It’s no surprise to learn that officials were worried about potential threats from terrorist organizations such as al-Qaeda, “lone wolves” not affiliated with any established terrorist group, foreign spies as well as protest groups and criminals.
But, say Canadian Forces planning documents, grouped in with such threats was “Embarrassment to the Gov’t.”
Although the documents do not detail what would be considered embarrassment, the mass arrests and police abuses from the summits held two years ago in Toronto and Huntsville are still reverberating throughout government and police agencies.
Last month, the Office of the Independent Police Review Director released a scathing report concluding that police used “excessive force,” ignored civil rights and made “unlawful” mass arrests in cracking down on protests at a G20 summit in Toronto. As a result, some have called for the resignation of Toronto’s police chief Bill Blair.
“What occurred over the course of the weekend resulted in the largest mass arrests in Canadian history,” Gerry McNeilly, head of the police review office said in his report. “These disturbances had a profound impact not only on the citizens of Toronto and Canada generally, but on public confidence in the police as well.”
McNeilly’s report stated, “Some police officers ignored basic rights citizens have under the Charter and overstepped their authority when they stopped and searched people arbitrarily and without legal justification.”
“Numerous police officers used excessive force when arresting individuals and seemed to send a message that violence would be met with violence,” the report added.
Some 20,000 police from across Canada were involved in security at the summit sites. The joint Canada-U.S. military command NORAD as well as the Canadian Forces Canada Command, Canadian special forces and U.S. Defence Department personnel provided support for security forces.
The Canadian Forces prepared its plans in February 2010 for both summits, according to documents obtained by the Citizen under the Access to Information law.
Among the terror groups listed as being a threat to the gathering of world leaders were al-Qaeda, Hezbollah, Hamas, Tamil Tigers and Sikh extremists. “Separatists” were also listed as a threat but the documents do not explain whether those were Quebec separatists or another such group.
The Canadian Forces planners, however, predicted “predominately peaceful protests.”
“This may include blockades of major routes in/out of Summit sites,” they added.
Canadian military planners pointed out in a “protest profile” that up to 90 per cent of those who were going to protest at the summit meetings could be considered “passive” and that only between two to four per cent were expected to be violent. Again the issue of “embarrassment” was highlighted.
The Canadian Forces could not provide an explanation on how its planners came to such conclusions but in similar past operations the military has relied on intelligence gathered by government security teams made up of various agencies including the RCMP and the Canadian Security Intelligence Service.
Some of the information in the Canadian Forces documents was listed as coming from the government’s Integrated Threat Assessment Centre. The centre brings together the various participants in Canada’s security intelligence community — from the Canadian Security Intelligence Service to police forces — to provide the government with the counter-terrorism information, the government points out.
Among the potential targets listed in the Canadian Forces planning documents were summit delegations, civilians, critical infrastructure and security personnel.
Canadian military personnel were not to be involved in arrests, according to the documents. But the plan noted that military personnel might be called to testify in judicial proceedings and that the RCMP should be told of the Canadian Forces requirement to “protect any classified or sensitive information and capabilities.”
The military began preparing for the G8 and G20 summits in the fall of 2009.
Military divers were provided to search waterways for explosives as well as specialists in chemical, biological and nuclear decontamination. Members of the Ottawa-based counter-terrorism unit, Joint Task Force 2, were also on standby.
Previously released documents show the RCMP and various Ontario police forces spent months infiltrating protest groups before the summits.
Original Article
Source: ottawa citizen
Author: David Pugliese
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