More than two weeks have passed since that G20 Summit and we seem not to hear the last of it yet. Several days ago, there was a march of about one thousand people to Queen’s Park asking for more information about the police action that protesters believed violated their human rights. It was in connection with the demand for identification during the G20 and G8 Summits from individuals that came closer than five meters of the barriers placed to protect the participants in that international conference of world leaders.
Of the about 600 protesters jailed during the three day meetings in Huntsville, Metro Convention Center and Queen’s Park a handful still remain in custody. Some that were charged of vandalism and other unlawful acts were out on bail, to appear in court at a later date. About 40 establishments were damaged during demonstrations of a particular group, whom the mayor and the police called criminals and anarchists. Numerous complaints were made about wrongful arrests and police cruelty, as well as the delay in releasing some of those apprehended.
Not much was said about the actual accomplishments in the sessions of the summit – newspapers reported that “the G20 was poised to accept a balancing act that will avoid a split on the most contentious summit issue – how quickly to turn off the spending toys used to combat global recessions” (Toronto Star, Sunday, Jun 27,2010, N2)
In the editorial of the same issue of this newspaper, it was painted out that the G8 failed its own test when it failed to deliver the $50 billion and it promised in 2005 to hundred of thousands of women and about nearly 9 million children who die every year. Only $30 billion were delivered and only the U.K., U.S. and Canada lived up to their word.
Another very important issue that did not get much attention during the summit was global warming. Minimal discussions were held on this topic which is the top priority in the developing world.
Overall, there appeared to be a great disappointment on the accomplishments of the meetings of these 20 most industrialized countries in the world which account for more than 80 percent of the economic activity around the globe (Toronto Star, Sunday, June 27, 2010, pg10).
While these most powerful men and women of the world were seated in a flashy downtown hotel, discussing the most important problems of this globe and accomplishing very little, not very far from their venue, a group of self proclaimed anarchists were attacking public establishments, throwing rocks and boxes at windows of banks, eateries and stores burning police cars and creating a rampage that was foreign to this city. Police security made up of men and women on bikes, horses and on foot seemed to be taken aback for a while so that the mayhem continued unabated. Then these men and women in black, their faces covered with black bandannas and sunglasses disappeared in the crowd, very few of them apprehended.
It seemed like a miracle that nobody was killed or seriously wounded. Bystanders were shocked and had to flee. There was a controversy on the lack of immediate action of the police – were they taken by surprise or did they apply constraint? But one thing was clear – the G8 or G20 guests were well protected and unaware of what was happening not far from where they sat.
No barrier was broken and no security for the summit participants was disturbed.
Business in the area was completely paralyzed. Transportation services were all halted.
If there was loss of police control in the downtown area, it was just for a short while. AS the group of masked men and women bringing destruction moved to other areas they were met by tear gas, the police force in full riot gear started to cordon the place. The peaceful protesters were guided away and Saturday night was over.
The more than $1billion spent on the G8 and G20 summit did not seem to accomplish what Canada wanted to show the world. The plan for a well managed security was not reflected in the images that were communicated all over the planet by technological means. What other countries saw were the ugly vandalism and destruction wrought by a few for a short period of time. The concept of a peaceful friendly Canada shown during the recent Winter Olympics was shattered in that few hours of mayhem.
But wait a minute. Not all was lost. Let us look deeper into the situations in this event. True, there were those unfortunate incidents captured vividly by the camera and circulated around the world. But we who were witnesses to these occasions know that the destruction was fully controlled by the police after a few hours. No life was lost; no very serious injuries were reported. More police forces arrived and the vandals were not able to repeat their horrible actions the next day. The international leaders were kept safe and continued with their tasks.
The peaceful protesters with legitimate messages continued to express their complaints and opinions about this grand undertaking. The sessions were concluded and the international guests departed leaving their photo ops for the public to see on television and newspapers.
The police continued with their task of protecting the guests and the public to the very end of the event. In fact they continued pursuing the members of the group that caused the trouble even after the event.
The airing of complaints and the subsequent explanations given by the police why such incidents occurred are proofs that democracy is healthy and alive in our midst.
The fences that symbolized curtailment of freedom are now gone. They were put up for a particular purpose which was served during the event in those particular areas where they were deemed necessary. We did not need to go there at the time if we did not have a particular business to deal with. It was a sacrifice that we should be willing to give for a short period of time for a purpose that the leaders of our own country were willing to undertake.
We are indeed a very fortunate people to live in a country where our freedom is well guarded and expressed. Now and then that freedom may be violated for the good of the majority but they are quickly restored when matters are cleared. There are times when some of our rights are hindered. After all, we have to remember that our rights end where the rights of others begin. That is why people who are very vigilant about their rights and put fences around their homes.
The $1.4 billion spent in the G8 and G20 summits were well spent for our security and exercise of our freedom. Some individual rights may have been curtailed during those three days but the common good was kept safe and well guarded.