When the G20 came to Toronto, along with it came a policing style that relies heavily on military doctrines for conflict in urban settings. The "information warfare" component of the doctrine translated into security forces adopting a specific media strategy, which was reflected in Canadian media to varying degrees. Canadian media has not reflected on their role in the events of G20 weekend, or on the lasting repercussions the weekend has had on the exercise of democratic freedoms in Canada.
Created by bethanybhorne on Oct 3, 2010
Last updated: 10/14/10 at 08:39 AM
Tags: G20 police public relations Toronto June 2010
G20: The Protests, the Police and the Media has no followers yet. Be the first one to follow.
New Democrats are keeping up the pressure for a full public inquiry into questionable actions by police and government during the G20 summit in June, introducing a private member's bill for a probe that would “get to the bottom of everything.”
NDP Leader Andrea Horwath said a full probe with power to subpoena witnesses and compel the presentation of secret government documents is needed to replace a “mishmash” of reviews now underway by the province, police and Ontario's ombudsman.
“It would provide a fuller accounting to taxpayers and would examine whether Ontarians' rights and freedoms were compromised,” Horwath said before introducing the bill Wednesday.
Private members' bills rarely become law, and the province said any decisions on an inquiry must come from the federal government since it was in charge of the summit.
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/870995--horwath-seeks-full-public-g20-inquiry
Former Chief Justice of Ontario Roy McMurtry is to head up an independent review of the ‘secret law’ which was controversial for giving police excessive powers during the G20 summit in June.
The ‘five-metre rule’ as it was dubbed, was announced by Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair the day before the summit. It left the impression that anyone within five metres of the security fence would be required to produce identification, a reason for why they were there, and submit their belongings to be searched. In reality, the law only applied to the inside of the fence.
Mr. McMurtry’s prominence in his career played a key role in his appointment, said Jim Bradley, Ontario’s new Minister of Community Safety and Correctional Services.
The review will look at the historical context of the act and how it has been used since it was enacted during the start of World War Two.
“This law has been on the books since 1939, when we were probably worried about Nazi saboteurs,” said Bradley. “It deserves a review.”
http://news.nationalpost.com/2010/09/22/reports-roy-mcmurtry-to-head-up-review-of-secret-g20-law/
Police conduct during the G20 summit is now the subject of an unprecedented investigation by a powerful provincial agency charged with probing complaints against law enforcement agencies.
Citing a deluge of public complaints, the Office of the Independent Police Review Director has announced it is conducting a review of “systemic issues” raised by allegations of unlawful searches, unlawful arrests and improper detention by police over the course of the summit.
[...]
“The review will investigate common issues arising from complaints against police during the G20 Summit,” Independent Police Review Director Gerry McNeilly said in a statement Thursday. “I can ensure that these issues are investigated thoroughly and in a way that is accountable, transparent, efficient and fair to both the public and the police.”
The Office, which says it has received about 275 complaints relating to incidents during the G20, is an arms-length agency of the Ontario Ministry of the Attorney General that was created last October. It is responsible for dealing with all public complaints against municipal and regional police services in the province and the OPP.
[...]
Provincial legislation gives Mr. McNeilly the power to conduct searches and seizures, summon documents and summon witnesses, including officers and police chiefs.
http://news.nationalpost.com/2010/07/22/office-of-the-independent-review-director-launches-public-review-of-g20-complaints/
WEDNESDAY, JULY 14, 2010
An error by Global TV News or part of a pattern?
"I raised the issue about Global TV carelessly or deliberately (choose one) spicing its national news report about G20 demonstrators with video showing Vancouver Olympics vandals in action because I see it as part of a pattern. Sometimes through carelessness, other times through intention to shape the message, the news is distorted. Neither is tolerable. Democracy depends upon a free and accurate, unbiased press."
Norm Farrell
http://northerninsights.blogspot.com/2010/07/error-by-global-tv-news-or-part-of.html
"Global TV salted its report by adding unrelated footage to its video report on the Toronto G20 demonstrations. The unrelated footage is from black bloc vandals tipping over newspaper boxes in Vancouver, during the Olympics. Skip to the added footage at 1:45."
"July 10, Global TV National 5:30 PDT reported on that day's Toronto Day of Action for Civil Liberties. Rights advocates called for a complete and independent public inquiry into the police response to G20 demonstrations and Global was unimpressed. They claimed 5,000 protesters had been expected - without saying by whom - and only 2,000 showed up. The reporter said this was evidence that civil rights advocates were losing public support.
Global showed incidents of G20 vandalism intended to inform or outrage casual viewers and help them to the conclusion provided by the Global reporter. I guess they were lacking in sufficiently outrageous footage of Toronto G20 vandals so they cut in a video of Vancouver black-bloc crazies knocking over two newspaper street boxes during the 2010 Olympics.
[...]
We saw the media's ability to estimate crowd sizes when Corus Radio reported that "hundreds" of supporters participated in Andrea Morton's rally at the Legislature, while photographs indicated between three and five thousand.
[...]
But, Global went beyond that in "reporting" on today's Toronto event, admitting that while quite a few people participated, it should have been many more.
So, apparently they counted not only people who showed up, they counted people who didn't show up but should have."
Blogger Norm Farrell
http://northerninsights.blogspot.com/2010/07/im-wondering.html
An Ipsos Reid poll conducted for Global Television and NewsTalk 1010 reveals that three quarters (74%) of Canadians and GTA residents (75%) ‘agree’ that ‘members of the violent protest gang Black Bloc should be charged under Canada’s terrorist laws and not the regular criminal code’.
Conversely, one quarter (26%) of Canadians and GTA residents (25%) ‘disagree’ that members of the Black Bloc should be charged under terrorism laws and not the regular criminal code.
http://www.vancouverite.com/2010/07/08/majority-of-canadians-want-g20-thugs-to-be-charged-under-terrorism-laws/
In the past two weeks, I have experienced much that I feel has designed to break me, to silence me, and to scare me into submission.
I have had police break into my home, terrorize my friends, pull a gun on my neighbour, and tear a dear friend from our lives. I have been stopped, detained, and searched multiple times without cause or consent: our car swarmed in the middle of a busy Toronto intersection, told to get out, put our hands on the car and to spread our legs while being patted down and called "sweetie". I have had perfectly legal items, like ear plugs, confiscated while being illegally searched, and other belongings broken by the police, who have repeatedly affirmed that I have no rights and that they do not care that they are breaking their own laws.
I have had batons swung in my direction and tasers pointed me during peaceful demonstrations, striking those next to me, while we chanted "We are peaceful, how 'bout you?" We have been boxed in and threatened by heavily armed riot cops in situations where police have already demonstrated their overwhelming unaccountability. My friends have been beaten, arrested and detained, most without being given any cause. Some have disappeared into unmarked vans, and have not been heard from for days, as they are delayed legal counsel and even medical attention. Some have been targeted as scapegoats, political prisoners, and are still being held as terrorists in maximum security prison complexes.
http://toronto.mediacoop.ca/blog/niki-thorne/4115
RNN's Paul Jay questions the dominant G20 media narrative.
June 2: On the request of Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair, Dalton McGuinty's cabinet approves a temporary regulation affecting the Public Works Protection Act. Its aim is to ensure that police are legally authorized to search and demand identification of anyone attempting to enter the security perimeter in downtown Toronto during the G20 summit. There is no announcement.
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June 16: The regulation is quietly posted on the government's e-Laws website, but passes unnoticed. (It's not slated to be published in the Ontario Gazette until July 3.)
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June 22: When explicitly asked by The Globe and Mail which laws provide for the security measures taken during the G20, two spokespeople for the Integrated G20 Security Unit – including at least one member of the Toronto police – fail to mention the Public Works Protection Act.
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June 24: The regulation first comes to light, as at least two activists are arrested under the Public Works Protection Act. Neither appears to have been trying to enter the perimeter. In both cases, police cite a rule that extends their identification and search powers to five metres outside the security fence.
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June 25: It's widely reported that, under the provincial regulation, individuals passing by up to five metres outside the security fence can be arrested by police if they fail to show identification or consent to a search. (The regulation, on first glance, appears to confirm this power.)
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June 25: At a news conference, Chief Blair says, “The five-metre zone around the fence is for the protection of the security barrier.”
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June 25: In an interview, Mr. McGuinty seems to confirm a major change to the law by referring to “something extraordinary happening inside our province,” while affirming his faith in Chief Blair.
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June 25: Police realize they'd misinterpreted the regulation, and the “five metres” actually refers to an area inside the fence. (It’s later reported that it was the province that informed them – see below.)
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June 26-27: Despite continued media coverage of the “five-metre” rule, no attempt is made by either the province or the police to make clear that it doesn't exist. As a result, Torontonians and visitors remain under the impression that they can be arrested just for passing by the security fence without identification.
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June 27: To counter complaints that Ontarians weren't made aware of the new law, the government directs reporters to an advertisement taken out by Toronto police in some newspapers prior to the summit. The ad, titled “What you need to know about the G20 Summit,” makes no mention of the Public Works Protection Act, any recent provincial decisions, or a five-metre rule.
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June 28: When contacted, the Premier’s Office discusses the five-metre rule without indicating that it didn't actually exist.
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June 29: Chief Blair acknowledges that the five-metre rule never existed, but hints that he didn't correct the record because he “was trying to keep the criminals out.”
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June 29: When asked by The Globe and Mail whether any action was taken by the government to get police to stop wrongly enforcing the regulation, a provincial spokesperson responds: “The application of the regulation over the weekend was operational in nature, and we do not interfere in police operational decisions.” The spokesperson also insists “the language of the regulation is very clear.”
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June 29: Another government official acknowledges that the regulation was “confusing,” but says that – despite contradictory video evidence – the government does not believe there were any arrests under the non-existent rule.
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June 30: The Police Services Board tells The Globe and Mail that, in fact, it was the province that informed police on June 25 – following the arrests – that the regulation was being wrongly interpreted.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/politics/adam-radwanski/a-timeline-on-the-g20-five-metre-rule-that-didnt-exist/article1626001/
Toronto Police Service chief Bill Blair has branded the Black Bloc protesters who smashed windows and torched police cars during the G20 summit protests as "terrorists".
During a televised press conference this morning (June 29), Blair claimed that "several hundred" people came to the protests with the intent to commit criminal acts.
"When they couldn't attack the summit, they attacked the city, and they became a mob," Blair said, while displaying a variety of weapons seized during the G20. "And a mob is policed a little differently than a lawful, peaceful protest."
http://www.straight.com/article-331351/vancouver/toronto-police-review-g20-tactics-ontario-government-wont-hold-inquiry
Toronto Police staged a display of weaponry to demonstrate “the extent of the criminal conspiracy” among hard-line G20 protesters, but several of the items had nothing to do with the summit.
[...]
Police invited journalists on Tuesday to view a range of weapons, from a machete and baseball bat to bear spray and crowbars.
Chief Bill Blair, who told reporters the items were evidence of the protesters’ intent, singled out arrows covered in sports socks, which he said were designed to be dipped in a flammable liquid and set ablaze.
However, the arrows belong to Brian Barrett, a 25-year-old landscaper who was heading to a role-playing fantasy game when he was stopped at Union Station on Saturday morning.
[...]
Police also displayed a crossbow and chainsaw seized in an incident on Friday that they said had no ties to the summit. When asked, Chief Blair acknowledged they were unrelated, but said “everything else” had been confiscated from demonstrators.
On Wednesday, however, Michael Went and Doug Kerr e-mailed a letter to Chief Blair saying their bamboo poles may have been included in the exhibit. As they headed to a picnic to commemorate the 1969 Stonewall riots on Sunday morning
[...]
The couple had planned to use the poles to fly a rainbow flag and decorate the park.
[...]
Julian Falconer, a Toronto lawyer representing four independent journalists in summit-related police complaints, called the display of unrelated objects a “public-relations exercise [that] borders on the absurd.”
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/weapons-seized-in-g20-arrests-not-what-they-seem/article1622761/
The expiration of the five-metre rule that had Toronto residents fearing arrest if they strayed too close to the G20 security perimeter came with a startling revelation Tuesday – it never existed.
The rule seemed straightforward when the news broke last Friday that the Ontario government made a regulatory change to a little-known act in secret.
Come within five metres of the summit security fence and you’d better have some identification or risk arrest.
The temporary regulation, which was passed in secret June 2, did decree that all streets and sidewalks inside the fence were a public work until 11:59 p.m. Monday. Under the Ontario Public Works Protection Act, that allowed police to search people trying to enter that area.
But there was no power to search people coming within five metres of the fence, said ministry spokeswoman Laura Blondeau.
“The area designated by the regulation as a public work does not extend outside the boundary of the fence,” Ms. Blondeau said.
Asked Tuesday if there actually was a five-metre rule given the ministry’s clarification, Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair smiled and said, “No, but I was trying to keep the criminals out.”
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/toronto/police-admit-no-five-metre-rule-existed-on-security-fence-law/article1622864/
"But we also know that some people came to Toronto not to protest around a specific issue or to advocate for any change. They came to attack our city. They came to attack the summit. They came to commit crimes. And to victimize the people of the city."
"That group of people were asked on Friday if they would denounce the use of violence in these demonstrations, and they refused to do that."
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2010/06/29/f-g20-legal.html
A recording from CP24 showing their typical emotion-ridden presentation of events (quick cuts of dramatic footage+pace-quickening music), plus Police Chief Bill Blair's remarks at the press conference where he makes some logical leaps: black bloc present at march organized by an activist network on Friday (where they did nothing): therefore everyone present at that march, and especially the organizers, were complicit in what a Black Bloc (consisting of different members) did the following day.
Naomi Klein in a radio interview with Democracy Now's Amy Goodman:
"Now, while that was happening, media outlets were getting press statements. And I’ll just read you one. This is from the Toronto Police Department: "All you have to do is turn on the TV and see what’s happening now. Police cars are getting torched, buildings are being vandalized, people are getting beat up, and [so] the so-called 'intimidating' police presence is essential to restoring order."
In other words, the police were playing public relations, overtly. They were saying, "OK, you’re telling us our price tag was too high. We’re getting in political trouble for our outrageous demands. So now we’re going to show you this huge threat that we’re up against."
And so, we have a police commissioner named Julian Fantino, who’s now started to talk about activists as organized crime. He says it’s not enough to call them thugs, they’re organized criminals. So, what’s dangerous here is that in order to justify their own unjustifiable actions, they need to overinflate a threat.
"And so, that has played itself out in two ways: one, by allowing what happened on Saturday to happen with almost no intervention; and then—that was stage one—and stage two was using that inaction as justification for scooping up hundreds of other activists, beating up journalists, just going on a rampage.
http://www.democracynow.org/2010/6/28/naomi_klein_the_real_crime_scene
It was messy, violent and bruising.
But Prime Minister Stephen Harper insists the summit that turned Toronto’s downtown into an armed fortress and sparked window-smashing protests and mass arrests was all worth it.
“We obviously deplore the actions of a few thugs. But the reality is, unfortunately, that these summits attract this element and (that) has been a problem, as we know, around the world,” Harper said as the G20 summit wrapped up Sunday afternoon.
“That said, I think that goes a long way to explaining why we have the kind of security costs around these summits that we do,” Harper said.
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/torontog20summit/article/829254
Example of police abusing their rights to search in the downtown core. When challenged that their behaviours contravene Canadian charter protections, one officer says "This isn't Canada anymore," and another backs him up. "This is G20 land," they say.
Jonathan Kay on the extraordinary professionalism of Toronto’s G20 police force
[...]
Some of my American friends have been emailing me to ask whether “Toronto is burning”? On YouTube and Twitter, they’ve been following the “highlights” of Saturday’s G20 riots — the wrecked cars and the broken storefront windows — and assumed that Toronto had become one giant Watts.
It’s not. This is one of those stories the social media has gotten wrong: a million tweeters all tweeting up the same three burning police cruisers and few dozen wrecked storefronts. The number of protestors wasn’t even that big (even if the media insists on calling the protests “massive.”)
[...]
This was the moment I realized that all the hundreds of millions spent on security for the G8/G20 event probably were worth it. Here was a crowd ready to go on the rampage after a burning cop car put the evening’s rush into their veins. Yet such was the manpower at the police’s disposal that they were able to get about 200 fully suited-up men and women staring the rabble down within minutes.
[...]
Like just about everyone else, I was somewhat appalled when I learned how much the security costs would be for the G8 and G20 summits. But after what I saw and heard on Saturday, I’ve changed my mind. As bad as some of the scenes might have seemed, the most important scenes are the ones we haven’t seen — of people getting hurt in a serious way, or even killed.
Let’s hope things stay that way until all the dignitaries pack up and leave. If so, then all those hundreds of millions we spent on disciplined men and women in uniform will be money well spent.
http://fullcomment.nationalpost.com/2010/06/27/jonathan-kay-on-the-extraordinary-professionalism-of-torontos-g20-police-force/
"These criminals rely on the anonymity of hiding within a larger group [...] If you do not wish to be involved with the police, please leave an area when you are asked to do so."
Toronto Chief of Police Bill Blair says at press conference that the information "twittered" by anarchists about the use of rubber bullets was misinformation, used to "mislead the public." A reporter challenges that he has received pictures of these spent bullets on the ground, and asks if perhaps the bullets were used without the chief's knowledge. Chief says, "No, I would have been advised." Later, police said they did in fact use rubber bullets that day.
A G20 Integrated Security Unit spokeswoman could confirm only one of the incidents yesterday, a theft in the early morning hours of June 19.
In that incident, a laptop computer and badge from a senior RCMP officer were taken from a downtown hotel in an apparent break-in.
"It is my understanding that they have recovered some of the items," said RCMP Sergeant Michele Paradis. "There is an ongoing investigation being done by Toronto police."
The theft from the Sheraton Centre hotel is believed to be the work of a theft ring operating in the area that was caught on surveillance video. Police are looking for three suspects.
In the other incident, confirmed by security sources but not confirmed by the ISU, an out-of-town officer allegedly hired a street prostitute to accompany him to his hotel room and fell asleep following their encounter. Taking advantage of her situation, she left with some of his luggage, which included his police gear.
http://www.nationalpost.com/news/g20/Stolen+police+gear+raises+security+concerns/3203681/story.html
Syed Hussan, 26, an organizer with No One Is Illegal-Toronto and the
Toronto Community Mobilization Network was swarmed by a group of plain
clothes police-officers, thrown into an unmarked van and driven away on
the morning of Saturday, June 26th, as part of a ‘preventative’ mass
arrest of community organizers before the largest day of G20 summit
protests even began.
http://toronto.nooneisillegal.org/freedom
They call it the Miami Model.
But it could be called the Genoa model, the Pittsburgh model and, after this weekend, the Toronto model.
It refers to police tactics used in Miami seven years ago, during the Free Trade Area of the Americas summit, and, more importantly, the protests erupting on the streets outside.
Manny Diaz, Miami’s then-mayor, called the police methods exemplary — a model to be followed by homeland security when confronting protesters.
Human rights groups including Amnesty International called it a model of police brutality and intimidation.
Protesters were beaten with tear gas, sticks, rubber bullets . . . You can watch police stun cowering protesters with Tasers on YouTube. Last year, the city agreed it had trampled citizens’ right to free speech by forcing marchers back from planned protests and settled out of court with Amnesty International.
What is the Miami Model?
I called Naomi Archer to find out. She is an indigenous rights worker from North Carolina who happened to be giving a lecture on the Miami Model yesterday at the U.S. Social Forum — the G20 for community activists.
Archer, who was in Miami as a liaison between protesters and police, has a 40-box checklist to identify the Model. Here are the main themes.
• Information warfare. This starts weeks before the event. Protesters are criminalized and dehumanized, and described as dangerous “anarchists” and “terrorists” the city needs to defend against.
“Often, a faux cache is found,” says Archer. “They are usually ordinary objects, like bike inner tubes, camping equipment, but the police make them out to look threatening. It lays the groundwork for police to be violent and it means there’s a reduced accountability of law enforcement.”
• Intimidation. Police start random searches of perceived protesters before any large rallies. They are asked where they are staying, why they are walking around. Police raid organizer’s homes or meeting places, “usually just before the summit, so there’s maximum chaos organizers have to deal with,” says Archer.
“All this is meant to dissuade participants. The best way to make sure you don’t have a critical mass of people taking over the streets like in Seattle is to reduce the numbers at the outset.”
This is usually made possible by last-minute city regulations, curtailing the right to protest. In Miami, the city commission passed a temporary ordinance forbidding groups of more than seven to congregate for more than 30 minutes without a permit.
• “They threw rocks.” That’s the line police use after tear-gassing or beating protesters most times, Archer says. Urine and human feces are variations on the theme. But it’s always the protesters who triggered the violence. A popular police tactic is called “kettling.” Officers on bike or horses herd protesters into an enclosed space, so they can’t leave without trying to break through the police line. Take the bait; you provoke a beating or arrest. And of course, there are the famous agent provocateurs, outted publicly two years ago in Montebello. Police officers dressed up like militant protesters to protect the peaceful crowd, they say; Archer says it’s to instigate trouble.
In Montebello, one of the three cops dressed in black was holding a rock.
“It’s the same lies every single protest,” she says. “It’s justification by law enforcement for their violent actions. This is a propaganda war.”
• Job well done. At the end, regardless of the bodies clogging the temporary holding cells and hospitals, the police always congratulate themselves. And by the time the cases go to court, the story is long forgotten and the circus has moved to a new unsuspecting town.
More than 270 people were arrested in Miami during the summit seven years ago . How many were convicted, in the end? I called the American Civil Liberties Union to find out.
“None,” said lawyer Lida Rodriguez-Taseff, who was the president of the Miami chapter back then.
So far in Toronto, the police show has unrolled according to script; we’ve seen the propaganda, the cache, the intimidation, the secretive new regulations, the scary military arsenal. . . .
Next up, rocks. Will we all believe that one too?
Catherine Porter
Email: cporter@thestar.ca
http://www.thestar.com/article/828876--porter-when-police-stick-to-phony-script
All the foreboding emails flooding my inbox had me spooked. Company instructions on gas masks, underwear choice (avoid cotton, it absorbs gas fumes), and making sure to have an escape route. My husband had just forwarded me a missive from his office administrator, suggesting staff go underground to avoid the afternoon’s protest.
I recently returned from Haiti, where one hotel owner told me he wears a bullet-proof vest whenever he drives downtown. He’s afraid of kidnappers. “Who am I afraid of,” I wondered as I climbed the stairs out of Queen station, past a phalanx of uniformed police officers.
Surely not Casey Oraa, a 25-year-old gay activist who wore a hot pink scarf and talked about the federal government’s decision to pull funding from the Gay Pride festival as we strolled side-by-side along Queen West in a sea of protesters.
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/torontog20summit/article/827684--porter-i-am-a-protester-not-a-terrorist
CBC reports that CSIS says there is a low risk of terrorism at the G8 and G20 summits.
"Richard Fadden, the director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, told the CBC, ‘We don't think there is anyone who is really interested in doing any harm from that perspective.'"
[...]
What's the real threat according to CSIS?
Fadden says "anarchist groups" and "multi-issue extremists".
He says, "Nothing attracts the world media like the G8 and G20, so anyone who is interested in getting their issues in front of the public, I think, are interested in being in Toronto."
http://rabble.ca/blogs/bloggers/council-canadians/2010/06/news-csis-says-terrorism-risk-low-watch-multi-issue-groups
Byron Sonne recently joked he was the last guy counter-terrorism officials would be prone to investigate.
The 37-year-old man made the comment about a month ago at a “Surveillance Club” meeting, a monthly gathering for academics and activists who enjoy discussing surveillance issues and ideas.
Sonne shared his plans to protest the G20 and mused he was hardly the type to raise security alarm bells — slightly nerdy with a receding hairline, the computer specialist lives in a million-dollar home with his artist wife.
[...]
“He looks, you know, generic. Kind of like a geek,” observed Jesse Hirsh, an Internet specialist and broadcaster who met Sonne at the May 5 meeting. “We sort of joked . . . he was this middle-aged white guy, how he didn’t really fit the (terrorist) profile.”
[...]
So Hirsh was shocked to read the headlines Wednesday and discover Sonne is at the centre of a G20 terror investigation.
On Tuesday afternoon, police converged on Sonne’s home on Elderwood Dr. in Forest Hill and arrested him on a slew of charges, the most serious of which is possession of an explosive. He also faces charges of mischief and intimidating a justice system participant.
http://www.thestar.com/news/gta/article/827287--man-arrested-in-g20-related-home-search
The upcoming G8 and G20 summits in Huntsville, Ont., and Toronto do not appear to be the subject of terrorist chatter, the head of Canada's spy agency said Monday.
Richard Fadden, the director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, is seen Monday in an exclusive interview with the CBC's Peter Mansbridge.
"I think [there is] surprisingly little on the terrorism front," Richard Fadden, the director of the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, told the CBC's Peter Mansbridge in an exclusive interview. "We don't think there is anyone who is really interested in doing any harm from that perspective."
"Anarchist groups" and "multi-issue extremists" are a different matter, however, Fadden suggested.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/story/2010/06/21/g8-g20-security-csis-fadden.html
Two London men were arrested and held overnight for putting up posters that “promote disruption” at the G8 and G20 summits in Toronto, police say.
London police say the two men were seen by officers in the area of Egerton St. and Frances St. at about 10:15 p.m.
The two men were gluing posters onto Canada Post mail boxes and utility boxes.
“Gluing is a form of graffiti,” said Const. Amy Phillipo.
http://www.lfpress.com/news/london/2010/06/16/14411846.html
TORONTO — - Top military snipers who served in Afghanistan will be stationed on the rooftops of highrises around the Metro Convention Centre when leaders of the G20 countries meet June 26-27, officials say.
The snipers — the elite of the Canadian Forces — are among 1,600 out-of-town officers starting to arrive in Toronto this week
[...]
RCMP Sgt. Michele Paradis refused to comment on the sharpshooters or their security operations.
[...]
Police have removed light standards from a parkette near the convention centre to create a helipad to shuttle world leaders away from protesters.
Paradis said 99.9% of the demonstrators are expected to be law-abiding.
“It’s that small amount of people coming here to break the law that we have to worry about,” Paradis said. “We will support lawful protests and demonstrations.”
http://www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandgta/2010/06/15/14401666.html
-Security tab would cover Afghanistan budget for a year, or entire Toronto Police budget including overtime. -RCMP and police spokespeople visit office workers and talk about threats from "anarchists" -Protest organizers say they are not the ones to expect violence from. -Alphonse MacNeil (RCMP commander) "lives and breathes summit security -From demonstrators to terrorists—threat levels.
Wednesday afternoon, police appealed to the public for help in pinpointing a possible terrorist threat: An enigmatic European in his 50s, a man with an accent, limp and missing fingers, who police said had misrepresented himself as he bought nearly a tonne of fertilizer in small 25-kilogram bags from a rural Ontario supplier.
[...]
Just before the G8/G20 summits, with all eyes on Ontario, there was enough missing chemicals for a reprise of the 1995 fertilizer bomb that exploded in Oklahoma City, where terrorists killed nearly 170 people.
[...]
By nightfall, the appeal for help had worked. The mystery man himself contacted police, who determined that “nothing nefarious” had taken place, in the words of one detective. Police did not identify the mystery man, but suggested he had been found and that he had wanted the substance only for growing plants.
The terrorist threat was merely a “gardening incident,” according to police.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/g8-g20/news/no-link-between-missing-fertilizer-and-g20-police-say/article1597974/
About 20 members of community organizations who plan to protest during the G20 summit held a news conference Tuesday to speak out against what they're calling police intimidation.
[...]
Some demonstrators said they knew of activists who had been intimidated by police talking to them, but gave no specific examples.
Greg Thomas, a member of the Toronto Community Mobilization Network, called on police to back off.
"The excessive arming of the police force, the demonization of Torontonians, the G8/G20 bully pulpit has created a dangerous power imbalance," Thomas said. "We are here today to call on our leaders to get off the pulpit."
Thomas also complained about security measures, saying Toronto streets are "on lockdown." He and other speakers said the money being spent could be better used for community-based programs.
There were at least 40 police officers on foot, bicycle, in cars and on horseback surrounding the demonstrators at the event.
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/toronto/story/2010/06/08/toronto-g20-demonstration.html#ixzz0qIIcuEUW
Injured protesters who are detained at a temporary jail during the G20 summit will be treated in a 10-foot-by-30-foot trailer with no plumbing and water provided by a hose, according to an e-mail circulating among Toronto physicians.
-Globe and Mail
However, the message raises fears that the physician’s goal in treating patients will be to keep protestors in detention, a practice medical and civil rights experts call unethical and improper.
[...]
The statement, however, suggests that doctors will be used to help police keep the protestors detained, said Philip Berger, an associate professor with the faculty of medicine at the University of Toronto.
“They’re already determining ahead of time that the patient should be discharged back to police custody before seeing a single patient,” said Berger, adding that while he thinks Toronto has a “morally advanced” police force, physicians must act independently.
“(Doctors) are not there to assist the police. They’re there to assist the patient — and solely to assist the patient.”
[...]
The email also suggests injured protestors will be young and healthy, and some “will probably claim factitious (sic) injury as part of their tactics.”
Nathalie Des Rosiers of the Canadian Civil Liberties Association condemned this passage, calling it an “inappropriate attempt to interfere with the ethics of medical decision making.”
-Toronto Star
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/g8-g20/news/call-out-for-doctors-to-treat-jailed-g20-protesters-sparks-furor/article1590341/
TORONTO — Police working during the G20 summit here later this month will have rubber bullets, police dogs and sound cannons at their disposal when dealing with protesters.
The Integrated Security Unit, comprised of officers from Toronto police, Ontario Provincial Police, Peel Regional Police and the RCMP, on Thursday showed off these tools during a massive security briefing for the media.
The ISU said officers within the downtown-Toronto summit zone — an area around the Metro Toronto Convention Centre that is bordered by a three-metre high metal fence — will patrol by foot, horseback, bicycle, air and car.
[...]
[TPS staff inspector] said the cannon controversy has been grossly exaggerated.
http://www.canada.com/business/Police+sound+security+tools/3108265/story.html
"The technical briefing is designed to feature specialized units from the Toronto Police Service, Peel Regional Police, the OPP, the RCMP and the Canadian Forces that will be utilized during the G20. It will provide an opportunity for the media to become familiar with what they will see on the streets of Toronto during the summit from a law enforcement and security perspective. Units on display will include Police Dog Services, Mounted Unit, Marine Unit, Public Safety Unit, Traffic Services, Video Services, Emergency Task Force and Tactical Emergency Services from both Toronto EMS and Toronto Fire Services." More video from this press conference is viewable at http://www.thestar.com/videozone/818699
John Baird (Minister of Transportation) speaks in the House of Commons and cites the RBC firebombing incident as a reason why $1 billion in taxpayer money is needed to secure the G20 and G8 summits Vic Toews say, about RBC firebombing: "This is a prime example why we need to be prepared to face thugs and terrorists that threaten our safety."
Announce perimeter to ensure "security" of all parties involved. "These summits will put Canada on the world stage"
The announcement of the purchase of a Long Range Acoustic Device prompts Queen's professor David Murakami Wood to say that Toronto protestors will be treated as criminals "You're seeing a gradual militarization of urban protest policing." The LRAD website says it was designed for "urban warfare" and isn't consistent with our ideas about human rights.
Toronto Police have tear gas and sound guns ready for unruly protesters at next month’s G20 summit.
“We have access to a chemical weapon like tear gas ... if a situation presents itself that leads us to respond we will respond in that manner,” Supt. Tom Russell said Friday in a briefing on traffic and security concerns for the June 26 and 27 meeting at the Metro Convention Centre.
The Mounties are responsible for protecting the leaders at the G20 and at the G8 summit in Huntsville June 25-26.
“Never before have two summits ever been held on one weekend,” RCMP Chief Supt. Alphonse MacNeil said. “These summits will put Canada on the world stage for three days.”
And attract thousands of protesters from as far off as Europe.
Police have purchased four long-range acoustic devices, sound guns that can disorient protesters.
Tear gas was used against G20 protesters last September in Pittsburgh and the decision to use it in Toronto “is not something we take lightly,” Russell said.
http://www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandgta/2010/05/28/14177661.html
OTTAWA - A majority of Canadians are bracing for violent protests at next month’s G8 and G20 summits, but believe we are prepared to deal with the security breaches, an exclusive poll for QMI Agency finds.
When asked about their view of summit security, the Leger Marketing survey shows 57% are sure there will be protesters and violence, but think Canada is well-equipped to handle it and show the world what a good host we are.
Another 19% think the security talk is creating a lot of hype over nothing and don't expect any major act of violence, while 12% wish we weren't playing host because they are certain an act of violence will occur and tarnish Canada's reputation.
http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2010/05/27/14159591.html
Police call them "communication tools"—
but they will not commit to using them only for information broadcast and not for the piercing "alert" function which can damage hearing and hurt the ears.
Council of Canadians says "“Saying a sound cannon is a tool for communications is like saying water boarding isn’t torture."
[...]
"These weapons affect a large area are used without accountability. The victims won’t know who fired them and won’t be able to prove they were targeted.”
[...]
“This is meant to intimidate people and make them too scared to protest. They have spent over a billion dollars on security for this event now and it is clearly violating our charter rights.” -Mark Calzavara.
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/world/g8-g20/news/toronto-police-call-sonic-cannons-communication-tools/article1583210/
“Saying a sound cannon is a tool for communications is like saying waterboarding isn’t torture, just a tool for encouraging dialogue,” Mark Calzavara, regional organizer for the Council of Canadians, said in a press release.
“These weapons affect a large area are used without accountability. The victims won’t know who fired them and won’t be able to prove they were targeted.”
The machines were used at last year’s G20 summit in Pittsburgh, where officers blasted out continuous aural assaults, despite the LRAD manufacture’s recommendation to use short burst.
“This is meant to intimidate people and make them too scared to protest. They have spent over a billion dollars on security for this event now and it is clearly violating our charter rights,” Calzavara said.”
http://thestar.blogs.com/g20/2010/05/plug-your-ears-in-protest-council-of-canadians-say.html
The Anarchist Group "FFFC - Ottawa," has claimed responsibility for the early morning Royal Bank of Canada firebombing in Ottawa Tuesday and has vowed to take its protests to the upcoming G8 and G20 Summit protests in Ontario in June. The group stated the attacks were made against corporate "Kanada" in defence of indigenous land rights and the environment.
http://www.rabble.ca/blogs/bloggers/statica/2010/05/anarchist-group-claims-responsibility-tuesdays-bank-firebombing
Terrorism charges may be levelled against those responsible for the firebombing of an RBC bank branch in Ottawa once investigators determine the motivation behind the attack, police said Wednesday.
An anarchist group claimed responsibility for the blaze, which broke out in the early hours of Tuesday morning, moments after witnesses saw a group of three or four men fleeing from the scene in Ottawa's trendy Glebe neighbourhood.
Within hours, a video was posted online that showed shadowy figures inside the bank's foyer at about 3:30 a.m. on the morning of the blaze. As the two people dash out the door, a wall of flames flashes inside the bank.
The video is accompanied by a scrolling text message that blames the Royal Bank of Canada for sponsoring the recent Winter Olympics and investing in the Alberta oilsands.
It is credited to "FFFC – Ottawa," a group that promises to be present at the upcoming G8/G20 meetings being held in Huntsville, Ont., and Toronto.
The group claims it will "pass the torch to all those who would resist the trampling of native rights, of the rights of us all, and resist the ongoing destruction of our planet."
http://www.ctv.ca/CTVNews/BritishColumbiaHome/20100519/anarchists-firebomb-bank-100519/
The locations of the cameras aren't announced until June 3, 2010. (link to the map of completed camera installations)
http://maps.google.ca/maps/ms?hl=en&ie=UTF8&msa=0&msid=108161732679102266960.00048811350d054b60ee9&ll=43.647752,-79.373989&spn=0.030494,0.07596&z=14
And with police and intelligence agencies preparing for world leaders’ conferences in Huntsville and Toronto in June, David Harris fears jihadists may be preparing a major disruption for visiting dignitaries.
“It stands to reason that, with the G-20 here, it offers a wonderful opportunity to Islamist extremists and radicals of all types to launch an offensive,” said Harris, a lawyer and director of the international and terrorist intelligence program at Insignis Strategic Research Inc. in Ottawa.
The “ultimate goal” of such subversives is “to kill as many of the infidels as possible,” he said Monday. “By doing so, such extremists demonstrate the radical Islamist threat writ runs in Canada and is capable of compromising any security efforts,” Harris said.
The geography of a large city or the rural area of Muskoka where the G-8 will be held, is of no concern to determined terrorists committed to a cause, he said.
The G-20 summit offers a “choice target,” Harris said.
http://www.torontosun.com/news/torontoandgta/2010/05/10/13897736.html
When residents of the Trinity Bellwoods neighbourhood in the west end learned from news reports April 28 that the city had assigned their 37-acre park as the “designated speech area” for tens of thousands of expected protesters, they roused to action.
Free speech was not the issue. (Their community spaces were)
[...]
The park is so heavily used and lovingly tended by nearby residents that the prospect of bused-in militants clashing with cops in riot gear beneath the cherry trees jarred the community utterly.
[...]
A slew of fiercely articulate letters, pointing out the violence, teargassing and mass arrests at last year's G20 summit in Pittsburgh, were sent to [city politicians].
Within days, the city decided to move the free-speech area from the park to another space yet to be announced.
Nevertheless, it made no move to redirect a June 26 march to the park planned by the Canadian Labour Congress
[...]
Instead, it was mission: reassurance. A meeting last Thursday night in the Trinity Community Recreation Centre began as a cheerful info session for neighbourhood residents by representatives from the labour groups and the G20 Integrated Security Unit, about the planned march. It quickly evolved into a showdown. Not a shouting match, but more like a cross-examination between 50 experienced lawyers and three ill-prepared witnesses.
Toronto police Const. George Tucker’s revelation that “20,000 to 30,000 people could easily turn up for this,” but no worries, he had never seen trouble at labour parades in all his years as an officer, caused the audience to push back.
“This is not a Labour Day parade,” one person said evenly. “This is an international summit of world leaders.”
“I don’t think we should be naive enough to pretend that others are not going to infiltrate your event,” another man pressed. Protesters from around the world are expected to come to the city evincing varying degrees of fury and anarchic intent, and they will follow the crowd, it was pointed out.
“We want to know,” a woman said, “what you will do if someone comes and tries to blow shit up, pardon my language.”
“We will handle what security arises,” Tucker replied. “There will be a very large police presence.”
Residents wanted details. How many officers? Outfitted how — with batons, with teargas? Would there be police vans? Tucker refused to disclose information, even to a woman who explained that she had a graduate degree in disaster management and that citizens are entitled by law to know of police plans.
http://www.openfile.ca/toronto/file/2010/05/anatomy-g20-showdown
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