Summary
One of the news stories that took precedence during the 1997 APEC summit in Vancouver was the pepper-spraying of a crowd of non-violent students (and a CBC cameraman) by the police. The dramatic video footage of the incident that appeared on the evening news shocked Canadians. Another protester, held for fourteen hours for displaying a sign saying "Free Speech," initiated legal proceedings. Other lawsuits followed. The RCMP and the government of Canada were named as defendants, and a public inquiry was launched. A central issue was whether the Prime Minister's officials gave orders of a political nature to the police that resulted in law-abiding citizens being assaulted and arrested. The papers in this collection examine various aspects of the APEC affair, including the role of police in a democratic society, public accountability, and the effects of globalization on rights and politics.
Contents
1. Policing, the rule of law, and accountability in Canada: lessons from the APEC Summit / W. Wesley Pue. -- 2. Free speech, democracy, and the question of political influence / Andrew D. Irvine. -- 3. "Relax a bit in the nation": Constitutional Law 101 and the APEC Affair / Margot E. Young. -- 4. The APEC protest, the rule of law, and civilian oversight of Canada's national police force / Donald J. Sorochan. -- 5. The significance of the APEC Affair / Joel Bakan. -- 6. Someone to watch over me: government supervision of the RCMP / Philip C. Stenning. -- 7. Hand in glove? Politicians, policing, and Canadian political culture / Nelson Wiseman. -- 8. Forcing the issues: police use of force at the APEC protest / Gil Puder. -- 9. Forces of journalism / Terry Milewski. -- 10. Personal reflections on the ill-fated first APEC Inquiry / Gerald M. Morin. -- 11. Raising the dough: funding for lawyers at public inquiries / Karen Busby. -- 12. The 1997 APEC Summit and the security of internationally protected persons: did someone say "Suharto"? / Obiora Chinedu Okafor. -- 13. A whole theatre of others: a personal account of APEC 1997 / Arnab Guha. -- 14. Whither APEC? / Jane Kelsey.