In the face of a history of violent riots during international summits, Calgary is assembling an unprecedented security effort, spending more than $100-million to safeguard this June's G8 summit.
The RCMP has reportedly ordered three satellite uplink trucks to send continuous video surveillance footage out of the remote Kananaskis resort near Calgary, which could cost more than $10,000 a day per truck. The trucks -- normally used by television stations to broadcast live from far away locations -- will be used round the clock before, during and after the summit when the leaders of the Group of Eight major industrialized nations gather in the province June 26 to 27.
Calgary police are preparing for worst-case scenarios such as last year's G8 Summit when a demonstrator was shot by police during massive, violent protests in Genoa, Italy.
Last week, police officers had a daylong training course on "protest awareness."
By the end of this month, all 1,400 members of Calgary's police force will have taken the course.
Provincial Crown prosecutor Emanuel Vomberg described situations the officers may encounter during the G8 summit and how to react to them.
Officers can use the common-law power of investigative detention to pull a person off the street if they think he or she may be involved in a crime.
RCMP officers are also being trained in how to handle protesters, and all officers being sent to Kananaskis for the summit will take a course.
The training manual that outlines protester tactics, use of riot gear and chemical agents isn't being made public for security reasons.
Security officials visited the University of Calgary last month to talk to potential protesters about deflating violence at the event.
About 5 per cent of Kananaskis Country's mountainous parkland in Alberta will be off limits to the public in June.
Fifteen per cent of vehicle-accessible campgrounds and about half of the back-country campsites in the region could be closed starting June 17.
Travel on portions of highways leading into the summit site will require escorts during the two days of the summit.
Access restrictions will be lifted on June 28.
For the summit in Quebec held in Old Quebec April 20-22, organizers erected a 3.8-kilometre chainlink fence anchored on concrete around the city to protect visiting dignitaries.
The military was on hand to drive international delegates to meetings and formed a 50-member honour guard for them as they arrived at Quebec's airport.
It has been reported that the majority of the 20,000 antiglobalization activists were peaceful but a group of militants threw chunks of sidewalk and Molotov cocktails at police, who retaliated with tear gas and rubber bullets.
About 400 people were arrested. Police said about 20 officers were injured in clashes with demonstrators. The security bills for the Summit of the Americas in Quebec cost $100-million.
The Francophonie summit in 1999 in Moncton, N.B., cost a total of $22-million, including security costs and the Asia Pacific Economic Co-operation meeting in 1997 in Vancouver cost an estimated $60-million.
Last year's G8 summit, held last July in Genoa, reportedly had a price tag of more than $225-million with at least $40-million spent on security.
Genoa had set up a high-security red zone and leaders stayed on a luxury cruise liner docked in a sealed port, surrounded by naval vessels. The Italian government gathered many as 20,000 armed police and troops and closed off waterways and rail stations.
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