Military revising domestic strategy after Olympics reveal huge flaws

The Canadian military is revising the way it handles domestic operations, after realizing there are gaping holes in the existing strategy.

Newly released documents show the 2010 Winter Olympics were an organizational nightmare because the military lacked what they call domestic doctrine. Doctrine provides rules and protocol on how to handle different types of operations.

“The absence of adequate, or up-to-date, domestic operations doctrine and policies resulted in excessive debate and distracted from the real task of planning and executing Op Podium,” the after-action report on the military’s contribution to Olympic security says.

Military planners were stymied by matters ranging from what jobs they were and weren’t prepared to do at the Games, to how to get all the soldiers they needed for the plan.

Legal authorities that govern military activities at home are also flawed, the report suggests.

“Many constraints imposed reflect pre-9/11 rationale and are not truly reflective of the types of tasks and unique CF capabilities routinely requested by our security partners,” the report says.

The report was obtained by The Canadian Press under Access to Information.

“It is not to say that we’re not ready at home, we are ready at home,” Colonel Sean Friday, deputy chief of staff for plans at Canada Command, said in an interview.

Canada Command, the branch of the military responsible for domestic operations, was set up in 2006 precisely to co-ordinate domestic and continental operations.

“But the kind of operation we did with Podium is not one that we’ve done frequently in Canada,” Col. Friday said. “A major task force in our own country? This is not normal for us.”

More than 5,000 soldiers took part in the three-month Olympic security operation, which was led by the RCMP.

The overall budget was $900-million, and the Defence Department was allocated $212-million of that. But that budget covered only the incremental cost to the military of participating in the Games. Documents posted to the vice-chief of defence staff’s website suggest the total cost was actually around $473-million.

While the Olympic and Paralympic security effort was considered a success, the report outlined eight areas where the military could have done better.

All have their roots in the lack of an overarching domestic strategy and include the need for better systems for finding the needed soldiers, managing personnel and contracting for supplies and services.

Similar problems were encountered at the G8-G20 summits last summer, Col. Friday acknowledged.

“The doctrine that existed was equally applicable to all types of scenarios and what we’ve found is that doctrine is insufficient,” he said. “We need to have a standalone doctrine manual just for domestic operations, rather than a chapter in overall operations … across defence, security and safety.”

He is leading a team focused on getting the new manual ready by July.

It shouldn’t come as a surprise that the military doesn’t have a robust domestic plan already, some observers say.

“It’s not needed,” said retired colonel Chris Corrigan, the executive director of the Royal Canadian Military Institute. “We have sufficient policies in place and rules, orders-in-council, on how domestic operations take place in the country between the military and civilian agencies.”

But there is a difference between calling in the military to help with a snowstorm and using its capabilities to secure international events, others say.

The reality is that military doctrine over time has developed with a focus on overseas operations, said Elinor Sloan, a professor of international relations at Carleton University.

The last time the Forces were really used to deal with a security issue at home was during the FLQ crisis in 1970.

“It’s never been something that the Canadian Forces has actually focused a lot on because there hasn’t been a threat to address in the homeland,” she said. “And now, of course, we look at internal security threats an awful lot more because of the terrorist threat.”

But others question why the military hadn’t seen an operation like the Olympics coming.

In the post-9/11 era, militaries around the world have become involved in domestic security for major events, such as the Super Bowl, Phillipe Lagasse, a professor of international affairs at the University of Ottawa, noted.

“The CF knows that it’s involved in security detail and so forth during major summits,” he said. “They should have then foreseen the next logical step of getting involved in a major sporting event.”

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At pivotal moment for military, MacKay is grilled about his future

Published Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2010 10:18PM ESTLast updated Thursday, Nov. 11, 2010 7:38AM EST201 comments

Stephen Harper is facing a dilemma. He has to take major decisions on Defence, both at home and abroad, over the coming weeks and months.

And yet his Defence Minister, Peter MacKay, spent part of Wednesday evening fending off questions as to whether he has had talks with a Bay Street law firm to quit the government early in the new year.

At a Toronto charity dinner for military families Wednesday evening, Mr. MacKay rejected the suggestion that he was thinking about jumping ship, despite reports from credible sources that such conversations have taken place.

“I've got the best job in this country and I'm thrilled to be here,” the Defence Minister told reporters. “I have no plans to leave this job.”

He declined to answer further queries, including whether he was in talks with Gowling Lafleur Henderson LLP – the firm in question.

Instead, Mr. MacKay silently walked away.

Senior management reached at Gowling declined to comment.

But the suggestion that Stephen Harper’s government may have a lame-duck minister is damaging to the Prime Minister.

When Jim Prentice stepped down last week, Mr. Harper asked House Leader John Baird to take back his old Environment portfolio because the PM doubtless wants to hold off a cabinet shuffle until the new year, when he hopes to put a fresh face on the government before a possible election.

But the country needs a Defence Minister, as Canada considers whether and how to remain in Afghanistan after its military mission ends in 2011 and debate rages over whether to acquire a new fleet of F-35 fighter aircraft.

That is why, if Mr. MacKay is going, Mr. Harper will want him to hold off until the new year. But it will be an empty portfolio in all but name. The problem for Mr. Harper is that, regardless of Mr. MacKay’s final decision, his ability to serve in the cabinet is impaired.

Mr. Harper has told MPs that those who don’t plan to run again in the next election should declare their intentions sooner rather than later, since there is a good chance the government will be defeated over its budget and an election called in the spring.

Despite his denials, it would not be wise to bet that a MacKay will be running in Central Nova next time out.

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Behind every military medal, a story

VeteransPublished Wednesday, Nov. 10, 2010 11:11PM ESTLast updated Thursday, Nov. 11, 2010 10:22AM EST1 comment

We see them every Nov. 11: A confetti of striking colours emblazoned across veterans' chests as we honour those who fought for Canada's freedom and the freedom of others.

From ‘freebies' shared with civilians to those awarded for having the courage to serve in the trenches, from honours for maintaining tenuous peace in war-torn regions to those for tours of duty in some of the world's most forbidding areas. They belong to Canada's warriors. To Canada's peacekeepers.

And they reveal the secrets of battles fought, of trials and tribulations persevered, of sacrifices made in the shaping of our nation and in helping it claim its spot on the world stage. Here are the tales behind the decorations.

Veteran Tom Hoppe is seen outside of his home in Kingston, Ontario on November 6, 2010.— Jennifer Roberts for The Globe and Mail

Tom Hoppe, 43

Sergeant, Lord Strathcona’s Horse, Kingston

“I had no intention of getting medals. There are always trophy hunters, that's human nature. Maybe to some, a medal is a trophy. To me, it's not. I didn't say. ‘I'm going to be a hero.' There's something to do. You get it done.”

Tom Hoppe's medals are seen left to right in his home on November 6, 2010: Meritorious Service Cross, given for leadership and bravery under fire during 1993 Bosnian tour; Medal of Bravery, for rescuing three kids trapped under sniper fire during the 1993 Bosnian tour; Special Service Medal, for NATO tour in Europe 1985-1990; Peace Keeping Medal, given to all soliders who serviced on a peace keeping tour; United Nations Protection Force Medal, 1993 Bosnia; Canadian Forces Decoration, for 12 years of good service— Jennifer Roberts for the Globe and Mail

1. Meritorious Service Cross

“Bosnia, 1993. They called it a peacekeeping mission, but I totally disagree with that term. It was a full-out war. The term peacekeeping is a myth. … I worked in a patrol of eight guys. We were involved in a number of incidents, a number of firefights. The medal is just not for me, its for the eight guys, without whom I wouldn’t have been able to do what I had to do. It’s for leadership.”

2. Medal of Bravery

‘Three or four kids were under sniper fire [in Visoko, outside Sarajevo.] I went out with another guy and pulled them out. The Meritorious Service medal and Medal of Bravery were both given for the same tour. At that time – it’s since changed – that made me the most decorated Canadian soldier since Korea.”

3. Special Service Medal

“For serving in NATO in Germany. You get it for serving 30 days in theatre. I was there for five years.”

4. The Peacekeeping Service Medal

“Everybody got this. It’s for being on a peacekeeping tour. For peacekeeping anywhere in the world.

“Peacekeeping – this big myth that we go over and hand out flowers and build schools. That’s part of it, but you can’t do that until there’s peace. Peacekeeping is war. We put this perception in people’s minds that it’s safer.”

5. United Nations Peacekeeping Protection Force Medal

“This was specific for peacekeeping in Bosnia. Sarajevo was just blown to crap. I sat on a hill overlooking the old ski jump from the Olympics and parts of the city, watching it constantly shelled.”

6. The Canadian Forces Decoration

“This is for 12 years of good service. Nothing special. If you get some jail time, you’re not going to get it. I did my job.”

WWII Vet Andrew Bogle who is now 86 years old and lives in Calgary, AB. Born in Scotland he arrived in Canada with his parents in 1927. He enlisted with the Navy in Winnipeg in February 1943 and served 32 months on the H.M.C.S.Nene, a British Frigate with Canadian Crew. He was photographed in Calgary on Friday, November 05, 2010.— Chris Bolin for The Globe and Mail

Andrew Bogle, 86

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