"Secure Canada 2008" has been cancelled!
However, our struggle continues!  

In 1989, Ottawa's City Council wisely decided to ban all future arms exhibitions from taking place on municipal property. For almost 20 years no such arms shows took place at any City of Ottawa facilities.  Let's keep it that way!   We stopped them before, let's stop them again!

This year, City Staff signed a contract with "Secure Canada 2008" (it was scheduled for Sept.30-Oct.1 at an Ottawa municipal facility called Lansdowne Park).  City Staff says they have been negotiating with the organizers of "CANSEC 2009" which is scheduled for late May 2009.  They want to hold it at Lansdowne Park as well.

Although we can celebrate that "Secure Canada 2008" has been cancelled, CANSEC 2009 is still looming on the horizon.

This Ottawa Citizen article explains why "Secure Canada 2008" was cancelled. It refers to "TechNet North," a major component of "Secure Canada 2008."

So, the struggle continues!  
Please join us in ensuring that "Secure Canada" never returns, and help us to prevent an even bigger arms bazaar -- "CANSEC" -- whose organizers are negotiating with the City to book Lansdowne Park for May 2009. The booking of ALL such shows goes against an Ottawa City Council ban passed in 1989 thanks to efforts by COAT!

What you can do
Contact City Councillors, the Mayor and City Staff
Tell them what you think!  Click above to go to the COAT web page where you can send messages to the above. Call, email, write or fax!

Some History
Read more about how these military trade shows contravene the City of Ottawa Motion of 1989.
Read about ARMX 1989 and COAT's campaign against it.

Some Correspondence with City Staff
Letter from City Staff saying that "Secure Canada 2008" is not an arms exhibition (July 21, 2008)
Letter to City Staff debunking their bogus assertions from Richard Sanders, coordinator, COAT (July 30, 2008)
City Staff Memo on these military trade shows (August 27, 2008)
Open Letter to Mayor OBrien from Richard Sanders, coordinator, COAT (August 27, 2008)
Clive Doucet's formal questions to City Staff (Aug. 28, 2008) (Includes their reply, Sept.9, 2008))
City Staff Memos (Sept 29, 2008) (includes attached Memo, Aug. 19, 2008)

What was "Secure Canada 2008"?
The military trade show that was scheduled for the City of Ottawa's prime facility — Lansdowne Park — was actually three distinct arms exhibitions all rolled into one.  Or, in the jargon-filled words of event organizers, "Secure Canada 2008" was "an exciting new horizontal event showcasing three complimentary security segments in one continuous event." http://www.securecan.ca/unmanned_systems_canada/

Besides promoting the deadly wares of a wide variety of war-related industries, each of the three parts of this military trade show extravaganza had its own parallel events, such as meetings, briefing sessions, panel discussions, keynote speakers, tours and/or receptions and fundraising dinners.

Here is more information about each of the three parts that were planned for "Secure Canada 2008":

(1) Secure Canada and the World
"A Showcase of Domestic and International Suppliers in Security, Public Safety and Defence"
Includes the U.S. Embassy Defense & Security Exhibition and the UK Trade and Investment Pavilion.

(2) TechNet North 2008
Theme: "National Security in a Coalition Environment"
 "Canada's Premier C4ISR* Exhibition and Professional Development Conference"
 * C4ISR = Command, Control, Communications, Computers, Intelligence, Surveillance and Reconnaissance

(3) The Unmanned Systems Canada Expo 2008
"Canada’s National Showcase for Unmanned Systems* Technologies"
"Canada’s premier event focusing on the national and international ground, air and maritime unmanned systems marketplace."

Who or What was behind "Secure Canada 2008"?
This military trade event is sponsored by the U.S. embassy and U.S. government's Commerce Department, the U.S. Chamber of Commerce in Canada, large U.S. war-related industries and the U.S. business association that represents the interests of the U.S. Military-Industrial-Academic Complex. And, its main organizer is a former employee of the U.S. embassy. (Read more details here about various key U.S. links to the so-called "Secure Canada 2008" military trade show.)

Who were the Exhibitors?
There are 160 booth spaces available for rent at "Secure Canada 2008." On the map showing the layout/floor plan of the Lansdowne Park facility, the "Secure Canada" trade show/exhibition is divided into three areas, one for each of the components of the show:
(1) Secure Canada and the World (39 display booths)
(2) Tech Net North 2008 (72 booths)
(3) Unmanned Systems Canada Expo (49 booths)

An annotated list of known Exhibitors
The "Partial Exhibitor List" of about 60 exhibitors—that will be showcasing their largely, military wares at this year's event—reads like a who's who of the Military Industrial Complex.  View the "partial list" here.  (Web links and notes about each exhibitor have added to assist our analysis of these companies, associations and government agencies.)

Who was Sponsoring "Secure Canada"?
Of the first nine "sponsors" that were listed on the "Secure Canada" website, six are either American-based or are Canadian-subsidiaries of U.S.-based corporations or associations. Here is complete list of "Sponsors":

• the National Defense Industrial Association (representing the economic and political interests of America's military-industrial complex)

• the Commercial Service of the US Government (An agency promoting US exports)

• AMCHAM Canada (American Chamber of Commerce in Canada) This Canadian branch of a US corporate association promotes Canada-US trade

• two major, longstanding US weapons corporations (General Atomics and General Dynamics),

• one of the world's largest electronics companies, Sun Microsystems. This U.S. corporation does substantial business with the U.S. military and other armed forces

• two rival Canadian military/"security" publications whose main purpose—besides uncritically presenting the government's pro-war PR/propaganda—is to profit from the military-industrial complex by selling lucrative advertisements to war/"security"-linked corporations (Frontline Security and Canadian Defence Review)

• UK Trade and Investment (promoting UK exports and corporate interests)

• City of Ottawa!!!  (In August 2008, the logo of the City of Ottawa was deceptively added to the section listing "Sponsors" of "Secure Canada 2008." It was later removed after a complaint lodged by Councillor Clive Doucet.)

• Ottawa Centre for Research and Innovation (Funded in part by the municipal, provincial and federal governments, this is an association that advocates on behalf of of Ottawa-based corporations and institutions.)

• Ontario Industrial Magazine

• C3SA (Cyber Security Audit)

More details about these sponsors.

Extra! Extra! Read all about it!
Read some COAT emails summarizing "Secure Canada 2008" and the COAT campaign to expose and oppose it:
(1) "Heads Up!"
(2) "Update"
(3) "New Information"
(4) Please sign the online PETITION

Some Articles about "Secure Canada 2008":
Here are some articles from the mainstream media (Ottawa Citizen, Ottawa Sun) and elsewhere.

"Puffs" from the War Horse's Mouth
Here are some quotes from the organizers of "Secure Canada 2008" about their military trade show.
 

Contract is Void in case of "civil disobedience...[and/or] acts of God"!
The war industries, associations and other exhibitors that wish to flog their various products and services at this military trade show all signed a contract with Electric Strategies Inc.—the company that was hired to organize the exhibition. This contract has the following clause:

"If Show Management should be prevented from holding the Show by any cause beyond its control or if it cannot permit the Participant to occupy their rented space due to circumstances beyond its control including, but not limited to, strike, fire, civil disobedience, inclement weather, lockout, acts of God, the Show Management will refund the Participant the amount of rental paid by him/her, less a proportionate share in relation to the other Participants space, of the total Show expenses incurred by Show Management to that date and Show Management shall have no further obligation or liability to the Participant."
Click here to view the whole contract
 

Email: Tell the Mayor, City Councillors and Staff what you think!