A judge has ordered Occupy Vancouver demonstrators to take down their camp, marking a setback for the extended protest movement that on Friday faced battles in courtrooms across Canada.
Justice Anne MacKenzie of the B.C. Supreme Court sided with city lawyers who argued that the protestors, who for weeks have been camped out in front of the Vancouver art gallery, are trespassing on city land.
Hours earlier, a court in Victoria ordered campers parked in Centennial Square to pack up by 7 a.m. Saturday.
Meanwhile, in Quebec City, municipal workers walked into the local Occupy encampment Friday morning and tore down a large structure the protesters had been using as a kitchen. The protesters had been warned to take the structure down. When they didn't meet the deadline to do so, the city workers showed up and dismantled it.
It is not clear when the Vancouver protesters must clear out.
Lawyers for Occupy Vancouver had claimed that the camp and protest were protected under freedom of speech and assembly, echoing another argument heard in defence of Occupy Toronto.
Lawyers for the Toronto protesters were in Ontario's Superior Court on Friday trying to convince a judge to let the demonstrators stay in St. James Park.
The protesters had been ordered to leave the downtown park, also on the grounds that they breaking city bylaws and trespassing, but a court order has allowed them to stay for now. Justice David Brown is still hearing what both sides have to say and is expected to rule on Monday.
In court, Judge Brown said he took issue with the protesters' argument that they were being evicted.
"The (city's) notice says you can use the park for political expression," Brown said.
"But ditch the tents and not during the midnight hours."
But lawyer Susan Ursel told the judge that the encampment they have created in St. James Park is an important part of their right to assemble and express their views.
"(It's a) manifestation of what they're trying to create in the world," Ursel said Friday.
CTV Toronto's Austin Delaney reported that Brown also questioned Ursel as to why the protesters didn't seek a permit to camp outside in the first place.
The protesters argued that the city simply doesn't issue permits that allow camping after 11 p.m.
The Vancouver protest has become an issue for candidates in the current civic election that is taking place on Saturday. Mayoral candidate Suzanne Anton has suggested that incumbent Gregor Robertson has been weak on the protest issue.
With files from CTV Montreal, CTV Toronto's Austin Delaney and The Canadian Press
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