Poles Think Differently In Death Of Dziekanski

By Ben Meisner

The Braidwood Inquiry has a couple of anxious watchers every day. The Polish Government being the main group which has requested the evidence dealing with the death of a Polish citizen, Robert Dziekanski, at the hands of RCMP in Vancouver Airport.

Under a 15 year old treaty, Canada is obliged to send along the evidence and the reason given so far is that it is required at this time in order to deal with the many inquiries and a Coroner’s inquest on the horizon.

The Poles have been using the words "murder charges" for the four men, which doesn’t ring very well when you look at our international reputation given that no charges were laid in Canada in connection with the incident. The Canadian authorities said that Dziekanski’s death was the result of an unintended death following the justified use of a tazer.

The Poles have been looking at the amateur video recordings and they see something quite different. One Pole suggested recently that the whole incident reminded him of the time when the Soviets ruled the country of Poland, "You could expect something like that, but in Canada, the land of the free?"

What makes the whole affair even worse are the comments by the Chief Commissioner of the RCMP asking us all to watch the entire evidence before making a judgment call. Canadians have being doing exactly that and what they have been exposed to is anything but trust in the federal force.

Poland on the other hand could lay the charges and then wait for the Canadian government to refuse to turn over the four officers, that’s likely to occur, the only problem is that the four had better pick their spots of travel very carefully, hoping that they don’t land in a jurisdiction that does not think the same way as Canada has so far in the matter.

I’m Meisner and that’s one man’s opinion.

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