Police preparing The Honolulu Police Department is preparing for a small group of violent protesters it believes may be heading to the Asian Development Bank conference at the Hawaii Convention Center May 7-11.
for violent protesters
at Asian Bank meeting
But a local group opposed
By Nelson Daranciang
to the bank says no such
protests are planned
Star-BulletinAssistant Police Chief Boisse Correa said yesterday the group caused millions in damage at the 1999 World Trade Organization meeting in Seattle and also caused problems at last year's Democratic Party and Republican Party conventions in Los Angeles and Philadelphia, respectively.
"They're very smart; they're well organized," he said. "They actually separate and grid out a location and assign people in different areas to work with larger groups and try to infiltrate in that way." Correa believes the majority of the protesters will be peaceful.But ADBwatch, a network of local organizations and individuals opposed to the ADB, said police are overreacting.
"The way they're reacting is setting up an atmosphere of paranoia," said Carolyn Hatfield.
She said no groups here are making preparations for violent protests. And she believes national protest groups will concentrate their efforts on other meetings on the mainland.
"We're hoping that these people go somewhere else, leave us alone and let us run a peaceful Asian Development Bank conference," Correa said. "If it is less than peaceful, we are prepared to handle that."
Honolulu police have been training for the meeting since last summer. Correa said police will use Ala Wai Community Park and Ala Moana Beach Park to provide security for the ADB. However, he is not saying how many officers will be involved.
Correa said some streets will be closed during the meeting. They could include portions of Atkinson Drive and Kapiolani Boulevard that face the convention center's large glass windows.
"We are majorly concerned about the glass in the convention center," Correa said. "It's a big-time issue with us, and we have expressed those concerns to the state and the convention center."
The state and the Hawaii Tourism Authority -- not Honolulu police -- are taking responsibility for security at the convention center.
ADB officials expect 3,000 people will attend next month's meeting. ADBwatch has applied for a permit for a march and rally on May 9 for 5,000 to 7,000 protesters, but members are not sure how many participants there will be.