Ottawa Citizen, p.C3, June 5, 2002

[Large map of downtown Ottawa: "Information from the above graphic was taken from the Take the Capital Web site's Activist Guide to Ottawa. Twenty-nine Ottawa sites have been singled out for the June 26-27 demonstrations."]

Police meet merchants, public to discuss security concerns

BY ANDREW MILLS AND SIRI AGRELL

Protesters who descend or Ottawa are expected to use a "diversity of tactics" - including confrontation and possibly violence - at sites outlined in a guide published by protest organizers.

The list, dubbed an "Activist Guide to Ottawa," encourages protesters to "YELL out and ACT out against the G8 and the impacts they are having," and to "find the symbol that hits home!"

Twenty-nine such "symbols" have been singled out for the demonstrations, including the Israeli Embassy in the Clarica Centre, the Sparks Street Mall offices of the Canadian Council of Chief Executives, the Parliament Buildings and the offices of BIOTEC Canada on Albert Street.

Last night there was just a handful of concerned citizens at the first public meeting to discuss the G8 protests. But police, Emergency Services personnel and RCMP officers showed up in force.

The Ottawa police's newly formed Major Events Liaison Team (MELT) was joined by Ottawa-based RCMP officers as well .as officers from Calgary.

The Ottawa protests are to take place while G8 leaders meet in Kananaskis, Alta.

"Quite a few people have a stake in this," said Insp. Rick Murphy of MELT.

Last night's meeting - the first of four to be held before the June 26-27 demonstrations - focused on concerns of business and community members.

Members of MELT are aware of the potential targets, and have begun to contact owners, managers, and tenants.

"We will have extra officers at those locations, and all throughout the downtown core," said Insp. Murphy.

He doesn't know exactly how many officers will be on duty, but said the Ottawa police are canvassing police from other parts of the province to help.

Because the summit is not being held in Ottawa, protests are expected to occur at various locations around the city.

According to Jeremy Bell, an activist planning the Take the Capital protests, the targeted sites were chosen because "they are different symbols within Ottawa of capitalism and imperialism" and "more than anything else, these offices are where the different policies of the G8 are being hammered out."

The office building at the corner of Rideau and Nicholas streets is a target because it houses the offices of Canadian Manufacturers and Exporters (CME) which, according to Ms. Freeman, is a "main pusher of international trade agreements that always put trade ahead of things like the environment and human rights."

"They seem to be targeting just about everyone except the folks who operate the tour boats on the Ottawa River," says Perrin Beatty, president and CEO of the CME. "What we're seeing is a group of well-fed, mainly white protesters from the developed world who want to spare the developing world of prosperity and growth."

But Lisa Freeman, a spokeswoman for Take the Capital, disagrees. "People are getting fat in the North on the backs of people living in the South."

Mr. Bell concurs. "Money is being taken out of the hands of working-class people and being given to corporate business people," he says.

Another protest target is the stainless-steel and glass tower that houses the offices of Export Development Canada (EDC). The Activist Guide to Ottawa says EDC is the "home of corporate tax relief for investors and exporters who want to exploit developing country markets. This is a government-run corporation, which cares little for environmental, social or human impacts."

"It's really disgusting," says Ms. Freeman.

"I don't believe that at all," said Carolyn, an EDC employee who refused to give her full name. "EDC works in 200 markets including developing markets and I believe that EDC does not get into anything that harms anyone."

Carolyn said she had no idea the building she works in is a protest target, nor did EDC spokesman Rod Giles. "This is news to me," he said. However, Mr. Giles later confirmed that those responsible for security in the EDC building have' "met several times with themselves and with federal agencies. Their goal is first and foremost to ensure the safety of EDC employees."

Carolyn said she will come to work during the days of protest, but others are not so sure. "I'd rather be off work than try to get through people protesting," said Julie Sauvé‚ who works in the building that houses CME and said the prospect of protests scares her. She said she would like to see the streets around her building sealed off during the protest.

But that would be hard or business for Tony Trinh, who manages the Rudsak clothing boutique, on the street level of the building that houses the CME. Many of the organizations that protesters have targeted are in buildings shared with other tenants. The most vulnerable of these are ground floor retail merchants, which can easily be affected by street level protests.

Mr. Trinh will likely put extra staff on during the protest in addition to pulling the metal bars, usually used at night, across the windows. He will also have boards at the ready to cover the windows in case things really heat up outside.

Insp. Murphy said they are assuring people it will be "business as usual" during the protests, but that police can't stop businesses from shutting down if they chose to do so.

"I would tell him not to worry," said Ms. Freeman, citing examples from last year's protests in Quebec City against the Free Trade Area of the Americas, where an entire area of small businesses weathered the protests undamaged.

"But," said Ms. Freeman, "I can't speak for everybody that will be there."