QUEBEC – Quebec Provincial Police arrested six Canadians they said were planning some violence acts at this weekend’s Summit of the Americas. At a press conference police displayed seized weapons that included some explosives, smoke grenades, gas masks and pointed sticks.
According to the police a Canadian military reservist and a former member of the military were among the six arrested. Police did not release the names of arrested men.
Unprecedented security measures for the Friday-Sunday summit, where 34 leaders of the Western Hemisphere will gather, led to the arrests of two 21-year-old men driving into Quebec City and four men in the Montreal area. The arrests took place Tuesday and Wednesday.
Huge protests are planned around the summit by activists who are traveling from around the world. Canadian authorities have erected a 2 1/2-mile concrete-and-wire fence to prevent the activists from getting near the summit site. Quebec judge ruled that the fence infringes on civil liberties, but it is justified given the fears of unrest.
This week two Mexican university students were detained in Toronto while many protesters had their luggage searched and were subjected to hour-long questioning, said organizers of the five-day People’s Summit of the Americas.
Activists heading to Quebec City say they have been harassed and refused entrance at the Canadian border. Canadian laws allow immigration officers to turn back anyone with a criminal record.
