|
|
 |
Backgrounder
Canada's Actions Against Terrorism
Since September 11
The Government of Canada acted swiftly in response to the September 11 attacks and to the global threat of terrorism.
- Within 45 minutes of the terrorist attacks on New York City and Washington, D.C., Canada began accepting 224 diverted planes and more than 33 000 passengers and aircrew in airports across the country. In small communities like Gander, Newfoundland and Labrador, 12 000 people were accommodated, although the local population is only 10 000.
- Prime Minister Jean Chrétien established the Ad Hoc Cabinet Committee on Public Security and Anti-Terrorism, chaired by John Manley, the Minister of Foreign Affairs, to review policies, legislation, regulations and programs across the Government to strengthen all aspects of Canada's approach to fighting terrorism and ensuring public security.
- The Government of Canada quickly implemented its Anti-Terrorism Plan, with five clear objectives:
- to prevent terrorists from getting into Canada;
- to protect Canadians from terrorist acts;
- to bring forward tools to identify, prosecute, convict and punish terrorists;
- to keep the Canada-U.S. border secure and open to legitimate trade; and
- to work with the international community to bring terrorists to justice and address the root causes of terrorism.
- The Government of Canada is supporting this plan by introducing strong new legislation and investing $7.7 billion to fight terrorism and reinforce public security.
Putting More People, Technology and Capacity in Place
- Canada invested $280 million in immediate measures -- such as enhanced policing, security and intelligence -- in the wake of September 11.
Key initiatives included:
- fast-tracking a fraud-resistant Permanent Resident Card for new immigrants;
- more front-end security screening for refugee claimants;
- increased detention capacity;
- increased deportation activity;
- hiring of new staff to enforce upgraded security at ports of entry;
- redeployment of over 2000 federal police officers to national security duties;
- technology upgrades, equipment purchases and training to increase capacity to:
- prevent, detect and respond to existing and emerging threats to national security;
- share information among criminal justice and other agencies; and
- undertake coordinated domestic and international law enforcement responses and target cross-border criminal activity;
- purchases of antibiotics to increase the national emergency stockpile system;
- purchases of sensors and detection and other equipment and enhancements for the national network of laboratories.
- Budget 2001 builds on these initiatives through a comprehensive set of measures designed to keep Canada safe, keep terrorists out and keep our border open. It provides a total of $7.7 billion over the next five years to enhance security for Canadians and make Canada's borders more secure, open and efficient. The Budget includes major investments to:
- equip and deploy more intelligence and front-line investigative personnel, improve coordination among agencies and boost marine security($1.6 billion);
- improve screening of immigrants, refugee claimants and visitors (including detention and removals), for the quicker determination of refugee claims and for new fraud-resistant Permanent Resident Cards ($1 billion);
- improve critical infrastructure protection, emergency preparedness and response and expand anti-terrorism capacity for the military ($1.6 billion);
- create a new air security organization, assign armed undercover police officers on Canadian aircraft, purchase explosives detection equipment and enhance policing ($2.2 billion); and
- enhance border security and improve the infrastructure that supports major border crossings to ensure the legitimate flow of goods and people ($1.2 billion).
- Canada and the United States have increased vigilance regarding North American airspace through our joint participation in NORAD (the North American Aerospace Defense Command). Canada has made available additional CF-18 fighter jets to patrol our shared airspace.
Preventing Illegal Migration and Efficiently Managing Legitimate Travel
Canada and the United States place the highest priority on ensuring our borders are safe and efficient in order to facilitate the $1.9 billion in daily trade across our shared border.
- On December 3, 2001, the governments of Canada and the United States signed a Joint Statement of Cooperation on Border Security and Regional Migration Issues. Canadian and American efforts will focus on deterrence, detection and prosecution of security threats, the disruption of illegal migration and the efficient management of legitimate travel through:
- integrating Canadian officials on the U.S. Foreign Terrorist Tracking Task Force;
- reviewing visitor visa policy;
- developing joint units to assess information on incoming air passengers;
- increasing the number of Immigration Control Officers overseas;
- developing common biometric identifiers for documents;
- developing a Safe Third Country Agreement;
- expanding the Integrated Border Enforcement Teams; and
- reinvigorating Project North Star.
- Placing Immigration Control Officers overseas is a unique Canadian approach, which has been successfully adopted by others, to stop terrorists, criminals and other undesirables. In the past six years, Canadian immigration control officers abroad have stopped more than 33 000 people with false documents before they boarded planes for North America (over 6000 this year alone).
- The Integrated Border Enforcement Teams target cross-border crime through an integrated law enforcement approach that brings together agencies at all levels in Canada and their U.S. counterparts.
Strengthening Laws
The Government of Canada has introduced key pieces of legislation.
- The Anti-Terrorism Act, introduced on October 15, includes measures designed to:
- identify, prosecute, convict and punish terrorists;
- provide new investigative tools to law enforcement and national security agencies; and
- ensure that Canadian values of respect and fairness are preserved through stronger laws against hate crimes and propaganda.
Measures include:
- defining and designating terrorist groups and activities;
- tougher sentences for terrorism offences;
- making it a crime to knowingly participate in, facilitate or contribute to a terrorist group;
- making it a crime to knowingly collect or give funds in order to carry out terrorism;
- making it easier to use electronic surveillance against terrorist groups; and
- within carefully defined limits, allowing the arrest and detention of, and imposition of conditions of release on, suspected terrorists to prevent terrorist acts and save lives.
Canada has ratified 10 of the 12 counterterrorism conventions of the United Nations. The new Anti-Terrorism Act will allow Canada to ratify the remaining two.
- ThePublic Safety Act,introduced on November 22, will amend some 18 federal laws to further strengthen the Government's ability to protect Canadians, prevent terrorist attacks and respond swiftly if a significant threat should arise. Highlights include:
- security requirements for the design or construction of aircraft, airports and facilities;
- screening people and goods entering restricted areas;
- making it an offence to engage in any behaviour that endangers the safety or security of a flight or persons on board;
- requiring air carriers or those operating aviation reservation systems to provide basic information on specific passengers or flights when it is needed for security purposes; and
- amendments to theImmigration Act to speed implementation of measures, including:
- suspending or terminating refugee determination proceedings if there are reasonable grounds to believe that the claimant is a terrorist, senior official of a government engaged in terrorism or a war criminal;
- denying wanted persons the ability to evade justice by going to a country of their choice rather than to the country where they are wanted;
- imposing stiff increases in penalties for people smuggling; and
- giving immigration officers the authority to arrest and detain foreign nationals in Canada who are unable to satisfactorily identify themselves.
- In addition, amendments to the Aeronautics Act will maximize the effectiveness of the aviation security system and ensure that Canada continues to have one of the safest aviation systems in the world.
Rooting out Terrorists and Their Networks
Canadian law enforcement, security and intelligence organizations are collaborating and actively participating in the largest international investigation in history to root out and dismantle terrorist support networks in all their forms, wherever they exist.
Canada acted swiftly in support of UN Security Council Resolution 1373 to freeze the assets of those who commit or facilitate terrorist acts and to prohibit the provision and collection of funds for terrorist activities. Canadian financial institutions have frozen the $344 000 associated with the 100 individuals and groups designated under the United Nations Suppression of Terrorism Regulations.
The Government has invested an additional $63 million since September 11 in the Financial Transaction Reports Analysis Centre of Canada (FINTRAC) to expand its capacity to stop possible funding of terrorists.
Military Contribution
Canada committed direct military support for the U.S.-led international campaign against terrorism. The Government of Canada has contributed the following resources to the Canadian operation, known as Operation Apollo:
- 2000 Canadian men and women of the Canadian Forces;
- a Canadian Naval Task Group (two frigates, a destroyer and a supply ship), which is on station in the Arabian Sea;
- another Canadian frigate, which is integrated with a U.S. Carrier Battle Group;
- Canadian aircraft to conduct airlifts in the region; and
- a 1000-strong light infantry unit, which is on seven days notice for possible deployment within an international stabilization force.
Diplomatic Activities and Humanitarian Aid
Canada is working with other countries, individually and multilaterally, to broaden the coalition to fight terrorism and to foster the establishment of a broadly representative, accountable, stable, inclusive and multi-ethnic administration and government in Afghanistan and aid in the reconstruction of that country.
- Canada is uniquely positioned as a member of the G8, NATO (North Atlantic Treaty Organization), the United Nations, the Commonwealth, La Francophonie, the Organization of American States -- among other international organizations -- to advance the anti-terrorism agenda; it also participates at nearly every summit and important international gathering.
- Canada has provided $16 million in emergency assistance to Afghanistan since September 11. This is in addition to the more than $12 million contributed this year prior to the crisis and the more than $160 million provided over the past 10 years.
|
