Surprisingly, the most consummate, sublime, and succinct summation of the events that ensnared the city of Toronto during the weekend of June 25, 2010, were uttered not by a reporter, writer, or musician, but by York Regional Police Sgt. Mark Charlebois.
On June 27th at the corner of King St. W. and University Ave.a group of police officers were randomly searching the bags of passersby. When one young man had the audacity to insist that, as a Canadian, he had the right to refuse to a random search of his personal belongings, the officer’s retort – an absolute answer to the individual’s assertion – was as pithy as it was conclusive.
“This ain’t Canada right now,” he said.
The protester continued continued to refuse to consent to a bag while at the same time refusing to leave the area, stating; “I just don’t like to have my civil rights violated,
“There is no civil rights here in this area,” the officer replies. “How many times do you gotta be told that?”
So there you have it.
I contacted the York Regional Police to determine whether or not sovereignty over the area immediately surrounding King St. W. and University Ave. had returned to Canada, or possibly reverted to its original First Nations inhabitants, but as of the time of press have yet to receive a response.
Until confirmation has been received I recommend travelling in pairs in the area, and to keep an eye out for unscrupulous pirates. They can generally be identified by the distinctive monochromatic jolly roger flag and their use of 17th century shallow-draft, two-mast brigand’s ships.
Mohamed Harkat faces deportation following the recent finding of Federal Court Justice Simon Noel that the security certificate, originally issued against him in 2002, is “reasonable”.
In response The Justice for Mohamed Harkat Committee has issued a statement against security certificates which it is petitioning individuals and organizations to support.
The full text of the statement can be read at
http://www.harkatstatement.com/
As stated above, The Justice for Mohamed Harkat Committee is seeking endorsements from both individuals and organizations, and we therefore strongly encourage individuals to visit http://www.harkatstatement.com/ and sign the statement
Mike Leitold,Steering Committee and Movement Defence Committee member, today deputed in front of the Standing Committee on Public Safety and National Defence on behalf of the MDC. The MDC was invited by the Bloc Quebecois to make submission to the Committee which has been conducting a comprehensive investigation into the G8/G20 meetings held in Huntsville and Toronto this past June.
The Star’s report quotes extensively from “Mr. Leitold’s” oral deputation as well as from the written submission prepared by the MDC. The article highlights the MDC’s characterisation of policing during the Summit as systemic repression of critics and those who oppose the policies of this government.
Jailed G20 defendant Alex Hundert will be starting trial on January 31, 2011 over allegations that his participation in University panel discussions in September this year contravened his bail condition to not participate in public demonstrations. Since the G20, Hundert has been forced to spend some 120 days in jail without going to trial for original charge of alleged “conspiracy” or any of the subsequent charges the Crown laid on him.
At the upcoming trial, the Crown will be arguing that speaking as an invited panelist at discussions at Wilfrid Laurier University on September 15, and at Ryerson University on September 17 (video for which is available at http://vimeo.com/15096905) constituted a public demonstration; a categorization also made by Justice of the Peace Inderpaul Chandhoke that Hundert and his lawyer will be challenging.
This conflation of public demonstrations and university panel discussions by the Crown and the JP has left University faculty across the province shocked and outraged. The Ontario Confederation of University Faculty Associations recently issued a statement in defence of Hundert saying, “Panel discussions are in no way public demonstrations, but are in fact a central part of the mission of our universities – promoting critical thought and developing knowledge. … This criminalization of legitimate dissent represents an assault on both Mr. Hundert’s freedom of expression and the freedom of our universities to foster debate and discussion on issues of public importance.”
Similarly, another strongly worded letter to the Attorney General of Ontario signed by 137 faculty members at York University stated, “We believe that Alex’s arrest for breach of bail conditions, and his subsequent bail conditions violate his Charter Rights, in particular, his freedom of association and assembly, and freedom of expression….We see it as part of a larger move to criminalize dissent and opposition to government policies.” The letter also went on to say, “Such arrests are having a chilling effect on discussions of such policies on university campuses and in the community.”
From jail, Hundert commented, “This fight which is about to enter a court of law is not just about the right to freedom of speech, it is about spaces where freedom is possible. The university is a space for ideas and campuses are a space where dissent is supposed to be protected. This fight is about defending those spaces.”
Added Rachel Avery, member of the organization AW@L and supporter of Hundert, “The crackdown during the G20, which involved hundreds of people being violently removed from the streets without charge, is a pattern that has continued beyond its most public moment in June. The recent report by the Ontario Ombudsman makes clear the collusion between police and multiple levels of government and thus their intention to stamp out dissent with presumed impunity.”
Originally arrested in a pre-emptive house raid on the morning of June 26, Hundert had been out on bail under draconian conditions that included a “no public demonstration” clause, a clause which the activist, and G20 defendant Jaggi Singh has mounted a constitutional challenge against. Hundert was re-arrested shortly after the speaking event at Ryerson University at his father’s house under the charge that he had breached his “no public demonstration” bail condition. Subsequently he was coerced into signing, and released under even more restrictive bail conditions, but was re-arrested a third time on Saturday, October 23. He has been in jail ever since.