A group hopes to paralyze the event, as "for too long these states have organized so-called green conventions so that their hypocrisy goes unnoticed."
The Montreal police department said Wednesday it is ready for protests as the COP15 biodiversity conference gets under way at the Palais de Congrès and warned motorists to expect traffic delays as a result.
At least three demonstrations are expected on Wednesday alone, and by 8 a.m. about 60 demonstrators were already on the streets outside the convention centre.
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According to a statement sent to newsrooms this week by the Coalition anticapitaliste et écologiste contre la COP15, a protest was expected to begin at 7 a.m. at Place d’Armes, a few blocks from the Palais de Congrès, followed by a march at 9 a.m. at Cégep du Vieux Montréal, while a demonstration in front of the Université du Québec à Montréal at the corner of Ste-Catherine and St-Denis Sts. would start at 10:30 a.m.
The Coalition invited “the population to participate in the three (marches) in the hope to have as many people as possible to paralyze downtown for the entire morning.”
The group opposes the COP15 event, saying that “for too long these states have organized these so-called green conventions so that their hypocrisy goes unnoticed.”
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