MONTREAL - Two demonstrators face charges of assaulting an officer, while another was arrested for interfering with an officer's duties during an afternoon demonstration which saw a band of youthful opponents of the Enbridge pipeline project march from Victoria Square to a spot near de la Gauchetiere and University.
An additional 29 fines for participating in an illegal protest were also handed out. Those fines, customarily, are for a hefty $637.
Police had declared the protest illegal from the outset under bylaw P-6, as the marchers failed to provide their planned route.
The protesters initially totalled about 200 to 300 but a combined force of Montreal and Quebec provincial police soon outnumbered the group, effectively choking off their progress.
About 20 demonstrators were circled on de la Gauchetiere between University and Beaver Hall Hill after the others had dispersed, leading to an end to the protest at about 4:30 p.m..
“We were walking on the sidewalk and every time we got to an intersection, they were blocking us, so we were doing back and forth, and one point when we came back, the riot squad came in and arrested a few people,” demonstrator Yannick Robert told CTV Montreal.
One day prior, a group of environmentalists descended on the Palais des Congres to disrupt hearings being held to discuss the proposed pipeline.
The demonstrators argue that the pipeline - which would transport large amounts of oil from western Canada - could lead to an environmental disaster.
