Mass arrests in Quebec
Provincial education minister expected to discuss tuition fees with students
Police in Montreal ‘ kettled’ then arrested more than 500 antigovernment protesters Wednesday night as police stepped up aggressive action against daily marches.
MONTREAL — Scenes of mass arrests in various parts of Quebec, with more than 650 people rounded up in several cities for a variety of reasons, have spurred a new attempt at resolving the student fight against tuition fee increases.
The provincial education minister said Thursday that she expected to hold a “very, very important” meeting with student groups after having had positive discussions over the phone.
A new point man has been assigned to help resolve the crisis: Premier Jean Charest has replaced his chief of staff with a well- regarded veteran who once served in that same role for him, bringing back Daniel Gagnier from political retirement with a mandate to make peace.
Restoring order in time for the tourist- filled festival season, which starts in only a few weeks, appears a monumental task given the events that unfolded Wednesday night.
A peaceful evening march that began with people festively banging pots and pans ended with police using the controversial “kettling” tactic on a crowd of demonstrators and arresting 518 people in Montreal. Scores of others were arrested elsewhere in the province.
The Quebec incidents have drawn the attention of the world’s media, with the unrest receiving prominent coverage in many major international news outlets. Some of the international coverage has depicted the protests favourably, as an example of youth mobilizing for a brighter future, while other coverage has focused on the scenes of disorder such as those that unfolded overnight.
“651 — that’s the number of arrests yesterday ... of ordinary citizens, men, women, young people arrested because they wanted to voice their opposition to decisions of the Liberal regime,” PQ Leader Pauline Marois said, calling it the worst social crisis in Quebec’s history. “That’s where the Quebec Liberal Party has taken us: mass arrests, more often than not arbitrary ones, to silence opposition.”
Kettling is a police tactic widely used in Europe where riot cops surround demonstrators and limit or cut off their exits. It has been widely criticized because it often results in the scooping up of innocent bystanders as well as rowdies. A recent report by Ontario’s police watchdog blasted Toronto police for their use of kettling during the G20 summit two years ago.
The Montreal demonstration was the 30th consecutive nightly march since the student protest against tuition fee increases began more than three months ago.
Wednesday night’s protest was declared illegal by police the minute it was scheduled to start but was allowed to proceed for almost four hours before a line of Montreal riot cops blocked part of Sherbrooke Street as the marchers approached.
Riot squad officers had been marching on the sidewalk beside the front of the protest all evening. An order to disperse was given because police had been pelted by projectiles and other criminal acts had been committed, Montreal police spokesman Daniel Lacoursiere said. The group had apparently resisted going in a direction ordered by police.
Montreal police said those arrested will face charges, some under minor municipal bylaws and others under the Criminal Code. A number of those detained for municipal infractions will face $ 634 tickets. A number of protesters are encouraging people to contest the fines.
In the Montreal kettling, some demonstrators reacted angrily while others sat dazed. There have been reports of tourists stunned to find themselves stuck in the crowd.
An independent filmmaker, Emmanuel Hessler, had been following the march for a few blocks. He said in a telephone interview from inside the police encirclement that he was surprised by the action, saying, “Suddenly, there were police all around us.”