Mass Arrests and Kettling Continue at Protests

Police Use P-6 to Stop Protesters From Marching

NewsAndrew Brennan — Published April 7, 2013

The protest was declared illegal as the crowd of about 300 was still assembling around 6 p.m.

Police cruisers and vans were aligned to keep protesters from straying from Émilie-Gamelin Square, the habitual meeting point for demonstrations.

After encircling the park once, the Service de police de la Ville de Montréal officers surrounded the crowd, kettling the majority of protesters near de Maisonneuve Blvd.

Organized by the Anti-Capitalist Convergence Montreal, the protest fell exactly three weeks after the latest annual march against police brutality in the city, which saw more than 250 demonstrators arrested under municipal bylaw P-6.

The event’s Facebook page described the protest as a “family-friendly demonstration and civil disobedience action.”

CLAC also made it clear that an itinerary or route for the protest would not be given to the police intentionally, and warned that this action could result in mass arrests.

Under the municipal bylaw, protests are illegal if a route is not provided to police at least 24 hours in advance, and participants are forbidden from concealing their faces while demonstrating. Those ticketed face a first-time fine of $637, with higher amounts given to repeat offenders.

Go to our photo blog for more pictures from the demo.