Heroes get the Blame

It was a horrible assignment.

The G20 was being held for the first time in the heart of Toronto. It was a political photo opportunity for world leaders with a billion dollar price tag. (Toronto's G20 summit: a failure all around, Macleans). Government officials, many from countries under threats of deadly violence by extremist terrorist groups, were meeting at the Metro Toronto Convention Center. It was up to the cops to protect: the leaders, the business owners, the protesters, the media and, though few people seemed to notice, the lives of fellow peace-keepers. Toronto had become a likely target for international terrorism. A concealed weapon or a home-made explosive device would mean loved ones would be waiting for family who would never return.

Besides these challenges, the reputation of the country was at stake. An incident could mean billions of dollars lost to Canada, and job losses for the people of the city. Tourist revenue was failing because the U.S. government stated that Toronto was not safe. Union leader Sid Ryan suggested that the police plant agents to incite violence, which the Toronto Police Association called as "irresponsible, inflammatory and idiotic." There were lives on the line and this was not a game. (U.S. issues G20 travel alert for Toronto, Toronto Star). Word came out about university students and "professional" protesters (people who go to every media event looking to cause trouble) planning to vandalize to get on the evening news (Macleans). The citizens were complaining about who would pay for this event, and the police were the visible sign of that price tag.

This assignment was no parade in the park with a beer in their hands.

Then Byron Sonne, a Linux and security professional, allegedly decided to test the security forces of the major countries of the world by buying controlled weapon materials in the wake of the G20 and see if they were ready. They were. He was arrested. (G20-related incident nets weapons charges, CBC News). (Although I worked briefly in the same company as Mr. Sonne, I never met him.)

As the diverse and explosive groups arrived, the police followed their mandate: "to serve and protect" (Toronto Police Service).

Saturday, June 26 was a day of bottles, rocks, fires and yelling. While the press demanded their rights, the protesters demanded their rights, the police tried to protect everyone. They asked for cooperation but were mocked. They asked for space to do their job and were ignored. They asked people to cooperate to help catch the bad guys but people said, well, it wasn't their responsibility. The police didn't have the resources to check every id, camera or backpack but people said "too bad". Reporters posted unverified claims of rubber bullets because that sells news. It also made the situation more explosive. Anarchists hid in crowds of legitimate demonstrators, breaking into shops, setting fires and injuring people. Reporters recorded violent acts but did nothing to intervene. (G20 protests bring violence, arrests, CBC News)

In the end, the police had no choice: in an extreme situation, they bent the rules. They performed unauthorized searches (Police had 'no extra powers' outside G20 fence: Ontario, Toronto Star), detaining many (Police defend crowd trap at Queen and Spadina, Toronto Star) and arrested over 900 people (More than 900 arrests during G20 Summit, Toronto Sun). The police probably knew they were putting their careers at risk by doing what they were asked to do: protect everybody. They were acting responsibly in a situation where most people weren't being responsible at all.

At least, this was my take on the situation.

Before the G20, Bill Blair was one of the most respected officials in Toronto. Mr. Blair, Toronto Police Chief, admitted that there was a lack of communication and that not everyone's civil rights were respected to the letter. But he made a public address at 9 pm Saturday night, reminding people that the right to free speech ends when it endangers the lives of others.

When the G20 was over, my inbox was filled with accusations from IT people that the Toronto police were worse than the indiscriminately-murdering terrorists that the cops were required to oppose.

It reminded me of the story of a project manager at a company I once worked for. Faced with a project that would take many weeks and would affect every major component of the company's software, she recruited most of the programmers and managed against the odds to deliver the project bug-free and only a few percent over schedule. It was one of the most successful projects in the company's history. Her reward? She was terminated because the project was delivered overdue.

Sometimes people blame the heroes when things don't go perfectly.

Sometime success in a project is the worst thing to happen because the participants don't know the what they missed. In computing, fault tolerant systems, hot backups and disaster recovery plans are all designed to make work continue as usual. When they work, the user doesn't know that anything was wrong. They get cut from company budgets since they seem to be useless. What if a terrorist attack at the G20 was successful? There would be finger-pointing, calls for more policing, etc. When the police were successful in maintaining peace and safety, the participants forgot about how close to death they may have been.

Before the G20, I spoke with a man originally from Africa. There had been an armed conflict in his country when he was a teen. The capital had been taken. His father was the chief of police, a man who had always protected the people, not taking political sides. "My father told me I had to run," he explained. "As an official of the old government, rebels would be looking to kill him. My father and mother went into hiding. I traveled alone, from country to country, across Africa, to find some place safe, not knowing if my parents were alive." Now he was in Canada. You don't always know how good you have it.

When Maclean's interviewed a group of students, they didn't know what they were protesting. It seemed to be a big party and parade. The idea that they could say something meaningful, that there was a real threat and the police were trying to keep them alive didn't register. (Macleans) While protesters complained about the bathroom facilities and the meals in the detention area, anyone who went to Toronto to protest should have been aware of the risks: they could be detained by the police or killed by those who don't care about the right to protest. You don't walk into a war zone and then complain if you get shot that you weren't taking sides. You have to take responsibility for your choices.

Before assigning blame, step back and ask yourself what were the objectives, what were the responsibilities, do you have all the data, are things explosive...and then decide what to do. Ask yourself if your actions are contributing to a solution. This is true in business as well as life. Rights must be exercised with responsibility.

As for Mr. Sonne, there was no word if he praised the security forces for their vigilance for public safety when he was arrested. After his alleged attempt to test security officers, his credentials were suspended. As of the time of this article, he is still in jail, charged with offenses including intimidation of justice system participant by threat, intimidation of justice system participant by watch and beset, mischief interfere with property, attempt mischief and weapons dangerous. His wife was also arrested. (Wife of computer expert Byron Sonne also arrested in G20 investigation, National Post, Man facing G20-related charges remains in jail , CBC News, Man charged in G20 probe gathered makings for volatile explosives, police charge, Global and Mail). It wasn't clear if his choices were part of the solution ...or part of the problem.

June 18, 2010