No Caledonia hearing: Premier

Antonella Artuso - Queen's Park Bureau Chief
Toronto Sun
Wed, June 7, 2006

[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.]

Premier Dalton McGuinty will ignore a motion adopted by the Ontario legislature that he hold a public inquiry into the Caledonia crisis.

McGuinty called the Conservative motion "mischief-making" and accused the opposition of wanting to direct OPP actions at the standoff.

"They have not drawn the lessons that should be drawn from Ipperwash," he said yesterday.

"We will continue to pursue this matter in a way that is thoughtful, that is responsible. We will do that demonstrating patience and perseverance," he said.

The role of the previous Tory government in the Ipperwash incident -- specifically, whether it directed OPP actions -- is the subject of an inquiry called by the McGuinty government.

Unlike the Ipperwash occupation, at which native protester Dudley George was shot dead by OPP in 1995, the Caledonia situation has been "largely without incident, without injury and without war," McGuinty said.

'Barely a peep'

Conservative critic Bob Runciman called the comments "offensive."

Tory Tim Hudak noted the Caledonia occupation, in its 100th day today, has so far resulted in a riot, an electrical blackout and extensive property damage.

"And what have we seen from this premier? Barely a peep from beneath his desk," Hudak said.

Natives with the Six Nations community took over a housing subdivision construction site in Caledonia in February, arguing that the land rightfully belongs to them.

Conservative Leader John Tory introduced the motion that accused the McGuinty government of mismanaging the crisis and called for a full public inquiry.

Although defeating the motion should have been a straightforward matter for the McGuinty majority, the handful of Liberal MPPs in the legislature failed to stand when required.

NDP House leader Peter Kormos said the Liberal MPPs were "too busy playing with their BlackBerries" to pay attention. "They screwed up. They're weren't doing their job," he said.