‘I understand security realities in Canada,’ says CIJA community safety director

Ryan Hartman, CIJA’s new national director of community safety, served for 25 years in the Canadian Armed Forces
Ryan Hartman, CIJA’s national director of community safety, served for 25 years in the Canadian Armed Forces.

Ryan Hartman is a 41-year-old native of Ottawa who served in the Canadian Armed Forces for 25 years. Rising to the rank of major, he served four tours of duty in Afghanistan, as well as in Yugoslavia as an infantry officer and in another capacity he won’t disclose. Two months ago, he was named national director of community safety by the Centre for Israel and Jewish Affairs (CIJA). He spoke to The CJN during a recent visit to Toronto.

Why did you enlist in the military and what roles did you have?

I joined initially for altruistic reasons, a little bit of youth and interest in adventure. I’m an ardent patriot. I’m quite proud to be Canadian, and I feel the best way to demonstrate that is to give back to the country. I joined as a private soldier, went to the rank of sergeant, and then commissioned when I was in university, meaning I became an officer. I went through all the officer training and experience, and today I’m at the rank of major. I’m deputy commanding officer of the Stormont Dundas and Glengarry Highlanders, which is an infantry battalion within 33 Canadian Brigade Group.

How does your experience in the military help you deal with security issues in  the Jewish community?

The military gave me the opportunity to look at things systematically, to have a very critical eye, particularly in security regards. The fundamentals of security, whether it’s in a civilian community application, whether it’s anti-crime, anti-terror or whether it’s in a military context and combat operations in Central Asia, the baseline factors are the same. My military experience and education have given me the tools to use that in a civilian application and civilian security.

What is your mandate? Is it to protect buildings, individuals or both?

Very broadly, it’s the Jewish community – everything from individuals and our pattern of life in the community, whether it be schools, old age homes, community centres, so it includes infrastructure. That’s the target-hardening process and making sure we have security to mitigate everything from criminal activity to demonstrations, to make life safe for Canadian Jews to go about their regular business in the community. But it’s also about educating the community to the realities of security. That includes everything from the way they conduct themselves as citizens to training our professional staff.

Are you limited to the major population centres?

I have a mandate to assist and provide support to the entire Canadian Jewish community, from the largest demographic footprint in the GTA, to the smallest community in St. John’s, Nfld. So if there are individuals or community groups that need assistance , security advice, or even if it’s a matter of putting them in touch with local law enforcement or local security resources for them, that’s my mandate.

A few years ago the Jewish community became more security conscious and put up fences, camera systems and hired guards. Are we in a good position now in terms of security?

I think it’s an unfortunate reality that the Jewish community, internationally, is targeted, particularly with hate crimes and anti-Semitism. I think our security posture and vigilance is probably more robust than the average community in the West and in Canada. I think we have a heightened awareness, and security resources from federations and other community organizations have been put in place, so yes, we are definitely above the national average for security. Is there room for improvement? There’s always room for improvement nationally.

Where are the threats coming from?

Internationally, when events occur in Israel or western Europe, there’s a ripple effect. We feel it. Jews are targeted.

In Canada, we’re very fortunate to live in a very open and free society that has a fantastic existing security infrastructure. Our national security agencies are very proactive and robust, not as overt as some people might like, but that’s the reality of Canada.

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The threats that are posed are mainly criminal or hate-group oriented. The worst-case scenario is of international terrorism. You can never get to a zero state of threat, but I don’t believe it’s at a state right now in Canada where we would have to increase our security network or infrastructure beyond what it currently is.

You’ve mentioned events in the Middle East causing security concerns in Canada. Was the Jewish community in imminent danger during those times?

I think there’s been heightened concern and you’ll see in overt demonstrations, whether it’s protests or whatever, there’s verbal hostility from certain demographics in the country. But targeted threats to Jewish community infrastructure or individuals, I’m not aware of any. Outside the parameters of operational security, those wouldn’t be shared broadly anyway.

There was an attack not long ago by a guy wielding a knife at a Canadian Forces recruiting office in Toronto, not far from Jewish community buildings. If it can happen there, can’t it happen a few miles away, too? Unforeseen threats can happen anywhere. Threats exist. What we need to do is mitigate the risks from those threats. That means training, vigilance, and security infrastructure implementation.

Does the fact that you’re still a member of the Canadian Armed Forces help you when you liaise with the security establishment?

I understand Canadian security culture. I’ve worked with the Canadian security services as a uniformed military member. I’ve worked with other national agencies quite intimately. I think having that professional rapport and speaking that professional language opens doors quite a bit. It brings that credibility to the table. I understand the legislation and the realities of security in Canada. That’s crucial, particularly when we want to build relationships with our security partners, and with our messaging, to ensure the Jewish community understands the reality of how we can prepare ourselves, react and mitigate the risks.

Do you go to organizations to talk to staff, to check the buildings?

There’s the information dissemination piece and there’s also a practical training opportunity. We provide everything from a security infrastructure audit, which means somebody’s put resources aside and are planning to do some upgrades and they want third-party advice to identify gaps. At the other end of the spectrum, we provide training for security professionals.