Ottawa: Trucker-led protests intensified in Canada, as truckers blocking the Canadian capital showed no sign of backing down on Tuesday, despite a newly invoked state of emergency by the Prime Minister, granting wide new powers to end their weeks-long protest over Covid rules.A day after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau invoked the Emergencies Act, the truckers appeared undeterred, which states, that if anything hardening their stance to move their big rigs into positions tougher to dislodge, with signs that read: “Hold the line.”“Truckers are not going anywhere,” said one protester who gave his name only as Tyler, sitting at the wheel of his truck parked outside parliament.As of now, authorities have failed to end the trucker movement, which has blocked the Canadian capital Ottawa for more than two weeks, paralysing border trade with the United States.After facing intense criticism over the failure to dislodge the protesters, Ottawa police chief Peter Sloly abruptly resigned on Tuesday.Sloly had said repeatedly that he lacked the resources to remove the demonstrators safely, but in a parting statement said authorities were “now better positioned to end this occupation.”Trudeau’s decision to invoke emergency is reportedly the second time in Canadian history when such emergency powers have been invoked in peacetime.The protesters in Canada have demanded the government to end all pandemic health rules and restrictions. As a result, it hampered economic trade with countries including United States, with pictures being circulated showing trucks everywhere on the roads. (With Inputs From Agencies)
