On Jan. 25, Hamilton resident Ken Stone greeted an unexpected pair of visitors at his door. It was the Canadian Secret Intelligence Service (CSIS) knocking.

Unfortunately, it was not an isolated incident.

Increasingly, Canadians are being surveilled because of dissenting views on government positions - thanks to a policy change in 2007 that amalgamated numerous intelligence bureaucracies into the CSIS Integrated Threat Assessment Centre (ITAC).

Under ITAC, possible “threats” include what CSIS terms “multi-issue extremism,” which includes activists, environmentalists and people critical of government policy.

CSIS, with nothing better to do, is now keeping tabs on ordinary citizens doing what is within their full rights as Canadians, deeming them a potential threat to national security.

Stone’s suspicious activity included penning an opinion piece for the Hamilton Spectator on Jan. 11, 2012 entitled, “Harper is wrong in demonizing Iran,” in which he disagreed with the prime minister’s stance on Iran.

In the op-ed, Stone argues that the biggest threat to global security is not Iran, but rather the United States, through aggressive rhetoric, global military bases, covert operations and the widespread use of drones.

Stone also mentioned an October 2011 visit to Iran.

Stone was invited by Iranian Parliament (Majlis) for the 5th International Conference in Support of the Palestinian Intifada.

It was the mention of a visit to Iran that piqued CSIS interest. However, Stone refused to answer their questions, and the CSIS officers left.

Recently, the Harper Government has gone along with the increased American rhetoric against Iran.

On Sept. 7, 2012, Canada joined the U.S. and U.K. in removing their embassy from Iran and expelling Iranian diplomats from Ottawa.

On the same day, Iran was formally established as a “state supporter of terrorism.”

It is worth noting that Stone’s chat with CSIS seems like retroactive intimidation.

The visit to Iran occurred in October 2011, the op-ed occurred in January 2012 and government policy change on Iran occurred in September 2012.

CSIS didn’t show up with questions about the op-ed until January 2013.

Stone is no stranger to surveillance.

During the 1970s, Stone was investigated by the Government for a now-defunct program called PROFUNC (PROminent FUNCtionaries), the Canadian version of McCarthyism. People identified as communists and communist sympathizers were surveilled by the RCMP.

Victims of this program included Tommy Douglas and former Attorney General of Manitoba, Roland Penner.

PROFUNC was only revealed to Canadians in 2000 by the Canadian Press.

Though PROFUNC ended in the 1980s, the current trend of surveillance of Canadian citizens represents ghost-like version of PROFUNC: the intimidation and surveillance of Canadian citizens who do not agree with the purported enemy du jour.

However, it is certainly not absurd to challenge the government’s positions - on anything.

Our country would not be what it is today if it were based on accepting the government’s official positions.

It is also not absurd to challenge the government’s rhetoric about America’s latest “war on terror.” 

Apparently if you do challenge our government’s views, you become a target for CSIS surveillance.

We all lose as Canadians if there is a possibility of investigation because of your political views, an intimidation to prevent intellectual debate about government policies and positions.

Nowhere is this limitation more potentially damaging to our nation than on debate on foreign policy.

Many Canadians certainly do not view our government or intelligence agencies as being an overt presence in our lives - certainly not in the intrusive way the FBI or CIA is.

That is quite obviously changing. And fast.

It is dangerous to classify activists or people with dissenting opinions as “extremists.”

From there, it is quite a short leap to using that language to undermine and smear a citizen participating in perfectly legal activities. Painting everyday activism or opinion-holding as some sort of threat to the nation is not healthy for us as a country or as a democracy.

One of the most liberating things about living in a country like Canada, is the ability to voice far-out points of view, without facing repercussion for it. A visit by CSIS to your house, or workplace, is certainly repercussion.

Our freedom of speech and freedom of association must not ever come with the clause of surveillance.

Graham Hnatiuk is a political writer and artist. He is the author of the Progressive Winnipeg blog, focusing on local citizen journalism and foreign policy commentary.

Published in Volume 67, Number 23 of The Uniter (March 14, 2013)