The June 23, 2011 release of the Toronto Police Service’s (TPS) After-Action Review of G20 Summit policing provides the TPS’ perspective on the successes and challenges of G20 Summit security.
The report acknowledges several inadequacies in the training and communications protocols used during the G20 and makes ten recommendations for improving the TPS’ ability to police major events. While it is helpful to have the TPS’ perspective on its role in G20 security, the report does not answer, or even address, many of the outstanding questions that remain in the aftermath of the G20. Improving major event training, communications and policy will be helpful, but it will not solve the many policing problems and excesses that occurred during the G20. For example, policies relating to officer self-identification (i.e. wearing badges), use of force, and police searches appear to have been widely ignored during the G20, raising questions about how effective policy reforms will really be in ensuring that police respect the rights of the public in the major event policing context.
The CCLA continues to believe that a full public inquiry is necessary to get to the bottom of what happened during the G20. While the various external reviews that are underway will offer insights into specific aspects of G20 policing, none will provide the comprehensive assessment of the failings of G20 security necessary to ensure that civil liberties violations like those witnessed during the G20 do not happen again. This is why a full public inquiry is required.
