1,000 rally against anti-terror bill
Protesters against federal legislation gather in downtown Vancouver, block city streets
“All of our civil liberties are under threat by this bill, regardless of our religion, regardless of our race.”
— HASAN ALAM
LAWYER
Vancouver was gridlocked Saturday afternoon when more than a thousand demonstrators gathered outside the Vancouver Art Gallery then marched through the city’s streets to protest the federal Conservative government’s controversial Bill C-51.
Peaceful protesters packed the gallery’s lawn, chanting “Down with Harper” and holding placards denouncing Prime Minister Stephen Harper’s anti-terrorism legislation, as part of a nationwide event organizers called “Defend Our Freedom.”
Protesters concerned with the creation of a “secret police” force signed petitions, wrote letters to MPs, beat drums and sang at the event.
Many then marched toward Cambie and Broadway, where some sat in the major intersection and blocked traffic.
According to Defend Our Freedom’s Facebook page, there were 40 demonstrations against Bill C-51 held in cities across the country.
The bill, introduced in January, would give police much broader powers and allow them to detain terror suspects.
It would also bolster the powers of CSIS, Canada’s spy agency.
“We, as citizens of a democracy, would fully expect the government to look out for our best interests, to safeguard our rights, to ensure that we have opportunities in order to express out concerns in whatever venue and whatever manner that we see fit,” Chief Bob Chamberlain, vice-president of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, said at the event.
“But when we turn and look at Bill C-51, it’s extremely troubling for all of us to know that the government is expanding the role for CSIS and the RCMP, a sharing of information beyond what they originally intended for.”
Chamberlain called for an expansion of resources for Canada’s privacy commissioner.
He slammed the bill’s use of the Canadian justice system, saying it “absolutely lays waste to democracy in Canada.”
Josh Paterson, executive director of the B.C. Civil Liberties Association, called the bill a “direct attack” on human rights and civil liberties in Canada.
“That is why we say this bill must be stopped,” Paterson said.
“It will dramatically expand the powers of Canada’s national security agencies and violate the rights of Canadians without making us demonstrably any safer.”
Paterson said the bill would chill and criminalize dissent, and particularly impact non-white Canadians, Muslims and First Nations people.
“All of our civil liberties are under threat by this bill, regardless of our religion, regardless of our race,” said lawyer Hasan Alam.
Vancouver police spokesman Sgt. Randy Fincham said there were no “incidents of note” during the protest, which ended around 3:45 p.m.