From: Mike Buckthought <wg128_-at-_victoria.tc.ca>
To: nowar_-at-_flora.org, ftaaott_-at-_yahoogroups.com
Date: Sat, 29 Dec 2001 12:30:21 -0800 (PST)
Ottawa Citizen - Saturday, December 29, 2001 The future of crowd control: 'microwave zappers' Canadian military shopping for new, 'non-lethal' weapons by David Pugliese Canadian soldiers could be outfitted in the future with microwave weapons to zap unruly mobs they encounter on peacekeeping missions, as well as other high-tech gear to electronically disable vehicles that try to run through roadblocks. The army is now examining "non-lethal weapons" it can use on overseas operations with the hopes of putting some of the equipment in the hands of soldiers by 2006. The program would provide gear to protect soldiers from rioters as well give them an option of defending themselves other than having to resort to deadly force. "We don't have anything between the bullet that our soldier has in our C-7 rifle and his bare fists or his bayonet on his rifle," said Maj. Guy Lizotte, who is in charge of the non-lethal systems program. Some of the equipment to be purchased would be as low-tech as riot shields and batons as well as gas grenades. But Maj. Lizotte said the Canadian Forces is monitoring advanced technology such as the U.S. military's Vehicle Mounted Active Denial System (VMADS), unveiled earlier this year. VMADS fires electromagnetic waves and is able to instantly heat skin to painful levels without internal or permanent damage. "It's a big microwave on a truck," Maj. Lizotte said. "Down the line, once we've established exactly what we need, that could be something" Canada would be interested in, he noted. The U.S. Marines want to use VMADS, nicknamed the "People Zapper" for crowd control during peacekeeping missions. Its rays can affect people up to 750 metres away. The electro-magnetic waves cause water molecules in the skin's cells to vibrate and that, in turn, rapidly produces heat. The waves are capable of penetrating clothing. In theory, the crowd being zapped by VMADS would feel such discomfort they would disperse from the area. Maj. Lizotte said VMADS could also be used in actual warfare by keeping certain areas free of civilians so they do not get killed in exchanges of gunfire between opposing forces. The U.S. military has conducted more than 6,500 tests on humans using VMADS with only one resulting in burned skin. The system fires bursts of energy two to three seconds in length. The Canadian military is also looking at buying a system that would be capable of "immobilizing" vehicles. One product already on the market acts like a giant net, snagging a vehicle in a spider-like web and preventing its occupants from escaping. Another device is called an "auto-arrester." Similar in appearance to a speed bump, the system can immediately shut down a vehicle's engine by zapping it with an electro-magnetic pulse. Such a device, Maj. Lizotte said, could be used at checkpoints or at the entrances of Canadian bases during overseas deployments. He said non-lethal systems are needed because the Canadian military is finding itself taking on more missions in large urban centres. That, in turn, means facing large crowds of people, many not always welcoming to peacekeepers. The Canadian Forces don't have plans to develop their own non-lethal systems. Instead, they will rely on either commercially available equipment or those being developed by allies such as the U.S. military. The budget for the program is set at around $14 million, but that is expected to increase. But not all non-lethal equipment being developed by Canada's allies would be usable. U.S. forces, for instance, have expressed interest in a device known as a grenade stingball, which fires rubber balls instead of shrapnel. But Maj. Lizotte said such technology may not be what Canada needs, since it does not discriminate against troublemakers and bystanders. "You have to be able to aim at that person and hit that person, and it has to be someone doing something like being an active rioter," he explained. Since some of the weapons may run counter to Canadian laws, their purchase and use would be reviewed by military lawyers. U.S. military research into non-lethal weapons significantly increased after the U.S. mission to Somalia. In that African country, U.S. soldiers faced mobs of rock-throwing women and children, but only had firearms and other lethal weapons to defend themselves. As part of its research the U.S. military has been testing a variety of glues and foams that can slow down or stop crowds and vehicles. It has also been developing weapons using low-frequency sound waves to incapacitate people. The sound waves would disrupt the inner ear causing disorientation, pain and nausea. Since the early 1990s, the Pentagon has spent almost $130 million U.S. on the development of non-lethal weapons. But a 1995 Congressional report raised concerns about such systems, noting that most of the research about their effectiveness has been focused on young men as potential targets. "Considerably less is known about the bio-effects on women, children and the elderly," the report warned. (c) Copyright 2001 The Ottawa Citizen