Montreal Police Make Mass Arrests During 17th Annual Anti Police Brutality Protest [video included]

by Terry Wilson
Canadian Awareness Network
March 16, 2013

The 17th annual anti police brutality protests took place in Montreal, on March 15 2013.

According to main stream sources, the police “jumped on the march early”.

Cops jump on anti-brutality march early
By CHRISTOPHER CURTIS
montrealgazette.com

Montreal’s annual anti-brutality march instantly descended into chaos Friday as riot cops snatched protesters from the crowd before the demonstration even began.

The notoriously combative event saw police chase hundreds of protesters through a crowd of bystanders downtown, occasionally hurling CS gas bombs in an attempt to splinter the group. After a few skirmishes saw two officers hospitalized, the riot squad surrounded demonstrators on Ste. Catherine St. E. and began making mass arrests.

Two groups were corralled against a wall near the Berri UQAM métro station, with police kicking and striking those who wouldn’t move fast enough. In the end, about 250 people were handcuffed and taken away by the busload.
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Anti-Police Brutality Protest Snuffed Out by SPVM
by Katie McGroarty
thelinknewspaper.ca

At first, it seemed like things were over before they had even started.

A few hundred protesters gathered at the corner of Ontario St. and St. Urbain St., just north of the Service de Police de la Ville de Montréal headquarters to protest against police brutality. The annual demonstration, now in it’s 17th consecutive year, started somewhat unusually, with the SPVM blocking every road leading out of the corner in an attempt to halt the march from beginning.

The demonstration was declared illegal almost immediately after its start around 5 p.m., due to organizers failing to provide an itinerary for the demonstration.

Arrests began when the crowd had yet to leave the square, resulting in a brief brawl and at least one injured protester.

As the police unblocked St. Urbain St., the crowd marched south but were forced to disperse into various groups—before making it one block down the road.

A few firecrackers were lit by protesters but the crowd was less violent than in previous years, when marches had quickly devolved into riots.

Different crowds throughout downtown were kettled, stopping the hundreds of protesters from ever regrouping. Police were reluctant to let any one out of the blockades.

For the next three hours the fractured demonstrations were broken up by SPVM officers blocking multiple street corners, forcing protesters into smaller groups, where they were then kettled and arrested.

Some protesters were released, though those who were not were identified and brought into buses to be taken to an undisclosed location.
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The video’s now coming out of the protest are very similar to what I witnessed at the 2010 Toronto G20 and what we saw more recently at the student protests in the summer of 2012. High amounts of violence being committed by the police, with zero tolerance.

To be fair the protestors did not abide by certain bylaws, so the police (technically) had the grounds to move in. But what we are witnessing is a total loss of common sense in policing. This is an annual rally against police brutality that is now into its 17th year. Is it a logical step for police to “jump in early” and begin making mass arrests (for minor infractions)? Or does that sound more like something that happens in a police state, rather than a country that claims to embrace freedom of speech/assembly ?