(The following is a synopsis of the original article, “Canadian Views on Terrorism” written by Tim Lynch and published by FRONTLINE Safety and Security.)
The Royal Canadian Military Institute (RCMI) sponsored a conference on April 27th examining the weighted question: “Are we prepared?”
Expert speakers and panelists – consisting of security professionals, scholars, bureaucrats, and journalists, including Capt Stewart Kellock (the former Toronto Police Service and Alan Bell (President GlobeRisk and former British SAS) – debated Canada’s preparations to “mitigate and recover from disruptions (natural human and technological).” The topics discussed ranged from radicalization to cybercrime.
Practitioners were also given the opportunity to voice their “frustrations” working with “politicians with limited horizons,” but praised the recent instances of thwarted attacks – such as the ‘Toronto 18’ – which showcased the collaborative and strategic work pushed forward by the police, the RCMP and CSIS. Generally those in attendance also agreed that promoting a culture among ordinary Canadians about “security awareness” was imperative.
(Image Source: Jonathankslim)
“Several speakers stressed that these attributes of Canadian society, to find nation-building strength amidst its divergent peoples, is the foundation for building a national community-focused counter-terrorism strategy.”
To read a more detailed review of the conference, please refer to this link.
