Police Violence Reigned Terror Upon Quebec City During Anti-FTAA Demonstrations

Police Violence Reigned Terror
Upon Quebec City During
Anti-FTAA Demonstrations

Quebec City, Canada: Anywhere from 50,000 to 80,000 demonstrators converged into Quebec City during the weekend of April 20-22 to voice their opposition against the 3rd Summit of the Americas, where the Free Trade Area of the Americas agreement was negotiated (FTAA). Despite the prevailing peaceful atmosphere of most, if not all of the demonstrations and protests, the police response that ensued became a virtual nightmare of police terror, as arsenals of tear gas, concussion grenades and plastic bullets were unleashed without mercy against demonstrators, citizens, bystanders and journalists alike. This police response was a collective display of massive police violence and repression, which unfolded throughout the weekend. Incidents included the tear-gassing of medical clinics, nursing homes and media centers, while even babies were not exempt from the brutal police actions.

Street Medic Describes Worst Police Violence He Had Ever Seen

Dr. Leo Rosen of the Colorado Street Medics described the police repression bluntly: \"Never, in my 36 years of experience as a medical doctor and as a street medic during which time I have been to hundreds of demonstrations, have I seen the level of violence used against peaceful protests by the police that I have seen here in Quebec City this weekend.\"

Well before the summit, the Financial Times reported that the most elaborate security operation in Canadian history would be undertaken for the protests. (April 10) During what was a $30 million quasi-military operation, the Chicago Independent Media Center reported that the three police departments who provided security to the FTAA meetings confirmed that they fired approximately 1700 canisters of tear gas into crowds over the weekend (other estimates ranged as high as 5,000 - or over 1 per minute). The excessive use of tear gas was planned all along, as a confidential planning document for the police obtained by the Independent Media Center revealed. Although the document never directly mentioned tear gas, it did specifically detail how riot police would take over different areas depending upon the wind direction. Following the protests, Quebec\'s public security minister, Serge Menard, declared that \"Quebec can be very proud the way we handled this summit.\" These words conflict sharply, however, with those of the human rights observers that were dispersed among the protesters. \"Many [protesters] were severely and unnecessarily injured, including one who had to have an emergency tracheotomy,\" said Andre Paradis, head of the Quebec Civil Rights League, an organization that had enlisted dozens of observers throughout the weekend to document and record all abuses of authority.

Eric Laferri