Nova Scotia NDP Leader Gary Burrill said Halifax Regional Police and the city took a very “unprofessional approach to crowd control” Wednesday after a large group of people protested against the forcible removal of an encampment being used by people without homes.
Burrill, along with NDP MLAs Susie Hansen of Halifax Needham and Lisa Lachance of Halifax Citadel-Sable Island, joined the crowd at the park near the old Spring Garden Road Memorial Library that morning.
Police were beginning to dismantle tents and temporary shelters and telling occupants to immediately vacate the area, but they were met with anger from a large group of people.
READ MORE: Halifax police pepper spray crowd during protests over torn-down shelters
This led to the arrest of several protestors who had formed a protective wall in front of the crisis shelters.
“I felt, as did Lisa and Susie when we got there, that this was a potentially volatile and dangerous situation. We had this major, heavy police presence,” said Burrill to Global News Morning on Thursday.
He said he immediately called Mayor Mike Savage and told him that what the city needed to do was “stand down the police presence and whatever policy objective they had that day, they could not accomplish them without risking the safety of people.”
However, Halifax Regional Police did not stand down.
Police officers eventually forcibly moved the wall of people, and could be heard telling them that contractors had been ordered to remove the shelters.
The number of arrests appeared to be higher than 10.
The scene became increasingly chaotic in the afternoon and police officers could be seen using pepper spray on people.
“I thought this was an operationally unprofessional decision and very poor judgment on the part of police,” Burrill said.
In a release late Wednesday, police said that the operation followed an “extensive effort” over the last few months focused on “education, awareness and engagement.” The statement also said the encampments were in violation of existing laws and regulations.
READ MORE: Unhoused man living in woods says crisis shelters needed throughout HRM
“Following an extensive and progressive effort, actions were taken today in the interest of public safety and safety of the occupants of these dwellings,” the release said Wednesday.
However, the statement did not address the amount of force used by police nor the officers’ use of pepper spray. It also did not indicate how tearing down the shelters protected the safety of the occupants.
“I am offended that in a time when we need the government’s focus and energy on providing affordable housing, what we have is the government’s focus and energy on providing an oversized demonstration of the force of police. That’s not what we need,” Burrill said.
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