Real News
is Not News
at Canned West

Secret Facility (Hornby & Robson)
It seems like maybe the farther a person is from the courthouse and Vancouver, the more likely one is to be informed regarding what is going on in what is becoming known as the BC Rail trial. Amusingly enough, this week that even seemed to apply to Justice Elizabeth Bennett who discovered the contents of court documents in the Globe and Mail while she was in Montreal. During a disclosure hearing on Wednesday, March 7, according to Mark Hume in a subsequent G&M article -

Judge Bennett opened proceedings yesterday by asking if any of the lawyers knew how a defence application for disclosure came to be leaked to The Globe and Mail last week, before it was filed with the court registry.

The judge, who has often said she scrupulously avoids news coverage of the case, said she was surprised to pick up The Globe in Montreal and find a story about materials that had not yet been set before her.

Ms. Justice Bennett, may I respectfully suggest that if you want to avoid coverage of the case, just stay in the Lower Mainland until the trial is finished. Also, stay away from blogs online and smaller papers, including out of town dailies. It's really too bad the Basi boys opted for trial by judge alone, as the jury pool in Greater Vancouver has been left blissfully unaware of the issue for the most part and seating an unbiased (or totally unaware) jury would most likely be pretty simple to effect.

The fact that this hearing even took place on Wednesday was definitely on the QT in BC as Bill Tieleman (one of the few local reporters paying attention) in Just 5 newspapers in BC report on Basi-Virk trial update at his blog, points out.

Disappointing to discover that just 5 newspapers in British Columbia bothered to report on the latest developments in the trial of David Basi and Bob Virk, two former provincial government aides charged with breach of trust.

My own newspaper, 24 hours, ran my report from the BC Supreme Court hearing Wednesday, the Globe and Mail ran a report by Mark Hume, who was also there, and the Kamloops Daily News, the Nelson Daily News and the Prince George Citizen ran stories written by Canadian Press reporter Camille Bains.

...........snip

That means neither the Vancouver Sun, the Province nor the Victoria Times-Colonist reported that the most important political criminal trial in British Columbia has been delayed again, or that serious questions were raised about the evidence and about the lack of public access to court documents.

Since Editor in Chief of the Times-Colonist, Lucinda Chodan, assured BC Mary that when there was news, they would publish it, perhaps nothing really happened. That of course begs the question or why was it relevant or of interest in Montreal, Toronto, Prince George, Kamloops and Nelson. Of course maybe people in those places are pretty bored and it doesn't take much to amuse them, unlike the Lower Mainland and Vancouver Island where the coverage of the Robert Pickton trial leaves no room for minor stuff.

Even 24 Hours, which Bill Tieleman writes for, though it doesn't totally ignore the BC Rail trial, has its regular section devoted to Pickton coverage (see left). As terrible, especially for the victims and their families, as the crimes that Willy Pickton is alleged to have committed may be, they are certainly no more important to the citizens of British Columbia than whatever is behind the Raid on the Legislature and the (hopefully) upcoming trial.

There may be fifty or more victims of the Pig Farm crimes, but virtually every citizen of BC is a potential victim of the crimes that this trial may bring to light. We are systematically, underhandedly and dishonestly having our common assets and the control over them and our destiny removed by the Soup Nazi and his cohorts and Corporate buddies for their exclusive benefit. This trial may be our only chance to look behind the curtain and perhaps effect a change in the direction of this ongoing larceny. People in this province deserve to be informed and Canned West/Glowball, as usual, should be ashamed of its typical failure to act in the interest of their readers instead of their corporate self and friends.