WELLINGTON, New Zealand: Protesters from throughout New Zealand, known as the “convoy for freedom”, blocked streets outside New Zealand’s parliament on February 8, with trucks and camper vans protesting against vaccine mandates and pandemic restrictions.

The protests, inspired by the ongoing truckers blockade in the capital against strict government measures to fight the pandemic, were planned ahead of the first speech for the year by Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern.

The largely unmasked protesters held placards calling for “freedom” and vowed to camp outside parliament until the COVID-19 curbs are lifted.

Ardern did not meet with the protesters, and later told reporters that the protesters did not represent the majority of Canadians.

“I think it would be wrong to, in any way, characterize what we’ve seen outside as a representation of the majority,” Ardern said at a news conference.

“The majority of New Zealanders have done everything they can to keep one another safe.”

In her first parliamentary speech for the year earlier in the day, Ardern told lawmakers that the COVID-19 pandemic will not end with the Omicron variant and New Zealand will have to prepare for more variants of the virus this year.

Ardern’s government has enforced some of the toughest pandemic restrictions during the last two years, which helped keep infections and deaths low in New Zealand.

But it also angered many who faced endless home isolation and expatriate New Zealanders who were cut off from families back home as the borders remained sealed. The measures have also been devastating for businesses dependent on international tourists.

The government said last week that the country will reopen its borders to the rest of the world in phases beginning in October.