EXPOSING THE “PROVOCATEURS”

The Council of Canadians has also been front and centre in exposing the Quebec provincial police’s use of undercover “provocateurs” during the protests in Montebello.

As you may have read in the media, the Sûreté du Québec has finally admitted that their officers infiltrated the demonstrations in Montebello on August 20 and 21. This came after Nanaimo Council of Canadians activist Paul Manly posted footage on the Internet of a scuffle between union activist Dave Coles and three masked men, one holding a rock. Manly’s video shows that when a crowd of peaceful activists suggested that the masked men were police provocateurs, they quickly shoved themselves behind a line of riot police, and were quietly arrested.

The video spread like wildfire, and soon after, a photo emerged, revealing that the masked “protesters” were wearing the same kind of boots as the riot police. Local activists kept close track of the protesters who were arrested in Montebello, and demanded that the police release the names of the three masked men, whose arrests have not shown up on record, anywhere.

On August 23, the Council of Canadians posted an Action Alert on our website, demanding that Prime Minister Stephen Harper and Public Safety Minister Stockwell Day get to the bottom of the controversy. Within hours, the SQ made their confession.

The Council of Canadians will continue to follow this story in the coming months, demanding answers from the Quebec police, who claim that their officers did not attempt to provoke violence in Montebello. Manly’s footage seems to suggest otherwise.

To view Paul Manly’s footage of the police provocateurs in Montebello, visit IntegrateThis.ca.