On the eve of the one-year anniversary of the G20 summit, there were two versions of Toronto Police Chief Bill Blair on display.The first was contrite, admitting that there were problems with the way officers handled protests in failing to stop a small group of black-clad vandals from smashing up the downtown, and that administrative “deficiencies” at a temporary detention centre left some arrestees without access to lawyers and medical evaluations.
The second, however, was combative, defending the decision to round up hundreds of peaceful protesters and saying that, despite a months-long review of policing at the summit, he did not know whether the RCMP or other police forces at the Integrated Security Unit headquarters in Barrie, Ont., had given orders that added to the confusion on the streets during those fateful days.
Throughout his six years in charge, Chief Blair has earned a reputation for admitting to, and grappling with, the force’s problems, from racial profiling to a lack of women and minorities serving as police. His handling of such files has burnished the force’s image and built bridges with the community – all of which has seemed very remote over the last year, in the backlash that followed the summit.
On Friday afternoon, he explained the rationale behind the most controversial decision of that weekend, to perform the largest mass arrests in Canadian history. After police failed to stop the Black Bloc during their smashing spree on June 26, the main day of protests, it was necessary to disperse – or arrest – everyone on the streets to prevent Bloc members hiding amid peaceful protesters from doing any further damage, he said.
Full Article
Source: Globe & Mail
No comments:
Post a Comment