New York Times

Prime Minister Justin Trudeau took the rare step of declaring a national public order emergency on Monday in a push to end protests that have paralyzed the center of the Canadian capital for more than two weeks and reverberated across the country.

The move, the first time a Canadian government has taken such action in half a century, is Mr. Trudeau’s most aggressive response since the crisis began. It would allow the federal government to expand measures to reopen impeded border crossings and clear the blockade of about 400 trucks in Ottawa, the nation’s capital, that has been overwhelming the police, snarling traffic, undermining the local economy and disturbing residents in the normally quiet city.

Mr. Trudeau said that the protests have been illegally obstructing neighborhoods and disturbing residents, while blockades harmed the economy. “This is not a peaceful protest,” he said.

“We will not allow illegal and dangerous activities to continue.” He said invoking the act was a “last resort” and stressed that he was not limiting the rights of peaceful assembly or freedom of expression.

“The time to go home is now,” he added.

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