In one year, 100 people contacted us, officially or unofficially. In addition, some imams work with us on networks, and sometimes, an imam refers a case to us. We thought about creating a hotline, but we realized people are afraid of anything official. They're much more inclined to confide if there's a bond of trust.
We tried to build networks that included different people.
Certain people tend to turn toward the mosque or a more secular association. Others contact me as part of my radio program. After the show, someone might call me. It's a parent who wants to talk to me about his son. We find this strategy much more effective. When it's official, people tend to get worried about the procedure they must follow to make a call. They end up wondering if they are calling a second police station, or whether someone will help them.
In some cases, we thought things were beyond the prevention stage. So we called the authorities, and lawyers, so they would look after the matter. They answered that it was okay, that there was nothing to worry about, that it was a good thing to have informed them, and that the matter was taken care of.
I'd like to come back to the question of information management. What is that? For the moment, we trust the RCMP and the people who work with us. If this bond of trust is broken, it will set things back 10 years. It's important for the people in the community. We need people to believe security is their problem too, and that we're not against them. We don't want to push someone who isn't causing problems into causing some so they'll be arrested. That should be the main underlying philosophy of our laws, and of any bills introduced in the future.