Alberta RCMP have issued a statement regarding protests on public highways.
It reads:
The Alberta RCMP respects and supports the rights of Canadians to peacefully and lawfully gather and demonstrate as guaranteed under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
Our impartial role today, as with any protest, is ensuring the public’s right to a safe environment, while protecting the demonstrators’ rights to a safe, peaceful, and lawful demonstration.
Yesterday afternoon, approximately 50 vehicles were at an approved protest site in the Crowsnest Pass region. En route to the protest site, five large farm tractors caused a multi-vehicle collision. They refused to stop for police when a traffic stop was attempted. Our investigation into this incident is ongoing. This incident serves as a reminder that protesting on a public highway is not safe.
Alberta RCMP have been working with the protesters on Highway 1 west of Cochrane over the past 24 hours to ensure they can protest safely and lawfully. The RCMP have advised the protesters that we will be in location to ensure they remain off the highway and do not impede the flow of traffic along an extremely busy corridor.
We do not take enforcement action lightly, but the safety of motorists, protesters and a traveller’s right to use a public highway must be maintained. It is extremely unsafe to stand or impede traffic on a public roadway.
To be clear, it is also unlawful for a vehicle to park or remain stationary on a highway unless the vehicle is incapable of moving under its own power, an emergency arises, or it is stopped for the purposes of complying with a direction given by a peace officer or a traffic control device.
Updates will be provided as information becomes available.
