EMMA GODMERE
CUP Ottawa Bureau Chief

OTTAWA (CUP) — In a new report, civil rights advocates are calling for a public inquiry into the handling of security during the G20 protests in Toronto last June.

Entitled “Breach of the Peace,” the report was published by The Canadian Civil Liberties Association and the National Union of Public and General Employees on Feb. 28. It discussed the actions of police in dealing with protesters and civilians at the summit, where more than 1,100 people were detained or arrested last summer.

The report drew information and testimonies from public hearings held last November over three days in Toronto and Montreal.

“What Canadians witnessed during the G20 Summit last June in Toronto was a sad and dark moment in Canada’s history,” James Clancy, NUPGE national president, wrote in the report’s forward. “The largest mass arrests in Canadian history were carried out with a flagrant disregard for human rights and civil liberties as well as the basic rule of law.”

The 60-page report was divided into specific sections that pinpointed the police’s pre-summit infiltration of protest groups, random searches, arrests and the Eastern Avenue detention centre, among others, as incidents and issues of particular importance. The report included testimonies on all topics from more than 60 citizens who witnessed and were involved in the incidents.

“The planning, organizing and delivery of security during the G20 Summit fell short of the standards set out in the Charter [of Rights and Freedoms],” read the report. “While there were many instances of professional, courteous and respectful policing, there were also an alarming number of incidents where members of the public were stopped, detained, searched, arrested and subjected to police force arbitrarily, unnecessarily and illegally.”

NDP MP Olivia Chow, who represents a riding in Toronto, was present at the press conference for the release of the report.

“The three cornerstones for democracy are the freedom of speech, freedom to assemble, and civilian oversight of the police — and those were violated,” she told Canadian University Press. “And to date we have no idea ultimately who’s responsible and who really should be accountable, and none of those questions have been answered.”

Both the federal and provincial governments, however, seem reluctant to launch a public inquiry for various reasons.

“Specific bodies do exist to handle complaints regarding the conduct of the police,” Conservative MP Dave MacKenzie, parliamentary secretary to Public Safety Minister Vic Toews, said in question period on Feb. 28. “As has been said many times before, we encourage anyone who has a complaint to direct their concerns to the appropriate body.”

Ontario Premier Dalton McGuinty said he felt a public inquiry wasn’t required, as several other reviews are already taking place.

“I think that’s a lot of expertise and independent perspective and I think that’s going to do a really good job,” he told reporters on Feb. 28.

While the report acknowledges the ongoing work of other independent investigations, even suggesting the inclusion of other reviews’ findings in its proposed instructions for an inquiry, the CCLA and NUPGE ultimately recommend a joint federal-provincial public inquiry as “the lingering questions in the wake of the G20 necessitate a broader, systemic response to what was a systemic failure.”

The report suggests the public inquiry examine several specific incidents that occurred during the G20 protests, including the absence of authorities during the more extreme acts of vandalism that occurred on June 26; the protest breakup at Queen’s Park, a designated demonstration site, on June 26; the arrests and actions that occurred at the University of Toronto graduate students’ union building and at Queen Street West and Spadina Avenue on June 27; and the conditions at the Eastern Avenue detention centre.

“Without the inquiry, then my question to both the Harper Conservatives and the McGuinty Liberals is: What do they have to hide?” asked Chow. “Why are they afraid of the truth?”

Chow also emphasized that a public inquiry would allow the government to make further amends and ensure similar actions won’t happen again.

“I think that once we have the public inquiry, get to the bottom of who did what to whom and who’s responsible, then the second part is to establish policies, change the law in a way or make sure that the law is being enforced properly, so that this kind of massive violation of people’s civil rights won’t again occur,” she said.

“I think those people that have been traumatized during the G20 deserve an apology so they feel that their voices have finally been heard,” she continued. “If not, there’s just no justice to it all and people are just shocked by what happened.”

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image: Michael Thibault/The Ubyssey