DETROIT(Washington Insider Magazine) – The Ambassador Bridge, which connects the United States and Canada, reopened late Sunday after officials cleared a weekend blockage staged by demonstrators protesting vaccination requirements.
The Detroit International Bridge Company, the project’s owner and operator, stated in a statement that the bridge was once again “enabling the free flow of business between the Canada and US economies.”
Windsor Mayor Drew Dilkens had earlier during the day proclaimed the conclusion of the protest and stated that the national economic problem at the Ambassador Bridge had ended.
Mizuno expressed gratitude and admiration for the peaceful result in a tweet to her officers and those from outside organizations.
She stated that a few remaining protestors would be detained if they occupied off-limits locations or attempted to obstruct traffic.
“There may be a cat-and-mouse situation for a while,” she said.
Authorities had to struggle with concrete barriers, known as K-rails, that were placed at the bridge’s entrance on Saturday, apparently to keep cars from joining the blockade and to aid police in keeping protestors away from the work.
According to the WASHINGTON POST, law enforcement officers began separating protestors on Saturday after Chief Justice Geoffrey Morawetz of the Ontario Superior Court directed them to disperse at a hearing on Friday.
The demonstrations in Windsor began on February 7 and were quite successful in putting at least partial barricades in the way of cross-border traffic for the rest of the week.
According to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the protestors also temporarily shut down minor border crossings in Surrey, British Columbia, Emerson, Manitoba, and Coutts, Alberta on Saturday.
Ontario Premier Doug Ford announced a state of emergency on Friday, saying he will deploy all government resources to put an end to the two-week-long protest.
He described the demonstrations as a “siege” on downtown Ottawa and the Ambassador Bridge.
The demonstrations have echoed throughout the world, with similar convoys being organized in Europe and New Zealand.
Demonstrators in Canada have provoked outrage in Ottawa and around the nation with reports of harassment and the display of hate symbols, along with at least 1 Confederate flag-bearing swastika.
According to Ipsos polls, the majority of Canadians are opposed to truck drivers’ actions.
