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A pair of Greenpeace Canada activists were arrested Thursday morning by Ottawa police for an unlawful demonstration outside Stornoway, the official residence of Opposition leader Pierre Poilievre.
Greenpeace Canada has identified one of those arrested as Keith Stewart.
Originally, a group of 12 activists gathered outside the home, installing a replica oil pumpjack on the driveway. According to the Ottawa Police Service, several of the demonstrators chained themselves to the pumpjack, preventing the family from passing.
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“After being informed that a criminal offence was occurring, four of the demonstrators removed themselves from the structure,” the OPS said in a statement. “Two people refused to comply with repeated orders to remove themselves from the structure and were arrested.”
Police said charges are pending for the two, who were scheduled to appear in court Thursday. Threats of violence and property destruction, according to OPS, are not protected under the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
“They were at the official residence to deliver a simple but strong message to Pierre Poilievre,” Greenpeace Canada spokesperson Laura Bergamo said in a telephone interview. “What plan does he have to protect people from climate change? So far, he has only said what he will do to protect polluters.”
In a statement released by Greenpeace Canada, Stewart says the point of the exercise was to draw attention to Polievre’s “anti-climate agenda.”
According to Greenpeace, the oil jack used in the demonstration was painted with charcoal made from wood burned in a 2021 wildfire in Lytton, B.C.
kwarren@postmedia.com
X: Citizenkwarren
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