City
Occupy Toronto protesters served with eviction notices
Occupy Toronto has been officially asked to leave St. James Park. Toronto by-law officers are currently issuing eviction notices to protesters, many of which are being attached to tents. Part of the notice reads "the purpose of this letter is to advise all those who are occupying St. James Park that the time has come to remove your tents, structures, equipment and personal belongings from the park."
There are reports that the protesters are being asked to leave the park immediately, but the scene at the park is quite calm right now. Police are on hand, but Constable Wendy Drummond claims their presence is only to ensure that by-law officers can safely carry out the distribution of the notices. It's unclear who will be tasked with enforcing the eviction notices.
The official order to leave St. James Park comes just hours after police moved on Occupy Wall Street protesters in Zucatti Park. A court order obtained by the National Lawyers Guild may allow those occupiers to return to their site of protest, but what action the local movement will take remains unclear at this time. Some protesters have referred to an eviction strategy, but what exactly this entails has not been revealed.
UPDATES:
4:25 p.m.
Although there is another General Assembly set for 6 p.m., two members of the Occupy Toronto movement read out a statement in which they confirmed that they will remain in the park despite the eviction notices. It's not yet clear if the statement is meant to represent the entire group, a faction of which left the park to march to City Hall.
The CBC is also reporting that a lawyer is currently trying to get an injunction against the removal of the protesters from the park. We expect to learn more about this in the next hour or so.
3:20 p.m.
Here is a copy of the letter signed by 11 city councillors asking that Occupy Toronto not be interfered with until the subject can be address at city council.
2:00 p.m.
More photos of the scene at St. James Park
12:40 p.m.
At a press conference at City Hall, one in which Rob Ford was curiously absent, Deputy Mayor Doug Holyday and Norm Kelly refused to give a concrete timeline on when police might react to a sustained occupation, but did note that as of 12:01 a.m. tonight, the eviction notices are "enforceable."
12:35 p.m.
Union members at the park report that lawyers are currently in court seeking an injunction against the city's eviction notices.
12:30 p.m.
11:30 a.m.
Occupy Toronto is scheduled to have a General Assembly at noon, at which time we expect to know a little bit more about their response to the order to vacate the park.
And here's a the live video feed from Occupy Toronto should you want to monitor how this plays out over the course of the day.
11:20 a.m.
Here are some excerpts from the the City of Toronto's statement about the eviction:
"This morning, City staff hand delivered a letter from City Manager Joe Pennachetti and a notice under the Trespass to Property Act to protesters at St. James Park, advising that they immediately leave the park...
The City has worked to balance people's right to protest with public safety. Residents and businesses have been very reasonable and patient. Protesters have been very peaceful and the City is very appreciative of this. However, it's time this came to a peaceful end.
The protesters have not approached the City nor has the City given permission to use St. James Park for the type of activity that has been ongoing there since October 15. Many activities at St. James Park are contrary to City bylaws, policies and practices with respect to the use of City parks and other public spaces.
Protesters are required to remove all tents and other structures, equipment and debris immediately.
The City is willing to assist to ensure the safe and orderly removal of these materials.
It is the City's intent to facilitate this peacefully."
11:15 a.m.
Here is a copy of the eviction notice, which forbids the protesters from erecting tents or other structures and from entering the park between midnight and 5:30 a.m.
More to come
Photos by Tom Ryaboi
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http://www.thestar.com/news/world/article/1087033--hasty-court-order-allows-occupy-protesters-to-return-after-police-sweep?bn=1
City officials (both Fords) & Police brass (Chief William Blair, etc) held a high-level meeting this morning. They essentially agreed to copy the Bloomberg & NYPD raid, albeit on a smaller scale.
I don't want to see anyone get hurt. Most officers who volunteer for riot control duty are malicious, non-empathetic bullies. They will be ruthless & violent.
Everyone please be safe and be careful.
All those that are demanding that the "dirty hippies" get out of the park don't realize this is their end game. They want scenes similar to the G8 all over the TV which will only help their still unidentified cause.
I say let em wait it out as long as they want to stay in the park. With no clear message and the winter approaching their numbers will dwindle to only the most radical and unsympathetic protesters and of course the homeless who actually need help. With the state the park would be in next spring they would have no chance of winning over public opinion.
I would love to see Rob Ford in a wrestling spandex suit
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I'd like to start off by saying that I am a successfully employed homeowner who is actively involved in Occupy Toronto. I am a member of the movement's Media Committee and have been mostly helping out with web development after my full time job and on the weekends whenever possible. I'm currently speaking to you from the office of my employer at the corner of Bay and Bloor.
Occupy Toronto is a peaceful gathering where people have come together from all walks of life in order to discuss the many issues that exist in the world today, both locally and globally. The government does not provide us, the people, with a space to be able to hold such a lengthly discussion and it is the people's last resort to camp out in a park to discuss these very real issues. The internet is not a viable solution for such dialog as it's nature is so decentralized and there are many people involved in the Occupy movement who have disabilities or lack the skills or funds necessary to participate in an ongoing dialog online. In addition to this it is far too easy to ignore an online protest.
I am not here to talk about the movement's direction or message. I am here to talk about the Charter of Rights and Freedoms.
In case you're not aware, everyone has the following fundamental freedoms:
(a) freedom of conscience and religion;
(b) freedom of thought, belief, opinion and expression, including freedom of the press and other media of communication;
(c) freedom of peaceful assembly; and
(d) freedom of association.
There is no time limit on any of the rights of freedoms listed in the Charter. A peaceful protest should be allowed to go on indefinitely as long as it remains peaceful, which this protest has.
There is no section in the current Toronto by-laws that deal with camping in a public park. There is a proposal to amend these laws but it has not passed as of yet. You can't enforce a proposed law that has not been passed.
A stated by canadian civil rights association:
The enforcement of municipal by-laws or trespass notices may be unconstitutional as these actions may unjustifiably violate Charter rights.
Also 608-10 - No fires are permitted, including so-called 'sacred' ones.
608-11 - Unless authorized by permit, no gathering of more than 25 people (foul smelling hippies are still counted as people)
608-7 Encroachment - Unless authorized no one shall take possession of a city park by erecting structures (including tents)
Gee, there's four by-law infractions found in less than 5 minutes of looking.
So yeah, there are laws on the books in Toronto that your group are breaking. Enjoy the jail cell upcoming in your future.
"The enforcement of municipal by-laws or trespass notices may be unconstitutional as these actions may unjustifiably violate Charter rights."
Municipal bylaws don't trump Charter rights.
The Occupy People have limited themselves to one little park, unless you live in the immediate area or own a business there that is affected by this, why do you care? Everyone here has been bashing the Occupy people so much, but for what? Does it really scare people that much that these protestors are out there trying to come up with real solutions to some serious societal problems? I just don't understand all the hatred.
On the first day or two of Occupy TO I also thought it was ridiculous, because it looked like they were just an extension of the Occupy Wall Street people who were protesting American problems that are not present in Canada. But after a while when I heard about what Occupy TO was actually doing I started to agree with them and support them. We have serious problems in our society that are getting worse and we need to start thinking about them. Toronto is plagued with people that ignore problems until they simply cannot be ignored, and we have suffered for that. It's time we started thinking ahead and dealing with our problems before they blow up in our faces.
http://www.alldaysnews.com/world-news/will-the-arizona-boycotts-go-bust/comment-page-1/#comment-49633