Quebec Summit Opens Amidst Street Violence

Quebec Summit Opens Amidst Street Violence

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The Summit of the Americas opened in Quebec on Friday evening in a bid to turn the 34- nation Western Hemisphere into the world's largest open market as Canadian police and protesters were clashing just three blocks away.

The street violence delayed by more than an hour the opening of the three-day summit, the third of its kind since 1994.

Canadian Prime Minister Jean Chretien told the opening ceremony that the violence was staged by a small group of people and ran counter to the principle of democracy. He also declared that the protesters do not represent a large majority of people who came to Quebec City for the summit.

Some protesters had taken a metal gate and used it as a battering ram to crash through the fence. They tore down sections of a three-meter-high and six-kilometer-long security fence and then began tossing hockey pucks, rocks and smoke bombs at police.

Dozens of police officers armed with batons and guns stood in a long line, forming a huge shield to guard the area where the security fence was ripped down.

Many protesters were crying and covering their faces with handkerchiefs to ward off tear gas. Police fired off gas canisters only to have demonstrators toss many of them back.

"There's no problem inside the perimeter," said Quebec provincial police spokesman Daniel Lamirande.

Smoke billowed over blocks in the heart of the old city, spreading quickly around the area near the legislature in the French-speaking city. And police were trying to disperse people into side streets as helicopters circled overhead.

The violence broke out near the Convention Center and hotel where 34 Western Hemisphere leaders, including U.S. President George Bush and Canadian Prime Minister Chretien, gathered.

Earlier on Friday, a police officer was injured by a group of protesters, later identified as members of the Black Block by the police, as he watched them head toward the perimeter.

He was hit with a blunt object, being surrounded by several demonstrators. The officer is now hospitalized.

Many stores and restaurants were boarded up or even closed in anticipation of the protesters numbering 25,000.