IDLE NO MORE will now be considered an act of terrorism? As a new report on documents released under the Freedom of Information Act in Canada highlights, under the mandate of the Harper Administration, law enforcement and intelligence agencies are increasingly blurring the line between genuine fundamentalists and average citizens -- people whose “terrorist activities” include organising petitions, attending protests, and generally expressing dissension. Moreover, the report emphasises the fact that agencies such as CSEC and CSIS now view activist activities such as blocking access to roads and buildings as “forms of assault,” while media stunts like the unfurling of banners, non-violent sit-ins, and peaceful marches are now deemed “threats” or “attacks.” Aboriginal rights advocates, unions, anti-capital factions, countercultural institutions, alternative media outlets, and with increasing fervour, environmental organisations -- they all get lumped together under the category of “terrorists” in order justify the widespread monitoring, detaining, and at times imprisoning of Canadian citizens expressing dissent.Thus -- as the University of Victoria’s Dr. Kevin Walby highlights in his 2012 journal article Making Up Terror Identities: Canada’s Integrated Threat Assessment Centre and the Social Movement Suppression -- in order to secure funding as threats from organisations like Al-Qaeda and the Black Bloc begin to fall off the radar, groups like Idle No More and anti-pipeline and anti-fracking protesters have been re-branded in order to fill the “terrorist vacuum.”
Posted on: Sun, 11 Aug 2013 04:50:18 +0000
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