A moment in Canada.

Oh today. It is a beautiful day - Wednesday, June 7th, 2006. We have all survived the infamous ’06-06-06’ and nothing happened. At the same time, who knows if something would have? Toronto is going through a very sticky situation that is quickly drawing some worldly attention our way. This past Saturday, 17 men were arrested for terrorist related activity – accused of terrorist planning and training. I actually found out through an email sent by my mother – and she does not live in Toronto. I immediately turned on cp24 to find out about all the commotion – and it really has become a media frenzy. My brother suggested that yesterday might have been their ‘day to shine’ if they had not been stopped. This is the first anti-terrorist mass arrest that has occurred in Canada. It’s a very difficult situation to follow as well. Ever since the events of September 11th, 2001 – many countries opened their eyes to the reality of terrorist activities throughout the world. Not that we weren’t aware before – but the reality that no country is safe has really changed the way North America has shifted their government/policing. Both the US and Canada have implemented new “Terrorist task forces”. Saturday’s mass arrest was the first of its kind in Canada – and because of this much of the public, including all the defence lawyers, are witnessing first hand what people who are arrested under this new task force will be subjected to. The first thing of note is how they are being treated. I’m not actually going to go in too deeply into what I think of the whole thing – because it becomes a matter of opinion and can bring about a lot of debate. Much of the controversy surrounds the heightened security that has been present at the court rooms and also how the inmates are being treated in jail.

My only comment is this – these men were arrested under the allegations that they were plotting to basically blow up several Canadian buildings with the help of home made bombs using ammonium nitrate (in which they purchased 3 tonnes – it’s a type of fertilizer). If you can’t imagine what this could do – picture Oklahoma City’s 1995 bombing – which had a van outside a government building explode using 1 tonne of this same fertilizer. It was disastrous. NOW – my comment is in regards to how these people are being treated. YES, in North America, “you are innocent until you are proven guilty”. And this is the base of the argument about the way they are being treated reflecting that they are seen as a greater threat to the public and are being judged before their actual trials. The problem is that the public might not be very educated on exactly what the terrorist task force might be permitted to do in this type of situation. And I think that the way things are being handled is a reflection of things to come. We are talking about a very different type of crime here and it’s very difficult to discuss without many sides lashing out at one another.

One line that was read out by the police after the arrest was as follows: “they [the men/youth arrested] shared a violent ideology inspired by al-Qaida.”. This comment was by far the one that hit me the most. I don’t feel much like writing up my own commentary to this line. The hardest thing about all of this is that people feel it has become purely a war of religions. I’m at a point where I feel that every time I turn on the Toronto news everyone is being blamed for being single minded and that we can’t differentiate between this possible terrorist act/plot and the fact that this is not something that all Islamic people believe. At the same time, there is the worst reality, that some people really can’t differentiate the two things. I can’t imagine how some people felt after what happened on September 11th, because an entire community of people became a target of suspicion. I wish people understood that these men were arrested for what they were plotting, and for how “they shared a violent ideology inspired by al-Qaida” not because they were Islamic. Anyone can take a belief to an extreme and twist it in a way to find approval for their actions – and this is what happened on September 11th, and what has happened with past terrorist acts. This is a very scary reality that is occurring in different parts of the world. Terrorism is a very real thing in our world. I don’t personally see an end to it anytime soon. As we fight to protect the world from this type of problem, the world has become a battleground of who is with the terrorists and who is against. Where are you safe in the world anymore?

I grew up in a small city, North Bay, and I can remember that we were a huge target during the Kuwait war and previous wars. Never heard of the city before? Probably not – and if we had been bombed you probably would have questioned the purpose. We have an underground base in our city that is deep in the rock of the Canadian Shield – and from this base the Canadian air space was being monitored. It’s not a target anymore as most of the underground facilities are moving above ground. I can remember thinking, because my father used to work for NORAD, that he would know if a bomb or missile was headed towards us before we would know. I don’t think there would be much he could do for us (his family) outside of the base – but they would be able to control the military action to counter attack the situation.

Anyway – all this to say a few words on the reality of our today. We are fighting a very difficult war. This is more ‘guerrilla’ warfare filled with planned sneak attacks and never seemingly with the most obvious weapons. This isn’t a gun battle anymore – that’s not how this war is shaping up. It is biochemical, it’s homemade, it’s mass destruction of innocent bystanders to prove a point. All the while, building more ammunition for some countries to continue fighting overseas to end this war. But it’s more than ending an immediate fight – it’s a whole mentality trained into people. There is something very dark travelling through this planet. Eliminating training facilities for this type of problem is one solution – educating is another. I don’t know if we are strong enough to end this war. We could stall it – but then another day will be marked in history by another terrible movement. Where do we stand.

It’s almost impossible to walk outside my apartment and not appreciate the beauty of this place (Canada) and my sense of security. At the same time, in the back of my mind, I know that I have a fear of what is to come. When will this dark angel strike? Will Al-Qaeda win this war? Most of the time it is subconscious and I don’t know the thoughts travelling through my mind. Canada is a target and it’s just a matter of time before a terrorist plan is followed through in our own backyard. I know I’m not alone with these thoughts. And then I think, the terrorists win no matter what – because they know we live with this fear now. September 11th was huge – it was a North American wake up call. The war is at home – and what happened to the United States opened all of our eyes.

Now I sit and wonder. How do I feel about this whole mass arrest situation? What will happen if they are proven innocent and set free? How are the people from their community reacting to all of this? Will the battle between the community and the different levels of government continue to escalate? Are they innocent? Are there more people that weren’t found yet? And most importantly – are we supposed to feel safe now? There was discussion after the arrests on Saturday that the police forces felt happy that this problem has been averted. But how many similar situations are occurring throughout our country, throughout the world at this very moment?

After the mass arrest of gang members in the city of Toronto a few weeks back, I had a similar moment of ‘what’s going to happen next?’. This mass arrest happened with the help of many local GTA police divisions, the OPP and the RCMP. At this moment, I don’t know exactly where these individuals stand. However, during their trials in court the most I would hear over the news is that these individuals may be released on bail. They are all members of a notorious gang in Etobicoke, and I can’t help but wonder what would happen to that community if all the members were released back into their neighbourhood. I can’t imagine after being arrested, that they are in the best of moods and with a history of violence, what might come from this aggravation?

This is life in a big city. I have always had a love/hate relationship with Toronto. I feel very blessed to be able to live in such a great city – much to do, we’re the most multi-cultural city in the world, there is much opportunity. At the same time – the more people you have, the more problems you can run into. It can be a very draining city; it can be a very wonderful place. It can feel very congested; it’s the kind of city where you can be alone and find solitude even though you are surrounded by others. This is our Toronto.

End tangent. I pray that the courts are guided as they rule over the men that have been accused of the terrorist actions. I pray that there is more light shed upon the terrorist task force and what they mean to our country. I do feel safer knowing that there are people hired to work through tracking this type of activity in our country. I pray that we might be able to put an end to this type of violence in the world. I pray that this city is able to work through these situations in a manner that doesn’t place judgement on larger communities. I pray that we walk through this moment with open hearts and open minds.

I hope that we are able to bring a safer tomorrow for everyone.

ugh. this life can be frustrating at times.