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This post has been reviewed by the Toronto Media Co-op editorial committee.
STORY posted on September 4, 2011 by Tim Groves
The G20 Papers
A call out for participants
Also posted by Tim Groves:
RSS:Items posted by Tim GrovesAlso in :
We are seeking journalists, academics, bloggers and other commentators who want to be provided with thousands of pages of G20 security documents before we publish the collection online.
It has been over a year since the G20 Summit. Researchers have spent over a year filing requests, brokering access to records, and compiling a collection of 'G20 Papers' that deal with security operations for the 2010 Summits. The fruits of this labour are already available to those wishing to follow-up with agencies involved in the G20, and people are of course welcome to do so. However, we are proposing a more organized project that will release this growing trove of documents in a way that exposes the interesting aspects held within them to the public.
We plan to first give colleagues and fellow travellers access to the whole compilation in September. But as a courtesy to the researchers and in order to increase the impact of the documents we are asking those wishing to take part to agree to a voluntary embargo on reporting the contents of these files for two months.
We hope that these two months will give the time to thoroughly read the documents, and prepare articles, videos and analysis of them. The idea of the embargo is that rather than their being piecemeal coverage, that a lot of material will be published at once giving the more widespread coverage and attention.
Then in November, the voluntary embargo will be lifted. We will be publishing the whole trove on documentcloud.org and embedding them on mediacoop.ca. We also plan to provide links to other articles based on these materials that will be published on other parts of the web.
If you are interested in being one of the people who is given advanced access to these documents keep reading for more details of how to get involved.
The 'G20 Papers' is a growing trove of documents currently consisting of 2068 pages, in 50 files, mostly from the federal government. We expect to have more documents arriving after the first batch of documents are released, and will be sending out documents to participants as the two months go on. If you have any documents you would like to have added to the G20 Papers please get in touch and let us know at g20papers [at] gmai [.] com
Some articles have already been written based on this material. There aren't a lot of smoking guns in these documents, but they do give strong insights into how Canada's security apparatus operates and there are clearly stories in them that haven't yet been told.
We hope that by making this call out for participants we will have commentary from a wider variety of perspectives and that some people will notice elements of the documents that others have missed. We also hope that this project will help to promote the Access To Information system, and encourages people to file their own request, not just on the G20, but on all manner of government activities.
If you have the time and energy to go through these documents, and you're interested in writing about the materials that are held within please fill out the following form: https://spreadsheets.google.com/spreadsheet/viewform?formkey=dDMwNXRDZ1FnRnVZQVBsZHZ0NW93NGc6MQ
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Comments
Access to Information
If you are interested in completing an Access to Information and Privacy (ATIP) request, you must
1. Download and print forms (federal):
(a) Access to Information http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/tbsf-fsct/350-57-eng.pdf
(b) Personal Information Request Form http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/tbsf-fsct/350-58-eng.pdf
For federal ATIP, submitting general query is $5.00 - if submitting personal info query it is free.
(2) Determine which federal agency/department might have the information you want. Separate forms for each agency/department. And separate form for each request. http://www.tbs-sct.gc.ca/atip-aiprp/apps/coords/index-eng.asp
In this case, for the G8/G20 it will most likely be, but not limited to, CSIS, RCMP, ISU, Privy Council Office, etc.
Provincial agencies are different and it appears that there is a fee regardless of general inquiry or for personal information. For instance, OPP Freedom of Information request form must be downloaded and sent to: http://www.mcscs.jus.gov.on.ca/english/about_min/foi/foi.html
(3) Determine what information you want, what dates, etc.
For instance,
"I am requesting all information regarding myself, (name), including, but not limited to, reports, memoranda, field notes, emails, directives, intelligence estimates and summaries, etc., between (date) and (date) (or on this date)". This is general enough to cover almost anything, however, it is in your best interest to be as specific as possible (this includes exact dates). There are research fees that add up, and request, if fruitful, could end up costing hundreds of dollars for research fees alone. Therefore, more specific the better.
(4) Remember for personal information forms that you need to include your birthday.
(5) Mail and wait for phone call (so that the ATIP officer can clarify what you are asking for) or for your requested information in the mail. For personal information, it is almost guaranteed that intelligence agencies will say "we can neither confirm nor deny that these materials exist". But once you've made the request, its there and you may, if you have extra funds, go to court to get the information released.
***These are just very general instructions, you can find much more detailed info on the websites and forms provided. While I am sure all this information is correct, please read the forms thoroughly before you send in to make sure you have met all the criteria or else it will be weeks on the phone back and forth.