OTTAWA - Military officials kept an eye on an outspoken opponent of the Afghanistan war last year and originally denied the surveillance took place.

But in a report on the public comments of defence analyst Steve Staples military officials determined support for the mission was still high and his criticism does "not seem to resonate" with the public and media.

Defence Department officials originally denied the documents, requested by the Ottawa Citizen under the Access to Information Act, even existed. But an investigation by the information commissioner revealed the e-mails and a report on the activities of Staples had indeed been compiled by the military.

The report was sent to 50 officers including two brigadier generals.

The release comes as the Defence Department finds itself dealing with charges from critics that Gen. Rick

Hillier, chief of the defence staff, has ordered a sweeping crackdown to block the release of all files on the Afghanistan mission requested under the access to information law.

Defence officials have denied that is the case and Ward Elcock, the department's deputy minister, issued a statement pointing out the organization understands the importance of providing information to the public.

The military report on Staples, of the Ottawa-based Rideau Institute on International Affairs, details his speech to a Halifax peace group last year and his views on Afghanistan and Hillier's plans to move the military away from peacekeeping and into more combat-oriented roles. It stated Staples's presentation did not seem to resonate with those attending the speech, but pointed out he was expected to give other talks across the country.

It recommended the military be prepared to counter Staples' arguments.

"Everyone engaged with communicating on Afghanistan should be made aware of his arguments so that they can be better prepared to deal with them," recommended the report to Lt.-Col. Jacques Poitras at National Defence headquarters.

In an interview, Staples said the military had overstepped its bounds, but he is not surprised by such actions.

"This is what happens when you have a different viewpoint on Afghanistan than the government and the generals," he said.

Staples said it is not the military's role to sell the mission and challenge those who don't disagree with it. That is the job of elected officials, he added.

Every federal government department has a communications department with a role to monitor relevant public debate.

Army spokesman Lt.-Col. Chris Lemay said officers were simply doing their job. "It was fair game to know what was out there," he said. "Our job is to make sure we are aware of the information that is floating in the public domain."

Lemay said he was not aware if the military followed up on the recommendation to prepare to counter Staples's arguments.

Staples, who has criticized the war on TV and in print articles, said such activities set a dangerous precedent. "I don't hide what I have to say, but I wonder what type of message this sends to others who might want to speak out publicly," he said.

But Lemay said there is no regular program to monitor analysts who discuss defence issues and during that period on the East Coast only Staples's presentation was attended by an officer. At the time, East Coast military personnel were getting ready for a mission to Afghanistan, he added.

Lemay did not have any information why military officials at first denied the records existed.

Privately, officers have said that since Canadian troops are at war, Staples's criticisms are not welcome or helpful.

This week has seen other questions raised about the military's policy of openness and transparency.

Critics, including Liberal MP Denis Coderre, have taken the Defence Department to task for its recent creation of the Strategic Joint Staff, a group designed to further review records released under the Access to Information law.

Media reports this week pointed out all files requested under the access law related to Afghanistan, including details about the potential abuse of prisoners, are now being withheld on Hillier's orders.

The access legislation allows Canadians to request government records by paying a $5 fee per request. Since the government has several dozen reasons it can employ to censor material, users of the law note few real sensitive pieces of information are ever released.

Military spokesman Lt.-Col. Jamie Robertson said no reports are being withheld.

He said the review is only for records which have potential operational security implications and the process follows the provisions of the access law.

But a source disputed that claim. The joint staff has ordered that even previously released files be reviewed before they can be released again to the public. Files subject to another round of reviews range from records about veterans exposed to nuclear weapons testing in the 1950s to a file on a 1995 court martial in British Columbia.