‘When Vancouver first
submitted a bid for the Winter Olympics, the budget for
“security” was said to be $175-million. The final cost will
exceed $1-billion. An army of Canadian military, federal police
agencies and municipal police, about 10,000 altogether, will police the
city, complemented by some 5,000 security guards.
A vast network of
surveillance cameras of public spaces has been installed, and barbed
wire fences and other barriers are going up all over the region to keep
protesters and the non-ticket holding public away from Games venues.
Police have stepped up harassment and intimidation of anti-Olympics
organizers across Canada, in some cases visiting homes and workplaces
to interrogate not only Games’ critics but also their
acquaintances.
The rationale for the
overwhelming display of military and police power is the same as that
used to justify the wars in Iraq, Afghanistan and Palestine –
that behind every corner lurks a potential “terrorist
threat” and the only way to combat that threat is to wage war.
Police have warned they will arrest anyone who attempts to stage
protests of the Games near venues or along key transportation routes.’
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