The police violently charged at the crowd, seriously injuring one person and arresting three. Three cops were also injured.
Continue reading “Montreal Counter-info #2.. Autonomous Communication as an Anti Authority Weapon”
Montreal police arrested 447 people last night during a May Day demonstration in Montreal organized by a group called the Anti-Capitalist Convergence, or CLAC.
Those arrested at the demonstration that coincided with International Workers’ Day were released over the course of the night and handed a $637 fine for unlawful assembly.
The noisy, colourful rally Wednesday was almost festive when it began early on the unseasonably warm evening.
Restaurant patrons watched from outdoor terraces as drummers, musicians and chanting, flag-waving demonstrators gathered in Place Jacques-Cartier.
However, police declared the gathering illegal shortly after it started under the controversial Montreal public order bylaw P-6. The bylaw makes it illegal to participate in an assembly with a face obscured by a scarf, hood or mask, and requires protesters to disclose to police in advance the location and itinerary of their demonstration.
Police said they issued a dispersal order, and also confirmed criminal acts, which consisted mainly of wielding sticks and throwing billiard balls at officers, were performed.
“It was getting dangerous for peace and safety and the public order,” said police Sgt. Jean-Bruno Latour.
Dozens of demonstrators tried to make their way to the march’s destination, a private club known by its street number, 357c.
Witnesses at Quebec’s inquiry into corruption in the construction industry have referred to the club in testimony as a meeting place for entrepreneurs, high-level bureaucrats and politicians to discuss business.
However, the demonstrators never reached the club.
Hundreds of police encircled the protesters at the intersection of de la Commune Street and St-Sulpice Street. They herded — and in some cases, physically carried— those detained into awaiting buses.
The CLAC denounced the police intervention, saying they used disproportionate force against protesters.
Latour could not say if anyone would face criminal charges.
First Nations demonstrators stopped passenger railway traffic lines between Toronto, Ottawa and Montreal today, while others stalled major highways and rail lines in parts of Manitoba, Alberta, New Brunswick and Ontario as part of the Idle No More Movement’s national day of action.
Protesters also gathered in Windsor, Ont., near the Ambassador Bridge to Michigan, slowing down traffic to North America’s busiest border crossing for several hours, the CBC’s Allison Johnson reported.
Activities including rallies, blockades and prayer circles were staged across the country Wednesday as part of the grassroots movement calling for more attention to changes that were contained in Bill C-45, the Conservative government’s controversial omnibus budget bill that directly affected First Nations communities. Continue reading “‘Idle No More’ block Rail and Roads as chief’s Hunger Strike goes on”
| “You can cut down all of the flowers but you cannot stop the spring.” – poster circulating around the strikeTHE LAWS On Friday, May 18, 2012, two new laws came into effect in montréal. Their purpose is to stifle the anti-capitalist revolt that has emerged from the student strike that began in this province fifteen weeks ago, to restore order and clear the way for the implementation of austerity measures in this territory.The first is a municipal by-law. It aims to discourage people from wearing masks at demonstrations by threatening them with fines from $1000 to $5000. It comes as the federal government is contemplating a law, to be implemented across the whole territory of the canadian state, that would punish those who conceal their identities “while participating in a riot” with a maximum of ten years in prison. Continue reading “Solidarity Means Attack – Call For Support From Montréal!” |
Bridge slowdown in Windsor2:05
National day of action11:49
The Free 