10 fines given, more expected after Steinbach protest against pandemic rules: RCMP

Ten tickets were given out to people violating public health orders by gathering at a rally in Steinbach, Man., on Saturday afternoon to rail against those very pandemic restrictions, RCMP say.

Those tickets were issued by the province, RCMP spokesperson Sgt. Paul Manaigre said in an email on Sunday afternoon, though Mounties were present at the rally.

It's still expected more of the roughly 100 people who went to the protest in the city located about 50 kilometres southeast of Winnipeg will be fined, Manaigre said.

He said he could not speak to the specific breaches of Manitoba's public health orders that led to the tickets. Under current pandemic restrictions, in-person gatherings of more than five people are outlawed.

Mounties were seen blocking off Reimer Avenue and setting up a perimeter around Steinbach's city hall where protestors were gathered on Saturday afternoon. Officers closed the area for safety reasons, Manaigre said.

"[W]e were not sure what the numbers in attendance would be as the last event is believed to have drawn between 400 [and]500 people," he said.

"This closure allowed us to keep control of the area and to keep the citizens away from the moving traffic nearby."

Steinbach Mayor Earl Funk had pleaded with the group to stop gathering in the city. He said people in Steinbach have worked hard to get a handle on the spread of COVID-19, and he's worried the protests are spoiling the city's chances of reopening businesses.

In November 2020, the test positivity rate in Steinbach climbed to a peak of 40 per cent, public health officials said.

Since then, there have been at least two protests against pandemic restrictions in the city.

As of Sunday, there were only 12 active cases in the Steinbach health district, according to the province's online data portal.

Hugs Over Masks, the group that organized Saturday's rally, said it was protesting public health restrictions its members claim are stripping away their freedoms and creating mental health problems.

Funk said on Saturday the organizers of the protest are people from outside Steinbach. At least some of that day's protestors came from Winnipeg and other Manitoba communities.

Funk said the rally's organizers never contacted the city about their events, and he wishes they had.

In response, the group told CBC News in an email on Saturday that Funk was "more than welcome to attend the rally and have his concerns addressed."