Intelligence services in Canada
The decades following the Rebellions of 1837–1838 marked the start of intelligence services in Canada. Defeat in the failed uprising caused the restoration of colonial regimes and the reform of imperialism. As a result, informal intelligence services were formed to conduct certain activities. 1864 marked the formation of two secret police forces and the formal intelligence service in Canada. Created to protect the Canada–United States border, these organization were under the control of a Montreal police commander and political ally. In response to a number of raid and attacks connected with Irish nationalism, Prime Minister John A. Macdonald merged the two forces to form the Dominion Police (DP). The DP was subsequently merged with the North-West Mounted Police to form the Royal North-West Mounted Police in 1904 and the Royal Canadian Mounted Police (RCMP) in 1920.
During the World War II period, ties with allied intelligence strengthened. Canadian intelligence services, usually following in the way that the British collect information, began to follow the ways of the United States' system; new governmental committees were established and Canadians served in a variety of intelligence capacities, both home and abroad. Camp X, a secret training facility in Ontario, in an example of such joint activities. The camp led to the establishment of the Communications Security Establishment, scientific cooperation in the Manhattan Project and the establishment of the first biological germ warfare station. The 1945 defection of Soviet cipher clerk, Igor Gouzenko served as the catalyst of major structural reform to the security and intelligence system and led to the formation of one of several royal commissions to investigate the activities of foreign intelligence networks in Canada. Recognition came to the RCMP's Intelligence Section when it was elevated to branch status and then re-established as the Directorate of Security and Intelligence or the "I" Directorate. Following a 1969 report, the DSI became the RCMP Security Service and was further elevated from regional-level division to national-level division giving the director even more power.
In 1984, the
History
Early days
Canadian intelligence got its start decades after the 19th century rebellions of
In September 1864,
The formative period in the institutional development of Canadian intelligence agencies is unique in the sense that the birth of the fledgling services predated confederation in 1867 by several years. The
In 1873, the Ottawa-based DP was joined in western Canada by the creation of the
Early 1900s
The fledgling intelligence services in Canada grew in the 1900s and its network of officers expanded.
With the fear of the consequences of increased labor and industrial unrest in early 1918, the Criminal Investigations Branch (CIB) was formed in the RNWMP in Regina. An overheated and reactionary federal government felt Canada was headed toward a Bolshevik-style revolution after the number of strikes dramatically increased. Prime Minister Robert Borden called a meeting with A. B. Perry, the commissioner of the RNWMP, in August 1919 to discuss the unworkable intelligence system in Canada and find a solution to it. Perry supplied a blueprint with several options days later. A decision was come upon and, in 1920, the RNWMP was dissolved to make way for the Royal Canadian Mounted Police. The RCMP's headquarters was to be set up in Ottawa, in order to make the agency national in scope. The RCMP would become the sole agency for security and intelligence matters in Canada.[4]
At the Ottawa RCMP headquarters, Facilitation of this newly centralized security and intelligence apparatus called for a number of new sections and positions to be established. This task was, for the most part, carried out by the CIB, which was also responsible for more menial tasks such as enforcing federal statutes. The liaison and intelligence officer (LIC) position was one of the positions which were created. This position was first held by Colonel C. F. Hamilton.[5] Hamilton subsequently with various levels in the Canadian government and consulted similar police and intelligence agencies abroad, as well as oversaw the generation of weekly and biweekly intelligence bulletins. A Central Registry (CR) was also established for filing and indexing intelligence materials sent directly to Ottawa from the outlying divisions.
The
World War II
During World War II, while the government cracked down on suspected subversives in Canada, links strengthened with Allied intelligence agencies.[7] The Canadian services, originally much more closely aligned with the British, became increasingly similar with the United States' system; new governmental department committees were created and Canadians served in a variety of intelligence capacities at home and abroad.[7]
One example of joint intelligence activity was establishing Camp X, a secret allied training facility in Ontario involved in the eventual creation of the Communications Security Establishment (CSE), through Bill Stephenson's U.S.-based British Security Coordination (BSC), and through scientific cooperation in the Manhattan Project, and also the creation of the first biological germ warfare stations.[7]
In 1945, Igor Gouzenko, a cipher clerk from the Soviet Union, defected to Ottawa. This event served as the catalyst for major reform to the security and intelligence system in Canada. It also caused the formation of the first of several royal commissions to investigate the activities of foreign intelligence networks operating on Canadian soil, and the failures and illegal activities of the Canadian service since its inception.[7][8]
A security panel was established in 1946 to supervise and advise on security policy and the RCMP's Intelligence Section, although still within the CIB, was elevated to branch status.[6] Further recognition of the RCMP's intelligence apparatus came in 1950 when the officer in charge of the Intelligence Section became directly responsible to the commissioner, and, in 1956, when the branch was elevated once again and re-established as the Directorate of Security and Intelligence (DSI) or RCMP "I" Directorate. Following the 1969 report of the Mackenzie Commission, the DSI became the RCMP Security Service and the branch was elevated from regional-division level to national-division level giving the Director-General even more responsibility.[7]
Modern intelligence
In 1981, Royal Commission of Inquiry into Certain Activities of the Royal Canadian Mounted Police, commonly referred to as the McDonald Commission released a scathing report. This report included a recommendation that the RCMP's Security Service be completely removed and a new civilian agency be formed. This recommendation came after revelations of the illegal activities that were carried out by the service's officers.[9] A group called the Security Intelligence Transitional Group (SITG) was formed to implement these policy decisions and on 16 July 1984, the Security Service was disbanded in order to make way for the Canadian Security Intelligence Service (CSIS)[10]
Major and minor intelligence organisations have proliferated since World War II. They are spread across different government departments. Major organisations include the Bureau of Intelligence Analysis and Security and Bureau of Economic Intelligence within the
A foreign intelligence service, similar to the
The Conservative government of Stephen Harper raised the issue again in 2006,[11] and stated that it would "expand the Canadian Foreign Intelligence Agency to effectively gather intelligence overseas, independently counter threats before they reach Canada, and increase allied intelligence operations."[citation needed] However it later changed its mind and decided to give further powers to CSIS instead.[12]
Intelligence networks
The attention that fledgling intelligence services paid over time evolved. However, immigrants, labor, and political organizations earned more coverage than most other groups. The preoccupation with Irish nationalists in the 1860s and 1870s saw expanded networks which peaked with a combined total of approximately 60 agents and operatives, and on more than one occasion these agents slipped south of the Canada–US border to infiltrate US branches of the Fenian movement in cities such as New York, Buffalo, Chicago, and Kansas City.[2]
A notable British/American operative was Thomas Beach (aka Henri Le Caron) an Englishman first recruited in 1867 to work for British intelligence services, but who eventually negotiated a healthy monthly stipend to provide the DP with regular intelligence, and who published his own memoir in 1893.[2]
When the perceived threat of Irish nationalist receded, focus of the Canadian intelligence system shifted. Limited intelligence was collected between the 1884-85
Military intelligence
The main intelligence service of the Department of National Defence and the
The interception of foreign radio and communications, commonly referred to as signals intelligence or
The
See also
References
- ^ ISBN 9780802048950.
- ^ a b c d e Littleton, James (1986). Target nation: Canada and the western intelligence network. L. & O. Dennys.
- ISBN 0-7171-2945-4.
- ^ a b c Lin, Zhiqiu (2007). Policing the wild North-West: a sociological study of the provincial police in Alberta and Saskatchewan, 1905-32. University of Calgary Press. p. 233.
- ISBN 9780802007520. Retrieved 20 December 2012.
- ^ a b G. Kinsman, D. Buse, M. Steedman (2000). Whose national security?: Canadian state surveillance and the creation of enemies. Between The Lines.
- ^ a b c d e Richelson, Jeffrey T., Ball, Desmond (1985). The ties that bind: intelligence cooperation between the UK/USA countries. Allen & Unwin.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ Marcuse, Gary, Whitaker, Reginald (1994). Cold war Canada: the making of a national insecurity state, 1945-1957. University of Toronto Press.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ISBN 9780385146821.
- ^ Steven Roy Hewitt (1997). "Old Myths Die Hard: The Transformation of the Mounted Police in Alberta and Saskatchewan, 1914–1939" (PDF). PhD thesis. University of Saskatchewan. Retrieved 2007-01-13.
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: Cite journal requires|journal=
(help) - ^ a b c Weese, Bryn. "Canada needs foreign spy service: Experts". CNews. Archived from the original on January 15, 2013. Retrieved 25 September 2012.
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: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link) - ^ "Federal government scraps plan for foreign intelligence agency". Canada.com. May 15, 2007. Retrieved 25 September 2012.
- ^ Skaarup, Harold A. (2005). Out of Darkness--Light: A History of Canadian Military Intelligence. iUniverse. p. 596.
- ^ "Canada Communications Security Establishment - Canadian Intelligence Agencies". fas.org. Archived from the original on 2000-03-01.
- ^ Granatstein, J. L., Stafford, David (1990). Spy wars: espionage and Canada from Gouzenko to Glasnost. Toronto: Key Porter Books. pp. 20–46.
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: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link) - ^ "Intelligence soldiers in Afghanistan since start of mission: commander". Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. May 26, 2008. Retrieved 18 May 2011.
- Kealey, Gregory S.; Whitaker, Reg (1993) eds., RCMP Security Bulletins Canadian Committee on Labor History.
- Angus, Ian (2004) Canadian Bolsheviks: The Early Years of the Communist Party of Canada Trafford Publishing. pp. 354