Money nearly equal to the 12 Billion given our entire Military, and comes under the control of the new and mysterious "Public Safety" Ministry of Anne McLellan.

Monday, March 29, 2004

OTTAWA (CP) - The watchdog who blew the door off the federal sponsorship scandal is set to strike again with a report Tuesday that probes anti-terrorism expenditures worth 30 times more than Adscam.

But the latest report by Auditor General Sheila Fraser - on the government's $7.7 billion plan to fight terror after Sept. 11, 2001 - is not expected to match the tone of her recent expose on the $250 million sponsorship scam.

[Note: Despite already allocating an incredible 7.7 Billion blank cheque to the Drug dealer supporting RCMP to supposedly "monitor terrorists", the Liberals under Paul Martin gave a further 600 Million in the latest budget, shortly after a visit from the UN Secretary. [Read the Anti-Terrorism Act to see the close connection the "federal government" has built with the UN. ]

The Liberal government is still struggling with the fallout from last month's devastating report but says it has already taken steps to address inefficiencies in the counter-terrorism programs to be examined Tuesday. "I'm comfortable with the way we are moving forward, absolutely," Public Safety Minister Anne McLellan said Monday. [See link at bottom of article concerning MP's charge that Anne McLellan is covering up sexual abuse of children.]

"Have we come a long way since Sept. 11? Yes. Do we have more to do? Yes." McLellan appeared to be doing some early damage control last week by announcing a project to create a government-wide communication system to help federal departments exchange intelligence.

Fraser's report is expected to critique the way federal agencies share terrorist-related intelligence and pass those details on to police.

The chapter assessing the government's post-Sept. 11 plan is just one among seven in the latest auditor's report.

Other areas examined include:

- Health Canada's performance in regulating medical equipment ranging from heart valves to diagnostic scanners.

- The Canada Customs and Revenue Agency's success in gauging the extent of the black-market economy in the small and medium business sector.

- New mechanisms [allegedly] put in place by the Paul Martin government to reduce the risk of spending abuses like the ones in the sponsorship program.
 

But anti-terrorism measures are expected to receive the lion's share of the attention Tuesday.

The five-year plan has a $7.7 billion budget, money that's being spent largely on intelligence-gathering, national defence and efforts to track
money transfers to terrorist groups.

McLellan conceded Monday that pumping funds into the fight against terror won't do the job if government officials aren't co-operating with each other.

"It's not only about money. It's also about making sure that people understand . . . that to some extent it's a change of culture to ensure that
departments are working well together, that they're willing to share information."

After striking political gold with Fraser's Feb. 10 report on a relatively tiny advertising program, opposition critics are giddy with anticipation
about potential foul-ups in a $7.7 billion program.

"(McLellan did) a pre-emptive strike last week," said Conservative security critic Kevin Sorenson.

"We'll have to wait and see what happens but when you see a cabinet minister running out to give a speech, that's like an arsonist trying to put out a fire."

On Monday, McLellan pointed out other steps the government has taken to improve its counter-terror performance, including the $605 million in new money for security over five years announced in the budget last week.

The latest cash is earmarked for shoring up weaknesses at marine ports, better analysis of potential threats and investments in technology.

The government will also consult Canadians as it drafts a national security policy in the coming months, McLellan promised.

[Whether they LISTEN and implement those public recommendations is, of course, an entirely different matter. Did they "consult"  the public before they gave 8 Billion to the RCMP "monitor terrorists"? Click HERE to answer that question]

But the government will not have a special election security plan, she said. That was in response to suggestions the recent attack on Madrid commuter trains during the Spanish elections could make Canada a target before a vote expected this spring.

McLellan said the necessary anti-terror mechanisms are already in place. She will continue to get her daily security briefings during the campaign.'

 

Money Grabbing everywhere.

[Note: The 8.3 Billion does not even include improvements to airport security, as those expenditures are gathered through a tax increase charged directly to passengers, as the photo insert for YVJ Airport shows.]
 

Hard working Canadians are being taxed to death with ever increasing fees and levies gathered under the pretext of "Public Safety" and "anti-terrorism". This despite the obvious lack of terrorist activity in Canada, [save for the RCMP] which would in any way justify the estimated 10 BILLION allocated over the next FIVE YEARS alone. Money the "Public Safety" Minister admits is money that's being spent by CSIS "largely on intelligence-gathering"]

 [By contrast, the plan announced at nearly the same time by US President Bush to "send men to mars in the next 20 years" is estimated at 6 Billion, and is expected to generate tens of thousands of high paying, high tech, jobs]

MP Charges that "Public Safety" Minister obstructing justice, and protecting pedophiles.

Police push for massive surveillance fee; as big as that needed for 9-1-1 services.


OTTAWA (CP) - Canada's police chiefs propose a surcharge of about 25 cents on monthly telephone and Internet bills to cover the cost of tapping into the communications of terrorists and other criminals.

The suggestion is intended to resolve a standoff between police forces and telecommunications companies over who should foot the expense of providing investigators with access to phone calls and e-mail messages.

Police say they cannot - and should not - be forced to pay the often hefty costs involved in carrying out court-approved wiretaps and message searches, warning that investigations will suffer if they are expected to pick up the tab.

"This is a very, very serious issue for us. It has a potential for really paralysing operations," said Supt. Tom Grue, a member of the law amendments committee of the Canadian Association of Chiefs of Police.

But the country's largest phone company believes that telecommunications firms and law-enforcement agencies, not subscribers, should split the costs.

"We think there should be more of a partnership between the agencies and us, rather than getting the public to pay for it," said Bell Canada spokeswoman Jacqueline Michelis.

The matter has taken on new urgency as the federal government prepares legislation aimed at preventing criminals from using new digital technologies to shield their communications from police and intelligence agencies.

Authorities argue the measures are needed to keep up with sophisticated criminals involved in such activities as terrorism, money laundering, child pornography and murder.

The legislative proposals, outlined two years ago, have raised the hackles of privacy advocates and civil libertarians.

Bubbling in the background is the equally thorny debate about money.

Under the federal proposals, service providers would be required, when upgrading their systems, to build in the technical capabilities needed by police and intelligence agencies, such as the Canadian Security Intelligence Service, to easily tap communications.

The controversy revolves around the ongoing costs of looking up phone numbers, hooking up to networks and relaying communications from one city to another - individual services that may cost anywhere from pocket change to thousands of dollars.

Currently, a hodgepodge of payment practices applies, from negotiation of fees by the parties involved to refusal by some police forces to accept the bills.

Grue, a member of the Edmonton police force, said the costs should be spread as widely as possible to avoid unduly burdening a small number of parties.

The association of police chiefs, which represents the majority of Canadian forces, argues one way to accomplish that is adding a fee to each subscriber's monthly telephone, cellular or Internet bill.

"We're thinking, amongst ourselves, 25 cents. Whether that would cover off all the costs, we don't know. We haven't done the analysis on it," Grue said.

"But if you impose too great of a burden or put too high of a fee, then it becomes less and less attractive, obviously."

Grue compares the proposed fee to the one customers already pay to support 911 emergency service, which ranges from about 25 to 50 cents a month depending on the type of telephone plan.

Bell Canada's Michelis wants to pull the plug on the idea of a wiretap charge.

"We don't really think the cost should be flipped over to the general public," she said.

"I don't know how popular that's going to be, something like that. Twenty-five cents is a really significant amount to add to everybody's phone bill."

Tom Copeland, a spokesman for the Canadian Association of Internet Providers, said tacking a fee on monthly bills "might work" but could create a burdensome administrative regime that hampers companies, especially small ones with few staff.

Grue said it's "a bit of a mystery" to him why the industry is decidedly less than enthusiastic about the idea. "All companies would have that fee on the bill, so it's not like you're giving one company a competitive advantage over another company."

Federal officials have convened meetings of the various players to try to work out the issues.

Internal Justice Department notes prepared following a roundtable session in December stressed the need "not to further exacerbate the situation."

Bell Canada says it has invested heavily in infrastructure to allow for wiretaps and is only trying to recover its costs on the day-to-day services provided to police and intelligence agencies.

"Bell has already spent millions of dollars on this initiative and it's going to continue costing us a huge amount of money going forward," Michelis said. "We are looking to get some sort of compensation on the ongoing costs."

For the police, it's a matter of principle.

"From our perspective, it's a very slippery slope to start paying for the execution of search warrants or any kind of a court order," said Grue.

Lucie Angers, a senior Justice Department lawyer, indicated the issues will be resolved at the political level.

"You have different interests at stake," she said. "There's good sums of money that are involved in taking these decisions."

Federal officials are interested in a solution that would "balance the costs," said Simone McAndrew, a spokeswoman for the Public Safety Department.

"Any proposal that is brought forward will be considered."

CSIS had no comment. [Probably too busy counting their money(?)]

Copeland said if subscribers end up funding the surveillance effort through monthly fees, Canadians would "demand a great deal more explanation" about the initiative and how it affects their constitutional and privacy rights.

And should the money come from law-enforcement budgets, the public will be contributing "out the back door" through tax revenues, he noted.

"One way or another, Canadians are going to pay."

By JIM BRONSKILL
http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/Canada/2004/08/15/584803-cp.html
 

By PETER RAKOBOWCHUK

MONTREAL (CP) - A suspected terrorist jailed on allegations that he is a sleeper agent for al-Qaida was released Friday on $50,000 bail after 21 months in detention.

Adil Charkaoui, 31, was driven out of the Riviere-des-Prairies detention centre by his lawyer. His family then drove up in a van and, in an emotional reunion, got out to kiss and hug him in the street. His young daughter carried a bouquet of flowers.

"I want to say thank you to all the people who helped me to have my freedom," Charkaoui told reporters. "People from coast to coast, from British Columbia, from Ontario and especially from Quebec . . . .

"I thank all the people that trusted me."

But Charkaoui won't enjoy total freedom. He'll have to wear an electronic monitoring bracelet and there will be limits on who he can contact.

The bracelet was not available at the time of his release and will be installed in coming days.

"We don't know exactly what the reason was," his lawyer Dominique Larochelle said. "I think they weren't exactly prepared, but they decided not to penalize Mr. Charkaoui."

Charkaoui said he would respect all the conditions of his release and was eager to prove his innocence.

"I was never a threat to security," he said. "I've lived 10 years in this country and I've always acted as a good citizen. Even if I didn't have citizenship, I always respected the laws of this country."

Federal Court Justice Simon Noel ruled Thursday that Charkaoui could be released.

Noel, who said Charkaoui seems to pose little threat to national security, is forcing the Moroccan native to respect a curfew, stay with his family and limit his computer use. Noel will also review every three months the risk of Charkaoui remaining free.

Charkaoui will return to court next week as the federal government defends the validity of the security certificate that was used to keep him detained since May 2003.

A review of the detention order against him is also scheduled for the coming weeks.

Hearings are expected to extend into April.

The security certificate, a controversial provision of the Immigration Act, means most of the evidence against him is known only by the government and the judge.

Charkaoui has denied any links to terrorists.

But jailed millennium bomber Ahmed Ressam and terrorist Abou Zubaida, also in detention in the United States, identified him as the man they met at a training camp in Afghanistan in 1998.

The $50,000 bail was raised by several people, including Oscar-winning filmmaker Denys Arcand; Alexandre Trudeau, son of former prime minister Pierre Trudeau; singer Bruce Cockburn; and former cabinet ministers Warren Allmand and Flora MacDonald.

Anne McLellan, minister of public safety and emergency preparedness, has said the government "absolutely" considers Charkaoui a threat to national security but would not elaborate on her reasons.

[Well let us elaborate.... The only terrorist organization(s) operating in Canada are those funded by the Federal Government, and the minister in charge of "public safety" either knows this, or is incompetent.]

http://cnews.canoe.ca/CNEWS/World/WarOnTerrorism/2005/01/10/890075-cp.html