Dozens of trucks and tractors kicked off a series of freedom convoys in Leeuwarden on Sunday morning. The Dutch action is a follow-up to the Freedom Convoy in Canada with tens of thousands of truckers protesting against Corona measures.
In Zeeland, the activists gathered in the parking lot of the ANWB near Kapelle. After consultation with the police, the procession, the ‘Freedom Convoy Zeeland’, left for a tour through the province.
A procession of truckers and motorists also travelled on the busy A59. The convoy departed from the carpool area at Maarheeze to pass through the province of Brabant. The participants fear that they will lose their freedom and the vaccine will be used as a means of coercion. They carried banners stating “We are not an experiment”.
The IKEA in Zwolle was designated as the collection point for the Overijssel region. Via the Telegram group “Convoy NL Overijssel”, truck drivers were called upon to gather befor lunch for a tour of the province.
Truckers and sympathizers also made a tour through the province of Flevoland on Sunday afternoon as a protest against the Corona dictates. The group gathered around at the De Aalscholver parking lot along the A6.
A demonstration which started at 13:00 in Harselaar in Gelderland, drove through Stroe, Harskamp, Otterlo, Voorthuizen and Barneveld. In the course of the afternoon there were major traffic jams on the route.
The organization behind Convoy Nederland says that the provincial freedom convoys are the prelude to a national action, which should take place on February 7 when truckers will drive to the capital and from there to Brussels. The demonstrations are organized via Telegram groups, where tens of thousands of people have already registered in a few days.
The organisers of the Dutch convoy told broadcaster Ongehoord Nederland that everyone would be welcome to demonstrate. “We won’t allow people to be pigeonholed,” said the initiators. They emphasized that the action was a call on governments to respect the fundamental rights of citizens.
The truckers can look forward to a lot of support. “We must not forget how essential transport traffic is to our society. If these people no longer accept it, they [truckers] really have the power to change something,” said lawyer Raisa Blommestijn.