Nova Scotia’s premier is continuing his speaking tour across the province, one day after a protest turned violent in Wolfville, N.S., as political experts say the incident only highlights how negative politics has gotten.
RCMP are now asking for the public’s help in identifying the protesters who are alleged to have prevented the premier and his staff from leaving an event, as well as damaging a vehicle.
“Individuals have a protected right to lawfully, peacefully, and safely assemble,” RCMP said in a Thursday release.
“Those who unlawfully interfere with or threaten the safety of any person or property will be held accountable. Acts of violence will not be tolerated and will be investigated fully by police.”
While leaving a speaking engagement at Acadia University on Wednesday, protesters confronted Premier Tim Houston and his staff while they were in their vehicles.
The Premier’s Office says they were “swarmed by rioters” and that protesters smashed the windshield of the vehicle where Houston was a passenger.
“This was not the Nova Scotian way,” Houston said in a video posted on social media.
“It was violence.”
Houston says he respects the right of the public to share their opinion and peacefully protest but that he doesn’t believe that’s what happened on Wednesday.
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“In trying to leave the venue, my vehicle and my team’s vehicles were swarmed by rioters. They blocked us in. They were pushing law enforcement, climbed on top of the car I was in,” he said.
Video from the incident shows RCMP arresting one person and an emotionally-charged scene.
Protesters appeared to take issue with budget cuts to the arts, impending library closures in the area, Indigenous rights and environmental concerns.
According to RCMP, no injuries were reported and a man was arrested but later released without charges.
Political hostilities ‘ramping up’
The Nova Scotia Federation of Municipalities has recently been raising concerns about increasing hostility towards public officials.
Bridgewater Mayor David Mitchell, who is the federation’s president, says he knows all too well how negative the climate can be.
“I’ve had threats made against me. I think you can probably go to most municipalities and hear from someone. And it’s scary, especially for local politicians where people know where we live, we’re here on the ground every day — but it is ramping up,” he said.
“There should be no violence in any protest.”
Political scientist and Dalhousie University professor, Lori Turnbull, says what happened with the premier is unacceptable.
“We typically don’t see that kind of a violent attack,” she said.
“Those sorts of things are on the rise, but still, every time you see it, it’s kind of shocking and nobody goes into political office because they want to be the subject of that and it’s got to be really scary and it is not acceptable.”
Turnbull says this kind of violence could deter people from running for office, but it can also hurts civil political conversation.
“If there’s a sense that the premier can’t move about in a way that is peaceful and safe for him and the people around him, who is going to want to run for office if this is what you’re signing up for,” said Turnbull.
“This sort of thing makes it look like politics is not really a place where solutions come through, where there’s meaningful dialogue. It kind of puts a cloud over the whole thing. And so it does affect us. It hurts the rest of us.”
The premier is meeting with chambers of commerce and Nova Scotia business owners in July and August. Wednesday’s event in Wolfville was the first stop in the series of events.
The next scheduled meeting was Thursday with the Yarmouth and Area Chamber of Commerce, followed by stops to visit the chambers of Bridgewater, Pictou County, Truro and Colchester, Strait Area and Cape Breton.
— with files from Skye Bryden-Blom
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