Victoria’s chief of police says the department will have a plan to deal with mask and vaccine-mandate protesters who claim to be en route to Victoria for an extended stay, starting next week.
Chief Del Manak told city council Thursday that police have been monitoring the rhetoric of one of the convoy organizers who has said the group intends to set up camp in Victoria for two or three months.
“We are well aware of this individual, the organizer, and we are working and gathering much-needed intelligence, ever-changing intelligence, as to what may transpire,” he said. “And we will have an operations plan that is able to deal with the situation as it comes forward through Victoria.”
James Bauder, one of the founders of the “freedom convoy” that occupied Ottawa for three weeks, said in a social media post this week that trucks are heading to Victoria and an occupation could include as many as 1,000 vehicles.
Bauder said the province was being targeted because it is one of the last jurisdictions to still have vaccine and indoor mask requirements.
Manak said police are hopeful some of the convoy’s momentum will be lost after the province announced Thursday that it’s lifting the mask mandate starting Friday and scrapping the proof-of-vaccine card as of April 8.
“But that remains to be seen,” Manak said. “I just want council and our community to rest assured that the Victoria Police Department is monitoring intelligence and we’re varying an operations plan for any eventuality that may come to the city of Victoria.”
The Victoria Downtown Residents Association sent a letter to council urging the city to ensure no unlawful occupation takes place.
Saying residents should not have to endure incessant noise from “a self-appointed rabble” with no respect for the rights of the majority of citizens, the association called for a co-ordinated approach between the city, police and province.
“While we support all citizens’ right to peaceful public protest, we are very concerned about the type and nature of this protest, given the recent events in Ottawa,” president Sandra Severs wrote. “It is critical that action is taken to limit the impact of any such occupation, not only for our personal safety, but that of healthcare workers, and also to protect our city assets and infrastructure, the environment and our economy, especially the struggling tourist sector.”
Manak said as police prepare for the seventh weekend protest against pandemic health measures, the department is talking with organizers. During the protest itself, he said, officers aim to de-escalate heated situations and hand out tickets where appropriate.
“We are not writing a ticket in every instance, and nor do we have the resources to do that,” he said. “It’s about discretion. It is about sending a strong message that the police department will not tolerate individuals that are not following the Motor Vehicle Act.”
He said police have written tickets for excessive noise and contraventions of the Motor Vehicles Act, and some officers, armed with photographic and video evidence, have been ticketing protesters after the fact at their homes.
He also said the department has not allowed any kind of occupation by vehicles around the legislature.
Manak told council that protests have become a significant challenge — the department monitored 170 protests last year, up from 66 in 2020. He said it appears 2022 is on track to repeat last year’s numbers.
The chief said because many of the protest groups are polarizing and divisive, there are heightened emotions on the front lines, which makes managing the situation difficult.
Asked about the cost of policing protests in the legislature precinct, Manak said the $50,000 provided annually to the department by the Sergeant-at-Arms of the legislature doesn’t pay the full bill. However, there is a provision for the department to apply to cover costs for overtime.
In 2020, police recovered about $180,000 on top of the $50,000, and last year they submitted an invoice for another $163,000, Manak said.
He said there are plans to sit down with the Sergeant-at-Arms to work out a new deal.
“This is all kind of open for debate and discussion. And I will be negotiating a new arrangement that is more applicable to today’s world than maybe perhaps what was happening a number of years ago,” he said.
