Occupy Edmonton protestors have voted to stay at a downtown park despite being given an eviction notice on Saturday.
The company that owns the park at 102 Street and Jasper Avenue where the group has been camping has given protestors until 11 p.m. Sunday night to leave.
Among their concerns, Melcor issued the following reasons for the notice in an e-mail:
"In the interests of public health and safety, repeated requests and concerns issued to Occupy Edmonton representatives, the interests and rights of property owners and users, and potential liability issues…"
The statement also said that protestors would be removed by police if they failed to leave the property by 11 p.m.
However protestors told CTV News that at a meeting on Saturday night they decided to stay and to resist arrest.
"We're here to stand up for the rights of all Canadians and Edmontonians," Occupy Edmonton spokesperson Mohad Mohammed said.
"We're going to keep on doing that.
"If that means some people are getting arrested for what they really believe in, which is the constitution not property rights, then I'm willing to get arrested. They're willing to get arrested."
Melcor said if the protestors present them and the police with a plan and timeline for leaving the site they will consider deferring the notice.
