Major construction union says it won't fund COVID-19 protest convoy in Quebec City

A union member is organizing a convoy of protesters heading to Quebec City to hold a demonstration against the province's public health measures related to COVID-19, but not with funding from his union.

The convoy appears to be inspired by the hundreds of truckers and their supporters who have occupied the downtown core of the nation’s capital since Saturday, demanding an end to all public health restrictions and the resignation of Prime Minister Justin Trudeau. 

Bernard "Rambo" Gauthier, who is taking a cue from the Ottawa protest, represents a group of heavy machinery operators who are represented by the FTQ union in Quebec’s Côte-Nord region.

In a video posted to Facebook Monday, he said he is concerned about fellow union members who report alleged suicide attempts, increases in seperation and divorce, bankruptcies and inability to work because of health rules or because they don't have a vaccine passport.

Gauthier is calling for people to gather near the Quebec legislature Thursday and for FTQ workers to be taken by bus into the provincial capital later this week.

In his video he says that the heads of his union have so far not shown support for his rally and he accuses them of forgetting their workers.

'EVERYONE IS FED UP'

Éric Boisjoly, general manager of the FTQ-Construction union, confirmed in an interview with The Canadian Press on Tuesday that the union will not financially support the rally.

The FTQ represents about 43 per cent of construction workers in Quebec.

Boisjoly also denied a report that he had been asked by Gauthier for financial support.

He said everyone has the fundamental right to protest and respects the choice of the few who refuse to be vaccinated, but said it’s not the job of the union to question measures imposed by public health officials.

Instead, he said, the union should focus on showing solidarity with front-line workers in Quebec's health-care system. 

“Everyone in Quebec is fed up with it. Everyone is a little sick of it," said Boisjoly.

“This situation is precarious for people in the health sector, but also for the sick who are affected by hospital closures. This is where the FTQ-Construction wants to show solidarity: with the patients who are offloaded and also with the people who work in the health-care sector.”

While the convoy protest in Ottawa has largely been peaceful in the sense that there have been no reports of injuries, deaths or riots, according to that city’s police chief, it has nonetheless caused havoc for residents and businesses in and around the downtown core.

There have also been vandalism and hate-motivated elements to the protest, including confirmed reports of protesters throwing rocks at an ambulance, and protesters freely waving Nazi flags, Confederate flags, and other extremist imagery without intervention.

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There was an instance of defecation on the front step of a home that had been flying a pride flag, desecration of the Terry Fox statue and the Tomb of the Unknown Soldier at the National War Memorial.

Staff at a homeless shelter were accosted, along with customers at the Rideau Centre shopping mall and journalists. 

The occupation of downtown has also caused several businesses to close for several days during a week when they had been scheduled to reopen since the December lockdown.

CALLS FOR PEACEFUL PROTESTS

It’s a situation that the leader of the Quebec Liberal Party wants to avoid in the provincial capital, she says. Leader Dominique Anglade said she is worried because of the level of tension on Ottawa's streets this week.

“I’ve seen things that are happening that you never want to see here in Quebec or in Canada. I don’t want to see this happen in Quebec City,” she said Tuesday morning from the provincial capital.

“Now, I understand that people can demonstrate, but we have to be really careful with how things are being done.”

Quebec Premier François Legault and Transport Minister François Bonnardel said Quebecers have the right to protest as long as it is done peacefully, and, as Legault said, without “hate symbols.”

Legault denied the suggestion that his announcement of some public health rules in Quebec on Tuesday was linked to the “threat” from Gauthier.

“Not at all. There's no link between Rambo Gauthier and what I'm announcing today,” he said.

“[The demonstration] must be done respectfully. And I think that Quebecers expect it to be done respectfully.”

Gauthier said he plans to stay in Quebec City until we "have our freedoms again."

Quebec provincial police said they will monitor the situation to ensure that peace and public security are maintained. 

It’s not clear at this point how many others will join him. The Quebec Carnivale begins Friday but Gauthier said participants will not interfere with it.

Others in Quebec are also planning other rallies in the provincial capital. According to a Facebook event, thousands of people have "confirmed" they are attending a "peaceful family gathering to make the CAQ government understand that Quebecers are tired and want their freedom back."

--With files from The Canadian Press