Province appoints David Peterson to help resolve Caledonia situation

Canada NewsWire
Saturday, April 29, 2006

[SISIS note: The following government announcement is provided for reference only. Inclusion of this statement on our site should not be considered an endorsement by SISIS.]

Attention News Editors:

TORONTO, April 29 /CNW/ - The Ontario Government has named David Peterson as the Provincial Lead to help find solutions to immediate problems in Caledonia. Peterson will focus on urgent concerns, aiming to restore calm and return the community to normal conditions, paving the way for discussions on the longer term, underlying issues.

"The protest has been felt in all parts of the community and we must find a way to deal with these immediate issues," said David Ramsay, Minister Responsible for Aboriginal Affairs. "With Mr. Peterson working closely with Six Nations and the community on finding short term solutions, others can focus on some of the root causes of the protest."

Reporting to David Ramsay, Peterson will begin his work immediately. Brian Dominique will assist Peterson as deputy lead of this effort to deal with the immediate issues.

Canada and Ontario are committed to naming federal and provincial representatives later this week to address long term issues as was promised through the three-party agreement signed April 21.

In addition to the efforts of Peterson, provincial staff will continue to work with the municipality and business leaders. The province is also discussing what other types of assistance might be needed to help the community recover. On Friday the province made a commitment to the developer and builders for immediate funding assistance related to the Douglas Creek Estates.

"We think these steps will help us achieve a balanced solution that is fair to all parties," said Ramsay. "We are optimistic we can have an early, peaceful resolution to the immediate issues."

Members of the public can keep informed by calling the province's toll- free number 1-866-876-7672 the TTY number at 1-800-387-5559, Monday through Friday from 8:30 a.m. to 5 p.m.

Disponible en français

www.aboriginalaffairs.osaa.gov.on.ca

For further information: Ginette Albert, Minister's Office, (416) 315-8812