No to Canadian Armed Forces' Provocation of Protesters During "Routine" Exercise
The Communist Party of Canada (Marxist-Leninist) vigorously opposes the decision of the government of Canada to permit detachments of Canada's armed forces to patrol public spaces. On September 29, a press release announced that detachments of four to six members of The Royal Canadian Hussars (RCH) regiment would be making military road movements in the Montreal area on Tuesday evenings, from October 3, 2023 to April 30, 2024.
The RCH is an armoured reconnaissance regiment belonging to the 34th Canadian Brigade Group.Tactical armoured patrol vehicles (TAPVs) will be used on public roads. The press release states that these trips will enable RCH members to train and maintain their knowledge of the fleet. The routes will be varied, and the press release says that "the routine movements will not pose any danger to the public."
Despite such pledges, the fact is that on October 17, one of their armoured tactical patrol vehicles and a military truck arrived in the midst of a spontaneous demonstration in downtown Montreal organized following the Israeli bombardment of a hospital in Gaza the same day. Demonstrators shouted at the military tanks, a brutal provocation. Montreal police escorted the military convoy through the demonstration, pushing the angry protesters back.
Incredulously, Department of National Defence spokesman Andrew McKelvey said the vehicle movement had nothing to do with the demonstration. The official version presented was that the vehicles were on a routine journey.
Everyone could see it was a provocation. Quebeckers have never given their approval for the army to roam the streets of Montreal or anywhere else in Quebec. They do not accept the militarization of public space. And the presence of tanks at the heart of the demonstration on October 17 reveals what lies behind the pretext that these "strolls" of armoured vehicles will pose no danger to the public. While the Trudeau government condemns demonstrators who support the Palestinian people, the presence of these tanks and attempt at intimidation was soundly rejected by those expressing their right to speak, assemble and organize in defence of the Palestinian people and their conscience.
For a video of the army provocation click here.
This article was published in
Volume 53 Number 10 - October 2023
Article Link:
https://cpcml.ca/Tmlm2023/Articles/M5301019.HTM
Website: www.cpcml.ca Email: editor@cpcml.ca