http://www.canoe.ca/CNEWSTopNews/summit_jul21-ap.html

"It's a tragic loss of life," said U.S. President George W. Bush. But he repeated his contention that "those protesters who try to shut down our talks on trade and aid don't represent the poor."

[What, and he does???????]

Prime Minister Jean Chretien defended the right to peaceful protest but questioned the violent tactics.

"We are the elected leaders of democracies," he said Friday. "We organize meetings to talk with some of these (non-governmental) leaders. But they cannot replace the governments ... democratically elected. That is a reality in life."

The clashes erupted as a peaceful procession of up to 100,000 people moved along a seaside boulevard.

By early evening, at least 228 people, including 73 police and several journalists had been hurt, authorities said.
Police said the severity of injuries to police led authorities to level the attempted murder charge, which carries a penalty of up to 25 years in prison. The bulk of those arrested were Italians, but also included protesters from Germany, France, Spain, Switzerland, Greece and the United States.
Meanwhile, Italian authorities said they were contemplating manslaughter charges against a paramilitary officer, 20, in connection with Friday's shooting of a 23-year-old protester. The policeman was hospitalized for shock.

The umbrella group that organized the massive street protests, the Genoa Social Forum, demanded the resignation of Italy's interior minister, who oversees the security forces.

While the protest organizers decided against scaling back Saturday's marches, some individual groups pulled out, citing the dangers.

"After the violence of yesterday's demonstrations, we can no longer guarantee the safety of our demonstrators," said Andrew Pendleton, a spokesman for the British branch of the group Christian Aid.

The Genoa protests, meanwhile, provoked sympathetic demonstrations in Canada, Greece, Germany, Mexico, Spain, France and Sweden.

In TORONTO, about 400 protesters converged on the Italian consulate on Saturday. The rally followed a candlelight vigil in the city on Friday, which commemorated the killing in Genoa.

A small group of protesters also paraded through downtown MONTREAL to that city's Italian consulate.

"We see now that this is the globalization of violence," said protester Dave Bernans, who promised demonstrations when the G-8 comes to Canada next year. "We're going to be there."

In VANCOUVER, about 400 protesters gathered at the Italian consulate, in what organizers called a "peaceful protest in solidarity with the Genoa demonstration".

Similar demonstrations were organized around the world. In FRANCE, some 300 people stood outside of the Italian embassy in Paris chanting, "G-8, assassins!"

Several hundred protesters in GERMANY staged an impromptu rally at the Italian embassy in BERLIN, while in BONN, the site of an international climate change conference, environmental protesters already gathered held a moment of silence. Smaller protests resulting in at least 13 arrests broke out in COLOGNE, HAMBURG and MAGDEBURG.

About 1,000 people gathered in GREECE, some chanting "murderers, murderers." Fighting between police and demonstrators broke out in front of a European Union building near the country's parliament in Athens.

In MEXICO, dozens of protesters threw rotten eggs and chicken innards at the Italian embassy in Mexico City, while about 200 people in Spain protested in the streets of Madrid.

Three people were arrested in SWEDEN before a rally on suspicion of illegal possession of weapons. Police confiscated tear gas, knives and truncheons.