Ottawa Sun
Published: Wednesday, April 15, 2009

Such is life in a democracy

With the Tamil protests continuing into their second week in front of Parliament Hill, the nerves and patience of many drivers, businesses and residents are being tested daily.

I agree with my democratically elected government and some 30 other nations that the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka are a terrorist organization. The sight of Tamil Tiger symbols on the streets of my city is disconcerting given that this is the group that perfected, if not invented, the bomb belt technique of suicide bombing.

That being said, when I walked amongst the demonstrators yesterday they were peaceful, respectful of pedestrians and did not impede the flow of traffic. In addition, from what I could observe, it appears they have liaison folks who are working with our police to keep everything cool and calm. As long as their protest remains peaceful and non-threatening, then by all means, they can fill their boots.

Canada is home to more than 280,000 people of Tamil origin and many are Canadian citizens by choice or birth. Indeed this is the reality and success of our country, we boast of the largest populations of foreign nationals and ex-pats from a diverse mixture of countries, some peaceful, others not, some rich and others that are economically depressed.

Despite some reactionary comment from some quarters, the right of the Tamils to protest for Canadian action and diplomatic pronouncements on their civil war is not in question. And it seems that protest organizers have also figured out that snake-marching onto the streets is not an acceptable form of protest.

Not only is it dangerous for all concerned, it does nothing to further their cause with the general public or spur subsequent pressure on government or opposition MPs to push for further Canadian diplomatic action.

As the capital city of a G8 nation, protests, marches, and other forms of political expression are to be expected. And we're actually spoiled compared to the sizes and frequency of protests that take place in cities such as Washington, London, Paris or Tokyo.

However, there is no denying that the policing and other front-line emergency services costs for these services will climb as the days go on. And quite frankly, we can't simply ask the feds to pony up every time for unexpected costs. A wiser and longer-term approach would be to build more of a reserve into the annual police budget. Indeed, this would also make our case stronger for the instances when we do need to engage the federal government in a discussion about sharing security costs.

As a driver and commuter, I too was initially frustrated by the disruptions to traffic flow on Wellington St. during the out-of-bounds marches last week. However, kudos are due to the beleaguered folks at OC Transpo and the city's traffic operations group who re-routed as best they could so we could all get home ... late, but home nonetheless.

Yes, productivity will be impacted and some businesses will be hurt while others will benefit as long as the protesters -- mostly from Toronto and Montreal -- continue to advocate for their issue. Such is life in a democracy.

Peaceful protest along with freedom of expression and association is amongst the most cherished hallmarks of Canadian society. And to watch a group of Canadians -- young, old, infirm and healthy -- exercise these rights of citizenship just metres from our National War Memorial makes me extremely proud of my country and its tolerance, even though I disagree with the issue at hand.