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A group led by retired Provincial court judge Jerry Paradis wants the Vancouver Art Gallery’s north plaza to remain open to the public “without designating it as a protest zone” during the 2010 Winter Olympics.
“That is the normal gathering place, the fact it is in the heart of the city and it is proximate to where the international media will be is important,” said University of B.C. political science professor and Civil Liberties Advisory Committee spokesman Michael Byers. “The right to speak freely entails the right to be heard.”
CLAC published its Civil Liberties and the 2010 Winter Olympics report Wednesday, recommending any safe protest zones during the Olympics be defined by painted lines on streets or sidewalks, instead of fences and barriers which “assume that protesters are a security threat and publicly identifies them as such.”
“Protesters have a right to gather anywhere on public property they wish, provided they do not break the law or otherwise place fellow citizens at risk,” said the report.
The report said CLAC is concerned about the thousands of out-of-town police, military, private security personnel and armed bodyguards for foreign dignitaries. They may be unaware of local culture and liberties. Byers said the Vancouver Police must have dominion over public space, “not a police force that is unaccustomed to dealing with protests in downtown Vancouver.”
The CLAC report said there has to be a balance to provide a safe and secure environment in the Olympic city while maintaining citizens’ rights and freedoms.
“Canada is a democracy where civil liberties are not only tolerated but actually promoted and celebrated and we want to encourage an Olympics that gives ample room to Canadians to exercise their human rights,” Byers said. “We would like Olympic organizers to make that one of their goals.”