Natives, residents face off again in Caledonia

Dana Borcea
Torstar News Service
Jun. 5, 2006. 03:05 AM

[SISIS note: The following mainstream news article is provided for reference only, as an example of how mainstream media treats indigenous resistance to genocide. Mainstream media often presents biased and distorted information, lacking pertinent facts and/or context. Inclusion of this article on our site should not be considered an endorsement by SISIS.]

The fragile peace in Caledonia was shattered Sunday night with events apparently being sparked off by an OPP cruiser taking a wrong turn.

Hundreds of native protesters and Caledonia residents faced off again at the site of the Argyle Street barricade taken down about two weeks ago. The street was again blocked off by human barricades.

But early today there was some confusion over whether there were actually barricades up again. While news reports originally said that a blockade had gone up across the main street, Canadian Press quoted witnesses saying it was more of standoff between area residents and Six Nations protesters.

“At this point, I know that the OPP have temporarily blocked Argyle Street just to solve a little bit of a dispute,” provincial police Sgt. Dave Rektor told CP late Sunday, declining to release further details.

However later on, an OPP spokesman said early this morning that a native barricade was up again.

Caledonia residents raced from their homes to the site after word spread through town that trouble was brewing at the spot of the former checkpoint removed by natives as a goodwill gesture in the negotiations following the land claim dispute at the Douglas Street Estates.

An Ontario Provincial Police officer addressed the growing crowd, urging them to disperse to avoid further escalation. Several hundred natives were already positioned on Argyle Street a few hundred metres away.

Residents gathered there said the OPP officer told the crowd that two officers -- new to the area -- had turned onto Six Line -- an area police had agreed not to enter during this occupation.

The police cruiser was quickly surrounded by a group of natives.

The OPP officer who urged the crowd to leave had to shout to be heard over the yells of protest from the Caledonia residents who shouted things like: "Let them go first; it is their turn to go."

Jeff Hoppe, a Caledonia resident yelled to the crowd that they should disperse. Later he said: "At the end of the day, somebody has to go home. If we try to outwait them, we are going to lose."

Native spokesperson Jamie Jameson confirmed that a police cruiser had entered a no-go area.

Around midnight two flashes lit up the night sky.

Within minutes three fire trucks, sirens blaring, sped through in that direction.

There were unconfirmed reports that the flash was due to a car fire near a transformer station.

Last reports said that the natives had cleared the road but residents were still milling around.

With files from CP