December 05, 2007

SPP: World "free" trade and Montebello ..




This 10 minute video is a summary of the top ten reasons to oppose the two worst trade agreements in Canadian history, TILMA (the Trade, Investment and Labour Mobility Agreement) and the SPP (the Security and Prosperity Partnership). It is the first chapter of the documentary 'Trading Democracy for Corporate Rule', and it describes 10 areas and issues that will be impacted by these agreements. Several experts voice their concerns and send an alarming message to Canadians that it is time to put an end to undemocratic trade deals that are developed with input from only the largest corporations.

Hard evidence of police provoking violence at Montebello

A just-discovered new bombshell in video shot by Nanaimo filmmaker Paul Manly shows one of three Surete du Quebec policed officers disguised as radicals first hitting a member of the Surete du Quebec (SQ) riot squad in the face mask and then hitting the shield of another member of the SQ riot squad with the rock in his hand. This is a direct violation of section 63 of the criminal code of Canada and an attack on the Constitutionally guaranteed rights of freedom of assembly and security of the person. The video posted on Youtube can be viewed at http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCRsj06wT64

When Manly hit the national news with his exposé of the Surete du Quebec (Quebec Provincial Police) trying to incite a riot on August 20th at the SPP protest in Montebello, Quebec, his film project became secondary to his exposure of police misconduct. But Manly sees a direct relationship between the incident and the topic of the documentary he is working on: Trading Democracy for Corporate Rule.

Manly says, “Despite the sweeping changes it is making to the fabric of our country, almost nobody in Canada knows what the SPP (Security and Prosperity Partnership) is. Why is no one asking what was so important that thousands of demonstrators were in the streets of Montebello? Why is no one asking why the SQ brought out the riot police and the demonstrators had to police the police?”

“It appears that the strategy of the federal government to evade public debate while bringing Canada into one economic and political unit from Hudson’s Bay to the Gulf of Honduras is working.”

Supported by the Mid Island-Nanaimo chapter of the Council of Canadians, Manly is calling for a public inquiry into the incidents at Montebello. Quoting Section 63 of the Criminal Code of Canada against unlawful assembly, (1. An unlawful assembly is an assembly of three or more persons who, with intent to carry out any common purpose, assemble in such a manner or so conduct themselves when they are assembled as to cause persons in the neighbourhood of the assembly to fear, on reasonable grounds, that they (a) will disturb the peace tumultuously; or (b) will by that assembly needlessly and without reasonable cause provoke other persons to disturb the peace tumultuously) Manly asserts that the SQ must be brought to account for the events of August 20th, 2007, “This covert action undermines public confidence in the police and the three essential requirements of any democratic system: responsible government, the rule of law and freedom of legitimate political dissent.”

They also demand accountability from Stockwell Day, Federal Minister for Public Safety, whose responsibilities include law enforcement and police policy. Day defended the SQ assertion that the officer caught in an act of incitement was “given the rock by radicals – and was trying to fit in”.

“In the light of video, Day’s statement is patently false. That heavily-guarded protest site was thoroughly covered by surveillance cameras. The videotapes from all these cameras must be released for scrutiny by a public inquiry to determine, among other things, whether Mr. Day, an elected public official with considerable authority, has broken his oath by delivering false information.”

Manly has also uploaded a short documentary about the SPP and TILMA called ‘Trading Democracy for Corporate Rule – part 1 – Ten Reasons to Oppose the SPP and TILMA’. “I was shocked at what I was learning while producing this documentary so decided that I should create a short video to help educate the public immediately before it’s too late. This information is too important to sit on while I work on finishing the full length film.”

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