[asia-apec 664] More APEC revelations

[Jaggi Singh]

NEWS ADVISORY
For immediate release

-- Intelligence files confirm that nabbing of anti-APEC organizer was
stage-managed to occur just before APEC Summit to prevent protest --

-- Charges and arrests requested "with a view of eliminating" anti-APEC
organizers --

-- Documents also reveal that Vancouver's activist community was the
target of surveillance by a "Strike Force" months before APEC --

VANCOUVER, September 18, 1998 -- Recently released intelligence files
confirm that a senior RCMP officer at the University of British Columbia
(UBC) requested the arrests and charges of activists "with a view of
eliminating some of the more high profile members" of anti-APEC groups. 

The documents also confirm widespread surveillance of local activists,
with detailed reports of meetings and events, some several months before
the Asia Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) Leaders' Summit in November
1997. Much of the surveillance was conducted by the hitherto unknown
"Vancouver Police Department Strike Force." 

These revelations are being made as the trial for an alleged assault by an
anti-APEC organizer has been postponed to February 1999. The trial of
Jaggi Singh was to take place today in Richmond. However, due to the lack
of full disclosure of relevant evidence by the Crown Counsel, and the fact
that Singh will be making various Charter of Rights motions alleging
abuses of process, deprivation of liberty and other violations, the trial
date was postponed. 

The case against Singh is the only charge laid against an anti-APEC
demonstrator that is actually being pursued to trial after the arrest of
close to 70 people last fall for protests against APEC. Interestingly, the
Vancouver Crown Counsel's office has decided not to lay any charges
against RCMP or Vancouver Police Department members, despite the fact that
the RCMP Public Complaints Commission has yet to even commence its own
limited and flawed investigation into police brutality, excessive force,
intimidation and other instances of inappropriate conduct at APEC. 

After the largest multi-million dollar security operation in the history
of the RCMP (larger even than the military siege and smear campaign
against indigenous sovereignists at Gustafsen Lake in 1995), the only
charge being pursued to trial is an alleged assault on a UBC Traffic
Patrol officer. The alleged incident occurred at a protest almost three
weeks before the actual APEC Summit at UBC during a street theatre protest
action on November 7, 1997. Singh is alleged to have used a megaphone too
loud, hence, the charge of assault. 

Singh was nabbed on November 24, 1997 during a teach-in at UBC the day
before the Leaders' Summit while walking between two univeristy buildings
alone. He was manhandled and wrestled to the ground by at least three
undercover officers who did not identify themselves. When Singh tried to
resist and cry for help, his mouth was covered, his arms were wrenched
behind his back, and he was cuffed. He was thrown into the back of an
unmarked black car, which sped away at high speed. 

The latter part of this nabbing was captured on video and shown widely on
CBC News last fall. Released police notes confirm that National Security
Intelligence Service (NSIS) agents who were part of a "Crowd Infiltration
Unit" carried out the nabbing, with many other undercover officers onhand
to keep anyone from intervening. According to the notes of one NSIS
officer, "Our instructions were the effect that if Singh could be isolated
-- he was to be arrested on the outstanding warrant." 

Recently revealed intelligence files strongly support what many people
believed at the time of the nabbing: the "arrest" and charge for assault
of Singh was carried out to remove someone seen by the police as an
organizer of anti-APEC demos. 

In a report to Crown Counsel dated November 17, 1997, Staff Sergeant Lloyd
Plante, head of the UBC RCMP Detachment, writes that "with a view towards
eliminating some of the high profile members of Apec Alert from the UBC
area" charges should be laid against specific perceived leaders. APEC
ALERT was an active anti-APEC group at UBC last fall. 

Plante further writes in the same document that "a charge of assault be
laid against SINGH" and that such a charge "will have a positive impact,
in particular should a charge be laid against SINGH and he be placed on a
"no go UBC" condition." 

The RCMP and NSIS anticipated that a "no go UBC" condition might be
contested by Singh. As one intelligence document states, "If granted the
warrant, the Detachment hopes to get a no-go to the entire UBC campus as a
condition of SINGH's release. If SINGH doesn't agree, the next court dates
in Richmond are now into January 1998, which would effectively keep him
from campus during APEC." 

As it so happens, after failing to convince an oblivious judge that the
RCMP and Crown were colluding to prevent his right to protest, Singh
agreed to the condition of release. He then promptly returned to UBC,
ripped up his conditions of release, and proceeded to carry out an
anti-APEC action that had been pre-planned with other members of APEC
ALERT. He was arrested and jailed for what would end up being four days.
He was only released until well after APEC was over. 

Singh has yet to be convicted of anything, has no criminal record and was
an active participant in an anti-APEC campaign that was avowedly
non-violent. Indeed, a bulletin by an NSIS "Threat Assessment Group" just
before the APEC Summit was due to begin mentions that, referring to
anti-APEC activists, "some of these individuals may engage in civil
disobedience, however, ... none are considered violent." 

Documents also reveal that the warrant for Singh's arrest, while processed
and valid on November 21, 1997, was deliberately delayed for entry onto
police computers until the morning of November 24, 1997, the day before
the Leaders' Summit. This is clear evidence of the political nature of the
arrest, despite claims of the RCMP at the time that they were following
proper procedure for a simple assault. 

These recent documents only help to confirm that the overkill security
around APEC last fall was more about preventing embarassment to the
proponents of APEC's business-driven agenda than preventing injury to a
so-called world "leader." 

Included below is a verbatim transcript of Staff Sergeant Plante's "will
says," which will form the basis of his testimony at the RCMP Public
Complaints Commission in October. Plante's statements corroborate the
other intelligence reports referred to above: 

"Staff Sergeant Plante will say that the Report to Crown Counsel was
forwarded with a view to eliminating some of the more high profile members
of APEC ALERT from the UBC area. Staff Sergeant Plante will say that, some
investigators believed that Mr. Singh should be charged with a "No go UBC"
condition. Staff Sergeant Plante will say that, on November 22, 1997, he
contacted Staff Sergeant Ken Handy, NSIS [National Security Intelligence
Service, the secretive intelligence arm of the RCMP], who indicated that
Jaggi Singh was subject of a surveillance being conducted by the Vancouver
Police Department Strike Force. The Staff Sergeant contacted Sergeant
Evison of the Strike Force and decided that, considering that Singh would
probably attend UBC on November 24, 1997, his arrest must occur prior to
his attendance on campus. It was arranged that Sergeant Evison would
affect the arrest and the UBC Detachment would be notified immediately.
The Vancouver Police Department would transfer him to Richmond and
Constable Lee would attend and process him. Constable Lee would be in
contact with Crown Counsel would be seeking a condition that, considering
the victim's employment, Mr. Singh should not attend UBC. Staff Sergeant
Plante requested that the warrant be entered onto the CPIC [Canadian
Police Information Computer] system at 0700 hours on November 24, 1997
with remarks to immediately advise Constable Lee or the Staff Sergeant
upon arrest.  Constable Lee's Continuation Report, dated November 24,
1997, indicates that on November 23, 1997, Staff Sergeant Plante advised
him that Jaggi Singh had been located and would be arrested on November
24, 1997. On November 24, 1997, at 0700 hours, Constable Lee added the
warrant of arrest for Mr. Singh to the CPIC. A copy of the CPIC entry,
dated November 24, 1997, is on file. Staff Sergeant Plante's [sic] will
say that, at 1115 hours, he advised Constables Howell and Labadie of NSIS
that Jaggi Singh was observed at Brock Hall, however, he was to be
arrested off campus or in an area of campus where his supporters would be
unaware of his arrest so as to avoid making Mr. Singh a martyr." 

Jaggi Singh, a former student in linguistics at UBC (although not enrolled
at the time of APEC), was very active in many groups last fall including
APEC ALERT, the NO! To APEC Coalition, the East Timor Alert Network, the
International of Hope (a Zapatista solidarity group) and others. He now
lives in Montreal where he is a writer and activist. 

For more information, phone 604-255-1509 or e-mail <jaggi at vcn.bc.ca>. 

APEC ALERT webpage: http://www.cs.ubc.ca/spider/fuller/apec_alert

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