CBC: Retired police officer believes masked men were cops

[tuvor]

Undercover cops tried to incite violence in Montebello: union leader

(...)

Meanwhile, a retired Ottawa police officer who was formerly in charge of overseeing demonstrations for the force said he questions who the masked men really are, after viewing the video.

"Were they legitimate protesters? I don’t think so," said Doug Kirkland.

"Well, if they weren't police, I think they might well have been working in the best interests of police."

He added that if the situation was as it appeared, he did not approve of the tactic. "It's pretty close to baiting," he said.

http://www.cbc.ca/canada/ottawa/story/2007/08/22/ot-police-070822.html

(About halfway down the page.)

[Canuckistanian]

1. He was on the CBC news tonight

This story has legs.

I think I heard that someone was going to ask the mayor of Montebello and the government of Québec to investigate this further.

on edit: As it Happens will have more info on this - coming up soon.

[tuvor]

2. Thanks, Canuckistanian. I'll try to check it out.

[MADem]

3. The cops denied it, but proof has been offered and looks more compelling by the day

Police denial: http://www.thestar.com/News/Ontario/article/248866

OTTAWA – The Mounties and Quebec provincial police deny using agents provocateurs at this week's Montebello summit, despite video evidence that suggests undercover cops tried to incite violence.

The denials Wednesday did nothing to quell mounting outrage over police tactics. Anti-globalization and union activists joined with opposition politicians to demand an independent investigation.

They also questioned whether police were acting on orders from the Prime Minister's Office and called on both Stephen Harper and Quebec Premier Jean Charest to denounce the use of agents provocateurs...."Are Canadian citizens going to have to face these kinds of provocateurs just because Stephen Harper seems to think we're some sort of loony-left group?

"Quite frankly, that's insulting and we don't accept it and we want answers from him."

The three alleged provocateurs were caught on camera – with bandanas masking their faces and at least one carrying a rock in his hand – approaching a line of Surete du Quebec police in full riot garb. They refused to back away, despite the insistence of Coles and other protest organizers that they leave the area.

As protesters surrounded the men and tried to snatch off their masks, one of the three spoke to an SQ officer. The trio got through the police line, were forced to the ground and handcuffed.....Liberal justice critic Marlene Jennings said the evidence is ``quite incriminating" and called on the two police forces to ``clear this up." She said it's one thing for officers to pose as protesters in a bid to keep an eye on potential trouble-makers, ``but to be instigators is completely unacceptable."

And here's that damned MOTIVE I was looking for--I just couldn't figure out WHY anyone would bother doing this stuff:

He said police may have wanted to justify the millions spent on security for the summit by creating an incident they could quell. But he said there may also have been a political motive to discredit the protesters as violent radicals, thereby deflecting attention from the substance of their opposition to the SPP.



And here's the union leader's take: http://www.cbc.ca/canada/montreal/story/2007/08/22/ot-police-070822.html?ref=rss

The Communications, Energy and Paperworkers Union believes that the security force at Montebello were ordered to infiltrate our peaceful assembly and to provoke incidents," Coles told reporters. "I think the evidence that we've shown you today reinforces the view."

Coles showed photographs of the masked men's and police officers' boots taken during the handcuffing, in which they appear to have identical tread patterns on their soles.

He also questioned why other activists have been unable to identify the three men whose images have been broadcast worldwide and demanded to know who the masked men were.

"Do they have any connection to the Quebec police force or the Royal Canadian Mounted Police or are they part of some other security force that was at Montebello?" Coles asked, adding that he wants to know how the Prime Minister's Office was involved in security...He suggested that the government might want to provoke violence in order justify its security budget for the summit and discredit protesters.

"They want to defuse our questions ... by trying to make it look like like some radical group trying to create a confrontation," ...The RCMP has refused to comment, while Quebec's provincial force has flatly denied that its officers were involved in the incident.

It said it is not releasing any names as no charges were laid.

Retired police officer believes masked men were cops
Meanwhile, a retired Ottawa police officer who was formerly in charge of overseeing demonstrations for the force said he questions who the masked men really are, after viewing the video.

"Were they legitimate protesters? I don’t think so," said Doug Kirkland.
"Well, if they weren't police, I think they might well have been working in the best interests of police."

He added that if the situation was as it appeared, he did not approve of the tactic. "It's pretty close to baiting," he said.

On Wednesday, the mayor of Montebello thanked police and protesters, praising the fact that there wasn't a single report of damage during the two-day summit...Opponents say negotiations about the agreement are secretive and undemocratic, and the treaty itself erodes Canada's control over its natural resources, security and defence.