As governments around the world endorse vaccines mandates and continued lockdowns, massive protests in the name of freedom have swept the globe.
Residents in Australia, Canada, and Italy took to the streets by the hundreds of thousands to protest their governments’ strict Covid-19 orders.
Australians in Melbourne, Victoria, protestors gathered at the Shrine of Remembrance War Memorial to demonstrate against the government’s tyrannical Covid-19 enforcement measures. Victorians have been subject to some of the longest lockdowns in the world.
Shortly following the start of the protest, riot police began firing rubber bullets at the crowd of unarmed protestors.
During another protest, nearly 2,000 protestors in Melbourne marched in the city’s central business district protesting the strict lockdown orders and vaccine mandates. Construction workers, who were ordered to comply with mandatory vaccinations or face termination, protested outside the Construction, Forestry, Maritime, Mining and Energy Union building.
Shortly following the protest, riot police swarmed the protestors and shot them with rubber bullets and pepper spray for being in violation the government’s lockdown orders. Over 200 protestors were arrested by police in what looked like a scene from communist China.
Victoria residents face some of the harshest lockdowns in the country. Residents who leave their homes and break the state’s curfew orders will face arrest and heavy fines. Police have reportedly begun traveling door-to-door doing “welfare checks” on residents, questioning them on whether or not they plan on leaving their homes or participating in the ongoing protests.
In South Australia, the state developed an app to enforce lockdowns and quarantines. The app will contact residents at random and ask them to provide proof of their location within 15 minutes. If they fail to do so, they will be arrested.
Bill Shorten, a member of the Australian Parliament and the Labor Party leader, said that those who protest the lockdowns and vaccine mandates that he supports are “man-baby Nazis” that “deserve to get the full force of everything that’s coming their way.”
Canada has implemented strict vaccination mandates and vaccine passports for residents as well. Federal employees will be required to receive a mandatory vaccination or be subject to termination. Canadian residents will be subject to show vaccination papers when attending public places, such as restaurants, sporting events, concerts, gyms, and cinemas.
Demonstrations have increased throughout the country following vaccination mandates and passports. Numerous protests have taken place outside of hospitals, government facilities, and vaccination centers.
The Québec government recently made it illegal to protest within 50 meters of schools, daycares, hospitals, medical clinics, and Covid-19 vaccination sites. The temporary ban will apply for 30 days, but it can be renewed after its expiration.
Italian citizens have also continued protesting in response to strict Covid-19 vaccine mandates, including the “Green Pass.” Starting next month, workers in public and private jobs must show proof of vaccination, or their salaries will be withheld.
Italy is requiring residents to use the “Green Pass” vaccine passport for indoor dining, museums, and gyms. It was later extended for public transportation, including trains, planes, and ferries.
Italians have until Oct. 15 to become vaccinated. Workers without proof of vaccination will be suspended without pay.