Chris Barber arrives for his trial at the courthouse in Ottawa, on Monday, Sept. 11, 2023. The court is expected to watch several lengthy press conferences hosted by the "Freedom Convoy" as the criminal trial for two of the protest's organizers enters its seventh day.THE CANADIAN PRESS/Justin Tang
OTTAWA – A courtroom scattered with “Freedom Convoy” supporters is taking in recordings of several lengthy press conferences hosted by spokespeople during the protest, as the criminal trial for two of its organizers enters its seventh day.
Chris Barber and Tamara Lich were among those who organized a convoy of trucks to come to Ottawa in early 2022 to protest COVID-19 public health measures and call for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau to step down.
They both face mischief and several counselling charges, including mischief, intimidation and obstructing police, for their role in the demonstrations that blockaded city streets for three weeks.
The press conferences from Feb. 6 and 9 were streamed live on Facebook, and feature Lich and other prominent spokespeople taking questions from independent media outlets.
Lich speaks very little in the videos, which touch on how the protest was putting pressure on governments to change public health measures, how they expected police to respond, and their distrust of “legacy media.”
The defence is arguing the videos should not be admitted as evidence in the trial, which is being heard by a judge.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 13, 2023.
