Canada Violates Charter - G8/G20 and the Occupy movment in Canada

[William Prest]

This piece from last years publication, Street Cent$ and Two Edged Sword was revived here owing to a question directed to me at Occupy Vancouver concerning the Canadian Charter of rights. The article itself came from the events of the Toronto G8-G20 meeting. Now, as then, I explained that the Charter is counter balanced by the Criminal Code of Canada. The rights and freedoms given in one can be quickly removed by the other. Below is the article where some of this is covered.

Freedom of Assembly, Arbitrary Search & Seizure, Unlawful Detention, Cruel and Unusual Punishment

 

The action of the police in Toronto during the last G8/G20 Summit with various tactics, restraints and the “Black Bloc” false flag is in direct contravention to the Canadian state's own Charter of Rights and Freedoms as well as violations of the Criminal Code of Canada. But these violations come as obeyed orders of the armed police right from the top of Canada, the US and visiting heads of the G8/G20. If one thing has been made clear since the collapse of the USSR, it is that all of our sanctioned rights have also collapsed. We witnessed along with millions of others, the violations in action and the cooperation of the state media to “disappear” and allow the police to run riot on peaceful protesters as a result of internal provocation to set up the precedents that violate the fundamental rights that are supposed to be a democratic right. But, as we have analyzed in previous issues, democracy under the capitalist states is a mere fantasy that evaporates the moment you attempt to exercise those rights. At that point in issue 10 we stated'

 

“The answer is not what ever happened to democracy so much as that democracy never happened. All the equal rights in the world don't mean a damn thing if various people are excluded for one reason or another and as long as there is no such thing as economic democracy. Democracy, that cherished cow of unexpressed sacred ideals, is nothing but an actual sham, especially if no matter how you vote, you always wind up with the same program, i.e., austerity and taxes decided upon without voter consultation or input after voting in the majority candidate. Such a democracy is mere fiat when it forces anything it wants fait-du-colplait, despite what the majority says to the contrary. The test of democratic free speech is tried when censorship of any form takes place and when people are arrested for issues of free assembly, free association and putting embarrassing questions and observations to the floor. As long as one does not exercise their so called inalienable rights, then they can rest assured in the illusion of freedom and rights. The moment they do, then they will feel the wrath of the armed state of tyranny. This is the way it is in most of the world and now in the very so called heart of democracy in the no longer free world.”

 

Since then, we have learned of a movement to challenge the government and the police on its very police terror state actions of late; that is, a constitutional challenge regarding freedom of assembly, the right not to be subject to arbitrary search and seizure, protection against unlawful detention (arrest without charge and indefinite detention) and cruel and unusual punishment. The movement is Canadians Advocating Political Participation and at this time appears to be a rag-tag assembly of causes that is apparently rudderless without and effective leadership. On Saturday, July 17^th, 2010, this assembly of several causes that has identified as a pro-democracy action group, met on the north Vancouver Library concourse. From what we could see, there were many groups with signs, no speakers and no apparent direction that was visible. The violations that occurred against the people in Toronto are very real, with over 900 being arrested and more than 250 held in detention on no charges and indefinitely. This kind of occurrence last happened in October of 1970 under the wars measures act under P. E. Trudeau. This time it was a preemptive “counter insurgency” task force of the police state interventionism to prevent free speech; a violation of fundamental charter rights. Except for the “Black Bloc”, which has been identified as a police op, there was very little in the way of actual crime. This “Black Bloc” anarchist activity was the pretext for the police to hit hard against peaceful protesters. What did the peaceful protesters get in exchange of the police anarchy?

 

They got fired on with rubber bullets, in one case, Natalie Gray of Maple Ridge, BC who was a peaceful protester obeying police directives at the G8/G20 Summit, received a wound in the chest that would have been right through the heart if it were a real bullet. Other peaceful protesters were gassed, tasered, were dispersed with a LPAD sound device twice and fired upon with green lasers. More than 900 were arrested and detained in a mass holding pen where there basic needs were not addressed. In effect, they were subjected to torture for protesting peacefully. The Canadian Advocating Political Participation has formed to plead for an enquiry.

 

The Charter of Rights of Canada is very specific on some of these issues, to whit;

 

Section 2-c,d states; “freedom of peaceful assembly; and (d) freedom of association.”

Section 8 states; “Everyone has the right to be secure against unreasonable search or seizure. ”

Section 9 states; “Everyone has the right not to be arbitrarily detained or imprisoned. ”

 

However, when push comes to shove under a totalitarian regime, the charter is waived in favour of the Criminal Code of Canada which addresses each of the above.

 

“Limits .....The Criminal Code of Canada contains various provisions that limit individuals’ rights (under the Charter of Rights). The following is a list of some of the relevant Criminal Code sections that limit certain activities.

• blocking or obstructing a highway (Section 423(1)(g)

• causing a disturbance (Section 175)

• common nuisance (Section 180)

• interfering with transportation facilities (Section 248)

• mischief (Section 430)

• offensive volatile substance (Section 178)

• riots (Sections 32, 33, 64, 65, 67, 68, 69)

• unlawful assembly (Section 63)

• breach of the peace (Section 31)

Breach of peace: An arrest for breach of the peace, whether under the Criminal Code or the common law, does not result in a charge. The purpose of an arrest for breach of peace is to end the breach and restore order. There are numerous other Criminal Code sections that may also apply to protest situations. In addition to the Criminal Code, limitations on activities that may be contemplated in protest situations are also contained in provincial statutes, such as the Highway Traffic Act, and in municipal by-laws.” We do not detail the full description beyond the references due to its length and the fact that it can be easily referenced by anyone in a library or on line.

Under the foregoing, there is plenty of room for the state to manoeuvre and jockey a false flag in order to make it look like that a peaceful protest is a riot and therefore outside of the protection of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. Once this condition is reached, and a person is under arrest for riot, they can in effect be charged and sentenced to a term in prison for not more than two years. We have in effect, a “good cop, bad cop” arrangement where the Charter of Rights and Freedoms tell us that we have freedom of expression and assembly, protection from unreasonable search and seizure. from unlawful detention and from cruel and unusual punishment. But if we are found in contravention of the Criminal Code of Canada under the various sections outlined herein, these rights are waived and the state can do as it will to offenders including holding people in solitary confinement indefinitely without legal recourse and using “intensive interrogation” (read torture) techniques. This reveals the role of interventionists in the case of the “Black Bloc anarchists”/police whose single role was to create the justification to cancel the basic rights and freedoms of the peaceful protesters so that the state can run rampant over the will of the people of the world by region, country and at large. The Charters and laws of each of these regions, countries and at large under the US vary, but the intent is the same. To sum up:

Under the condition of class division, the law cancels the rights and freedoms if a person is found in breach of the law. What is the Law? We will be dealing with that in an upcoming issue in the theoretical section. Keep your eyes open and be aware of what you are really dealing with; that is, a sham and deception of a tyrannical oligarchy. In a word, enquiries and pressure tactics to address these serious issues will be blown off by the state and people will be put on burn out mode for decades.

We have the answer to this terrible state of affairs through aware organizing and class struggle, as indeed, this is what we are involved with, whether or not that we are aware of it. We need to educate and organize across the breadth of the planet and prepare for the day where the toilers take over the running of the planet.