PUBLIC SAFETY MUST TRUMP RIGHT TO PROTEST

Officials in cities where Occupy camps have
sprouted up across Canada have likely been hoping
winter's chill would bring a natural end to the
occupation of public spaces by protesters.

Cities have largely been ignoring bylaw
infractions, biding their time but some problems
have brought things to a head. Over the weekend
in Vancouver, a young man nearly died from a drug
overdose and a 23-year-old woman passed away in the tent encampment.

Vancouver issued a formal notice to campers on
Sunday, warning they are breaking bylaws but did
not offer any strict deadline on leaving the
area. Quebec City officials are taking a similar
tack, deeming the park protesters are in as
unsafe and ordering campers to go after a fire started in one of the tents.

Victoria is also pushing back, for more mundane
reasons =AD there is maintenance planned and they
want to decorate the square the occupiers are in
for the holidays. In Halifax, protesters agreed
to temporarily move elsewhere as the space is
planned for Remembrance Day ceremonies, and even helped with the cleanup.

Here in Kamloops, the protesters at the Yew
Street camp say they have no intention of going
anywhere, despite growing concerns about how to
stay warm in the encroaching cold. The fire
department has warned them they can't have wood
fires and the group agreed to give up a wood
stove that had been erected at the site.

Pressure is ramping up on the City, according to
Mayor Peter Milobar, to do something about the
situation. The public is asking how many more
bylaws will be broken before more assertive action is taken.

Surely if a group of squatters decided to pitch
tents in Riverside Park, for instance, they
wouldn't be allowed to linger there for weeks.
Does having a message that's tied to a worldwide
movement make it any more OK to break the rules
the rest of us have to abide by?

The right to protest is a hallmark of a
democratic society but voices of discontent can
continue to be heard via methods beyond an
illegal campout. Protesters can hold daily
sit-ins, organize rallies and marchers, and speak
(or not) to media about what they're doing.

But camping out on public lands is not something
the City can continue to turn a blind eye to.
Does someone have to die before the camp is dismantled?

We Say editorials represent the position of The
Daily News and are unsigned. The editorial board
of the newspaper includes publisher Tim Shoults,
editor Mel Rothenburger, city editor Tracy
Gilchrist, news editor Mike Cornell, sports
editor Gregg Drinnan, and associate news editors
Mark Rogers, Stewart Duncan, Catherine Litt and Dan Spark.