It wasn't a large protest rally, just 200 people in the crowd, but the message was loud and clear - Harper must stop gagging Canadian scientists.
On hand at the Victoria protest were U. Vic climate scientist, Andrew Weaver, and Green Party leader, Elizabeth May.
"We used to laugh about what was happening to science in the George W. Bush era. It pales in comparison to what is going on in Canada now," [Weaver] said. "Science is happening behind closed doors and is only made public if it fits with the government's agenda."
Canadians can no longer see the science behind climate change, fisheries and marine pollution, Weaver said, but government is pushing anything that helps oil and gas extraction, especially in the Arctic.
He said even the Arctic search for the Franklin Expedition would benefit oil and gas exploration through sea-floor mapping.
At the same time, the government has closed the Polar Environment Arctic Research Laboratory, which provided valuable climate and environmental information, Weaver said.
While Weaver said it was his duty to speak out on behalf of junior colleagues who had lost funding, another scientist spoke disguised by a false beard and sunglasses, saying he could face financial and legal problems if identified.
The Fisheries and Oceans marine contaminants program at the Institute of Ocean Sciences was drastically cut earlier this year and the scientist said Canada had lost the ability to look at the effects of pollutants in B.C. waters.
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