Canada’s Law Enforcement Leaders Seek Government Assistance in Managing Escalating Protests

August 13, 2024 TruthUSA

Canada’s police chiefs are urging all levels of government to allocate more funding and personnel to address the growing number of protests happening across the country.

This plea was outlined in a resolution unveiled at the 119th annual summit of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP) in Halifax from Aug. 11–13. The summit focused on how global conflicts are impacting Canadian communities from a law enforcement standpoint.

Chief Don MacLean of the Halifax Regional Police highlighted that delegates at the summit participated in sessions covering strategic intelligence, public order management, crisis management, artificial intelligence, and the significance of officer safety in public safety.

According to an Aug. 13 CACP news release, national issues and global conflicts have led to a surge in protests and demonstrations in Canada, resulting in an “unsustainable demand” for police services and operations.

The police chiefs at the summit observed that protests are rapidly escalating from peaceful gatherings to “more high-risk situations,” according to CAPC, posing increased risks to law enforcement officers and public safety.

Consequently, interactions between police and the public at protests have become more hostile, involving verbal and physical assaults, swarming, and threatening behavior directed at the police.

CAPC emphasized that this behavior is problematic and unacceptable.

They mentioned that negative interactions between police and the public in other parts of Canada and globally are beginning to affect how police are treated in their own communities.

According to CAPC, protests have become an avenue for activists to disrupt demonstrations, escalating into more high-risk situations.

In July, CACP adopted resolution 2024-03, which urges the government to assist in managing these protests.

The resolution states, “The Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police (CACP) calls on all levels of government (federal, provincial and municipal) to provide police services with additional and sufficient human and financial resources, as well as the training and equipment required, to manage the increased volume and risks of protests and demonstrations.”

Additionally, CAPC noted that immigration is contributing to the violence at these protests.

“In certain countries, the use of violence is an accepted vehicle for social change and that, through in-migration, thousands of people who may have an orientation towards violence as a means of expression or activism continue to arrive in Canada each year,” as stated in the resolution.

Increase in Doxing Police Online

During the conference, police chiefs highlighted that these negative behaviors toward police are manifesting online as well.

CAPC noted a rise in protesters going online to target or dox police officers, which involves posting private information like addresses or phone numbers.

The release expressed that this information dissemination can harm the officer’s reputation or the police service as a whole.

The resolution also urges the Department of Justice to include a provision in Bill C-63, the Online Harms Act, making doxing police officers illegal.

“To meet the increased demand for service created by increased protests and demonstrations, while ensuring officer and public safety, will require the moral and financial support of all levels of government to acquire the necessary human resources, equipment and training and to enact required legislation to make it illegal to dox the police,” said Commissioner Thomas Carrique, president of CACP.

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