guard, we-are-all-essential, truth-unmasked and no-more-lockdowns. Several participants identified themselves as retired police officers or non-Renfrew County residents.

Several individuals carried large signs saying “the media is lying to you,” “everyone is essential” and “Doug Ford end the lockdown now!”

Some of the speakers said more rallies like these could be expected in the Upper Ottawa Valley if the current stay-at-home order, scheduled to end June 2, is extended.

The first step of the Ontario government's three-step economic reopening plan is set to come into effect on June 14.

The Ontario Government has extended certain orders under its Emergency Management and Civil Protection Act within the province, which includes a ban on recreational camping.

The extension will see the prohibition of recreational camping on public lands, a ban on recreational inter-provincial border crossings, the continuation of redeployment of staff and patients between Ontario hospitals as necessary, and the enforcement of COVID-19 measures until at least June 16.