Emergencies Act investigation: Here are the first six witnesses to the convoy protests

The inquiry into the federal government’s use of the Emergencies Act is expected to hear first-hand accounts of the impact of February’s « Freedom Convoy » protest on people and businesses across the country. downtown Ottawa.

The first six witnesses are expected to give their testimony on Friday.

– Ottawa lawyer Victoria De La Ronde is the first witness on the list.

– Zexi Li is the 21-year-old public servant who launched a class action lawsuit against the organizers and participants of the Freedom Convoy on behalf of her fellow citizens in downtown Ottawa.

Li sought and won an injunction to stop protesters using vehicle horns downtown after days of deafening horns from large trucks parked in residential areas and in the parliament building.

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She is represented in this class action lawsuit by Ottawa lawyer Paul Champ, who is also representing downtown Ottawa community associations and business improvement areas throughout the hearings.

– Nathalie Carrier is the General Manager of the ZAC Quartier Vanier Commercial Improvement Zone, which represents the neighborhood east of the Parliamentary Precinct.

– Kevin McHale is the Executive Director of the Sparks Street Business Improvement Area, which represents the pedestrian shopping and dining district just south of the Parliament Buildings. – Catherine McKenney is the councilwoman who represented the city’s downtown at the protest. The councillor, and now mayoral candidate, was a vocal opponent of the convoy protest because of the fear and unrest it caused to people who live and work in the area.

McKenney attended a virtual city council meeting live from the protest site to confront their colleagues about the noise, chaos and « sense of anarchy ».

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– Mathieu Fleury is a municipal councilor for Rideau-Vanier, a community just east of the Parliamentary Precinct. He organized daily briefings between city officials and members of the local community and business groups during the convoy.

He, like many of his council colleagues, received security threats throughout the protest.

Hearings are expected to last six weeks, with testimony from 65 witnesses representing all levels of government, various police departments, as well as the organizers of the convoy.

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