First Nations activist says she’s being tracked by the Canadian government

CTV News

A well-known First Nations activist and lawyer says she is being tracked by the federal government departments.

Pam Palmater, a Mi'kmaq lawyer and professor at Ryerson University, told CTV’s Question Period that access-to-information documents show that she is being tracked by three federal government departments.

“I wrote an access to information request to CSIS (the Canadian Security Intelligence Service), National Defence, the RCMP and Indian Affairs to determine whether or not they were following (or) surveilling me in any way and three out of the group all confirmed that they were,” she said.

Palmater did not indicate which three of the four departments are tracking her.

Palmater said the ATIPs indicate the government started tracking her prior to her involvement in the highly publicized Idle No More movement, which swept across Canada in early 2013.

Palmater’s concern about government surveillance of First Nations activists comes as Parliament debates the Conservatives’ controversial anti-terror bill, C-51, which increases powers for Canada’s security agencies to track threats. She worries some wording in the bill may lump First Nations and environmental activists into that group.

"Any activity by anyone in Canada which relates to or poses a potential threat to things like the economy, critical infrastructure, diplomatic relations, territorial integrity and sovereignty of all things, can be on this terror list,” said Palmater.

“So that essentially puts in the realm any First Nation that's ever declared sovereignty in this territory and any environmental group that's ever interrupted the economy.”

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