End standoff, Ottawa, Ontario say

Hayley Mick
Globe & Mail
Posted on 12/06/06

[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.]

Federal and provincial politicians are calling on protesters to tear down a long-standing blockade after a string of violent incidents occurred at the site of a disputed tract of land in Southern Ontario.

"The barricades need to come down," Ontario Minister for Aboriginal Affairs David Ramsay said yesterday. "[They] keep tensions at a point where you get people acting out. You get lawlessness. It's distracting."

The incidents at Caledonia, Ont., which occurred Friday night, included the swarming of an elderly couple's vehicle, and assaults on two television news cameramen from Hamilton who were filming the incident. Police say protesters also swarmed a United States Border Patrol vehicle and dragged out its three occupants.

The stolen vehicle was then used to speed toward an Ontario Provincial Police officer, who was injured as he was pulled out of its path.

The incidents were quickly condemned by Six Nations leaders. The federal and provincial governments issued a joint statement yesterday, also criticizing the recent violence and calling for an end to the standoff that began Feb. 28.

Four men and one woman are facing charges. Warrants have been issued for two other men.

"We are asking that these blockades be removed as a matter of urgency in order that the source of tensions in the communities be eliminated," said the statement from federal Indian Affairs Minister Jim Prentice and Mr. Ramsay.

With a report from Canadian Press