N.B. fracking protest raised fears of copycat rallies

Federal officials closely tracked the fallout of anRCMP raid on a First Nations protest against shale-gas explorationin New Brunswick, at one point raising concerns it could spawnanother countrywide movement like Idle No More.

Documents obtained under access-to-information legislation reveala lengthy email chain last fall monitoring events related to ablockade near Rexton, N.B., about 70 kilometres north of Moncton.

Members of the Elsipogtog First Nation, who were concerned aboutthe environmental impact of shale-gas development, didn't wantenergy company SWN Resources to do testing work on their traditionalterritory.

Police officers enforced an injunction on Oct. 17 to end theblockade of a compound where the company storedexplorationequipment.

The early-morning raid led to violent clashes between officersand protesters. By the end of the day, six police cars had beentorched and 40 people arrested.

'Growing support of protesters'

As the situation unfolded, a government official sent an emailreporting "growing support of protesters by first nation (sic)communities and other groups across the country."

"An 'Idle No More' like movement of protests is reportedly beingplanned starting tomorrow," wrote Alain Paquet, director ofoperations for Public Safety Canada.

"We will keep you informed through our Situation Reports..."

Those in the email chain included staff within the Privy CouncilOffice, the central bureaucracy which serves the prime minister andcabinet.

The Government Operations Centre, an arm of Public Safety Canada,emailed out daily reports detailing planned protests across thecountry.

On its website, the centre says it provides an "all-hazardsintegrated federal emergency response to events."

A notice emailed later on Oct. 17 gave a rundown of plannedprotests and whether they posed a threat of violence.

"Other than the events at Rexton, N.B., so far calls are forpeaceful action," the notice said.

"Most of the protest activity to date under the Idle No Morebanner or related environmental or First Nations issues activitieshave been peaceful."

Monitoring social media

The daily updates were compiled using media reports andinformation from the RCMP. But much of the information was derivedby monitoring social media postings from the protesters themselves.

One update noted that the "creators of Idle No More inLethbridge, AB, said via Twitter that they wasted no time in gettinga group together to march down the city's main drag Thursdayafternoon."

It also noted reports of "small demonstrations in New York Cityand Washington, D.C. outside the Canadian missions," as well as inMontreal, Ottawa, Winnipeg and Edmonton.

Another document outlined the "key messages" for the RCMP when fielding questions about its handling of the New Brunswick blockade,which protesters argued had been heavy-handed.

"Our members demonstrated incredible professionalism as theyworked to resolve the situation," one bullet point in the documentsaid.

"Some in the crowd threw rocks and bottles at them and sprayedthem with bear spray. Setting police cars on fire created adangerous situation for all present and at that point our members were forced to physically confront some in the crowd who refused toobey the law."

By Sunday, Oct. 20, three days after the arrests, a governmentupdate said "the number of protests continues to decline."

"Less than five are planned for today according to the Idle NoMore website with one protest planned for Saint John, New Brunswickon Monday," the email said.

'Misunderstanding First Nations'

Susan Levi-Peters, one of the protesters and a former chief, saidthe emails reflect how Ottawa is more focused on trying to controlaboriginal people rather come up with solutions.

"Canada has to have a better relationship with First Nations people," said Levi-Peters, who ran for the NDP in 2011.

"I think Ottawa is misunderstanding First Nations people. And they're getting more educated. I think Ottawa is in a shock becausethey don't know how to treat them anymore."

The shale-gas protests died down after Texas-based SWN Resourceswrapped up its exploration work and left the province in December.

Last month, two men involved in the events of Oct. 17 weresentenced to 15 months in jail.

Germain Breau, a 21-year-old of the Elsipogtog First Nation, wasfound guilty of possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose and four counts of pointing a firearm.

Aaron Francis, a 20-year-old of the Eskasoni First Nation, wasconvicted of possession of a weapon for a dangerous purpose.

Both men were also given two years probation following their jailtime.

An email to Public Safety Canada asking whether it is standardprocedure to closely track social media, media and RCMP reports drewthe following response: "The GOC provides strategic-levelcoordination on behalf of the Government of Canada in response to anemerging or occurring event affecting the national interest."