For me, Toronto’s loss of democracy at the G20 Summit in 2010 has not faded one bit. I have commented on this debacle of an event in 2010 and have kept current with the news and have updated my blog accordingly. So critical is this issue that I will remember it for the upcoming provincial and federal elections. I know Canadians have a very short term memory and that politicians would rather us all forget the past and vote for them in the future, but the complete breakdown of democracy and the brutal beatings by the hands of our once trusted police cannot go unpunished. Justice must be served.
AT thus summer’s G20 meeting in Toronto, Canada, over a 1,000 fellow Canadians were illegally arrested, detained. About 900 of these were eventually let go without charge. Clearly our right to assemble was trampled to bits by police boots. These people should not have been charged in the first place. There is an ongoing call for a G20 public inquiry by many but it seems to fall on deaf ears. I will not and cannot forget this travesty of injustice and will remember the G20 the next time I vote provincially and federally. Here is an article excerpt from the Toronto Star from the Canadian Civil Liberties Association. I would like to read the complete report but have not found it:
Wu Yuren, husband of Canadian Karen Patterson and daughter Hannah
No doubt about it, I am Canadian, and for a short time, I lived in China. Thinking that the Rule of Law in Canada is interpreted the same in China would seem logical but incorrect. Just because there are laws on the books, decreed by the government, similar in both countries, is insufficient to take the Canadian view of law and apply it to the People’s Republic of China. A case in point is Karen Patterson’s Chinese husband, Wu Yuren, who offered moral support for a friend and ended up beaten up and detained, with little access to his family or lawyer. He is still detained. His case is a good lesson to both Chinese and foreigners that China’s legal system works differently from Canada.
Toronto Riot Police and protester: Everything is not Ok
It aches me to read these stories, but I knew from video coverage and from photos of Toronto Riot Police intimidation that many innocent people that live in Toronto would get beaten up and arrested by police. Unfortunately surprising but not unexpected. The stories come from all ages, male and female, and varied professions. It seems that there were no filtering of good or bad, that all at the scene were bullied, beat up and arrested. It is upsetting that such treatment by police can happen in my home town of Toronto. Maybe I am too naive. Those who endured the brutality will never forget. The issue of police brutality, overzealous police behavior and the G20 overall will become a significant provincial and federal issue.
