08 July 2010

Stephen Harper Ultimately Responsible for G20 Infringement of Civil Liberties

Having taken my own advice to show my support for Canadian civil liberties, I've begun receiving correspondence back from MPs. Among the respondents has been Mario Silva, a Liberal who represents the Toronto riding of Davenport. He writes in part that

it was the office of the Minister of Public Safety, the Honourable Vic Toews, which coordinated security for the G8 and G20 summits, in close consultation with the Prime Minister’s department, the Privy Council Office.

Now I'm loathe these days to take any politician's word for anything, but this does make sense, given the G20 was the $1.3 billion party ordered up by one Stephen Harper. And we all know how much Harper favours micromanagement - if he's the one doing it.

ETA: And now a response from Rona Ambrose, one of Harper cabinet ministers: "I am pleased to inform you that an independent review of police tactics during the G20 protests will be conducted."

Would that be the independent review to be held by the Toronto Police Services Board, I wonder? If so, then Ambrose's response is an exercise in duplicity; it answers NOTHING with respect to FEDERAL responsibility. (I've responded to her in kind, insisting on an inquiry at the federal level.)

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